Jonathan L. Lewis has joined Lowenstein Sandler as a partner in the firm’s Antitrust & Trade Regulation practice group. He will be based in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office.

Lewis is a seasoned antitrust and competition lawyer serving clients in diverse sectors, including manufacturing, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, health care, and technology. He advises clients regarding the management of their day-to-day business risks, counsels on corporate transactions, and provides litigation defense.

Known for providing substantive antitrust analysis of proposed transactions, Lewis provides counsel on a range of issues, including merger review and pre-merger integration planning, distribution and franchising, and other business practices. He also represents clients before federal and state antitrust enforcement authorities in the course of investigations concerning distribution practices and pre- and post-merger review.

Lewis received his J.D., cum laude, from University of Michigan Law School, and he holds both an M.P.M. (Master of Public Management) and a B.A. from the University of Maryland.

Barnes & Thornburg has added Marcantonio W. Barnes as a partner in its Washington, D.C. office, where he will lead the development of the D.C. Corporate practice group, while advising clients on mergers and acquisitions, technology transactions, and federal contracts.

Barnes primarily focuses on helping clients execute their business strategies. His transactional work commonly involves the acquisition and sale of things – whether it is a company, product or service. In addition to his corporate and legal experience, Barnes has also held public service positions with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Chief Counsel’s Office of the U.S. House Oversight Committee, and the Fairfax County Small Business Commission.

He brings significant client relationships that span a variety of industries, including energy, financial services, information technology, manufacturing and retail sectors. The diversity and success of those relationships also reflect his passion for working with clients to ensure that shared values with respect to diversity and inclusion are reflected throughout the course of the representation.

Marco has also been a leader in diversity and inclusion initiatives within the practice of law, and was a finalist for the 2019 Chambers Minority Lawyer of the Year Award.

Barnes earned his LL.M. from Georgetown Law Center, his J.D. from George Mason University School of Law and his B.A. from George Mason University.

With more than 700 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from offices in Atlanta, California, Chicago, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minneapolis, New York, Ohio, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, Texas and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit us online at www.btlaw.com or on Twitter @BTLawNews

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP is pleased to announce that 53 of the firm’s partners have been recognized in the 2021 edition of Benchmark Litigation, which also listed Bradley as a “highly recommended” firm. In addition, the firm was ranked Tier 1 nationally for Product Liability and Recall, and five attorneys where recognized as National Practice Area Stars.

A leading guide to litigation firms and attorneys in the United States and Canada, Benchmark Litigation “highly recommended” Bradley in Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee, and “recommended” the firm in North Carolina.

Benchmark Litigation determines rankings through peer reviews and case examinations. Among the firm’s partners listed in the guide, 34 are recognized as “Local Litigation Stars,” who were consistently recommended by clients as being reputable and effective litigators. The guide names 19 Bradley partners as “Future Stars,” who were consistently referenced by peers and clients as litigators who are likely to be become “Local Litigation Stars” in coming editions of the guide. Benchmark Litigation is the only publication that focuses exclusively on U.S. litigation.

Following are Bradley partners recognized as “Local Litigation Stars,” organized by office:

Birmingham
• Paul P. Bolus
• Phil Butler
• William S. “Buddy” Cox III
• James W. Gewin
• Tripp Haston (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star)
• Leigh Anne Hodge (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star and in the Top 250 Women in Litigation)
• David G. Hymer
• Matthew H. Lembke
• Robert Maddox
• Joseph B. Mays Jr.
• Michael D. McKibben
• T. Matthew Miller
• Michael R. Pennington
• Anne Marie Seibel
• R. Thomas Warburton

Charlotte, N.C.
• Corby Cochran Anderson

Dallas
· Richard A. Sayles

Huntsville, Ala.
• Kimberly Martin (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star and in the Top 250 Women in Litigation)

