Miller & Chevalier Chartered announced the election of Margot Laporte as a Member of the firm. The promotion was effective January 1.

Laporte advises global public companies, boards of directors, and audit committees facing complex multi-jurisdictional regulatory, litigation, and reputational risk resulting from enforcement actions. Her practice focuses on cross-border internal and regulatory investigations, white collar criminal defense, securities enforcement, and regulatory compliance, including with respect to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), anti-money laundering (AML) regulations, economic sanctions laws, insider trading, and accounting fraud. She has conducted investigations on behalf of clients in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, and Russia.

Kisshia Simmons recently joined the Houston office of the national law firm, Chamberlain Hrdlicka, as a senior associate in the Immigration practice, where she will focus on employment-based immigration, temporary work visas, criminal immigration, family-based immigration and complex immigration matters. She will also assist small businesses by providing corporate law services, such as contract drafting and negotiations.

A successful immigration attorney, Simmons brings more than 15 years of experience to the firm. Through the prestigious Attorney General Honor’s Program, Simmons started her legal career at the Department of Homeland Security as assistant chief counsel with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, where she argued on behalf of the Department of Homeland Security in the New York Immigration Court.

Prior to joining Chamberlain Hrdlicka, she was the founding partner with Simmons Grant, PLLC, a law firm in New York City, where she represented small and medium-sized corporations in filing for temporary visas and permanent residence for foreign-born employees. She is experienced in filing for extraordinary-based visas and green cards for artists, as well as business and marketing professionals. Simmons has also argued in Immigration Courts in New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts.

Simmons graduated from Cornell University with a bachelor of science degree in human development and obtained her law degree at Georgetown University Law Center. She currently serves as the chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee for the Georgetown University Board of Governors. As part of her pro bono work, Simmons has successfully argued on behalf of a non-profit providing free health care for Haitian citizens and a Yemeni citizen with a complicated legal permanent resident issue. She is proficient in Spanish.

DALLAS (Jan. 5, 2021) – Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP is pleased to announce that Dallas attorneys Samuel T. Acker and Scott Schardt have been elevated to partner, and Andrew R. Stubblefield has been elevated to counsel. Across all the firm’s offices, 13 attorneys were elevated to partner, and three were elevated to counsel.

Acker is a member of the Litigation Practice Group. His practice focuses on commercial and securities litigation, and white-collar criminal defense. He routinely represents plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal court actions involving fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, and partnership and corporate governance disputes. A substantial portion of his practice has also been dedicated to representing broker-dealers and registered representatives in FINRA arbitrations and regulatory inquiries.

A member of the Healthcare Practice Group, Schardt’s practice is focused on a variety of regulatory matters affecting hospitals and healthcare providers, including Stark Law and Anti-Kickback Statute compliance, Medicare provider enrollment and reimbursement, 501(a) Physician Employment Organizations, HIPAA compliance, and healthcare facility and provider licensing. In addition, he actively represents healthcare providers as both purchasers and sellers in transactional matters, including mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures.

Stubblefield is a member of the Construction Practice Group. He has spent his career representing clients of every kind within the construction industry, including owners, contractors, design professionals, subcontractors, suppliers and sureties. Stubblefield has significant experience trying a variety of cases – in bench trials, jury trials, and arbitrations – that run the gamut from small residential matters to large-scale defect and contract cases. He was also among the first class of attorneys to be Board Certified in Construction Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP is pleased to announce that 13 of the firm’s attorneys have been elevated to partner and three attorneys have been elevated to counsel, effective Jan. 1. The new partners are Samuel T. Acker, Timothy L. Capria, Matthew S. DeAntonio, Evelyn McKinney Hill, Holly S. Hosford, Ryan J. Letson, Carly Miller, Spencer R. Mobley, Marc A. Nardone, Preston H. Neel, Keaton H. Osborne, Scott Schardt, and Brooke Vinson. The new counsel are Amy Elizabeth Garber, Amy Magdanz Rose, and Andrew R. Stubblefield.

Details about each attorney newly elevated to partner or counsel, grouped by office, are as follows:

Birmingham

Hill is a member of the Corporate and Securities Practice Group. She focuses her practice on corporate mergers and acquisitions, private equity, and commercial law, as well as general business formation and counseling. Hill advises healthcare companies in corporate transactions, including acquisitions, divestitures, and syndications of hospitals, physician practices, surgery centers and ancillary providers. Her practice also includes the representation of investment funds’ debt and equity investments in healthcare and several other industries.

Hosford is a member of the Healthcare Practice Group. She represents numerous types of healthcare providers in a range of regulatory and transactional matters and in the litigation of healthcare-related issues. Her practice includes assisting clients with a variety of state and federal regulatory issues, including state certificate of need laws and compliance with federal and state regulatory issues, as well as compliance with anti-kickback and self-referral laws.

A member of the Construction Practice Group, Miller represents clients in a variety of industries, with a focus on construction, government contracting and energy. Her practice involves the representation of owners, EPC contractors, general contractors and subcontractors on a variety of projects, both public and private, international and domestic. She has experience in construction disputes, in both litigation and arbitration, across the United States and abroad. Miller also advises construction clients in contract negotiation and contract administration during the performance of construction contracts.

