by Mell P
Sacha Comrie knew from an early age that medicine wasn’t her calling. The first C she earned in chemistry confirmed what her heart already knew: her future lay not in a lab coat, but in the pursuit of fairness and justice.
- Advertisement -
“I’ve always had an interest in fairness and justice,” Comrie recalls. “Even when I was younger, I remember we all wanted to go roller skating, and I was the one who had to put forward why we should go. I was like, ‘We’ve been doing all of our chores. We did all of our homework. We need to be able to go.'”
That early advocacy would evolve into a distinguished legal career that spans BigLaw litigation to boutique practice, from intellectual property disputes to protecting Brooklyn’s elders from exploitation.
The Foundation: Education, Education, Education
Comrie’s path to the bar was paved by two formidable women: her grandmother, Myrtle Ferguson, who ran her own business in Jamaica, and her mother, Dr. Comrie, who established a private practice in Brooklyn.
“One of my grandmothers would always say education, education, education,” Comrie explains. That mantra drove her to graduate high school early, attend Georgetown University at 16, and Howard Law School at 20. By 23, she had passed the New York State Bar on her first attempt.
“I think it’s the drive, with education as the focal point, that I got from Jamaican culture,” she says. “But then it’s also the dedication, fighting for the voices that can’t always be heard.”
From Big Law to Her Own Vision
Comrie’s legal resume reads like a master class in versatility. She litigated at Shearman & Sterling, LLP and Kaye Scholer, LLP, handling complex commercial litigation, intellectual property, securities law, SEC investigations, and white collar crime. She clerked for the Honorable Novalyn L. Winfield in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey. She served as compliance officer and counsel for A.L. Consulting, a DBE and MWBE diversity management firm in the construction industry.
But despite the prestige of international law firms, Comrie always knew she wanted something else.
“Even though I worked at a large, worldwide international law firm, I always wanted my own firm,” she says. “I always wanted to run my own business, because I saw my grandmother in Jamaica running her business. I saw my mom running a private practice in Brooklyn. And I just knew that at some point I would be running my own practice.”
Today, that practice encompasses complex residential and commercial real estate transactions, wills and trusts, estates, matrimonial matters, and commercial litigation, with a special focus on MWBE compliance. She represents residential cooperative boards, handles short-sales and bank sales, and navigates landlord-tenant disputes with equal skill.
Fighting for the Voiceless
But it’s in estate and elder law where Comrie’s passion burns brightest and her Jamaican heritage becomes most visible.
“Elder abuse in the law drives me bonkers,” she says, her voice sharpening with conviction. “I’m a real estate attorney, so if I see children trying to finagle deed transfers or their parents’ property or their grandparents’ property because they think it’s their birthright, but they know their parents aren’t of sound mind—those types of things sadden me in this day and age.”
On the flip side, she finds deep satisfaction in helping families protect their legacies proactively. “There are families who need counsel to make the steps now to preserve the wealth, to transfer the wealth, to create trusts, or put people on deeds, or to do estate planning in a way that preserves what it is that they do have. I love being able to do that.”
There’s another dimension to her work that clients don’t always see coming: cultural connection.
“I don’t have a Jamaican accent…my clients don’t know I’m Jamaican until I tell them I am. And they feel a sense of reassurance when I let them know that I see them, and I understand where they’re coming from.”
Redefining Success
Ask Comrie how she defines success today, and the answer has nothing to do with case wins or billable hours.
“I define my success by the smiles on my children’s faces,” she says without hesitation. “And by the happiness of my clients.”
It’s a definition that has evolved significantly, and became complete when clients began referring family members, the ultimate vote of confidence.
“That really touches my heart because it makes me know that they trust me so much that they would put their family in my hands,” Comrie explains. “That’s definitely a hallmark of my success…when my clients come back and refer me to their family.”
The Daughter Born on International Women’s Day
If Women’s History Month has taken on heightened significance for Comrie in recent years, there’s a very specific reason: her daughter, Kenzie, was born on March 8—International Women’s Day. She’s now 10 years old.
“I think Women’s History Month has taken much more significance in the past 10 years since I became a mother of a girl,” Comrie reflects. She was already a mother to her 13-year-old son, but something shifted when she had a daughter.
“I always knew people were like, ‘You’re a role model,’ but I’m a role model for someone I literally created,” she says. “I think Women’s History Month, with Kenzie being born on International Women’s Day, allowed me to be more cognizant of the fact that they are watching. Young girls are watching, and what you do influences what they will do.”
The pressure is real, especially because Kenzie is, by all accounts, extraordinary.
“She’s very brilliant,” Comrie says with the mix of pride and slight alarm only a high-achieving parent can muster when their child exceeds them. There’s something deeper there—the recognition that raising a brilliant daughter means constantly modeling what it looks like to be a woman of integrity in a demanding profession.
The Future Is Female—and Judicial
When asked about the evolution of women’s roles in the legal profession, Comrie sees the next frontier clearly.
“I think there are going to be a lot more female judges—it’s already increasing,” she says. “But I feel like the voice of the female judge is going to be the next big thing. Women in the law, we’ve always been there. But I think that right now, with so many things going on, this is a unique opportunity for us to have a special voice in the ‘what comes next’ aspect. This is the time to create the new, especially when everything is so chaotic.”
The Advice: Be the Change, Walk the Walk
For young women considering law or advocacy work, Comrie’s advice is refreshingly direct.
“Do not go to law school unless you want to be a lawyer. Don’t just go to get the degree. Because law school is not easy,” she warns. “But for women who want to enter law or advocate for justice: take the higher road. Do the right thing. Walk straight and narrow…It’s literally as simple as be the change you want to see, as hard as it’s gonna be.”
VIP Service, Day or Night
Sacha Comrie lets her clients keep her up at night, and she doesn’t mind one bit. It’s part of her approach: the balance between BigLaw expertise and small firm service, the personal stake in every client’s success.
But perhaps what keeps her up most is the thought of her daughter watching. A girl born on International Women’s Day who is already exceeding the considerable accomplishments of her mother and grandmother. A girl who will see, every day, what it looks like when a woman of Caribbean heritage fights for justice, protects the vulnerable, and builds something of her own.
“Young girls are watching,” Comrie reminds us. “And what you do influences what they will do.”
It’s a legacy far more valuable than any case win, and one that extends well beyond Women’s History Month into every day, every case, every conversation where fairness and justice hang in the balance.
For Sacha Comrie, that’s not pressure. That’s purpose.
