BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) – The new business ventures for the former "Cellino and Barnes" founders have officially begun.
The Barnes Firm, founded by the late-Steve Barnes, officially launched Monday while Ross Cellino's "Cellino Law" launched over the weekend.
"At The Barnes Firm, we've built an exceptional team of trusted trial attorneys with the experience to get our clients the best result possible," Richard Barnes, President of The Barnes Firm, said in a statement.
"I look forward to building upon our legal team's many decades of successes, especially as we move forward and honor the legacy of my brother and Firm founder Steve Barnes."
The breakup of "Cellino and Barnes" lasted several years and was finalized earlier this year.
Tragedy then struck earlier this month when Steve Barnes died in a plane crash in the Town of Pembroke. The cause of that crash is still under investigation.
"All of the excitement we are having here at Cellino Law is certainly tempered by the tragic loss of Steve Barnes and his neice, Elizabeth Barnes, in that horrible plane crash," Gregory Pajak, a managing attorney at Cellino Law, told WBEN. "We're all friends and colleagues. Some family here.
The fact of the matter is that it does weigh down on this…Knowing Steve Barnes as I did, he would be the first one to say 'carry on and do what needs to be done to service the clients.' We look forward to doing that."
Pajak said the transition from Cellino and Barnes to Cellino Law will be relatively easy because Cellino's name came first in the former name.
"I think most people will naturally understand that Cellino Law is Ross Cellino from Cellino and Barnes," Pajak said.
Advertisements began in their respective markets on Monday.
The Barnes Firm's phone number is 1-800-800-0000. Cellino Law's phone number is 888-2020.