Mobley is a member of the Banking and Financial Services Practice Group. He represents financial services clients throughout the country with a focus on resolving issues arising from the enforceability of mortgage liens and note obligations and borrower-driven litigation. He regularly provides counsel to lenders, mortgage servicers, and banks to help maximize recovery and mitigate mortgage loan losses through recoupment efforts involving title insurance, closing protection letters, mortgage insurance and the exercise of mortgage lien rights.

A member of the Litigation Practice Group, Neel provides litigation and regulatory compliance assistance to financial services clients across the country. He is one of a small number of lawyers who has earned an Accredited Mortgage Professional designation through the Mortgage Bankers Association. In litigation, Neel primarily represents clients in the residential mortgage space, including forward and reverse mortgage investors, originators and servicers. He has litigated cases involving a wide array of state, federal, and statutory law claims, including claims related to the FCRA, FDCPA, TILA, RESPA, RICO, TCPA, bankruptcy discharge violations, and state consumer protection violations.

Vinson is a member of the Corporate and Securities Practice Group. Her practice is focused on advising public and private clients, from start-ups to large corporations, in the areas of business formation, investment and financing transactions, securities compliance and other corporate matters. She primarily counsels privately held companies and private equity funds and their operating companies in formation, M&A, and corporate finance transactions, including securities offerings, divestitures, joint ventures and general corporate and securities law issues. She also advises clients on franchise matters, including business structure and legal and regulatory compliance.

Charlotte, N.C.

DeAntonio is a member of the Franchise and Distribution Practice Group. A significant portion of his practice involves representing franchisors in litigation matters such as franchisee terminations and enforcement of post-termination covenants. He understands the unique relationship between franchisors and franchisees, and he works to help his clients build and strengthen their franchise systems. DeAntonio also litigates trademark infringement cases for both franchise and non-franchise clients. He is well-versed in representing his clients’ trademark interests in administrative actions before the USPTO, preliminary injunction proceedings, jury trials and appeals.

Dallas

Acker is a member of the Litigation Practice Group. His practice focuses on business, commercial and securities litigation, and white-collar criminal defense. He routinely represents plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal court actions involving fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, and partnership and corporate governance disputes. A substantial portion of his practice has also been dedicated to representing broker-dealers and registered representatives in FINRA arbitrations and regulatory inquiries with respect to alleged sales practice and supervisory violations.

A member of the Healthcare Practice Group, Schardt focuses his practice on a variety of regulatory matters affecting hospitals and healthcare providers, including Stark Law and Anti-Kickback Statute compliance, Medicare provider enrollment and reimbursement, 501(a) Physician Employment Organizations, HIPAA compliance, and healthcare facility and provider licensing. In addition, he actively represents healthcare providers as both purchasers and sellers in transactional matters, including mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures.

Stubblefield is a member of the Construction Practice Group. He has spent his career representing clients of every kind within the construction industry, including owners, contractors, design professionals, subcontractors, suppliers and sureties. Stubblefield has significant experience trying a variety of cases – in bench trials, jury trials, and arbitrations – that run the gamut from small residential matters to large-scale defect and contract cases.

Huntsville, Ala.

Letson is a member of the Intellectual Property Practice Group. His practice focuses on matters involving IP and technology. He handles patent and trademark prosecution before the USPTO, and he represents clients in proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. Letson also assists clients in disputes involving patents and other IP matters in federal and state courts. His technical experience covers a wide range of areas, and includes computer hardware and software, electronics, data communication networks, autonomous vehicles, electromechanical devices, payment processing and e-commerce systems, biometric sensors and structural systems.

Nashville, Tenn.

A member of the Intellectual Property Practice Group, Capria focuses his practice on acquiring IP, patent opinion practice and enforcing IP rights. He manages international trademark portfolios, each consisting of hundreds of trademarks worldwide. Capria advises clients in efficient and effective monitoring and enforcement of trademark rights, including navigating protection and strategies in popular online marketplaces. He helps clients with brand selection and clearance and assists clients in obtaining trademark registrations in the U.S. and abroad, and he has successfully represented clients in over a dozen Trademark Trial and Appeal Board proceedings.

Osborne is a member of the Banking and Financial Services Practice Group. He focuses his practice on commercial finance and intellectual property. In his commercial finance practice, he assists lenders and borrowers in a variety of commercial lending transactions, such as acquisition financings, asset-based loans, and real estate development and construction loans. He also counsels clients on trademark clearance, registration and enforcement in a variety of industries.

Washington, D.C.

Garber is a member of the Construction Practice Group. She focuses her practice on construction and government contracts, and she has significant experience in commercial litigation. Garber has represented and counseled contractors in cases involving federal and state Miller Act and complex payment disputes, and effected removal, settlement, and/or dismissal of various claims. She has also drafted construction contracts and subcontracts by tailoring standard documents to meet client needs, and counseled clients on complex government contract issues.

A member of the Litigation Practice Group, Nardone has extensive experience drafting pleadings, discovery, and motions in constitutional litigation involving the Second Amendment. He has co-authored merits briefs before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, as well as numerous amicus briefs before various federal courts of appeals. Nardone also has experience representing clients in insurance disputes.