Jackson, Miss.
• Jeffrey R. Blackwood
• Roy D. Campbell III
• Margaret Oertling Cupples
• W. Wayne Drinkwater
• J. William Manuel
• Stephen L. Thomas

Montgomery, Ala.
• Charles Stewart

Nashville, Tenn.
• George H. Cate III
• Lela Hollabaugh (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star and in the Top 250 Women in Litigation)
• Samuel D. Lipshie
• Robert S. Patterson
• Todd Presnell
• Thor Y. Urness

Tampa, Fla.
· R. Craig Mayfield (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star)

Washington, D.C.
• Stephen R. Spivack
• John Parker Sweeney

Following are Bradley partners recognized as “Future Stars,” organized by office:

Birmingham
• F. Wendell Allen
• Lindsey Boney
• Jason R. Bushby
• Tiffany J. deGruy (also named to the 2020 Benchmark 40 & Under Hot List)
• Jeffrey D. Dyess
• John Mark Goodman
• Jennifer J. McGahey
• D. Brian O’Dell
• J. Thomas Richie (also named to the 2020 Benchmark 40 & Under Hot List)
• Edward S. Sledge IV
• Whitt Steineker (also named to the 2020 Benchmark 40 & Under Hot List)

Dallas
· Robert L. Sayles

Huntsville
• Stephen H. Hall

Jackson
• Michael J. Bentley
• Mary Clay W. Morgan
• Alex Purvis

Nashville
• Ty E. Howard
• Edmund S. Sauer
• Heather Howell Wright

The Litigation Practice Group is Bradley’s largest practice and includes almost half of the firm’s nearly 550 attorneys who represent clients in litigation and arbitration in every U.S. state and federal district court across the country, as well as internationally. Attorneys handle matters in nearly every substantive area of business law and in a wide range of industries, including high-stakes and complex cases.

About Bradley
Bradley combines skilled legal counsel with exceptional client service and unwavering integrity to assist a diverse range of corporate and individual clients in achieving their business goals. With offices in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and the District of Columbia, the firm’s nearly 550 lawyers represent regional, national and international clients in various industries, including banking and financial services, construction, energy, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, real estate, and technology, among many others.

Founding partner Tej Paranjpe also named to 2020 Texas Trailblazer list

HOUSTON – Houston-based Paranjpe Mahadass Ruemke Law (PMR Law) has earned back-to-back honors from Texas Lawyer magazine, earning a place in the publication’s Best Of 2020 listing as Houston’s best personal injury law firm, while firm co-founder Tej Paranjpe is featured as a Texas Trailblazer.

In the last year, the firm has secured significant settlements and resolutions for a range of clients, including the parents and children of a 28-year-old man involved in a car accident, who died after paramedics improperly intubated him in the stomach instead of the lungs.

In addition, PMR Law is representing nearly 1,000 plaintiffs in a lawsuit against six defendants – including CenterPoint Energy Houston Electric, LLC and Enterprise Products Holdings, LLC – for failing to properly construct a pipeline behind homes in Channelview, Texas, resulting in flooding, structural damage and a decrease in home values. The firm’s case started with fewer than 100 homeowners. The firm is working on a similar case in San Jacinto, Texas.

While the Best Of 2020 honor recognizes the entire PMR trial team, Mr. Paranjpe is singled out among Texas Lawyer’s 2020 Texas Trailblazers, an elite list of practitioners whose contributions to the practice, policy and technological advancement of their profession have made a significant impact.

Paranjpe has handled more than 100 jury trials to verdict in a 10-year legal career. He is lead counsel on the Houston-area pipeline litigation and has been instrumental in building a respected trial team at PMR Law that represents approximately 400 current and active cases.

PMR Law and its attorneys have earned numerous additional legal honors, including Texas Lawyer’s Litigation Department of the Year for products liability and mass torts, Best Lawyers in America “Ones to Watch,” Texas Super Lawyers and Texas Super Lawyers/Rising Stars.

