Bankruptcy attorney Melissa Youngman has joined Wilson Elser’s Orlando office as a partner.

Formerly a partner with regional law firm McCalla Raymer, Youngman’s practice is focused on bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, representing a broad spectrum of clients including mortgage lenders, banks and financial institutions, Fortune 500 companies, insurance companies, real estate entities, equipment lessors, commercial landlords, purchasers of distressed assets, investment trusts, bankruptcy trustees, and other entities, the firm said in a news release.

“Melissa’s practice bolsters the firm’s national and Florida-based Bankruptcy practices,” said Sean McDonough, regional managing partner of Wilson Elser’s Orlando office. “While the national practice has always served clients in jurisdictions throughout the country, Melissa’s experience and skill set in Orlando and the recent addition of bankruptcy partner Dan Gold in Miami further broaden the practice’s geographic footprint and provide our clients with ready access to accomplished, local attorneys.”

Certified in business bankruptcy by the American Board of Certification, Youngman serves as co-chair of the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Southeast Bankruptcy Workshop Advisory Board and is a former board member of the Central Florida Bankruptcy Law Association and the New York Chapter of the International Women’s Insolvency and Restructuring Confederation. Additionally, she has been named for inclusion in the Orlando Super Lawyers Rising Stars list.

About Wilson Elser

Wilson Elser, a full-service and leading defense litigation law firm (www.wilsonelser.com), serves its clients with nearly 800 attorneys in 27 offices in the United States and one in London and through a network of affiliates in key regions globally. Founded in 1978, it ranks among the top 200 law firms identified by The American Lawyer and is included in the top 50 of The National Law Journal’s survey of the nation’s largest law firms. Wilson Elser serves a growing, loyal base of clients with innovative thinking and an in-depth understanding of their respective businesses.

The 5th U.S. Circuit court of Appeals ruled in an arbitration award that a district court had wrongly concluded that the court was the proper decision-maker on contract formation, according to a report produced by Stinson Leonard Street and posted on JDSupra.

“Although courts are presumptively authorized to decide whether an arbitration agreement exists, the Fifth Circuit found the parties altered that presumption by ‘submitting, briefing, and generally disputing that issue throughout the arbitration proceedings’,” wrote Liz Kramer for the firm. The case was OMG, L.P. v. Heritage Auctions, Inc.,  2015 WL 2151779 (5th Cir. May 8, 2015).

She wrote that OMG claimed that it was owed more commissions than the auction house had paid it for firearm sales. The case involved a dispute between the parties on how to interpret the term “merchandise.”

Read the article.

Burleson LLP hosted a second webinar as part of its ongoing series titled, “Drilling Down on Strategic Alternatives in the Current Energy Crisis.” The complimentary event, “Part 2: Boards of Directors and Corporate Governance,” now is available on-demand.

The session features key insights from a panel of energy restructuring attorneys and capital and financial advisors.  Topics include the zone of insolvency; fiduciary duties of directors, officers, and controlling shareholders; strategies to limit liability; special committees; and the Delaware Standard of Review.

On the firm’s website, Rick Burleson, managing partner and moderator, says, “Overseeing a company’s exposure to risk can be a particularly big task for oil and gas boards of directors, given the current energy climate.”

Watch the recorded webinar.

Hogan Lovells has announced that Kelly Tubman Hardy has joined its Corporate Practice in the firm’s Baltimore office focusing on corporate and securities law, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and strategic alliances, corporate governance, securities compliance and general business law.

Hardy advises clients on cross-border transactions, including M&A and joint ventures, in established and emerging markets throughout the world.

“Kelly’s track record of success advising global clients and leading cross-border transactions makes her ideally suited to join the Hogan Lovells Corporate team. And her experience in Mexico – both practicing law and teaching at Mexican law schools – and advising Latin American clients will immediately complement Hogan Lovells’ practice in Mexico,” said David Gibbons, Global Head of Hogan Lovells’ corporate practice.

In addition to awards for her legal prowess, including recognitions by Chambers USA, Baltimore SmartCEO and Legal 500 Latin America, Hardy has been recognized by a number of regional organizations for her activities as a Baltimore community leader. The Daily Record named her one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women and the Baltimore Mayor’s Hispanic Affairs Liaison recognized her work at Education-Based Latino Outreach in Baltimore City.

