Vance Center Welcomes New LFR Senior Counsel

Lee Riffaterre joined the Vance Center as Senior Counsel for Lawyers for Reporters on a part-time basis in April 2026. She provides ongoing pro bono legal support to local and mission-driven journalism organizations throughout the United States, specifically advising LFR clients on general business contracts and intellectual property matters.

Lee previously served as in-house counsel at The New York Times for more than 30 years, where she directly managed the organization’s intellectual property and general business contract teams, and counseled on a wide variety of business and commercial transactions and newsroom matters. She also regularly counseled clients on intellectual property matters, including copyright and trademark issues. After leaving the Times, Lee continued to represent the organization in her own practice and provided pro bono services to a variety of nonprofit organizations, including the Lawyers Alliance for New York and several clients in the arts.

Prior to joining the Times, Lee was an associate at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz and at Hall, Dickler, Lawler, Kent & Friedman.

Lee received her JD from Columbia Law School and her AB from Barnard College.

She is admitted to practice in the State of New York. She currently serves on the Board of En Garde Arts, a theater company based in New York City.