2020 NYS Bar Association

Phil Pulaski served in the New York City Police Department (NYPD) for more than 33
years. He was sworn in as an NYPD Police Officer in September 1980 after he earned a
Juris Doctor degree from St. John’s University School of Law at night and passed the
New York State Bar Exam. When Phil Pulaski retired from the NYPD in 2014, he had
served for more than 4 years as Chief of Detectives. Prior to being promoted to Chief of
Detectives, Phil Pulaski was the Deputy Commissioner of Operations, and he also was
commanding officer of several large commands including the Intelligence Division,
Counterterrorism Bureau, FBI / NYPD Joint Terrorist Task Force, Detective Borough
Manhattan, Detective Borough Bronx, Special Investigations Division and Forensic
Investigations Division. Phil Pulaski also served as a Managing Attorney in the Legal
Bureau, and practiced law for the NYPD for 30 years writing numerous NYPD legal
opinions and providing a significant amount of legal training. Following his retirement
from the NYPD, Phil Pulaski received a Master of Laws (LLM) advanced law degree
from Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law School. While studying for his LLM
degree, he maintained a 4.0 GPA and graduated summa cum laude. Additionally, Phil
Pulaski is a member of the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA)
For more than 140 years, the NYSBA has been the “voice of the legal profession in New
York State”. The mission of the NYSBA is to “shape the development of law, educate
and inform the public, and respond to the demands of our diverse and ever changing legal
profession.” The NYSBA advocates for state and federal legislation and works tirelessly
to promote equal access to justice for all including sponsoring a robust pro bono private
practitioner legal services program. The NYSBA has more than 20 Sections that focus on
various areas of legal practice including torts, real property, labor and criminal justice.
During the past several months, the NYSBA has provided lawyer assistance programs to
help lawyers, judges, law students and their families cope with the significant changes to
the legal system produced by the COVID-19 pandemic. The NYSBA offers confidential
assistance and peer support online and via the telephone. The NYSBA publishes COVID-
19 information and updates on their website along with tips for stress management,
efficiently managing a law practice while working remotely at home and
recommendations for minimizing health risks.
marks a century and a half of advocating

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