Attorney Jeffrey M. Donofrio
Managing Partner
Attorney Jeffrey M. Donofrio has been a commercial litigation attorney in Connecticut since 1990. Mr. Donofrio began his career at Tyler Cooper & Alcorn in New Haven, where he practiced commercial litigation, construction law, and municipal law until leaving to form Ciulla & Donofrio, LLP on November 1, 1996 with Robert K. Ciulla. Jeffrey Donofrio is admitted to the bars of Connecticut, the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. He is a graduate of Boston College and the Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law.
Jeffrey Donofrio represents businesses and public agencies of all sizes, including municipalities, construction contractors, financial institutions, telecommunications companies insurance companies, service companies, and other types of businesses in a wide variety of civil litigation, including complex litigation, construction law, municipal law, contract law, and business torts. Jeff Donofrio is the Town Attorney for Towns of Berlin, and Cheshire, respectively, and also provides a la carte legal services to several municipalities in Connecticut. Since June 1, 2008, Jeffrey Donofrio has served as the Consumer Affairs Officer for the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority.
Jeff has extensive experience with all types of alternative dispute resolution and also serves as a mediator and arbitration in commercial contract and construction disputes.
Jeffrey Donofrio enjoys an AV rating, Martindale-Hubbell’s highest rating for legal ability and ethical standards, and has been rated AV every year since he first received a rating in 2000. Jeff been selected by Benchmark as a Local Litigation Star for several years and was also selected in 2007 as a fellow by the Litigation Counsel of America. Jeff is an annual selection in Super Lawyers and was selected in 2020 by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America. ©
Jeffrey Donofrio has presented seminars to groups such as the New Haven County Bar Association, the Connecticut Bar Association, the Bank Compliance Association of Connecticut, Lorman Educational Services, Half Moon Education, the Connecticut Public Purchasing Association, and the National Business Institute in the areas of construction law, procurement law, creditors’ rights litigation, legal technology, mediation, contract law, and prejudgment/post-judgment remedies. Jeffrey Donofrio has also written numerous articles published in the Connecticut Law Tribune and Connecticut Lawyer, focusing on construction law and legal technology topics. In 2013, Jeff authored Chapter One of Thomson Reuters’ Inside the Minds: Representing Municipalities in Litigation.
Throughout his adult life, Jeff has been active in the community, serving as a director, council member or trustee for several non-profit organizations, including the Sleeping Giant Park Association, the North Haven Education Foundation, the North Haven Republican Town Committee, the Parish Council of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, the Fairfield College Preparatory School Alumni Association, and the Saint Raphael Foundation (a member of the St. Raphael Healthcare System). Jeff served eight years as an elected official in Trumbull, serving two years on the Town Council and six years on the Board of Education.
Jeffrey Donofrio is the past Chairman of the Legal Technology Committee of the Connecticut Bar Association and is a member of the Executive Committee of the CBA’s Small Firm Law Practice Management Section. Mr. Donofrio is also a member of the American Bar Association (Litigation Section, Forum on the Construction Industry, Law Practice Management Section, and Construction Litigation Committee), the Connecticut Bar Association (Litigation, Construction Law, Commercial Law, and Small Firm Practice Management Sections) and the New Haven County Bar Association. Jeffrey Donofrio also serves as a Special Master in Connecticut Superior Court for tax appeal matters and as a mediator/arbitrator in commercial litigation and construction disputes. Jeffrey is a former member of the Municipal Law, Liability, and Insurance Committee of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, a member of the Connecticut Association of Municipal Attorneys, the Connecticut Building Congress, and the Connecticut Construction Industry Association.
