Akerman LLP announced the expansion of its Chicago office with the addition of trademark partner Kourtney Mulcahy. She joins Akerman’s Intellectual Property Practice Group from Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLP.

The firm said Mulcahy has experience in all areas of trademark law, including: domain name issues, right of publicity, social media, digital and print advertising, and marketing. She has represented clients before the U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board and around the country in trademark/trade dress infringement, dilution, cybersquatting, counterfeiting, and unfair competition claims. Mulcahy also handles licensing matters for clients—drafting and negotiating license agreements—in the areas of entertainment, technology, sports, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, consumer products, manufacturing, food products, healthcare, retail, restaurant, financial, commercial, educational, and charitable services.

In the last year, Akerman has attracted six lawyers to the Chicago office, including tax partner Mary Samsa from McDermott Will & Emery, labor and employment partner Amy Moor Gaylord from Franczek Radelet P.C., and litigation partner Amy Doehring from McDermott Will & Emery.

Langley & Banack, Inc. announced that George H. Spencer, Jr. and James (Jim) Hoffman have joined the firm as of counsel.

Spencer is a board certified civil trial lawyer while Hoffman devotes much to his practice to bankruptcy litigation.

In a release, the firm said Spencer has experience with civil cases in both state and federal courts, with first-chair jury trials to verdict in lawsuits ranging from RICO to wrongful death, from breach of fiduciary duty to rock quarry nuisance, and from legal malpractice to scope of insurance coverage. He is also active in representing attorneys in State Bar grievance matters and, on occasion, has assisted in prosecuting such complaints. Spencer received his J.D. with distinction from St. Mary’s University School of Law and an A.B. from Princeton University.

The firm said Hoffman’s bankruptcy practice has included numerous Chapter 7, 11 and 13 Trustee representations, bankruptcy legal malpractice defenses, national creditor representations (including many Fortune 100 and 500 Companies) and general litigation and appeals in all aspects of bankruptcy law. He has acted as a court appointed bankruptcy disbursing agent and mediator.

A frequent speaker on bankruptcy issues, he was named 2017 San Antonio Bankruptcy Lawyer of the Year by Best Lawyers in America. He is a member of the San Antonio Bar Association, State Bar of Texas, American Bankruptcy Institute, member and past president of the San Antonio Bankruptcy Bar Association and is Co-Chairman of the Western District Federal Courts Committee. As an Eagle Scout, he has volunteered extensively with the Boy Scouts of America and numerous community organizations. Hoffman received his J.D. from St. Mary’s University School of Law and a B.B.A. from the University of Notre Dame.

Aman Demoz Solomon, an American who was working in Singapore as general counsel for a real estate investment management company, died in a five-story fall in a Singapore mall, according to The Straits Times.

The report said Solomon. 35, had been based in Singapore since February last year as general counsel and chief compliance officer for real estate investment management firm CBRE Global Investors Asia Pacific.

The 2008 graduate of Harvard Law School previously worked at global law firms Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and Davis Polk & Wardwell as an associate.

Read the Straits Times article.

Amy Sherry Fischer

At its 2019 annual meeting, held in July at The Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, N.C., the International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) elected new IADC board of directors members for 2019-20, including new board leaders.

The IADC board oversees activities that benefit the organization’s members and their clients, as well as the civil justice system, the legal profession, and society in general. In addition to its core purpose involving professional development for members, the IADC takes a leadership role in many areas of legal reform. In a release, the association said IADC members are among the world’s leading corporate and insurance lawyers at large and small law firms and senior counsel in corporate law departments, as well as corporate and insurance executives. Members represent the largest corporations around the world, including the majority of companies listed in the FORTUNE 500.

The new IADC board leaders and members, along with their law firm or company affiliations, are:

President
Amy Sherry Fischer
Foliart, Huff, Ottaway & Bottom
Oklahoma City, Okla.

President-Elect
Andrew S. Chamberlin
Ellis & Winters LLP
Greensboro, N.C.