“Kelly has strong roots in the Baltimore community and an international client base” said Baltimore Office Managing Partner Steve Barley. “We are thrilled she is joining Hogan Lovells. She is a talented lawyer who will offer immediate value to our clients.”

Hardy is a member of the Board of Directors of the Baltimore World Trade Center, the Board of Directors of Appleseed Mexico in Mexico City, and the Board of Trustees of the SEED School of Maryland. She received a J.D. with honors from the University of Maryland School of Law; an M.B.A. from the University of Maryland; and a B.A. cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania.

Hardy joins from DLA Piper where she was Regional Office Head for Corporate and Securities.

About Hogan Lovells’ Corporate Practice

With 350 partners and more than 1,000 lawyers worldwide operating in 22 jurisdictions throughout Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and the United States, Hogan Lovells provides exceptional, high-quality trans-Atlantic transactional strength and strong local capability throughout our broad global network. We are ideally placed to advise on complex deals in highly regulated sectors, working at the intersection between government and business. We regularly advise on the most significant, complex, and sophisticated global M&A transactions, ranking in the top 10 worldwide for M&A deals in Q1 2015 (Bloomberg).

About Hogan Lovells

Hogan Lovells is a leading global legal practice providing business-oriented legal advice and high-quality service across its exceptional breadth of practices to clients around the world.

“Hogan Lovells” or the “firm” is an international legal practice that includes Hogan Lovells US LLP and Hogan Lovells International LLP. For more information, see www.hoganlovells.com.

An Ashland, Ky., hospital has agreed to pay $40.9 million to the federal government to settle claims that it made millions of dollars by falsely billing Medicaid and Medicare for unnecessary heart procedures, reports The Courier-Journal of Louisville.

The government’s lawsuit claimed King’s Daughters Medical Center “knew, deliberately ignored or recklessly disregarded the fact” that its cardiologists were inserting stents and performing catheritzations on patients who didn’t need them.

According to the paper’s report, “Hans Poppe, who represents the patients in the private suits against King’s Daughters — as well as most of about 400 who have sued the London hospital — said the settlement may be the largest ever in the U.S. involving unnecessary heart procedures. He said it bolsters the credibility of the claims made by his clients against King’s Daughters.”

Read the story.

A one-hour complimentary webinar from eTERA will provide procurement professionals with an overview of the eDiscovery process to help them manage the eDiscovery RFP purchasing process.

The webinar will be Thursday, May 28, 2015, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. EST.

In a release, eTERA said:

Today’s procurement professionals are often faced with important purchasing decisions related to the selection of electronic discovery (eDiscovery) providers and the various services they provide. As the cost of global litigation, government investigations and regulatory matters continue to increase, there are several important considerations procurement professionals must know in order to evaluate service providers who can provide the best value while offering cost savings.

This one-hour complimentary webinar will provide procurement professionals with an overview of the eDiscovery process in order to help them manage the eDiscovery RFP purchasing process. eTERA’s Sam Morgan, Global Managing Consultant Discovery/EDRM, and Mike Chagnon, Managing Director of Client Engagements, will discuss the following key topics:

• Understanding the Electronic Discovery Reference Model (EDRM)
• Overview of commonly used eDiscovery terminology
• Factors to consider when evaluating and selecting eDiscovery providers
• Achieving cost savings from the RFP process

Speakers:
Sam Morgan
Global Managing Consultant Discovery/EDRM
eTERA Consulting

Sam Morgan serves as the Global Managing Consultant Discovery/EDRM for eTERA.  In this role, Sam is responsible for advising corporate and law firm clients on managing complex litigation and investigations encompassing all aspects of electronic discovery including collections, processing, and hosted solutions.  Sam also provides client training programs covering eDiscovery management best practices.  Given his extensive background in litigation support, electronic discovery and trial support, Sam has become a trusted advisor to several clients in key industries including insurance, pharmaceutical, telecommunications, and manufacturing.

Mike Chagnon
Managing Director, Client Engagements
eTERA Consultin

Mike Chagnon serves as the Managing Director of Client Engagements at eTERA.  In his role, Mike is responsible for advising, coordinating and managing client engagements and resources across the entire EDRM including data collection, forensics, electronic discovery processing and litigation hosting. Mike also provides extensive training programs covering eTERA’s Forens1cs One and 1ntelligent One data management and reporting capabilities. Mike has an impressive track record leading cross-functional teams throughout the entire project life cycle leading to the successful delivery of client solutions. In addition, Mike has successfully developed and managed a large network of strategic partnerships including forensic collection firms.

