| Cellino & Barnes | |
| Headquarters: | Buffalo, New York |
| Num Offices: | 6 |
| Practice Areas: | Personal injury |
| Date Founded: | May 6, 1998 |
| Founder: | Ross Cellino Jr. Steve Barnes |
| Company Type: | Professional corporation |
| Dissolved: | June 2020 |
| Website: | https://www.cellinoandbarnes.com/ |
Cellino & Barnes was an American personal injury law firm which was based in Buffalo, New York. It was founded in 1998 by Ross Cellino Jr. and Steve Barnes, and dissolved in 2020 shortly before the death of Steve Barnes.
Cellino & Barnes traced its history back to a law firm founded by Cellino's father, Cellino & Likoudis, in 1958. (Ross Cellino's brother Tony would found a plumbing and HVAC company.[1]) The firm was well known nationally for their distinctive jingle, which became an internet meme.[2] The firm had offices across New York State, including New York City, and also in Los Angeles.[3] In 2017, Cellino & Barnes had 50 attorneys and 250 employees in their offices.[4] During their partnership, Cellino and Barnes made loans to clients with interest, with both lawyers aware and participating. Cellino would be suspended from practicing for 19 months. Tensions between the partners grew over the rejection of Cellino’s daughter Jeanna by Steve Barnes. Their communication resorted to passive aggressive emails in lieu of in-person screaming.[5] Upon the dissolution of the firm in June 2020, the two attorneys formed separate agencies: Cellino Law and the Barnes Firm.[6]
On October 2, 2020, Barnes, along with his niece Elizabeth, was killed in the crash of a TBM 700 single-engine private airplane in Pembroke, Genesee County, New York.[7] [8] [9] He was 61 years old. Upon his death, Barnes' brother Rich Barnes took over as the head and face of the Barnes Firm.