Immediate Past President
Craig A. Thompson
Venable LLP
Baltimore

Vice President of Corporate
Aldos Vance
Altec, Inc.
Birmingham, Ala.

Treasurer-Elect
Donna Lamontagne
Lamontagne, Spaulding & Hayes, LLP
Cranston, R.I.

Board Member
Bonnie Mayfield
Dykema Gossett PLLC
Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

Board Member
Michele Smith
MehaffyWeber, P.C.
Beaumont, Texas

Board Member
Thomas W. “Trea” Southerland, III
Federal Express Corporation
Memphis, Tenn.

The IADC is the preeminent invitation-only global legal organization for attorneys who represent corporate and insurance interests. Founded in 1920, the IADC’s 2,500 members hail from six continents, more than 50 countries and territories, and all 50 U.S. states. The core purposes of the IADC are to enhance the development of skills, promote professionalism, and facilitate camaraderie among its members, their clients, as well as the broader civil justice community.

Sidley Austin LLP announced that former U.S. Congressman Peter Roskam (R-Illinois) has joined the firm’s Government Strategies group as a partner. Roskam was in public office for 25 years, serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, the Illinois Senate and the Illinois House of Representatives.

In a release, the firm said Roskam held some of the most significant positions in the U.S. House of Representatives during his tenure. In addition to serving as the Chief Deputy Whip, he chaired three major subcommittees of the House Ways and Means Committee. As chairman of the Subcommittee on Tax Policy, he was a chief architect of the historic 2017 overhaul of the nation’s tax code. As chairman of Subcommittee on Health, he began the Medicare Red Tape Relief Project, led a series of hearings addressing the opioid crisis and authored several bills to make opioid addiction treatment more accessible. In addition, as the chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight, he spearheaded efforts to increase supervision of the Internal Revenue Service, the firm said.

Rebecca Gerard has joined Michael Best’s Privacy & Cybersecurity Practice Group as an associate in Chicago.

Gerard focuses her practice on helping clients protect their data assets and comply with complex regulations. She has experience with regulations including the Federal Trade Commission Act, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, the California Consumer Privacy Act, the California Online Privacy Protection Act, the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography And Marking Act, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, and the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, Data Protection Directive and ePrivacy Directive, among other data breach notification laws, and federal, state and international guidelines.

Prior to joining Michael Best, Gerard served as commercial and regulatory counsel at Walgreen Co., where she advised several business units on matters in connection with marketing, private label brands, and retail products. She was responsible for enforcing privacy regulations for the company’s U.S. and European entities, drafting and negotiating a variety of contracts and agreements, and collaborating with the company’s public policy team to promote initiatives to further the company’s interests.

Gerard earned both her LL.M. and her J.D. from The John Marshall Law School and her B.A. from Purdue University.

Joydeep Dasmunshi has joined Perkins Coie’s Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) practice as a partner in the Chicago office.

The firm said Dasmunshi advises private equity firms, along with public and private corporate clients, on complex business transactions. His practice focuses on middle-market M&A as well as matters related to structuring and negotiating strategic and leveraged acquisitions and divestitures, executive compensation and incentive equity matters, recapitalizations and general compliance counseling.

Dasmunshi’s transactional achievements include a $4.25 billion airline acquisition; a $1.75 billion sale of a global valuation, corporate finance and governance-related advisor company to a private equity firm in 2017; and sale, investment and acquisition matters with various middle-market portfolio companies across a variety of sectors, including technology, media, financial services and healthcare.

The firm said the addition of Dasmunshi to the Chicago office follows the arrival of Construction Partner Kevin Kolton this month and Insurance Recovery Partner Jim Davis to the office in May. To accommodate Perkins Coie’s continued growth in the Chicago area, the firm will move to a larger, more collaborative office space at 110 N. Wacker Drive in 2021.

Dasmunshi joins the firm from Kirkland & Ellis in Chicago, where he was a corporate partner. He earned his J.D., cum laude, from the University of Michigan Law School and his B.B.A., with High Distinction, from the University of Michigan Stephen M. Ross School of Business.