Rose is a member of the Banking and Financial Services Practice Group. She represents clients who are members of the financial services industry on state and federal compliance matters involving residential and commercial mortgage lenders, brokers, servicers, consumer financial companies, money transmitters, and debt collectors. She assists clients in achieving licensing goals and maintaining licensing status on the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System.

Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, has added Eric Compere as of counsel in its Workplace Safety & Health Practice Group. Compere, who will be based in Los Angeles, was previously an attorney with the California Department of Industrial Relations’ Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA). Since the onset of the pandemic, Littler’s deep bench of attorneys in the Workplace Safety & Health Practice and the firm’s COVID-19 Task Force have counseled clients on the myriad of issues brought on by COVID-19.

Compere’s addition further strengthens Littler’s Workplace Safety & Health Practice, which also brought on former Cal/OSHA attorney Melissa Peters in 2019. With in-depth insight into the complex network of workplace safety regulations across the country, the practice provides employers with the tools to maintain safe workplaces and counsel to anticipate changing compliance regulations and emerging issues.

At Cal/OSHA, Compere represented the division in a range of matters, including administrative hearings, appellate briefings and oral arguments. He also advised California’s governor’s office on matters related to safety and health in the workplace and conducted legislative reviews of proposed regulation for the state’s Labor & Workforce Development Agency. During the coronavirus pandemic, Compere conducted statewide training on the California Aerosol Transmissible Diseases (ATD) standard and COVID-19 citation issuance and served as a Cal/OSHA contact to the California Department of Public Health and the state Department of Justice.

Compere received his J.D. from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles and his B.A. from Williams College.

Lowenstein Sandler is proud to announce that seven lawyers have been elected to the partnership in 2021: Dotan Barnea, Annie Nazarian Davydov, Eric Jesse, Michael A. Kaplan, Kathleen A. McGee, Chandra K. Shih, and Daniel A. Suckerman.

The firm also elevated 20 associates to counsel: Kent Anderson CIPP/US, Scott Balterman, Robert Bee, Andrew Bisbas, Konstantin Chaus, Eugene R. Cheval, Justin Corbalis, Alexander Dinur, Sarah Gore, Phillip Khezri, Paula Ladd, David Lifshitz, Brian Nistler, Alex H. Rosenthal, Amy C. Schwind, Bryan Sterba, Eric R. Suggs, Eric Swartz, Kristin V. Taylor, and Alexander D. Zozos. Kimberly E. Lomot has been named senior counsel.

All promotions became effective January 1, 2021.

New Partners

• Dotan Barnea, co-Chair of the Israel Practice and member of The Tech Group and Seed Stage Investing & Startups group, provides strategic support and advice to tech companies, investors, and entrepreneurs. He focuses on corporate and business matters as well as financing and M&A transactions. A significant part of Barnea’s practice involves work with non-U.S. startups as they raise money from U.S. investors and grow their businesses in the United States. Barnea is a member of the bar of New York and Israel. Before joining Lowenstein Sandler, he practiced law in Tel Aviv, Israel. Barnea received both his B.A. and his L.L.B., magna cum laude, from Tel Aviv University. He served as a commander in the Israeli Defense Forces’ Infantry Corps.

• Annie Nazarian Davydov, member of the Transactions & Advisory Group, Private Equity practice, and The Tech Group, handles complex private and public mergers and acquisitions and divestitures. She represents all manner of entities, from strategic buyers, sellers, and sponsors to investment funds and private growth-stage technology companies. Davydov also advises clients on general corporate governance matters. She has represented The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. in numerous acquisitions, including its $1.45 billion acquisition of Too Faced. Davydov received her J.D. from the New York University School of Law and her undergraduate degree from the University of California, Los Angeles.

• As a representations and warranties (R&W) insurance specialist for over a decade, Eric Jesse of the Insurance Recovery group brings deep experience to private equity and strategic buyers’ deals and claims. He also counsels policyholders on their directors and officers (D&O) and cyber insurance programs to identify key policy enhancements available in the market. When policyholders have encountered insurers that refused to pay claims, Jesse resolved those claims under a host of policies, defeated a wide range of coverage defenses, and recovered hundreds of millions of dollars in insurance proceeds. Jesse received his J.D., with honors, from The George Washington University Law School and his B.A. from The George Washington University’s Columbian College of Arts & Sciences.

• Michael A. Kaplan, member of the Business Litigation, Products Liability & Specialty Torts, and White Collar Criminal Defense groups, has significant experience in litigating all phases of bankruptcy matters and in fiduciary litigation, products liability, tort, and dram shop cases. He handles a wide array of civil litigation and appeals in both state and federal courts across the country and is experienced with U.S.-based and international arbitrations. In addition to his civil practice, Kaplan represents individuals and corporations in white collar criminal defense matters involving allegations of fraud and tax evasion. He conducts internal investigations and defends entities in investigations and civil proceedings brought by regulatory authorities. Kaplan earned his J.D., summa cum laude, from Syracuse University College of Law and his B.A., summa cum laude, from Temple University.

