HARVEY B. BESUNDER has been practicing law since 1967 and has been a partner in MargolinBesunder since 2010. He concentrates his practice in condemnation and tax certiorari, real property, estate and municipal litigation, and professional responsibility matters. He has an “AV” attorney rating from Martindale-Hubbell.
Mr. Besunder began his career in the public sector in Suffolk County as a law clerk to District Court judges and as an assistant county attorney in the Family Court and Condemnation bureaus. He has been in private practice since 1980 and has been a partner in firms in Smithtown, Riverhead and Hauppauge.
Mr. Besunder is a past president of the Suffolk County Bar Association, and has chaired the Condemnation, Grievance, Judiciary, and Bench-Bar committees of that organization. He currently co-chairs SCBA’s Commercial Division committee. His New York State Bar Association activities have included membership in the House of Delegates, the Executive Committee of the Real Property Section, and the By-laws and Nominating Committees. He is a past chair of the Committee on Lawyer Discipline and remains a member.

“When it comes to dealing with other lawyers or the courts, we have to find a way to meld effectiveness with our obligation to behave civilly, which can be a challenge in contentious litigation. I pride myself on finding that balance.”

Mr. Besunder has also served as a court-appointed member of the Grievance Committee for the Tenth Judicial District; the Judicial Salaries Commission; the Independent Judicial Qualifications Commission, and is a current member of the Committee on Character and Fitness. In 2014 he was appointed to the Commercial Division Advisory Counsel on which he continues to serve.
Mr. Besunder has lectured extensively on such topics as ethics and the disciplinary process, real property issues, condemnation, and property valuation matters, and commercial law. He has been honored by his peers with awards of recognition and for pro bono service. The Suffolk County Bar Association has given him both the prestigious President’s Award for Service to the Legal Profession and a Lifetime Achievement Award.
His devotion to the law has been passed on to his children, both of whom are lawyers: his daughter, Alison, practices in the areas of trusts and estates and trademark law in Manhattan, and his son, Eric, is in-house counsel to an insurance company in Chicago.
 In his own words:
“A lawyer’s ethical responsibilities are the touchstone of my practice. When it comes to dealing with clients, our ethical obligation means that we make sure that we provide competent representation, meaning we are well-versed in the applicable law and totally knowledgeable about the particulars of the client’s case. It also means that our focus is always on trying to reach an expeditious solution for our clients with the least cost.”
Education
Adelphi University (B.A. 1964)
Brooklyn Law School (J.D. 1967)
Bar Admissions
New York
United States Supreme Court
United States Court of Appeals Second Circuit
United States Court of Military Appeals
United States District Court Eastern and Southern Districts New York
Email: hbesunder@margolinbesunder.com
Tel: (631) 234-8585 ext. 225