Dykema announced the addition of Robert D. Leavitt to its Financial Industry Group and Business Services Department as a senior counsel in the firm’s Chicago office. He has experience practicing in-house, including time with Citibank, as well as with private firms, most recently Johnson and Colmar in Bannockburn, Ill.

In a release, the firm said Leavitt has represented clients ranging from national financial institutions and multi-national, publicly traded companies to small start-ups, spanning many industries, including banking and financial services, medical waste disposal, transportation, food, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, manufacturing, and high-tech services. His background encompasses banking services, operations, technology and compliance such as treasury management services, funds transfers and payment systems, deposit, lock-box and account services, anti-money laundering and foreign asset control compliance, escheatment, FinTech, and online and internet banking.

The firm said Leavitt also works on complex commercial, corporate and financial transactions including mergers and acquisitions, capital raises and private placements, secured and cash-flow lending and loan documentation, work-outs, forbearance agreements and restructurings, sale and purchase of goods and services, joint venturing, licensing, distribution, commercial contracts, outsourcing and other general commercial matters, equipment leasing, corporate formation, governance, planning and general corporate matters, and non-profit and charitable organizations.

Leavitt received a J.D. from the De Paul University College of Law, an LL.M., with honors, in International Business, Finance and Trade Law from the University of Cambridge, and a B.A. in Philosophy from Colgate University.

Associate Christine Baptiste-Perez has joined Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C. Northeast office.

Before attending law school, Christine Baptiste-Perez taught high school Spanish in Louisiana and worked in human resources recruitment. She joins SDV with a background in product liability litigation, foreclosure litigation, personal injury litigation, international business compliance and securities regulatory matters. While in law school, she was the recipient of the Milton W. Memorial Prize for excellence in Torts, the CALI Excellence for the Future Award ® in Torts, and the CALI Excellence for the Future Award in Islamic Finance and Investment Law.

Labor, employment and ADA attorney John Bosco has joined Bailey Brauer PLLC.

The firm said Bosco represents international, national, and regional clients in labor, employment, and accessibility matters across the United States and in select foreign jurisdictions. He handles all areas of employment law, including trade secrets, discrimination, retaliation, wage and hour claims, and regulatory agency investigations.

“I have known Clayton and Alex for a long time and have a tremendous amount of respect for their work,” said Bosco. “Several of my clients said they held Bailey Brauer in high esteem as a great litigation firm. They have been very encouraging about this move.”

The co-author of the Thomson West compliance and litigation manual Public Accommodations Under the Americans With Disabilities Act, Bosco’s practice includes a focus on federal and state ADA issues involving physical and technological accessibility. He also represents clients in labor union-related matters including collective bargaining and litigation before the National Labor Relations Board.

“We are excited to add such a respected employment-focused attorney to the firm,” said co-founder Alex Brauer. He notes that the recent move into new office space in Dallas’ Campbell Centre I provides the firm the physical space needed for staff expansion. “This is just the first page in an exciting next chapter in the growth of our firm.”

Bosco joins Bailey Brauer from the Dallas office of Miami-based Leon Cosgrove. He is also a former vice president and assistant general counsel for JPMorgan Chase Bank. He earned his law degree in 2004 from Wake Forest University School of Law and graduated from the University of Florida in 2001.

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP announced that Samuel D. Lipshie, a partner in the firm’s Nashville office, has again been named by Who’s Who Legal as among the world’s leading sports and entertainment law practitioners. He is listed in the Who’s Who Legal: Sports & Entertainment 2019 directory.

As the leader of Bradley’s Media and Entertainment Practice Group and also a member of the firm’s Litigation and Intellectual Property practice groups, Lipshie practices in the areas of entertainment, music, intellectual property and commercial litigation and dispute resolution. He has extensive experience in connection with the acquisition and disposition of media, broadcast and other intellectual property. In a release, the firm said he has handled high-profile copyright, royalty (publishers, producers and talent), sports, entertainment, media and intellectual property litigation, as well as a multitude of cases involving trade secrets, trademarks, covenants not to compete, interference with contractual relations, and other business and commercial issues.