• With close to two decades of experience as a prosecutor and leading regulator, including as Bureau Chief of the New York Attorney General’s Bureau of Internet and Technology, Kathleen A. McGee leverages her extensive experience in the public sector by representing clients before federal, state, and local law enforcement and regulators on issues ranging from white collar criminal defense matters and criminal and civil investigations before the DOJ, SEC, FTC, and state attorneys general, to commercial disputes and advisory matters involving technology, data commodification, cybersecurity and privacy, consumer protection issues, tech M&A, data governance, and corporate governance. A member of The Tech Group and the White Collar Criminal Defense practice, McGee counsels established global businesses, scale-ups, and startups (including fintechs, investment groups, and governments) in multiple sectors, including ad tech, financial services, insurance tech, biotech, IoT, and retail, on a broad spectrum of regulatory issues concerning technology, data security, and privacy. She has a J.D. from Boston University, an M.A. from the University of Chicago, and a B.A. from Sarah Lawrence College.

• Chandra K. Shih of The Tech Group, Seed Stage Investing & Startups, and Venture Capital & Tech M&A works with growth-stage and early-stage startups and venture firms and the angel and strategic investors who fund them. She provides legal and strategic advice to founders, investors, and boards on corporate governance matters, debt and equity financings, and mergers and acquisitions. Shih also provides general legal and strategic guidance through all phases of her startup clients’ life cycles, from formation to exit and everything in between. Shih is a member of the leadership committee for both the Women’s Initiative Network and the Diversity Leadership Network at Lowenstein. She has a J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law and a B.A. from Santa Clara University.

• Daniel A. Suckerman of the Real Estate practice represents a broad range of clients in diverse commercial real estate transactions, including acquisitions, leasing, financing, joint venture agreements, and matters relating to asset management. Suckerman’s practice is national in scope and crosses all asset classes, with a focus on acquisitions and dispositions and significant experience in multifamily, industrial, self-storage, and retail. Also among Suckerman’s areas of emphasis is commercial leasing, covering both landlord and tenant clients and office (with a particular focus on New York City), retail, and industrial. He received his J.D., cum laude, from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and his B.A. from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

Blank Rome LLP is pleased to announce that Arash Beral has joined the Firm’s Los Angeles office as a partner in the Corporate Litigation group. Beral regularly represents clients in complex and high-stakes business litigation matters, many of which have national and international implications. Arash joins the Firm from Freeman, Freeman & Smiley LLP.

Beral has considerable litigation, first-chair trial, and appellate experience. He represents clients in everything from complex business and commercial matters to trade secrets, lending, partnership, corporate governance, shareholder, and real estate disputes. Beyond his litigation counsel, Beral has also helped clients facilitate multiple transactions ranging from private equity, investment, and financial services transactions to real estate dispositions and acquisitions of more than one billion dollars in assets to date.

Lauren A. Ferrante has joined Duane Morris LLP as a partner in the Corporate Practice Group in the firm’s Chicago office. Ferrante offers experience representing clients in state and local tax (SALT) controversies and planning matters. Prior to joining Duane Morris, she was a partner in McDermott Will & Emery LLP’s SALT Practice.

Ferrante represents taxpayers with respect to multi-state and local tax issues, including at all stages of controversy disputes at the audit, administrative and judicial levels. She has extensive experience defending clients against tax claims brought under state false claims acts. Ferrante also assists taxpayers with SALT planning, transactional and compliance matters. She is a frequent writer and speaker on SALT issues and former chair of the Chicago Bar Association’s State and Local Tax Committee.

Ferrante is a graduate of Northwestern University School of Law (LL.M. in Taxation, with Honors, 2010), the University of Illinois College of Law (J.D., magna cum laude, 2009) and Miami University (B.A., magna cum laude, 2006).

Farrell Fritz is pleased to announce the promotions of Bernadette T. Kasnicki and Irene A. Zoupaniotis to counsel effective January 1, 2021.

Kasnicki, a Garden City, NY resident, is a tax attorney. She received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, her B.A. from Davidson College, and her LL.M. from New York University School of Law.

Zoupaniotis, a Long Island City, NY resident, is a labor & employment attorney. She received her J.D. from Hofstra University School of Law, her B.A. from the William E. Macaulay Honors College at Queens College, and her LL.M. from Columbia Law School.

Eversheds Sutherland is pleased to announce the election of 11 new US counsel effective January 1, 2021.

The following attorneys have been elected counsel:

From our Corporate and Financial Services Practice Group:

Ronnie Dabbasi, resident in the Houston office, has a broad corporate and commercial practice and advises clients on all aspects of acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures, and project development in the energy sector. His client base includes private equity firms, oilfield service companies, electric and gas utilities, renewable and oil & gas project developers and sponsors, commodity trading firms, mining companies, diversified public companies, chemical and petrochemical producers, and other strategic and passive investors. He advises on domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and co-development structures, energy trading arrangements, project development and financing, and related corporate and commercial matters.

Dwaune Dupree, resident in the Washington DC office, counsels investment funds and business development companies (BDCs) on a broad range of corporate, regulatory, compliance and corporate governance matters. He also advises clients on various capital markets transactions, and ensures compliance with federal securities laws and regulations promulgated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Aaron Moody, resident in the Atlanta office, focuses his practice on critical business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions (M&A), joint ventures, financings, venture capital investments and private placements. He also routinely provides general corporate representation and advice to clients and negotiates complex commercial arrangements. He has represented clients in diverse industries, including private equity funds, payments, building products companies, insurance companies, and energy, technology and media companies. He also assists with many in-bound cross-border acquisitions.