| Contact Information | |
| Location: | North Haven, Connecticut |
| Phone: | 203-239-9828 |
| Fax: | 203-234-0379 |
| Year Joined Firm: | 1996 |
| Areas of Practice: | Commercial/Business Litigation Insurance Coverage Litigation Construction Law and Litigation Municipal Law Property Tax Appeals Arbitration and Mediation State and Federal Court Appeals Civil Litigation Creditors’ Rights Law Internet Defamation Law |
| Litigation Percentage: | 80% of Practice Devoted to Litigation |
| Bar Admissions: | Connecticut, 1990 U.S. District Court District of Connecticut, 1991 U.S. Court of Appeals 2nd Circuit, 1994 U.S. Court of Federal Claims, 1995 |
| Education: | Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, Washington, District of Columbia J.D. – May, 1990 Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts B.A. – May, 1987 |
| Published Works: | Cybersmear If You Dare…..But Be Prepared to Pay, Connecticut Lawyer, November, 2007 Eat Your Vegetables, Connecticut Lawyer, August, 2007 Hiring Construction Managers Easier Said than Done, Connecticut Law Tribune, December, 2006 Tools of the Trade for the 21st Century Litigator, Connecticut Lawyer, March, 2003 How to Improve Odds of a Successful Construction Project, Business New Haven, November, 2005 Legal Technology Review, Connecticut Law Tribune, March, 2001 Highlights of the Y2K Act, Connecticut Lawyer, October, 1999 Get the Bug Spray Ready, Connecticut Lawyer, October, 1998 Beware of the Delete Button, CONNstruction Magazine, 2011 Inside the Minds: Municipal Litigation, Aspatore Publishing (Thomson Reuters), 2013 |
| Representative Cases: | Peter Rock Associates v. Town of North Haven, 59 Conn. App.1 (2000) Woodwinds v. Dimeo, 229 F.3d 1136 (2000) SNET v. Pagano, 79 Conn. App. 458 (2003) Citizens Communications v. Trustmark Insurance Company, 303 F 2d. 197 (2004) Mortgage Lenders Network USA v. Coresource, 335 F. Supp. 2d 313 (D.Conn. 2004) West Haven Housing Authority v. CB Alexander Real Estate, LLC, 2007 WL 346031 (Conn. Super. 2007) Bergami v. Town of Hamden, 39 Conn. L. Rptr. 718 (Conn. Super. 2005) White Way Laundry v. F&W Equipment Corp., 40 Conn, L. Rptr. 488 (Conn. Super. 2005) SNET v. City of Milford, 2003 WL 22708896 (Conn. Super. 2003) Corn v. Protective Life Insurance Co., 1998 WL 51783 (D. Conn. 1998) SNET v. Coho, 2006 WL 2867884 (Conn. Super. 2006) West Haven Housing Authority v. CB Alexander Real Estate, et al., 107 Conn. App. 167, 944 A.2d 1010 (Appellate 2008) |
| Representative Clients: | AT&T Associated Boiler Line Equipment Co. A/Z Corp. Centerplan Construction City of Milford City of New Haven Deep River Housing Authority Downes Construction Company Town of East Haven EDENS F&F Mechanical F&W Equipment Corp. Frontier Communications Gap, Inc. Generation Drywall Joseph Cohn & Son Connecticut Acoustics Construction Resources Construx J.A. Rosa Construction Co. Key Bank Kimco Realty Corp. Litchfield Builders Mack Fire Protection Simoniz USA South Central Connecticut Council of Governments South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority Southern New England Telephone Company Telos Companies Tilcon Connecticut Town of Cheshire Town of Berlin Town of Guilford Town of Hamden Town of North Haven Webster Bank, N.A. City of West Haven |
| Classes/Seminars: | Construction Defects (N.E.C.E.A., 2020) Your Town Needs a New or Renovated Municipal Building - What Cements Its Success (CCM Convention, 2019) Construction Law, 2019 (Half Moon Education) Construction Contracts: What to Know, 2018 (CMAA) Construction Law: Advanced Issues and Answers, 2017 (NBI) Construction Law 101 for Paralegals, 2017 (IPE) Construction Law for Public Projects, 2016 (Half Moon) Public Procurement for Connecticut Construction Projects, 2015 (PPAP) Construction Management and Project Delivery, 2015 (Lorman) Construction Law, November 2014 (HalfMoon Education) School Construction in Connecticut in 2014: Safety, Security and More, (March 2014) State and Local Government Law in Connecticut, February 2012 (NBI) Construction