Scheduled to be published in October 2019 by London-based Law Business Research Limited, the Who’s Who Legal: Sports & Entertainment 2019 seeks to identify the leading sports and entertainment lawyers in the international marketplace. The attorneys listed were highly recommended by peers and clients for their counsel to individuals, corporations, and industry associations. Only lawyers who receive the highest number of recommendations as determined through independent research for Who’s Who are listed in the publication. The Who’s Who Legal guides are intended to serve as reference sources for companies seeking to corroborate the reputations of lawyers recommended by another party.

Miller & Chevalier Chartered announced that the firm’s members elected Kathryn Cameron Atkinson, member and immediate past chair of the International Department, as chair of the firm effective July 1, 2019. Atkinson succeeds Marc J. Gerson, who will continue to lead the firm’s federal tax policy practice.

The firm said Atkinson, who has spent her entire 27-year legal career at Miller & Chevalier, focuses her practice on international corporate compliance and investigations with an emphasis on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), economic sanctions and export controls, and anti-money laundering laws. She has twice been selected as an Independent Compliance Monitor by the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Atkinson is recognized for her work by various lawyer ranking publications, including Chambers USA and Chambers Global for her FCPA work, Global Investigations Review, which named her one of the top Women in Investigations (2015), and Latinvex, where she is ranked as one of Latin America’s Top 100 Female Lawyers for FCPA and Fraud (2017 – 2019).

She has served on the firm’s Executive Committee as chair of the International Department since 2012 after several years as vice chair of that department. She has also held positions on the firm’s Compensation, Hiring, Lawyer Development, and Pro Bono Committees.

In addition to Atkinson, the firm’s Executive Committee includes vice chair Adam P. Feinberg, Tax Department chair Kevin L. Kenworthy, Litigation Department chair Andrew T. Wise, International Department chair James G. Tillen, and at-large members Maria O’Toole Jones and Preston L. Pugh.

Peter J. Willsey and Vincent J. Badolato have joined Brown Rudnick LLP. Willsey joins as chair of the global Trademark, Copyright & Advertising Practice Group and as a partner in the Intellectual Property Practice Group. Badolato joins as counsel in the Trademark, Copyright & Advertising Practice Group. Both Willsey and Badolato, formerly with Cooley LLP, will be based in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office.

Inn a release, the firm said Willsey focuses his practice on litigation, counseling, and prosecution in the fields of trademark and copyright law. He advises companies ranging from startups to global corporations on the entire life cycle of a trademark, beginning with the inception of a product or brand name and advising on branding strategies, to registering the trademark and enforcing intellectual property rights. His clients span all industries, including technology, pharmaceutical, biotechnology and consumer products.

Willsey has handled matters in federal courts throughout the country and before the US Patent and Trademark Office Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. He also counsels on domestic and foreign trademark prosecution efforts.

The firm said Badolato focuses his practice on the selection, clearance, adoption and use of trademarks, domestic and international trademark prosecution and enforcement, trademark portfolio management and the development of comprehensive branding strategies. Extensively experienced in counseling, prosecution, licensing and litigation in the field of trademark and copyright law, Badolato has also handled trademark and advertising litigation matters in federal court.

Willsey earned his J.D. from University of Richmond School of Law and his B.A. from University of Virginia. He is an adjunct professor teaching trademark law and unfair competition at Georgetown University Law School, and previously taught a trademark course at the University of Virginia Law School.

Krista Schwartz and Patrick Michael have joined Hogan Lovells‘ San Francisco office as partners in the firm’s Intellectual Property, Media, and Technology (IPMT) practice. They both joined the firm from Jones Day.

In a release, the firm said Krista Schwartz is a first-chair trial partner focused on IP litigation. She handles patent, copyright, trade secret, and complex technology cases for the world’s largest technology companies. Her cases involve technologies ranging from search engines, semiconductors, cellular devices, and medical devices to EDA and operating systems software. Prior to law school, she worked for AT&T Bell Labs, where she was an inventor on more than 20 patents relating to desktop video conferencing. Schwartz graduated with J.D. from Chicago-Kent College of Law with high honors; Order of the Coif. She received her M.S. from Northwestern University and her B.S. from the University of Illinois.