Darius I. Ravangard, resident in the Washington DC office, represents issuers and investment banking firms in connection with public and private offerings of equity and debt securities, and counsels public companies on compliance with reporting obligations under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and listing standards and requirements of national securities exchanges. Darius also handles matters relating to the formation, operation and regulation of public and private investment funds, including business development companies, as well as strategic transactions. More generally, Darius counsels clients with respect to the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and corporate governance matters.

Jessica Rissmiller, resident in the Atlanta office, focuses on secured and unsecured commercial lending and finance. Jessica primarily represents lenders and borrowers in negotiating and documenting syndicated and single lender credit facilities.

From our Energy Group:

Jackson Allen, resident in the Atlanta office, represents clients in the power, natural gas and renewable energy sectors in connection with commercial transactions, project development, mergers and acquisitions, power purchase agreements, operations and maintenance agreements, engineering, procurement and construction agreements, and natural gas and power transactions.

Will Pickens, resident in the Atlanta office, advises clients on a variety of transactional matters, with a focus on energy- and infrastructure-related lending and capital markets transactions. Will’s practice primarily consists of representing borrowers entering into credit facilities, secured and unsecured, with both private and governmental lenders, and representing corporate issuers and their underwriters in the issuance of debt securities, through public offerings, Rule 144A and Regulation S placements and 4(2) private placements. Will also regularly represents clients in economic development incentives transactions for energy and industrial facilities, real estate developments and other major capital projects and has experience advising energy-industry clients on acquisitions, project development and various commercial transactions.

From our Intellectual Property Group:

Robert Ward, resident in the San Diego office, counsels both growth-stage innovative companies and global brands on intellectual property and technology related matters including strategic patent counseling, intellectual property due diligence, technology transactions and intellectual property disputes.

From our Litigation Practice Group:

Ulyana Bardyn, resident in the New York office, represents clients in complex cross-border disputes, including international commercial arbitrations, investor-state disputes and business litigation matters. Ulyana’s experience includes acting as counsel in arbitration cases governed by the rules of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). Ulyana also counsels clients in high-stakes complex commercial litigation matters in US federal and state courts, particularly in matters that traverse arbitration and litigation fora, including parallel proceedings, enforcement matters, interim relief and Section 1782 discovery.

Alex Fuchs, resident in the New York office, advises insurance companies on complex, large-scale litigation matters. He focuses his practice on defending challenges to insurers’ business practices in class action cases and coverage disputes. He also assists clients with defense of tort, contract and subrogation matters in New York state and federal court.

Amanda Giffin, resident in the Atlanta office, counsels clients on a variety of complex business litigation. Her practice focuses on professional liability matters, with a particular emphasis on accounting liability.

As part of the launch of the Barnes & Thornburg Racial and Social Justice Foundation, the firm’s lawyers and staff have donated more than $200,000 to promote, advocate and effect racial and social justice in the firm’s local communities.

The foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, was established in 2020 with financial support coming entirely through personal donations from the lawyers and staff in each of the firm’s 19 offices. To start, four organizations have received $50,000 each in grants in four of Barnes & Thornburg’s markets – Atlanta, Indianapolis, Los Angeles and Minneapolis. As the foundation continues to grow in 2021, additional nonprofits and markets will be added to the mix.

‘No Gift Too Small’

The firm has undertaken fundraising efforts driven by the firm’s employees to generate broad participation under the mantra “no gift is too small.” The $50,000 grants were presented this month to the following organizations:

• All Square, located in Minneapolis, provides individuals impacted by the criminal justice system with opportunities to become future leaders, business owners, legal practitioners and entrepreneurs. Barnes & Thornburg’s donations will contribute to All Square’s Prison-to-Law Pipeline program, which offers ABA-accredited and ABA-approved paralegal and legal degrees within Minnesota prisons. One of its unique fundraising and skills development vehicles is a grilled cheese restaurant in Minneapolis.
• Project Pinnacle, located in Atlanta, provides nonviolent offenders under the age of 25 with life skills training, legal rights and responsibilities education, and career development opportunities. The 10-year-old organization is dedicated to restoring young people to respectful positions in the community.
• Social Justice Learning Institute, located in Los Angeles, is dedicated to improving the education, health and well-being of youth and communities of color by empowering them to enact social change through research, training and community mobilization. The institute partners with organizations and businesses to provide academic support services, transform neighborhood conditions, and rectify injustice.
• Public Advocates in Community re-Entry (PACE), located in Indianapolis, provides currently and previously incarcerated individuals and their family members with transitional and pre-release services, employment and job placement services, and addiction support services. PACE also provides care-coordinated case management to assist with family reunification, transitional housing, substance use disorder treatment groups, mental health treatment, recovery support services, and education.

In addition to Lahn, who serves as president, Barnes & Thornburg’s Racial and Social Justice Foundation’s board members are Allen Baum, partner-in-charge of the Raleigh office; Michael Carrillo, managing partner of the Chicago office; and Roscoe Howard, managing partner of the Washington, D.C., office. Ex officio members are Steven Merkel, chief operating officer and the foundation’s treasurer, Robert Grand, firm managing partner, and Dawn Rosemond, firm diversity partner.

