NJBIZ
June 25, 2018
Sills Cummis & Gross litigator Michael
S. Carucci is profiled as one of the “Leaders in Law.” According to NJBIZ’s Editor, “Our second
installment of the Vanguard Series centers around the law, specifically local
attorneys who stood out for their roles in important (sometimes landmark) cases
or were instrumental in giving back to their profession by providing
opportunities for other lawyers to get to the next level in their careers.”
NJBIZ had this to say about Carucci, “At North Arlington's
Queen of Peace High School, Michael Carucci both found his calling as a lawyer
and met his future wife.
“His experiences inspired him to give back to his alma mater,
creating an alumni association to support QPHS by establishing scholarships for
students and networking infrastructure for fellow alums.
“The school’s president dropped a major truth bomb during their
first board meeting: The school was in serious financial trouble, and if the
group didn't raise $1 million in the next six weeks it would have to close.
“Carucci, a member of the Litigation Practice Group at Sills
Cummis & Gross PC, and about 20 fellow board members got to work. He
created a campaign on gofundme.com; the team held a rally for the school and
scheduled press inter-views, while each personally solicited major donors.
“They met their mark — $1 million within six weeks. Within a couple
more months, they'd secured a total $1.7 million.
“The 2016-17 school year went off without a hitch, but in June,
Carucci and the QPHS community were hit with some terrible news: In the wake of
greater-than-expected financial challenges, the Archdiocese of Newark was
closing the school.
“Carucci was devastated.
“‘[But] we don't regret for one minute what we did to save the
school, because we believed in the mission of the school and the good that it
did for us,’ he said. ‘We wanted other students in the future to benefit like
we did.’
“His commitment to education — which he attributes to the
dedication of his mother, a longtime schoolteacher — continues. He was
appointed as a commissioner this year to the New Jersey School Ethics
Commission, and he’s also involved in raising money to demolish and rebuild the
playground at Sacred Heart School in Lyndhurst, where he at-tended elementary
school.”