To register today for this complimentary webinar, please click here.

For additional information, please contact: Cassey Elder, Manager, Public Relations at marketing@eteraconsulting.com.

Reed Smith has posted a white paper advising general counsel how to master the first steps of dealing smoothly with a computer intrusion.

The steps begin with the initial debriefing from the IT director, the HR director or whoever presents the information about the compromise. They progress through such steps as contacting outside cyber security counsel, directing IT staff to freeze all internal audit trails – including vendor traffic, convening a meeting of the Incident Response Team within one hour, and more, ending with contacting the CEO.

The paper describes detailed actions that should be made at each step of the process.

Read the white paper.

The International Association for Contract and Commercial Management, in collaboration with Sage Ltd., has launched a new journal called the Journal of Strategic Contracting and Negotiation. The first edition of the publication is available free of charge.

It also addresses the impact of contracting and negotiation on trust and ethics in business. As a cross-disciplinary endeavor drawing on the social sciences, JSCAN aims to lead the wave of change concerning theory, research and the practice of strategic contracting and negotiation.

“The launch of the Journal of Strategic Contracting & Negotiation is a momentous event for anyone who cares about the field of contracting,” writes CEO Tim Cummins in the IACCM blog. “For the first time, there is a dedicated academic journal that will promote and consolidate research in this area.”

Multidisciplinary in nature, JSCAN welcomes submissions in the fields of anthropology, economics, finance, international business, law, marketing, operations, organizational behavior, organization studies, political science, project management, psychology, strategic management and sociology. Get more information about submitting articles.

Download the first edition.

Providence, R.I. law firm Mandell Schwartz & Boisclair won a $25.6 million verdict for a plaintiff who sued Rhode Island Hospital in the largest negligence verdict ever in the state.

The state’s largest hospital admitted that seven doctors and two nurses were negligent in caring for a patient who sought treatment in for a head injury in 2009. After his stay in the hospital, he left with permanent, debilitating injuries.

“The hospital conceded before trial that its staff misdiagnosed Carl Beauchamp, failed to check on him and do required exams, failed to communicate with other staff about his condition and missed signs that his condition was worsening during a span of less than 48 hours,” according to a report in The Providence Journal.

Read the story.

eTERA Consulting, an internationally recognized and award-winning leader in data and technology management, today celebrates the one year anniversary of the All1ance One Partner Program. Developed to expand the depth of eTERA’s client base, the All1ance One Partner Program has successfully accelerated the onboarding of several new clients that have experienced the benefits of eTERA’s full range of eDiscovery services throughout the Electronic Discovery Reference Model (“EDRM”), the company said in a release.

At the helm of the All1ance One Partner Program is Mary McGinness who brings nearly a decade of client relations experience to the table. “We are thrilled to celebrate the Program’s one year anniversary and look forward to expanding the Program and allowing our partners to benefit from every bit of success they help us generate,” said McGinness. “An ideal All1ance One Partner is one who has deep roots in the legal space and is interested in leveraging their contacts in order to generate additional revenue streams for their business. We look forward to several more years of success with the Program.”

Under McGinness’s leadership, the All1ance One Partner Program has attracted dozens of Partners that has led to significant revenue for eTERA and substantial referral fees. Program benefits include:

• Generous referral bonuses
• No fees or annual commitments
• Partnering with a company with financial stability, national recognition and a global footprint
• Ability to provide eDiscovery services to clients
• Dedicated Partner manager
• Ongoing training and education

“The All1ance One Partner Program is critical to our growth strategy as the demand for eDiscovery and data management services accelerate,” said Scott Holec, President of eTERA Consulting. “Together with our dedicated and well-connected Partners, we can look forward to long-standing, mutually-beneficial relationships to meet increasing market demands.”

For more information about the All1ance One Partner Program, please contact Mary McGinness at all1anceone@eteraconsulting.com.