The foundation will work hand in hand with Barnes & Thornburg’s Racial Justice Committee, which is tasked with continually looking at how the firm works to address racial justice, both externally and internally.

In addition to the foundation’s grants, Barnes & Thornburg attorneys plan to contribute time and professional experience in support of the above organizations.

To choose grantees, the foundation employed a rigorous scoring system to vet charitable organizations against specific criteria that align with its mission and goals.

Bitmovin, a world leader in online streaming video technology, announced today that it has created an open-source universal nondisclosure agreement (uNDA) specifically designed to speed up startup transactions and may also be used by any company for the purchase or sale of goods and services. The new uNDA was developed by Bitmovin’s General Counsel and a team of researchers from the UC Hastings Startup Legal Garage, a leading university-based program that provides pro bono services to nascent entrepreneurial companies in the technology and biotech industries.

Plug and Play Contracting
The uNDA was created to eliminate the time spent reading and negotiating NDA’s for routine commercial transactions by standardizing the NDA clauses across companies. The development team first looked at hundreds of NDA’s to determine the most commonly used and salient clauses. The uNDA was then evaluated by nearly 30 general counselors representing small startups to larger multinational corporations.

Standardized Contracting
The uNDA can be customized to suit a variety of different business purposes with 13 standardized clauses and permutations customizable to specific transactions. Signers to the uNDA agree to disclose the presence of these clauses and any permutations or additional language. If the NDA contains clauses beyond those in the uNDA, the drafter must disclose those clauses. Users of the uNDA expressly agree that they do not consider the uNDA legal advice in any way and are required to seek independent legal counsel. Given that the clauses are now standardized, the uNDA is a read-once document. When negotiations are required, it would be a paint by numbers approach.

Barnes & Thornburg has elected 10 attorneys as partners, effective Jan. 1, 2021. The new partners, their office location and practice areas are:

Chicago

• Genevieve E. Charlton, Intellectual Property
• James R. Vergara, Intellectual Property

Columbus

• Laing P. Akers, Real Estate

Dallas

• Juanita DeLoach, Intellectual Property

Indianapolis

• Neal A. Brackett, Litigation
• Angela B. Freeman, Intellectual Property
• J.T. Larson Jr., Litigation

Los Angeles

• Joshua B. Rosenberg, Litigation

Elkhart/South Bend

• Michael Fenech, Corporate

Washington, D.C.

• Renee A. Danega, Intellectual Property

DALLAS – Michael K. Hurst, name partner at the highly respected Dallas trial boutique Lynn Pinker Hurst & Schwegmann, has been named as a member of The International Society of Barristers.  

The Society was formed in 1965 to recognize the legal profession’s top attorneys in supporting such principles as retaining the jury trial as the foundation for justice; offering training in trial advocacy; encouraging civility in an adversarial system; and protecting the rights of citizens, the independence of the judiciary and the integrity of the Bar.  

Membership to the Society is by invitation only, following a rigorous screening process that considers the lawyer’s ability, experience, accomplishments and ethical standards as assessed by trial lawyers and judges. 

Hurst has consistently been recognized as one of the top trial lawyers in the nation for large and high-stakes commercial and intellectual property litigation. Board Certified in Civil Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, he has served as President of the Dallas Bar Association and has been recognized as an Outstanding Mentor by both the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers and the Texas Young Lawyers Association. 

Hurst earned his law degree from the South Texas College of Law in Houston in 1990, and his undergraduate degree from The University of Texas in 1987. 

Eversheds Sutherland is pleased to announce the election of nine new US partners effective January 1, 2021.

The following attorneys have been elected partner:

From our Corporate and Financial Services Practice Group:

Hill Jeffries, resident in the Atlanta office, focuses his practice on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, venture capital investments and governance matters. He advises clients in a diverse array of industries, including technology companies, food manufacturers, natural resources companies and Timberland Investment Management Organizations (TIMOs). Jeffries’ experience includes counselling private equity sponsors and their portfolio companies on acquisitions, divestitures and general corporate matters.

Anne Oberndorf, resident in the Washington DC office, assists investment companies, investment advisers and private funds in navigating the intricate rules and regulations of the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, including counseling her clients on fund structure and compliance with, and exemptions from, those Acts.

Ray Ramirez, resident in the Washington DC office, counsels clients on derivatives regulatory and transactional matters. He assists clients in navigating regulations issued by federal agencies and the National Futures Association (NFA) and developing compliance programs and procedures to address them. Ramirez has guided market intermediaries, including commodity pool operators and commodity trading advisers, through the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) registration process, has represented clients before the CFTC, the NFA and other regulators on various matters and has actively participated (on behalf of clients) in federal regulators’ rulemaking processes. He also assists clients in drafting and negotiating derivatives and other trading and financing documentation.

From our Intellectual Property Group:

Jeremy Spier, resident in the Atlanta office, counsels clients on Intellectual Property (IP) law, including international and domestic IP rights. Spier primarily focuses on patent and trademark prosecution. He also counsels clients on IP portfolio management and prepares patentability, validity, non-infringement and product clearance opinions. In addition, Spier has substantial experience in preparing IP licensing agreements and conducting IP audits and due diligence in corporate transactions..

