Cohen, Weiss and Simon LLP mourns the death of Bruce Simon on January 11, 2026. For well over 60 years he was our leader, partner, colleague and friend. He taught us lessons from a long and distinguished career while demonstrating the ability to adapt as he grew older (although we believe he always missed his flip phone and paper calendar/address book). We celebrated our personal and professional successes with him and sought his solace and advice when adversity hit. He was both a strong and powerful advocate and a kind human being.
Bruce was a giant in the union movement in every way – the consummate negotiator, strategist, litigator, and counselor. He helped draft legislation to protect the interests of workers and retirees of bankrupt employers. Bruce played a key role in major labor struggles in the Eastern Airlines, Delta Airlines, LTV, and Bethlehem Steel bankruptcies. Bruce loved working with unions representing workers across the range of American life – among them letter carriers and steelworkers, classical musicians and auto workers, opera choristers and Teamsters, grocery workers and airline pilots. Union leaders valued his wise advice and incredibly innovative solutions – as well as his humor and charm. Through his relentless work on behalf of our clients, Bruce enhanced the lives of hundreds of thousands of working men and women and their families. Judges, arbitrators, adversaries, and fellow union lawyers admired his sharp wit, keen sense of humor, and dogged advocacy on behalf of his clients.
Bruce graduated from Brooklyn College of the City University of New York with a B.A. in 1956 and from Harvard University Law School with an L.L.B. in 1959. He joined the firm in 1960 as an associate and became the firm’s third partner in 1966, joining Sam Cohen and Henry Weiss. He served for six years as a member of the New York City Board of Collective Bargaining, and was a member of the Board of Directors of the AFL-CIO Lawyers Coordinating Committee (now the Union Lawyers Alliance) from its inception until 2021. Bruce lectured at the NYU Annual Conference on Labor, the Practising Law Institute, the American Bar Association and the Federal Bar Council. He was a fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, and served as the Distinguished Practitioner in Residence at Cornell Law School. He was named as a Super Lawyer for Employment and Labor Law on the New York Metro 2006-2020 Annual Lists of Super Lawyers magazine.
We at Cohen, Weiss and Simon LLP stand on his shoulders every day – as we have since he joined the firm in 1960. We are proud to continue our work in a firm that bears his name.
We send our love and condolences to Bruce’s wife Arlene, his children Charles, Rachel, and Douglas, and his grandchildren. Bruce’s devotion to the firm, his profession, and the labor movement was only surpassed by love for his family.