Craig A. Fine, Esq.

The American Dream, Close to Home

Craig A. Fine was born in Brooklyn and raised mostly in Staten Island, the oldest of three children. His father owned a construction company. His mother worked for the New York City Department of Education. A father’s business, a mother’s public service and a borough he still calls home are the roots of his story.

He attended Curtis High School in St. George and earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance at Wagner College. After a year working in real estate, he entered New York Law School in the year following the September 11 attacks. Real estate was part of his working life before it became the foundation of his legal practice.

In 2007, he established The Law Office of Craig A. Fine, P.C., shortly before the financial crisis. Through education, a practice of his own and family life in Staten Island, Craig built a version of the American dream that is both professional and deeply personal.

Staten Island professional profile

Father, Husband and Son

Craig married Taryn Fine in 2015. In 2019, they welcomed their son. They reside in Staten Island, where Craig’s family life and professional roots meet.

Father, husband, son and neighborhood lawyer are not competing descriptions. Together, they give this story its center: a person whose work concerns the same things that matter in a family’s everyday life – a home, a livelihood, the people we love and the future we hope to leave them.

Family and estate planning

Why a Home Is More Than a Transaction

Craig’s connection to real estate law began with his father’s experience. He saw how bureaucratic obstacles could threaten a construction business and bring it close to financial ruin. Those hardships helped shape his decision to work in a field where understanding the documents and process can matter enormously to the person behind a project.

Staten Island’s mix of communities, including immigrants from many backgrounds, gives that work another personal connection. Craig believes the opportunity to own a home should be open to people from every walk of life.

A residential purchase, a commercial property, a title-insurance question or a zoning issue is not simply another file. It can concern something a person or family has spent years working toward. That is the human thread connecting his real estate, title, closing and land-use work.

Real estate services · Contract, title and closing review

Fairness on Both Sides of the Door

Craig’s interest in landlord-tenant law comes from frustration with unfairness on both sides: property owners who neglect their responsibilities and tenants who exploit the system. His concern is accountability, not choosing a side before understanding the facts.

For the person renting a home, the issue may be stability and dignity. For the owner, it may involve maintaining the property and protecting a livelihood. Leasing, property disputes and foreclosure-related matters belong in this story because the consequences reach beyond a document or a court date.

Landlord-tenant matters · Leasing profile

Respect for What It Takes to Build a Business

Growing up with a father who owned a construction company gives Craig’s business-law work a personal point of reference. A business is not only an entity on paper. It can represent years of effort, family income and responsibilities to other people.

Formation and governance concern how an enterprise is organized. Contracts and financing concern commitments. Asset purchases, sales, mergers, acquisitions and dissolutions concern major transitions. Succession concerns what happens when the person at the center of the business can no longer lead it.

The human reason for attending to these subjects is straightforward: people deserve to understand the obligations attached to what they are building. When a dispute arises, the contracts and records should help explain what happened, rather than leave the people involved guessing.

Business law services · Buying or selling a business

Dignity, Family and the Years Ahead

Craig’s compassion for older people helped draw him toward wills and estates. This part of his practice is about giving serious attention to a person’s wishes, relationships and dignity.

A will can begin a conversation about the people someone hopes to provide for. Trust planning concerns intentions over time. Powers of attorney and advance directives bring questions of support and decision-making into focus. Probate and estate administration concern the responsibilities that follow a death.

For a business owner, these questions also reach the enterprise and the people who depend on it. The common thread is not accumulating documents. It is taking the future seriously while respecting the person whose life, work and wishes are being discussed.

Estate planning services · Probate and estate administration

Roots in New York, Connections Beyond It

Craig is licensed in New York, New Jersey and Florida, and his office is in Staten Island. Brooklyn is his birthplace; Staten Island is where he was largely raised and now lives with his family.

His broader geographic coverage reflects clients whose property, business or family interests cross borough and state lines. The accompanying directory includes New York City’s boroughs, Long Island, Westchester, New Jersey and Florida. These are areas of professional coverage, not claims of a childhood, residence or office in every location.

New York and Florida connections · New Jersey property and business

A Neighborhood Lawyer Who Makes Room for Questions

Craig is also an author and mentor. His writing on The Fine Line Blog, the firm’s website and related All State Merchants coverage gives readers a way to explore a subject before speaking about their own circumstances.

Being able to ask a question matters. For Chinese-speaking clients, a language barrier can make an already unfamiliar process harder to discuss. The firm accommodates those clients through an in-house Mandarin-speaking associate. That support belongs to the office’s approach to communication, alongside Craig’s legal work.

The publication archive brings together his writing by source and date. Articles offer education and perspective; advice about an individual matter requires its own review.

Publication archive · In-house Mandarin support

Dogs and the Meaning of a Second Chance

Craig is an animal lover who volunteers his time and contributes financially to animal shelters and programs. His connection with Staten Island-based Pitbulls & Addicts includes recognition from the organization.

His passion for animal welfare and humane treatment belongs in this story alongside his work and family. Volunteering time and supporting shelters financially are practical ways to help animals that need care, safety and another chance. This is a personal commitment, not a claim that his firm offers animal-rights legal representation.

Pitbulls & Addicts, also known as Broken Souls Rescue & Recovery, describes its mission as providing second chances for people and pets. Readers can learn about the organization directly through its own website.

The personal story and the professional story meet here. The father, husband, son, lawyer, author and animal lover are the same Craig.

Animal welfare and community profile