Steven Goldfeder has emerged as one of the top young attorneys of New York City's divorce bar, who's widely recognized as a steady and productive fixture at the prestigious firm of Blank Rome LLP. Indeed, many peers say Goldfeder, at 44, has perhaps more experience, and with a broader range of casework, than any divorce lawyer his age in Manhattan. He's handled complex and high-profile cases almost from the beginning of his career. Today, as a partner in the 500 lawyer Blank Rome LLP, he plays a key role in one of the largest divorce-law departments (19 matrimonial lawyers in Manhattan alone) of a major firm in the nation. Thus he's likely to lead the profession for years to come. None of that should suggest that Goldfeder, the son of a pharmacist and who grew up in Little Neck, Queens, was handed any special privileges: From Cardozo High School in Bayside, Goldfeder went on to graduate from SUNY-Albany where he majored in psychology and went straight on to law school. He returned to New York City, in part, he says, because his father passed away while the young Goldfeder was still in college. "Those kinds of events in your life keep you close to home." Even in law school Goldfeder - even tempered and keenly observant - recognized family law as a career. "I could see that helping people, rather than corporations, would be much more rewarding. And I knew I could be good at it." Shortly after graduating from law school Goldfeder answered a seeking-entry-level-associate ad of Donald Frank, then leading his own successful divorce boutique and known for handling splits that often landed on Page 6 (Among others: Al Roker, Macaulay Culkin's parents). Frank immediately spotted Goldfeder's poise, maturity and potential. "From the moment I met him, I knew he was a rising star," said Frank. For his part, Goldfeder says, "We hit it off from the first interview." They've teamed on major cases now for 17 years. In 1999, Goldfeder and Frank joined Blank Rome's Manhattan office, located in the Chrysler Building, whose divorce department was headed by Stanford Lotwin. Lotwin too became a key mentor to Goldfeder "Stan never lost his composure, never raised his voice, no matter how heated things got - an example I've always tried to follow. I know (that approach) makes you a more effective advocate for clients." Goldfeder, hardly inclined to self-promotion and one of 14 partners in his department, could easily have been lost in the large-firm brand; many peers outside the firm respect and like him, and recognize this skill. Goldfeder to a large extent has built his career either preparing for or appearing in court, and in that respect he's a classic litigator who has eschewed collaborative law and other novel approaches. Increasingly he's negotiated and prepared pre-nuptial and post-nuptial contracts for clients, and discreetly handled paternity suits of high-profile clients as well. Fifty and 60 plus hour work-weeks are the norm for the law, and Goldfeder's practice is no exception; on weekends he's helping coach his sons' sports teams. Goldfeder and his wife and two sons, ages 8 and 12, reside in Woodbury, N.Y.