Mr. Cooper is the founding partner of the firm. He graduated from Vermont Law School with a J.D. in 1995, where he was an Editor of the Vermont Law Review. During his career as a litigator for over twenty (20) years, he has handled thousands of cases from inception through disposition. He has practiced in New York State Supreme Court, the Appellate Divisions of the New York Supreme Court, and the Federal District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York. He has also argued before the New York State’s highest court, the New York Court of Appeals. Mr. Cooper has lectured on the topic of wage theft in New York at LaGuardia Community College. Since he formed Cilenti & Cooper, PLLC in 2009, Mr. Cooper’s practice has been largely devoted to representing individuals who are unable to pay for the services of an attorney.

Deena R. Merlen is a Partner at the firm. She serves clients at both our New York and Stamford offices and heads the Connecticut practice. Her practice areas include intellectual property, employment and labor law, media and entertainment, general business law, commercial transactions and dispute resolution. In her employment practice, Ms. Merlen is a trusted “go to” problem solver and counsel to individuals, established name brand companies and startups alike. She has extensive experience representing clients in matters including general counseling, discrimination actions, mediations and dispute resolution, investigations by federal or state agencies, as well as wage and hour claims and other labor law matters. She also advises on and regularly negotiates employment and separation agreements, independent contractor arrangements and other services-related arrangements. Ms. Merlen also counsels clients on employment and business matters in response to a crisis or other unexpected business impact, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting business closures, including continuity plans, employee furloughs, reductions in force and other critical measures. In her intellectual property practice, Ms. Merlen helps her clients with the development, acquisition and protection of their valuable brands and other vital intellectual property assets. She manages and grows trademark portfolios in the U.S. and internationally; negotiates licensing, assignment, distribution and branding agreements; prosecutes trademark and copyright registrations; enforces intellectual property rights; and provides strategic counsel to safeguard brand platforms and expand the value of her clients’ intellectual property assets. Ms. Merlen’s media practice encompasses the development and protection of creative works in the fields of music, film, television, theatre, publishing, literary arts, performing arts, design and technology. She ran her own business in the entertainment industry for over a decade and brings that business experience and acumen to her legal practice. In addition, Ms. Merlen provides general business counsel and represents clients in company and transactional matters such as partnerships, joint ventures, licensing arrangements, the purchase or sale of businesses, and a wide range of other corporate matters, including company formation, capitalization and governance, compliance and contracts. Representative clients include technology companies, schools and other academic institutions, personal care and beauty companies, fashion and design companies, media, arts and entertainment companies, wholesalers, retailers and more. Prior to her work with RPJ, Ms. Merlen served as Law Clerk to The Honorable Roger J. Miner of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, after which she joined Debevoise & Plimpton, where she practiced for over five years in the areas of corporate law and intellectual property. Ms. Merlen is admitted to practice in Connecticut and New York.

Dmitry Levitsky began his legal career almost fourteen years ago. Throughout these years, he worked for numerous law firms where he developed and sharpened his skills by assisting top-notch trial attorneys in representing clients in high-stakes personal injury matters. Dmitry received an excellent legal training and experience while working as a case manager and paralegal at Lozner & Mastropietro — New York’s leading boutique personal injury firm. In addition, while working for the Law Office of Yuriy Prakhin as a negotiator, he participated in many successful large-sum settlements and led the firm’s negotiation team during the course of complex mediation proceedings. During his senior year of law school, Dmitry gained invaluable experience while being an extern at the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office. Now, Dmitry dedicates his knowledge and passion to representing clients in personal injury legal matters. His unique strategic and personalized approach has helped numerous clients achieve favorable disposition in their cases and controversies. In addition to being an attorney, Dmitry also enjoys traveling around the globe, watching football, soccer, hockey, among other things. Dmitry can speak English, Russian, and Ukrainian.