Personal injury lawyers Ross Cellino Jr [left] and Stephen Barnes [right]

Earlier reports speculated the rift was due to ‘years of hard feelings’ between the pair since Barnes refused to hire his partner’s daughter, Jeanna Cellino, after the 30-year-old graduated  from University of Buffalo Law school  in 2012, to avoid nepotism. On the other hand, Barnes’s girlfriend Ellen Sturm, has worked at the firm for a number of years, as does his  brother, Richard J. Barnes.
Jeanna Cellino, now works for the personal injury law firm of Steve Boyd, John Elmore.
But some close associates of both principals, as do several members of the Buffalo legal community,  believe the rift is part of a deeper problem over the direction of the firm, simmering for  some time. Indeed as Buffalo News reports, Barnes’s refusal to hire Jeanna Cellino daughter caused two years of bad blood between the partners.

In 2012, the firm changed that number from 854-2020 to the more catchy and memorable, 888-8888.
The firm’s transition to Cellino & Barnes P.C. was made in the mid-1990s, creating the new partnership specializing in personal injury claims which, at times, have led to multimillion-dollar compensations for their clients.
‘The duo initially built their reputation on the type of aggressive advertising that had competing firms grumbling that Cellino and Barnes were attempting to poach cases away from other lawyers who were already handling them.  The firm’s catchy jingle, ‘888 8888’ phone number and widespread commercials and billboard ads became a fixture across the New York state.
In 2005, a New York appellate court ruled that Ross Cellino Jr. be suspended from practicing law for six months and Stephen Barnes was censured after they loaned money to clients through a separate business they set up.
‘Barnes is very aggressive. Ross Cellino, especially in the last couple of years, has become more: “Do we really need to do that? Can we try to get along with people more?”
‘They have had major blow-ups at the firm. I’ve heard from a couple of lawyers there about shouting matches taking place in conference rooms and that type of behavior.
‘I can’t imagine that there’s any lawyers in Western New York who are shedding a tear for what’s going on.

‘It’s rumored that Steve Barnes is more aggressive on having a national footprint than Ross Cellino who is willing to stay in New York state and wasn’t even enthusiastic about entering the five boroughs of New York City,’ a source noted.

An Investigative counsel on that case said they: ” found that [Cellino and Barnes] were making loans to other clients and also having some clients invest in the company that was making the loans. There was all kinds of terrible conflicts of interest that they got themselves involved in.
‘During the proceeding, they admitted most of it because the record spoke for itself. Ross Cellino was suspended for about six months although he didn’t get back into the practice for about two years.”

‘They are a high-profile firm, they advertise extensively – from my knowledge, I think their advertising budget was $3 million a year.
‘But they are not a well-liked firm because there’s been allegations in the past about them allegedly stealing clients from other firms. The other personal injury firms must be very pleased to see this ‘divorce’.
‘I can’t imagine what it’s doing to their associate attorneys. They have to be beside themselves, taking sides and all that.’
The firm claims on its website to have made more than $2 billion for its clients who have brought personal injury cases such as car accidents, industrial accidents and plane crashes.

They are headquartered in downtown Buffalo and also have a satellite office in the city – across the street from the Erie County Medical Center.