Dana Walsh Sivak, Esq.

Professional Experience

Dana Walsh Sivak joined FRB in August 2022 as Senior Counsel in the firm’s elder law, civil litigation and cannabis law practice groups. Dana has devoted much of her legal career to addressing legal issues involving the elderly, including Article 81 guardianships, complex Medicaid eligibility issues, nursing home litigation, and advocating for increased access to quality-of-life initiatives for the elderly in long-term care settings.

Dana began her legal career working in the offices of the District Attorneys of New York County and Queens County, as well as in the Juvenile Rights Practice of the Legal Aid Society advocating for children in the New York City foster care system. After working in the Office of the General Counsel for Catholic Health, Dana joined a Long Island-based elder law firm, where she spent the next ten years working with individual clients and corporate health care facilities on complex legal issues. There, Dana developed a unique perspective on issues facing seniors, and obtained a great deal of experience assisting older New Yorkers in securing a payment source for the cost of their long-term care, often through the Medicaid program or private long-term care insurance.

Within her role as a Senior Associate at the elder law firm, and as head of the firm’s Cannabis Compliance Practice Group, Dana also worked to expand access to medical cannabis to seniors, particularly those residing in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. In December 2019, Dana helped to spearhead and present the first conference on Long Island that focused on these issues, “Cannabis & Aging: The Business, Politics, Law & Science of Cannabis”, partnering with other highly regarded professionals in the cannabis industry. Dana frequently lectures to health care facilities and at regional conferences about the medical benefits of cannabis in the elderly population, advocating for increased access to medical cannabis for all seniors, regardless of their socioeconomic status.

Dana remains active as an inaugural member of the St. John’s University School of Law Alumnae Leadership Council, participating in its prestigious Mentoring Circles program, and often mentoring female law students and graduates beginning their career. Dana also supports the North Shore University Hospital Auxiliary in its fundraising efforts to benefit the NICU at North Shore Hospital in Manhasset. Dana resides on Long Island with her husband and two children.