About eTERA Consulting

eTERA Consulting, Built by the clients, for the clients™ is an award-winning leader in data and technology management providing innovative solutions to help clients overcome the high costs of managing large volumes of data, electronic discovery and content searching. As an international consultancy, eTERA offers five key services across the Electronic Discovery Reference Model including Early Information Assessment®, Forens1cs One℠, 1ntelligent One™, Rev1ew One™ and Opt1mum One.® These services help clients to proactively identify and analyze data early in the process allowing for significant data reduction, enhanced decision-making abilities, significant savings on eDiscovery costs and defensibility. eTERA Consulting provides clients with the necessary swat-team of experts needed to effectively manage litigation, government investigations and regulatory matters. eTERA Consulting utilizes software tools verified by the Gartner Group and is SSAE-16 certified to ensure the protection of client data. Headquartered in Washington, DC, and with offices in Chicago, Brussels, London and Paris, eTERA Consulting has served the legal industry since 2004. eTERA Consulting was selected by the Legal Times in 2014 as the Best End-to-End Litigation Consulting Firm and in 2013 as the Best Data and Technology Management eDiscovery Provider. eTERA Consulting has also been recognized by the National Law Journal for four consecutive years as the nation’s top End-to-End eDiscovery Company.

DaVita HealthCare Partners has announced that it will pay up to $495 million to settle a whistle-blower lawsuit accusing the Denver company of defrauding the federal Medicare program of millions of dollars, reports The Denver Post.

According to the report, the company, which said it does not admit any wrongdoing, has now settled its third whistle-blower lawsuit since 2012, with payouts totaling nearly $1 billion.

The civil suit includes a claim by Dr. Alon J. Vainer and nurse Daniel D. Barbir, who both worked for DaVita. They said they noticed that DaVita was throwing out good medicine that it then billed Medicare and Medicaid for, according to the lawsuit.

L. Lin Wood of Atlanta represents the plaintiffs.

Read the story.

Muhammad Naji of Tampa, FL, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit laundering of money that was obtained by fraudulent means, announced U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III.

Naji could face up to 20 years in federal prison, reports the Tampa Bay Business Journal.

“One of the schemes involved sending ‘phishing’ emails to law firms in the U.S. asking for legal representation for a phony contract dispute. Conspirators would mail a forged certified check to the law firm for payment, and a ‘client’ would contact the firm and ask them to wire the funds to an account,” the paper reports.

Read the story.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is expected to pay $129.5 million to settle its part of a lawsuit accusing banks of manipulating foreign-currency rates. The information is from someone familiar with the matter, the Journal says.

A final accord may be reached in the next several weeks, according to the source.

“The deal would add Goldman to the list of settlements private investors have extracted from many of the world’s largest banks including J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., UBS AG and Bank of America Corp.,” the Journal reports.

Read the story.

ECM Solutions of Charlotte, N.C., presented the webinar “Take Some Uncertainty/ Risk Out of Your Business” and posed the question: “have you uncovered all your risks?”

The webinar was an installment in Technology Associates’ Expertise in Business Webinar Series. John Ketner, a partner at ECM Solutions, was the presenter.

On its website, Technology Associates says there are many reasons why businesses fail or suffer great losses – but risks that are uncovered and properly planned for aren’t one of them. “So what exactly is risk in a business setting, what are the different methods of uncovering risks, and what should we do once we have uncovered one that needs attention?”

Watch the on-demand webinar.

ProcessUnity has posted a white paper that explains how to use pre-contract due diligence to intercept vendor risks before they become problems.

“Today’s global, digital economy opens up a world of opportunities — and a whole new world of risk exposure,” ProcessUnity says on its website. “When important parts of your business can be fulfilled anywhere, risks may be everywhere. If one of your vendors takes a hit, you could take the fall. Which begs the question: Do you have a clear picture of your vulnerability? Download ProcessUnity’s white paper to learn how to get it right from the start, using pre-contract due diligence to intercept risks before they become problems.”

Topics include:

• The nine-step process to create a rational due diligence program
• Why manual due-diligence is just not manageable
• How to harness the power of automation to streamline vendor onboar

Download the white paper.

BakerHostetler will present its Shale Symposium series to address issues related to shale and hydraulic fracturing in North America.

The symposium will be Thursday, June 4, 2015, from 5:30–8 p.m. CDT. Participants may register to attend in person or via webinar.

After a regulatory review process lasting more than three years, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) recently issued a final rule purporting to govern hydraulic fracturing on federal and Indian lands. The rule represents the most high-profile component of the Obama Administration’s sweeping efforts to overhaul regulations governing virtually every aspect of domestic oil and gas production.