PMR Law is driven by compassion and focused on results. The firm has helped hundreds of clients receive the compensation they deserve in personal injury litigation and business disputes. PMR Law’s priority is to provide personalized attention, professionalism, and tireless representation. Visit: https://pandmllp.com/.

ROANOKE, Va. (Oct. 5, 2020) – The Virginia law firm, Gentry Locke is pleased to announce the arrival of Jean D. Mumm as a partner in the firm’s commercial real estate practice.

With more than 30 years of experience, Mumm brings a deep understanding of commercial real estate, business, and finance transactions.

Most recently, Mumm served as corporate counsel for a leading global real estate investment and management firm, where she managed complex corporate real estate transactions across the U.S. In this role, she prepared documents related to closings, financings, acquisitions, and dispositions.

She has spent much of her legal career in private practice, assisting clients with financings, acquisitions, and dispositions, loan workouts, and forbearance, mergers and acquisitions, defeasance, land use, and development, as well as contract and leasing matters.

Mumm earned her J.D. from the University of Richmond T.C. Williams School of Law where she served on the University of Richmond Law Review and the University of Richmond Moot Court Board. She earned her B.A., cum laude, in mathematics and economics from Bucknell University.

Bryan Fears, Majed Nachawati honored among ‘agents of change’

DALLAS – Bryan Fears and Majed Nachawati, co-founders of Fears Nachawati Law Firm, are among the attorneys heralded as “agents of change” by Texas Lawyer magazine in its 2020 listing of “Texas Trailblazers.”

The pair were selected for their leadership in transforming the North Texas law firm they co-founded in 2006 into one of the top products liability plaintiffs’ firms in the nation. The firm remains focused on high stakes litigation that includes representation of state and public entities on a contingency basis, pharmaceutical and medical device litigation, business-interruption insurance disputes, as well as catastrophic injury and death litigation.

That focus has afforded the firm the ability to pursue causes they believe in. For example, under Mr. Fears’ guidance, the firm has been among the first in the nation to develop a focus on groundwater “forever chemical” contamination by companies such as 3M and DuPont, fighting for safe drinking water for the future generations.

That dedication to justice extends well past the walls of the firm. Mr. Nachawati is a member of The Dallas Bar Association’s Legal Ethics and Lawyer Referral Service Committees and is a member of the Board of Directors of Public Justice. He previously served as the District Chairman for the Grievance Committee for the State Bar of Texas, District 6.

The full list of 2020 Texas Trailblazers can be found in Texas Lawyer magazine’s October/November issue.

DALLAS – The trial firm of Lyons & Simmons, LLP, has been selected the top personal injury law firm in Dallas by readers of Texas Lawyer, as presented in the magazine’s “Best of 2020” survey.

Each year since 2013, the editors of Texas Lawyer survey members of the legal community to identify the top industry support companies in Dallas, Houston, and Austin. This year the survey also included three new categories, recognizing the top personal injury, real estate, and family law firms in each city.

“It is a serious responsibility when you represent the victims of catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death. These individuals often face life’s biggest adversity, their lives have been torn apart, and the legal deck is stacked against them,” said firm co-founder Michael Lyons.

Lyons & Simmons’ ownership over clients’ legal outcomes has earned the firm a national reputation for getting remarkable results in big, high-exposure personal injury and wrongful death cases.

Among their notable recent work, the attorneys of Lyons & Simmons successfully represented the family of one of five victims of the worst oilfield accident in Oklahoma history and the deadliest in the U.S. since the 2010 Macondo Deepwater Horizon blowout. The firm’s work helped prompt a review of best practices for land-based drilling operations by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board and brought further attention to dangerous industry practices involving well control management and monitoring.

“We do not, cannot, step back until we do everything we can for our clients and their families,” said firm co-founder Chris Simmons. “When you earn a recognition such as this, you realize it is not just the clients who know and respect your dedication, but your peers as well.”