Patrick Michael is an IP/technology litigator who has tried multiple cases to verdict. His practice focuses on patent, copyright, and trade secret litigation, along with technology-related disputes. His clients include integrated circuit makers, electronic design automation, software companies, semiconductor fabrication process and tool designers, computer networking, and medical devices. Michael graduated from Pepperdine University with his J.D., cum laude, and received his B.A. from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

They are joining the firm after the addition of Christopher Cox in April. A five-partner strong M&A and technology transactions team including Richard Climan, Keith Flaum, Jane Ross, John Brockland, and Chris Moore, as well as the addition of Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits partner Mike Frank, who joined the firm in 2017.

John (“Jack”) H. Chassaing has joined Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C.’s Belleville office as an associate in the Litigation practice group.

The firm said Chassaing’s corporate litigation experience includes toxic tort, asbestos and insurance-related disputes. He has managed hundreds of matters for toxic tort and general litigation clients and has conducted and defended depositions, negotiated in mediations, and drafted responsive pleadings and dispositive motions in asbestos-related litigation.

Prior to joining Greensfelder, Chassaing was an associate at Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney. He also formerly practiced at Reed, Armstrong, Mudge & Morrissey P.C.

During law school, Chassaing interned for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Cape Girardeau, Mo.; the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office; and the Union County State’s Attorney’s Office in Jonesboro, Ill.

Chassaing received his J.D. from Southern Illinois University School of Law and his Bachelor of Science in business administration from the University of Missouri.

Eliot B. Peace, an attorney in Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP’s Tampa office, has been appointed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to the Judicial Nominating Commission for the Second District Court of Appeal.

Florida’s Judicial Nominating Commissions (JNCs) select nominees to fill judicial vacancies within the state court system. The state’s 27 separate JNCs include one for the Florida Supreme Court, five for each of the district courts of appeal, 20 for each circuit court and the county courts contained in that circuit, and one Statewide Commission for Judges of Compensation Claims. JNC members serve four-year terms, except when an appointment is made to fill a vacant, unexpired term.

The firm said that Peace, as a member of Bradley’s Litigation Practice Group, represents business and commercial clients in complex litigation across a variety of industries and in state and federal courts across the country

Peace previously served as a federal prosecutor and in-house counsel in the U.S. Air Force JAG Corps.

The 2018 death by suicide of Sidley Austin partner Gabe MacConaill has drawn attention again after Financial Times featured his death in an article about mental health issues in the workplace. In that same article, his widow, Joanna Litt, voices her anger at the firm for the events that led up to her husband’s death and for the firm’s lack of a robust response since MacConaill died.

Above the Law tells the story of how MacConaill’s death has become part of a larger conversation.

“The two managing partners of the bankruptcy division did not call me, email me, send me a letter,” she says. “I still haven’t heard from either partner. I also didn’t hear from the slightly senior partner who Gabe was working [on the bankruptcy case] with. None of them.”

Read the article.

Hughes Hubbard & Reed announced that Roy (Ruoweng) Liu has joined the firm as partner in its Sanctions, Export Controls & Anti-Money Laundering practice within the larger International Trade group. He will serve as chair of the Greater China practice.

Liu focuses his practice on long-arm U.S. regulations on international trade and investment regulations, with a special focus on assisting clients navigate the complex regulatory environment. He advises clients on U.S. export controls and economic sanctions, reviews and investigations by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), and anti-money laundering (AML), the firm said in a release.

Liu is experienced in U.S. investment and trade regulatory issues related to China. He has represented both U.S. and Chinese companies before U.S. government authorities and, in cooperation with Chinese lawyers, before Chinese government authorities. He has experience dealing with challenging issues such as those related to the Entity List and other restricted parties lists (also known as “U.S. blacklists” in China), obtaining CFIUS clearance for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions involving Chinese investments, and mitigating FCPA and AML risks unique to China.