Claims in Connecticut, August 2001 (Lorman Educational Services) Construction Management/Design Build in Connecticut, August 2003 and 2004 and December 2005 (Lorman) Insurance, Liens and Bonds in Connecticut, April 2005 (Lorman) Comprehensive Construction Law in Connecticut, October 2005 (Lorman) Insurance, Liens and Bonds in Connecticut, 2006 (Lorman) Getting Paid for Construction Work in Connecticut, June 2009 (National Business Institute) Construction Defects, May and September 2008 (NBI) Advanced Construction Law, Connecticut Construction Law: What Do You Do When….? and Construction Payment Remedies in Connecticut, October 1997, April 1998, March 1999, September 1999, March 2000, March 2001, November 2001, and November 2002 (NBI) Construction Law Fundamentals: Managing Project Risk, 2007 (NBI) Construction Defect Claims, National Teleconference and Webcast, January 2008 and June 2008 (NBI) Resolving Problems and Disputes on Construction Projects, 2007 (NBI) Special Proceedings and More, April 2011 (with The Honorable Angela Robinson) (New Haven County Bar Association) Special Proceedings and More, April 2005 (with The Honorable Patty Jenkins Pittman) (NHCBA) Mediation Tips and Pointers, March 2004 (with The Honorable Beverly Hodgson) (NHCBA) Everything You Need to Know About Real Property Tax Appeals, 1994 (NHCBA) Foreclosures, the FDIC and the Financial Institution Reform Recovery and Enforcement Act (FIRREA), March 1993 (with The Honorable Donald Celotto and Denis Caron) (NHCBA) Legal Sources on the Internet, March 2000 (NHCBA) Y2k Problem Seminars, November 1998, February 1999, June 1999, and November 1999 (Connecticut Bar Association) Legal Sources on the Internet, January 2001, October 2001, and June 2002 (CBA) Practical and Affordable Technology in Connecticut's Courts: Today's Realities – Tomorrow’s Visions, April 2003 (CBA) Practice Management Tips for the New and Established Solo and Small Firm Practitioner, November 2009 (CBA) Using Computers to Avoid Malpractice, June 2004 (CBA) Dare to Go Digital, June 2011 (CBA, Annual Meeting) |
| Honors and Awards: | AV Rating, Martindale-Hubbell’s Highest Rating, 2000 – Present Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers, Martindale Hubbell, 2004 – Present Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America Go To Law Firm for America’s Largest Companies, 2008 Benchmark Local Litigation Star, 2013 |
| Professional Associations and Memberships: | Connecticut Bar Association, Chairman, Legal Technology Committee, 2000 – 2010 Connecticut Bar Association, Commercial Law, Construction Law & Litigation Sections, Member, 1991 – Present New Haven County Bar Association, Member, 1990 – Present Connecticut Bar Association, Executive Committee, Small Firm Practice Management Section, 2010 – Present American Bar Association, Litigation Section, Member, 1997 – Present American Bar Association, Law Practice Management Section, Member, 1997 – Present American Bar Association, Member, Forum on the Construction Industry, 1995 – Present American Bar Association, Member, Construction Litigation Committee, 1996 – Present Town of North Haven Republican Town Committee, Member, 2000 – 2010 Fairfield Prep Alumni Association, Director, 1999 – 2005 Sleeping Giant Park Association, Director, 1992 – 2011 North Haven Education Foundation, Director, 2004 – 2010 Connecticut Association of Municipal Attorneys, Member, 2003 – Present Connecticut Council of Small Towns, Member, 2013-Present Connecticut Construction Industry Association, Member, 2007 – Present Connecticut Conference of Municipalities Committee on Municipality Law Liability and Insurance, Member, 2005 – 2008 Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish Council, Council Member, 2006 – 2010 American Bar Association, 1990 – Present Trumbull Town Council, 2011 – 2013 Trumbull Board of Education, 2013-2019 Hospital of St. Raphael Foundation, Trustee, 2009 – 2014 |
| Past Employment Positions: | Tyler Cooper & Alcorn, Associate, September 6, 1990 – November 1, 1996 |