The presentation will explain the role of the hydraulic fracturing rule within the more expansive regulatory context and will consider the consequences that the outcome of legal and political challenges seeking to invalidate the rule could have on federal energy policy.

Register for the symposium.

Patrick Maschio recently joined Farrell Fritz’s New York City office as counsel in the Bankruptcy & Restructuring group. Patrick has extensive transactional experience representing hedge funds, banks and broker-dealers involved in the purchase and sale of general unsecured claims against bankrupt companies; the purchase and sale of bank loans under the Loan Syndication & Trading Association (LSTA) and the Loan Market Association (LMA) standards; and the transfer of post-reorganization equities and restricted securities of foreign and domestic companies.

“The addition of Patrick Maschio enables us to provide clients with legal guidance regarding investment options that arise from bankruptcies. While opportunistic, this is a challenging niche that requires in-depth knowledge of the intricacies of bankruptcy law, securities law and distressed bank debt,” said Ted Berkowitz, a partner in the Bankruptcy & Restructuring group. “Patrick has been practicing in that space for nearly ten years.”

Prior to joining Farrell Fritz, Maschio was counsel at Nixon Peabody LLP, and prior to that, an associate at Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from Fordham University School of Law and his Bachelor of Arts degree from Columbia College. From 2002-2004, Maschio’s legal studies included courses overseas in China, the Czech Republic, Mexico and Costa Rica.

Maschio resides in New York, NY.

Governance, risk, and compliance professionals often compete with economists for the most dismal view of events. To practitioners, “GRC” is not monolithic, but which one is the most popular?

Berkman Solutions has posted an examination of the question on its website.

A word about the less-than-scientific method to judge popularity: we looked at about 10 years of search history for “governance,” “risk management,” and “compliance.” The article contains the results of the popularity contest for the entire world. Regional preferences differ, so we also present the data for the following countries: United States, Australia, Great Britain, India, and South Africa.

The “R” in GRC typically means “Risk.” For this popularity contest, “Risk” was disqualified and “Risk Management” was ushered on stage instead. Risk alone towers over the others, probably (pun intended) because colloquial use of Risk pervades pop culture. Risk management seems to be the more dignified and professional option.

Read the article.

Braumiller Law Group will sponsor a series of webinars on subjects relating to trade law with Cuba and Mexico.

The first, “Maquiladoras: What’s next on the A, AA, and AAA certification?”, will be Thursday, May 21, beginning at 10 a.m. The webinar will cover how IMMEX and other bonded warehouses can keep their certification in compliance, and how these companies can continue on saving fiscal taxes.

“Cuban Sanctions” What’s on the horizon?” will be Tuesday, June 9, at 10 a.m. This webinar, led by Mexico Attorney Brenda Cordova, will discuss the recent changes in the Cuban Assets Control Regulations, including what is now permitted, what remains prohibited, and what remains uncertain.  This webinar will also address the potential impact of the recent changes on business relations between the U.S. and Cuba and the practical challenges confronting businesses seeking to enter the Cuban market. Attorney Devin Sefton will lead the discussion.

“Computed value and why they are used in maquila import transactions,” the third webinar, will be Tuesday, July 7, at 10 a.m. The webinar will review the hierarchy of Customs valuation methods and present scenarios of maquila transactions where a few different types of value methods apply. The presenter will be attorney Jennifer Horvath.

General Counsel News readers may participate in the webinars at no charge by emailing Tracey Lloyd at tracey@braumillerlaw.com and mentioning that you are a GCN reader.

Register for the webinars.

Primary Opinion has published an article pointing to an almost exponential increase in worldwide patent publications relating to the graphene markete since 2006, and this is consistent with graphene first having been isolated in 2004 and the typical 18 month lag between filing and publication of a patent application.

This exponential growth shows no signs of abating, the article says.

“Since 2012, commercial products using graphene have started to become a reality. Accordingly, companies as diverse as Samsung, IBM, Fujitsu and Head Technology GmbH are all filing patent applications concerned with graphene. Looking at the various patent portfolios, it appears that graphene may one day form an integral part of many touchscreen devices, energy storage devices, transistors, semiconductors, lubricants, inks, cars and even sporting goods,” the article says.

Read the article.