The A.W. Rush Team

A.W. Rush & Co. is the preeminent leader in global legal search.

Our firm provides expert guidance to lawyers seeking to advance their careers. We also provide strategic direction to law firm management, corporate legal departments and the financial services industry on issues ranging from hiring laterals to group acquisitions, firm mergers, establishment of new offices, retention of talent and the structuring of compensation.

Our extensive industry insight, dynamic network of professionals (each consultant at A.W. Rush is a former practicing attorney), innovative multinational reach (Boston office, and affiliate offices in London, Los Angeles, Paris, and Washington, D.C.), and unparalleled capabilities allow us to assist law firms, corporations, financial entities and educational institutions to attract, manage, and retain talent.

A.W. Rush is the trusted market leader in global search matching exceptional attorneys and compliance professionals with leading law firms, legal and compliance departments, and financial and commercial institutions worldwide. Our innovation, commitment to excellence, and global reach have enabled A.W. Rush to emerge as the top firm in legal search. Our success is your success.

A.W. Rush & Co., The Right Partner

Elyce Stuart Abraham, Esq.
Elyce is a founding partner of A.W. Rush & Co. She started her career in legal search in the spring of 1991, rapidly becoming one of the preeminent leaders in the legal search field. At the onset of her career, she helped develop one of the first temporary attorney placement agencies in New York, in addition to working on permanent placements. Elyce then chose to concentrate on the permanent placement side, preferring to assist candidates and clients with long-term career strategy. Elyce is known for her outstanding record of making placements that last, cultivating and maintaining strong, lasting relationships with her candidates and clients.

Elyce graduated magna cum laude from Tufts University in 1983 and received her J.D. degree in 1986 from Duke University School of Law. Elyce was an employment litigation associate before moving into the real estate practice at Epstein, Becker & Green; she then practiced with Pircher Nichols & Meeks as a real estate associate. Elyce is involved with the Food Bank of Westchester and Friends of the IDF, and is a supporter of the Columbia University Men’s Soccer team.

212-307-3150 |


Renée Berliner Rush, Esq.
Renée Berliner Rush is a founding partner of A.W. Rush & Co. Renée entered the legal search field in the fall of 1985. Since that time she has been a leading force in legal search. Renée is frequently called upon to speak at law firm management retreats and before law firm executive committees. She has placed hundreds of lawyers throughout the world, advised scores of executive committees on hiring and retention, and she has authored numerous legal recruitment articles over the years. In addition to placing partners in law firms, Renée specializes in orchestrating law firm mergers, assisting law firms establish new offices and placing general counsels into corporations on a worldwide basis. She provides career counseling to the professionals with whom she works and is regularly engaged as a life coach and cultural advisor.

Renée is included in the Worldwide Who's Who and is acknowledged in the roster of Top Female Executives; she is also a member of the National Association of Professional Women. Renée was on the Regional Board of the ADL, is a Board Member of MultiStages, and is involved with the Shoah Foundation. Renée graduated magna cum laude from Barnard College of Columbia University in 1978. She went on to receive her J.D. in 1981 from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.

212-307-3147 |


Jaclyn Tortora
Jaclyn Tortora is a partner and the Managing Director of Associate Placement at A.W. Rush & Co., specializing in associate and partner placements in law firms and in-house positions. Jaclyn’s experience, including over a decade in legal recruiting at a global law firm, gives her a depth of knowledge and understanding about how a client can successfully achieve their career objectives. Prior to joining A.W. Rush & Co., Jaclyn was the Recruiting Manager at King & Spalding for 13 years, where she was responsible, nationally and internationally, for handling all aspects of attorney recruiting, hiring and integration. During that time, she regularly provided lateral market advice and counseled candidates on their career goals. She also frequently served on law school panels advising students regarding law firm hiring processes and how to succeed as a law firm associate. Prior to King & Spalding, Jaclyn was a paralegal in Morgan Lewis’ M&A practice group for two years. Jaclyn received her B.A. from George Washington University in 2000.