Results of the “Best of 2020” survey were published in the October/November issue of Texas Lawyer, the longest standing news publication focused on the state’s legal profession, and can be found online at www.texaslawyer.com.

Co-founder of Bailey Brauer earns Benchmark honor for seventh consecutive year

DALLAS – Trial and appellate attorney Clayton Bailey, co-founder of Dallas-based litigation boutique Bailey Brauer PLLC, has earned “Litigation Star” recognition from Benchmark Litigation for his work in commercial litigation.

Bailey’s selection to the annual guide to the nation’s top lawyers is based upon his competition and antitrust litigation practice and international arbitration work, recognition he has earned consistently since 2015. The 2021 edition of the Benchmark Litigation guide was compiled after months of peer review, client-based research, and a thorough review of attorney casework.

Bailey’s practice focuses on complex tort and commercial litigation matters, saving trial and appellate clients more than $750 million in potential exposure since 2013. His experience includes handling contract disputes, business torts, RICO, employment law, trade secrets, deceptive trade practices, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, antitrust, unfair business practices, Packers and Stockyards Act, and wrongful death. He also has successfully defended against putative class actions and mass action lawsuits in state and federal district courts throughout the country.

In addition to the Benchmark recognition, his work has earned professional accolades from The Best Lawyers in America, Texas Super Lawyers, BTI Consulting Group, Texas Lawyer magazine, and the National Law Journal. He holds membership in invitation-only professional organizations including The National Trial Lawyers’ Top 100 civil plaintiff lawyers in Texas, the Federal Bar Association, and Litigation Counsel of America.

Dallas-based trial lawyer was first in Texas to file lawsuit against opioid drug manufacturers and distributors

DALLAS – In recognition of his leadership role in the state’s ongoing opioid multidistrict litigation (MDL), Simon Greenstone Panatier, P.C., founding partner Jeffrey Simon has been named a 2020 Texas Trailblazer by Texas Lawyer magazine.

Simon serves as chairman of the Texas Opioid MDL Plaintiffs Steering Committee, which seeks to hold drug manufacturers and supply chain corporations responsible for their roles in creating and prolonging the opioid epidemic in Texas.

Prior to the coronavirus outbreak, Simon was selected to be one of the lead attorneys to represent Dallas County in the state’s first opioid trial. That trial has been scheduled for September 2021.

He is a frequent speaker on opioid topics and has served as co-chair of the Opioid Litigation Conference. The seminar, held each of the last three years, brings together leading medical, legal, and law enforcement experts to discuss how to best address and reduce the social and economic devastation of opioid addiction.

The revered toxic tort and pharmaceutical injury litigation attorney is a past president of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association and the Dallas Trial Lawyers Association. He is on the Board of Governors of the American Association for Justice, is a longtime Fellow of the American Board of Trial Advocates, and is a member of the Trial Lawyers for Public Justice.

Expanding its Los Angeles presence and enhancing its real estate service offerings, Stroock recently welcomed industry leaders Lorie Soares Lazarus and Peter David Ballance as partners in its national practice. Stroock lured the partners from Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, where Lorie co-chaired the firm’s West Coast Real Estate practice and Peter co-chaired the LGBT Coalition.

Lazarus represents institutional equity investors, developers and commercial real estate lenders including banks, investment funds, REITs, investment advisors and asset managers. Ballance counsels lenders, borrowers, developers and property owners in a range of national commercial real estate transactions. Together they have extensive experience in all aspects of commercial real estate financing, guiding both lender and borrower clients through multifaceted projects including securitized, mortgage, mezzanine and construction lending for office, industrial, residential, multifamily, retail and hospitality projects across the country.

The two LA-based partners continue the firm’s consistent growth trajectory in key practices. Stroock has welcomed more than 10 senior attorneys to the firm since 2019, with a half-dozen of those in the national real estate practice. The addition of the duo’s extensive experience in commercial real estate finance, acquisition and disposition, combined with their strong reputation for distressed real estate counseling, will strengthen the already robust national real estate platform at Stroock.

