(Reuters) - Days after vandals spray-painted the home of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher partner Randy Mastro in apparent protest of his work for a client, the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) on Friday condemned "a recent spate of harassment" against lawyers.

"Everyone is entitled to legal representation and acts of harassment, threats and intimidation against lawyers are an assault on that right to counsel and must stop," NYSBA President Scott Karson said in a statement on behalf of the bar group.

Mastro confirmed Friday that his Manhattan residence was splattered with red paint and spray painted messages earlier this week, including disparaging epithets, "shame" and "housing is a human right."

One of his clients, non-profit West Side Community Organization (WestCo), advocates that homeless people being housed in an Upper West Side hotel during the coronavirus pandemic be relocated to a hotel downtown.

"I appreciate the State Bar Association taking this extraordinary step of speaking out about this affront to our profession," Mastro said Friday in a statement. "This is a very sad day to see a genuine debate about serious issues involving the homeless devolve into vandalism targeting my family's home. The persons who did this are criminals who should be brought to justice. And if they thought they were going to intimidate me, they picked the wrong guy."

Mastro is a prominent longtime member of New York City's legal scene. He previously served as Deputy Chief of the Civil Division in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and as chief of staff under Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.

He's spent decades at Gibson Dunn, representing clients such as AIG, Amazon, Empire BlueCross BlueShield and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. His work has included winning a racketeering trial barring the enforcement of a $9 billion Ecuadorian judgment against Chevron and investigating New Jersey's "Bridgegate" controversy.

His client WestCo's website states it was founded in July in response to increased safety and security concerns on the Upper West Side.

New York City housed over 200 homeless people in an Upper West Side hotel earlier this year because of the pandemic. WestCo has advocated those people be transferred to a hotel in downtown Manhattan, arguing that it is larger and better equipped to provide services. But residents downtown have pushed back, too, bringing a legal challenge against the city filed by Cozen O'Connor. Some residents of the Upper West Side hotel who would be transferred have also challenged the plan.

A Manhattan state judge halted the transfer Monday.

Groups opposing the transfer, who argue in part that Upper West Side residents should be welcoming to those housed in the hotel, have also decried the vandalism of Mastro's residence.

NYSBA leader Karson said Friday that the incident comes not long after attorneys at a Brooklyn law firm were harassed because of their clients.

"It is alarming to hear that another member of our esteemed profession has been targeted with a despicable act of harassment for simply providing legal counsel – a cherished principle of American jurisprudence," Karson said. "The State Bar Association condemns the actions of all those responsible for this recent spate of harassment."