Jaclyn is a volunteer committee member for Gray Matters at Columbia, a research fund within Columbia University Medical Center’s Department of Psychiatry that provides support for outstanding scientists dedicated to searching for the causes and cures of brain disorders.

212-307-3146 |


Allyson Friedland
Allyson Friedland is a Director of East Coast Placements at A.W. Rush & Co. She focuses on associate, counsel and partner placements primarily in Washington, D.C. and the New York tri-state area. A former attorney, Allyson practiced corporate litigation at major law firms including Proskauer in New York City before transitioning to a career in legal recruitment. Allyson’s deep level of expertise, both as a recruiter and a former practicing attorney, inform her work at A.W. Rush, making her uniquely poised to advise candidates on their career goals. Prior to rejoining A.W. Rush, Allyson served as Director of Talent Acquisition for a law firm based in Texas, where she was responsible for all aspects of recruiting including associates to partners and C-Level hires. Allyson received her B.A. from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and her J.D. from Brooklyn Law School. She is also a devoted and proud mother to two young sons and loves spending time with her family.


Patrick Gray
Patrick Gray is the Assistant Director of attorney placement at A.W. Rush & Co. He focuses on associate, counsel, and partner placements. Patrick started his legal career as a corporate associate in the New York office of Skadden Arps, practicing within the Corporate Tax and Structured Finance groups. He has had a variety of professional experience since including at start-up companies and working in a Special Projects role for Peter Thiel. His primary experience, and his passion, is Legal Recruiting. Patrick has over 10 years of legal recruiting experience--working both as a legal recruiter in NYC as well as the head of all hiring for the Bay Area offices of Berry Appleman, a leading Corporate Immigration law firm. He loves helping attorneys find a position that moves both their career and their life in a more positive direction.

Patrick received his B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and his J.D. from NYU.

Linda Yarden, Esq.
Linda Yarden is a consultant to the Corporate Legal and Compliance Division at A.W. Rush & Co. after spending many years in the Legal and Compliance Departments at Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Lehman Brothers. During the course of her career in the Financial Services sector, Linda served in a variety of roles, including that of Executive Vice President of the SIFMA C&L Society. Her depth of understanding of the market and her creative solutions have helped define her as the go-to recruitment strategist for the in-house market. She has advised scores of legal and compliance professionals globally and has placed numerous executives at all levels in legal and compliance in-house roles as well as with top law firms. She is in high demand as a speaker regarding issues such as Legal Department Resources and Coverage, in addition to topics such as Corporate Control Structures, Careers in Compliance, Networking, and Intelligent Interviewing. Linda is a Trustee at Park Avenue Synagogue, is a Managing Director at Golden Seeds, has served on the Board of Trustees of Franklin & Marshall College and is an arbitrator with FINRA and the AAA. She graduated from Franklin & Marshall College in 1981 and received her Juris Doctor from St. John's University School of Law in 1984.


Jill Bodian
Jill Bodian is Executive Talent Manager at A.W. Rush & Co. Jill started her career after graduating from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University in 1988. She has more than 25 years of experience working inside organizations’ branding, marketing and communications departments, including Grey Advertising, TIAA-CREF, Alliance-Bernstein, Lincoln Financial Group, Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate, Merck Medco, among others. Jill identifies and articulates brand value and helps to grow customer loyalty and expand key businesses. Additionally, Jill has been intimately involved in talent management—acting as an advisor and recruiter and liaison to Newhouse students and later, recruiting for her own corporate and organizational teams.

In her free time, she loves traveling, exploring NYC, and volunteering her time to help not-for-profit organizations achieve their goals. Currently, she sits on the Marketing and Branding Advisory Board for UJA Federation NYC and on the Board of Supplies for Success charity. She lives in New York City with her husband and, she’s currently hoping, her college-aged son will come home soon.