Liu is a key author of the U.S. section of the highly acclaimed International Trade and Commercial Transactions Global Guide published by Thomson Reuters Practical Law.

Liu has appeared in numerous articles on trade law in both English-language and Chinese publications, including Politico, WorldECR, China Trade News, China Business Law Journal, Asia Times, Intelligeast, and the Tulane International Law and Comparative Law Journal. He also is a frequent speaker on international trade law issues at major conferences held by the American Association of Exporters and Importers (AAEI), Thomson Reuters, WorldECR, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Global Enterprise Development Forum.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Williams College and a Juris Doctorate from Stanford University Law School. While at Stanford, Liu was on the Stanford Law Review and selected as an articles editor.

The firm said Liu is the latest addition to Hughes Hubbard’s well-regarded and internationally recognized Sanctions, Export Control and Anti-Money Laundering practice, following most recently lateral partner and practice chair Ryan Fayhee, a former U.S. Department of Justice senior official with the National Security Division, and Olivier Dorgans, who advises on EU sanctions and export controls from the firm’s Paris office.

Former federal prosecutor Roscoe C. Howard Jr. has been named the new managing partner of Barnes & Thornburg’s Washington, D.C., office where he has practiced since 2015, effective July 1. Howard, who will oversee the office’s strategic growth and management, succeeds Karen McGee, who will retire on July 31. He is the firm’s first African- American office managing partner.

Howard served as the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia from 2001-2004, by appointment of President George W. Bush. As Washington, D.C.’s chief federal prosecutor, he was responsible for the handling of all serious local crimes, as well as all federal offenses in the nation’s capital. Howard previously served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in that office, and he also had subsequent stints as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia, as well as twice serving in the former Office of Independent Counsel.

Inn a release, the firm said Howard joined Barnes & Thornburg in 2015 and focuses his practice on white collar criminal matters, complex litigation, and corporate compliance and ethics issues. Last year, Howard was appointed by the U.S. Department of Commerce to serve as the Special Compliance Coordinator for Zhongxing Telecommunications Equipment Corporation, of Shenzhen, China, and ZTE Kangxun Telecommunications Ltd. of Hi-New Shenzhen, China (collectively, ZTE).

Trial lawyer Gale Pearson, a nationally certified clinical laboratory scientist who has served on several multidistrict litigation science committees, has joined Dallas-based Fears Nachawati Law Firm.

In a release, the firm said Pearson has helped lead Minnesota’s first lawsuits alleging water contamination by 3M-manufactured chemicals. Recently, she was named to the federal Plaintiffs Executive Committee leadership group for multidistrict lawsuits involving water contamination caused by products containing PFOA and PFOS.

“Gale is a tenacious trial lawyer with a profound understanding of both the science and legal issues involved in technical environmental and medical cases. She also has the organizational expertise to manage complex MDL cases,” said Fears Nachawati co-founder Bryan Fears. “Her expertise will further bolster our firm’s representation of those harmed by environmental polluters and the bad acts of the pharmaceutical and medical device industries.”

The firm said Pearson has experience in complex litigation legal issues, including preemption, statute of limitations and personal jurisdiction challenges, including qui tam representation in cases holding nursing home owners responsible for the inadequate care of their residents. She served as lead counsel in a Minnesota class action seeking to hold Philip Morris and its parent company accountable for the fraudulent marketing of light cigarettes. She also served as plaintiffs’ liaison counsel in the Minnesota state Guidant and Medtronic cases.

“The attorneys of Fears Nachawati and I share the same view of the law and the same commitment to fight for justice for those who would otherwise be without a voice,” said Ms. Pearson, who will practice in Texas as well as Minnesota. “The firm is an ideal fit for me.”

She is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum of top trial lawyers. In 2003, Pearson received “Outstanding Pro Bono Service” recognition for her work with the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund on behalf of victims of the terror attack. She earned a bachelor’s degree in laboratory medicine, physics & chemistry from California State University Northridge and worked as a clinical laboratory scientist before attending Loyola Law School.