Nash Zogaib, resident in the Austin office, drafts and prosecutes domestic and foreign patent applications and advises clients on patent portfolio management and other intellectual property needs. His technical knowledge spans software and hardware areas, including wireless standards, wireless charging devices, web security, voice over IP session management, cloud services, messaging systems, automotive technologies, semiconductors, memory devices, robotics, superconductors, printing devices, display technologies and imagining systems. Zogaib also has extensive engineering experience in cellular communications, including GSM, CDMA and LTE.

From our Litigation Practice Group:

Lee Peifer, resident in the Atlanta office, represents companies, individuals, schools and governmental entities in commercial and education litigation. He advises clients on a variety of matters — including contractual disputes, business torts, corporate governance, employment issues, school funding and constitutional law — and across a range of industries. Peifer has experience in state and federal courts and has represented clients in arbitration, at trial and on appeal. He also has defended clients in consumer, employment and education class actions.

Adam Pollet, resident in the Washington DC office, defends financial institutions, broker-dealers, investment advisers and individuals in regulatory investigations and enforcement matters involving the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and state securities regulators. He also represents his clients in complex financial services litigation, securities class action litigation and FINRA arbitrations. In addition, Pollet advises his clients in internal investigations, regulatory examinations and counsels them on various regulatory and compliance matters.

From our Real Estate Group:

Jenny Worthy, a resident in the Atlanta office, counsels clients on an array of commercial real estate matters, including the acquisition, construction and development, financing and disposition of commercial real estate projects. She advises commercial banks, investment banks, pension funds, real estate investment trusts, insurance companies and borrowers in financing transactions, including origination, workouts and distressed asset transactions. She works with lending clients on the origination of loans with diverse debt stack structures, including single asset, mezzanine and financings intended for securitization. She is also a member of the Firm’s timber and forest products team.

From our Tax Practice Group:

Ted Friedman, a resident in the New York office, focuses his practice on state and local tax matters. Friedman counsels clients on a wide range of state and local tax issues involving income and franchise taxes, sales and use taxes, gross receipts taxes and telecommunication taxes. Friedman represents clients in tax controversy, planning, policy and compliance matters.

DALLAS – The Dallas-based trial firm Lyons & Simmons has filed a negligence lawsuit against San Antonio-based Sapphire Aviation on behalf of the estate of Houston resident Paul David Cobb, one of five people killed in a 2018 crash of a Bell UH-1H helicopter in rural northern New Mexico.

According to reports, the group flew by private jet from Houston on Jan. 17, 2018, to Raton, New Mexico, where they transferred to the Huey helicopter for a short flight to Emery Gap Ranch for a birthday party. Lifting off just after sunset, the helicopter crashed into a plateau in a mountainous rural area 11 miles from Raton. Mr. Cobb, a 67-year-old veteran of the Pasadena, Texas, Police Department, survived the initial impact but sustained skull and rib fractures and internal hemorrhaging that left him unable to flee the fire caused by the crash. He ultimately died from his injuries.

In addition to Mr. Cobb, the crash claimed the lives of Charles Ryland Burnett III, owner of Sapphire Aviation and the helicopter; Roy Bennett, a founding member of Zimbabwe’s main opposition party and his wife Heather; and pilot Jamie Coleman Dodd. The sole survivor was Mr. Cobb’s daughter and Mr. Burnett’s longtime partner, Andra Cobb, who was injured in the crash.

Because of the remote location, it took nearly two hours for emergency responders to arrive at the scene, during which time a hunting guide came upon the wreckage. While he rendered aid, Mr. Dodd told the guide that “it was all my fault. I flew into the terrain. … This is all my fault,” according the lawsuit. A National Transportation Safety Board investigation listed pilot error as the likely cause of the crash.

The lawsuit is Martha Nell Cobb, Paula Donell O’Leary, and David Cobb v. Sapphire Aviation, LLC, the Estate of Jamie Coleman Dodd and the Estate of Charles Ryland Burnett III. (Case No. D-101-CV-2020-02630, First Judicial District Court, Santa Fe County.)

Akerman LLP, a top 100 U.S. law firm serving clients across the Americas, is pleased to announce that William Sentell has joined the firm’s Litigation Practice Group as a partner in the firm’s Houston office. Sentell focuses his practice on franchise dispute resolution and related corporate, regulatory, and compliance matters. He brings experience representing franchise clients, including franchisors, brand owners, distributors, licensors, manufacturers, and other industry stakeholders.

Sentell’s addition in Texas further strengthens the firm’s capabilities in the franchise space. He follows the arrival of a three-person lawyer team led by Kevin Hein, who serves as co-chair of the firm’s Franchise and Licensing Practice, a highly experienced team that handles U.S. and international franchise and distribution matters.

With more than a decade of complex commercial litigation experience, including first- and second-chair trial and arbitration experience, Sentell provides support and clear risk assessment in all phases of litigation and arbitration. Avoiding risk in the area of franchise sales, and managing relationships throughout the franchise lifecycle, are a practice focus for Sentell.

In addition to helping clients anticipate and avoid costly disputes, he also advises on a variety of corporate and regulatory matters, including franchise disclosures, sales and acquisitions. His combination of litigation and transactional experience allows him to provide practical advice to clients.

