BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – News 4 has confirmed that Cellino and Barnes, one of Western New York’s biggest law firms, has filed to dissolve.

Documents were filed Wednesday in State Supreme Court ordering those involved in the case to show reason why Cellino & Barnes should not be dissolved.

Ross . Cellino Jr. filed the lawsuit to dissolve the firm Wednesday in New York State Supreme Court.

Terry Connors, the attorney representing Cellino said Wednesday night that he has no comment at the time.

On Thursday, the firm released a statement declaring that Stephen E. Barnes and the firm plan to aggressively oppose the dissolution papers filed by Cellino, although they will continue to do business in their current markets regardless of outcome.

“We want to assure our employees, our clients, and our business partners that Cellino and Barnes continues to operate around the clock in a fully functional manner,” the statement said.

The firm’s policy is not to comment on the ongoing litigation.

News 4 spoke with Buffalo Lawyer Barry Covert about the pending litigation. He said, “If in fact, it’s true that Ross Cellino is seeking to dissolve the firm, then he is looking for it to be broken up. If that’s in fact what the documents claim. Apparently the Judge granted an order sealing the documents, and because the judge ordered the sealing of those documents, we can’t look at those documents until they are unsealed by the court.”

Cellino and Barnes has law offices in Buffalo, Rochester and Long Island/Manhattan in New York, as well as Los Angeles, Oakland/San Francisco and San Diego in California.

The case is expected to be argued on May 19th.