E. Stewart Jones, Jr.

E. Stewart "Stu" Jones, Jr. is a former American attorney from Troy, NY. He is the third generation in the Jones patriarchy to have had practiced law with notoriety, after his father E. Stewart Sr. and grandfather Abbott. E. Stewart Jones, Jr. was the second Jones to attended Williams College, after his father, where he majored in American History and Literature.

According to the Troy Record, "Jones [was] the only New York lawyer outside of two in New York City to be elected to the four most exclusive national organizations recognizing select trial lawyers' accomplishments: the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, the Inner Circle of Advocates, the International Society of Barristers and the American College of Trial Lawyers... Jones has been listed in the Best Lawyers of America since the inaugural list in 1983 and [was] listed in six separate categories."

Jones was also a fellow of the American Board of Criminal Lawyers, the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys, the American Bar Foundation, the New York Bar Foundation, the Federal Bar Foundation, and the Litigation Counsel of America.

The Albany County Bar Association awarded Jones its Presidential Award at its 2025 Court of Appeals dinner , which is noteworthy because he received this award after he had been disbarred (see below).

Famous cases

In 1988, Jones represented former Major League Baseball umpire Dave Pallone in questioning related to an investigation of a sex ring involving teen-age boys by Saratoga Springs, New York District Attorney David Wait.

Jones represented former Washington County, New York supervisor William L. Nikas in 1994 against allegations of corruption in negotiations for the construction of a trash burning plant.

In a highly dramatic situation in Albany, New York politics, Jones zealously represented J. Michael Bosley, a top Aide and counsel to former speaker of the New York State Assembly Sheldon Silver, against accusations of rape in August of 2003.

Jones represented Jon Romano in his 2004 firing of a two-gauge shotgun at students and teachers inside Columbia High School in East Greenbush, New York.

Jones joined fellow attorney Jim Hacker to represent the families of 20 individuals who perished following the Ethan Allen boating accident on Lake George, New York in 2005.

In 2013, Jones represented the family of Clement Clarke Moore in a dispute over who wrote "A Visit from St. Nicholas", a poem published anonymously in 1823 by the Troy Sentinel. The courtroom drama reached national audiences when a Hallmark movie was made about the case, Twas the Night Before Christmas, as a follow-on to the play The Trial Before Christmas.

Jones successfully defended Joseph Bruno in 2014 in retrying corruption charges that could have led to two years of jail time.

Jones represented former state Assemblyman William Scarborough to ensure his sentencing. Scarborough was a Democrat from Queens who resigned and pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges in 2015. This legal representation resulted in Scarborough being sentenced to federal instead of state prison.

Community service, philanthropy, recognition

Jones served as co-chair of the Capital District Community Gardens' Urban Grow Center campaign.

Jones served as chairman twice of the Albany Law School board of trustees, where he was awarded a trustee gold medal. He and his wife Kim endowed nine scholarships at six different schools and for research at a regional cancer center.

Jones spearheaded capital campaigns at Albany Law School, the Albany Academy, Gilda's Club, and the Legal Aid Society, and restoration of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Albany, New York. Jones admitted to misappropriation of client funds, improper bookkeeping and commingling of funds.

Jones was described as being "the gold standard for the local bar" by longtime friend and top attorney William Dreyer. In response to the end of his former mentor's legal career, notable Capital Region Criminal Defense Attorney George LaMarche said, "He has the support of this legal community."

In a show of that support, well-known Capital Regional criminal defense attorney Mike McDermott said that Jones was "a legend, an icon in this profession... not a hyperbole." In reference to young attorneys watching Jones trying a case, McDermott said, "It's almost like a group of painters staring up through the scaffolding to get a glimpse of Michelangelo painting the Sistine Chapel -- I mean he was that much of a craftsman and a master of the art of advocacy."