Dykema, a leading national law firm, today announced the addition of Basil A. Umari and Nicholas Zugaro as senior counsel to the firm’s Bankruptcy Practice Group in Texas. Both attorneys join Dykema from the boutique law firm they co-founded, Umari Zugaro, PLLC. Additionally, Dykema expects to expand its Bankruptcy Practice Group by adding more talent in the near future.

In their respective practices, both Umari and Zugaro have experience representing debtors, liquidating trustees, official creditors’ committees, secured creditors, unsecured creditors, equity holders, officers and directors, patent holders, landlords, tenants, and asset purchasers in numerous corporate bankruptcy cases in New York, Delaware, Texas and other venues. Each has a background working in a variety of industries, including oil & gas, healthcare, construction, food service, retail, and manufacturing.

Both Umari and Zugaro also have extensive bankruptcy litigation experience defending numerous companies in preference actions and claims objections brought by trustees. They’ve also tried numerous complex commercial cases to juries and the bench in state and federal court.

Umari earned a J.D., with honors, from the University of Texas School of Law and a B.A., cum laude, in Mathematics, Philosophy from Amherst College. Zugaro earned a J.D., cum laude, from the University of Houston Law Center and a B.S. in Economics from Texas A&M University.

Houston, December 14, 2020 – Two attorneys with national law firm Chamberlain Hrdlicka have been selected to the Texas Super Lawyers 2020 Top Women list. Each year, no more than five percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team at Super Lawyers to receive this honor. The Up-and-Coming 50: 2020 Women Texas Rising Stars list is comprised of women who ranked in the top 50 of Texas Rising Stars nomination, research and blue-ribbon review process.

Named as one of Top Women in Texas by SuperLawyers, Diana Perez Gomez is a shareholder at Chamberlain Hrdlicka’s and Vice Chair of Houston’s labor and employment practice, where she focuses on complex labor and employment disputes in state and federal courts. She has more than 15 years of experience in a wide range civil litigation matters as well as managing EEOC and TWC matters and investigations for public and private employers. Gomez also serves on Chamberlain Hrdlicka’s management committee and is National Chair for the firm’s Pro Bono Committee.

Gomez holds bachelor’s degree in political science from the Texas A&M University and received her law degree from the University of Texas at Austin. Very involved in the legal community, she currently serves as the Second Vice President for the Houston Bar Association (HBA) and serves on the Board of Directors for the Houston Zoo Development Corporation and the Hispanic Bar Association of Houston. Gomez is also a co-chair for District Four of the Texas Bar Foundation and Chair of the HBA’s Law and the Media Committee. Recipient of many accolades, Gomez was named to the Texas Super Lawyers list by Super Lawyers® consecutively since 2013; was selected as a Top Lawyer in 2017, 2019 and 2020 by Houstonia Magazine, received Latina Lawyer Under 40 Award from the Mexican American Bar Association of Texas Foundation in 2012; was the recipient of the Houston Bar Association’s President’s Award in 2016 and 2019; was a recipient of the Hispanic Bar Association of Houston’s President’s Award in 2007, 2009, and 2015; was awarded the Local Heroes Recognition by the Houston Lawyer Magazine in 2009 for her work as a Presidential Appointee in the U.S. Department of Education serving as Deputy Director for the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans and then as Chief of Staff for the Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development in 2008 and 2009, and the Woodrow B. Seals Outstanding Young Lawyer of Houston Award from Houston Young Lawyers Association in 2008. She is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, Texas Bar Foundation and the Houston Bar Foundation.

Named among the Up-and-Coming 50: 2020 Texas Women Rising Stars, Julie Offerman is an experienced litigation attorney in Chamberlain’s Houston labor & employment practice. She has substantial experience defending employers nationwide in wage and hour class and collective action lawsuits, including matters involving allegations of misclassification of employees and failure to pay overtime. Offerman graduated from University of Texas at Austin, with a bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, and received her law degree from Texas Tech University School of Law, summa cum laude as well. While there, she was an articles editor for the Texas Tech Law Review. Prior to joining Chamberlain Hrdlicka, she clerked for Justice Phil Johnson of the Texas Supreme Court. She has been named to Texas Super Lawyers in 2020 after being named Texas Rising Star in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2019. She has also been named among Houstonia Magazine Top Lawyers in 2019 and 2020.

Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using a patented multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates and peer reviews by practice area. The result is a credible, comprehensive and diverse listing of exceptional attorneys.

Hanzo, a company known for its pioneering technology in dynamic web content preservation from enterprise collaboration applications and complex websites, today announced the appointment of Kathleen Roberge to the position of Chief Revenue Officer. Roberge’s appointment complements Hanzo’s expanding coverage of collaboration data sources in the market, including Google Workspace.

Roberge joins Hanzo with over 20 years of experience in sales leadership and go-to-market strategy development. She’s been instrumental in scaling multiple Enterprise SaaS companies from startup to more than $75m annual recurring revenue (ARR). Roberge will lead Hanzo’s Sales and Marketing teams to optimize the company’s commercial strategy and enterprise growth.

An accomplished enterprise software and technology executive, Roberge is known for leading and motivating high-performing sales and marketing teams. Previously, Roberge served in senior sales leadership roles at Rocketrip, Aventri, Compushare, and Perimeter, all of which she was responsible for exponentially growing revenue.