About

Tor Ekeland, Lawyer

Tor started Tor Ekeland, P.C. in December, 2011 and immediately began representing alleged AT&T iPad email hacker Andrew Auernheimer (aka “Weev”) in his Federal criminal case, in addition to representing artists and businesses in transactional matters. Before this, Tor spent five years as an associate in Sidley Austin LLP’s New York Litigation Practice Group.   At Sidley, Tor’s practice included complex commercial, securities, criminal and appellate litigation, as well as international, federal and state governmental investigations. Typical representations at Sidley included:

  • Representing a major U.S. investment bank in multiple complex mortgage backed securities litigations in Federal and State courts;
  • Representing a Big Four Accounting firm in a partnership wrongful discharge and breach of contract arbitration;
  • Advising a major German investment bank of its potential legal liabilities under the Basel II and III Capital Accords;
  • Representing a Death Row inmate in Holman Prison, Alabama on appeal; and
  • Representing a Defendant convicted of Second Degree Murder in his New York Criminal Procedure Law Section 440.10 hearing.

In addition, Tor’s pro bono practice at Sidley representing indigent clients in criminal and matrimonial matters involved numerous hearings and trials in New York State courts.  In 2009 he was one of the Sidley Austin LLP externs at inMotion, a non-profit representing low-income women in contested matrimonial and family law matters.

In 2006, Tor graduated cum laude from Fordham University School of Law, where he was Senior Articles Editor of Volume 74 of the Fordham Law Review.  At graduation he received the Fordham Law Alumni Association Award for Excellence in the Study of Constitutional Law.  While at Fordham Law he served as President of the Fordham Law chapter of the American Constitution Society and was a Brendan Moore Trial Advocate.  His note, Suspending Habeas Corpus:  Article 1, Section 9, Clause 2 of the United States Constitution and the War on Terror, appeared in the December 2005 issue of the Fordham Law Review. He is admitted in New York State, and the Federal District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Prior to becoming a lawyer, Tor was a Producer and Production Manager of independent film and Off-Broadway theater.  His clients included Sir Peter Hall, Felicity Huffman, John Leguizamo, William H. Macy and The 24 Hour Plays. He has production managed at The Atlantic Theater, Galapagos Art Space, The Kitchen, Primary Stages, and P.S. 122, among other venues.

Mark H. Jaffe, Of Counsel

Mark joined Tor Ekeland, P.C. as Of Counsel in February 2012.  His experience includes representation of a hedge fund, an international bank, a not-for-profit trade organization, employers and employees, and individual investors in broker/dealer disputes.

Prior to joining the Firm, Mark was a law clerk for Justice Barbara Jaffe (no relation) and Justice Harold B. Beeler, in the Civil Division of the New York State Supreme Court, New York County.  While a Law Clerk, he drafted opinions relating to a myriad of New York State Laws, including Education Law, Labor Law, Human Rights Law, and the Condominium Act.  Prior to this, Mark began his legal career at a law firm practicing commercial litigation, arbitration, and trademark prosecution.

Between 2009 and 2011 Mark was Chair of the Trademark Legislation Committee of the American Bar Association (“ABA”), which under his leadership enacted policy resolutions on online counterfeiting, well-known marks, and notice and takedown procedures.  He is currently Vice Chair of the ABA’s Trademark Litigation Committee.  The Journal of the Copyright Society of the U.S.A. published Mark’s article Defusing the Time Bomb Once Again: Determining Authorship in a Sound Recording, 53 JCPS 139 (2006). In 2007 the Copyright Society awarded him the Charles B. Seton Award for best article of the year written by a young lawyer.

In 2006, Mark graduated from Fordham University School of Law where he was an Associate Editor of the Fordham Law Intellectual Property Law Journal and an assistant to Professor Hugh Hansen.  While at Fordham Law the school awarded him the Abraham Murray Public Service Award.  In 1995 he received a Bachelors of Science, with honors, from the City University of New York.

Mark is a member of the American Bar Association and the Bar Association of the City of New York.  He is admitted in New York State, and the Federal District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Prior to entering law school, Mr. Jaffe worked for record labels as a broker of licensing and distribution deals, and produced the benefit album “Funky Precedent Vol. 2.,” for No Mayo/Matador Records.

Alexander King, Legal Assistant

Alexander holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lake Forest College in Chicago, Illinois, where he double majored in Business and Communications with a core curriculum in Finance. While at Lake Forest, Alexander served two terms on the Executive Board of Delta Kappa Epsilon, and served as an Auditor with the Student Government Budget and Audit Committee. He was also twice elected Treasurer, then President of the Residential Hall Association.

Following graduation, Alexander worked as an Account Analyst at Carnegie Technology Marketing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 2011 Alexander moved to New York City and joined Tor Ekeland, P.C.

Alexander was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he attended Shady Side Academy. He is currently an active member of the Shady Side Academy Alumni Association. He also attained the rank of Eagle Scout in The Boy Scouts of America.