With an active presence in the LA real estate market, Stroock represents high-profile clients in sophisticated transactions, such as the recent $1.2 billion refinancing of the landmark Century Plaza Towers in Los Angeles and the $750 million sale of CBS’ iconic Television City.

Texas legal community selects firm’s Houston, Dallas offices for recognition in state’s largest markets

DALLAS – For the eighth year straight, Androvett Legal Media & Marketing has earned “Best PR Firm” honors in Houston and Dallas in the annual “Best of 2020” awards compiled by Texas Lawyer magazine.

The firm earned top honors in Houston and was second in Dallas based on nominations from readers of Texas Lawyer, the state’s longest-running publication for the legal industry. The complete “Best of 2020” awards was published as part of a special edition of Texas Lawyer in September.

“Communicating about complex and sensitive legal issues touches on some of the most challenging areas in public relations, where smart, precise and effective messaging is critically important,” said firm founder Mike Androvett. “We’re proud to serve as trusted advisors to legal, professional services and business clients and to have our commitment and hard work recognized with these honors.”

Established in 1995  and inducted into the Texas Lawyer Hall of Fame in 2016, Androvett is one of the few full-service agencies in the United States offering specific PR, marketing and digital expertise to lawyers and law firms, as well as professional service firms and others in the business community.

For more information about Androvett Legal Media & Marketing, visit http://www.androvett.com/.

“It’s hard to overstate the value of knowledge and experience when you’re talking about strategic communications,” said Mark Annick, Androvett Legal Media vice president of news and public relations. “The collective experience of our team allows us to help businesses find their voice, their message, and importantly, their proper audience.”

In addition to traditional PR, strategic communications and media relations, the firm offers a full pallet of tools for an evolving digital communications landscape. “With smart integrated marketing, we are able to leverage a business’s message and attributes across platforms. We can take a business’s message to a broad audience when necessary and at other times target valuable smaller audiences with pinpoint accuracy,” said Chief Operating Officer Scott Parks.

“And where years ago, we might have delegated certain work, we’re now in a position to keep everything in-house,” said Androvett’s Vice President of Marketing Zack McKamie. “That means our clients can entrust us to tell their story through all executions, rather than having to go to one firm for a website, another for advertising or social media, and another for a news release.”

Androvett Legal Media & Marketing is an award-winning, full-service marketing and public relations agency with unparalleled experience serving the communications needs of businesses and organizations across the U.S. Now in its 25th year, Androvett has offices in Dallas and Houston.

For a complete listing of agency services, visit www.androvett.com.

Media Contact
Mark Annick
800-559-4534
Mark@androvett.com

Lyons & Simmons, LLP has a hard-earned reputation for obtaining big results in important personal injury and wrongful death cases. The trial firm’s custom-tailored, client-focused approach has yielded remarkable results, leading to selection by readers of Texas Lawyer magazine as the top personal injury firm in Dallas in the “Best of 2020” survey of the Texas legal market.

The firm – led by founders Michael Lyons and Christopher Simmons – has garnered an impressive recent string of victories without a loss on its scorecard. That nearly unprecedented success has not gone unnoticed, either by clients or peers. In addition to recognition as the Best PI Firm in Dallas, Lyons and Simmons were recently named individually in The Best Lawyers in America, while trial lawyer Stephen Higdon was honored among Best Lawyer’s Ones to Watch.

The attorneys of Lyons & Simmons are truly warriors for their clients’ cases and causes, and it is a responsibility they take very seriously. Their tenacity, ingenuity and innovation have become hallmarks of the firm, and something that clients have come to expect and opponents respect.

Devoted to representing people who have the deck stacked against them, the firm has developed a national reputation for getting remarkable results in big, high-exposure disputes. Michael Lyons and Christopher Simmons’ recent results look more like career-spanning highlights than a 22-month snapshot.

In 2019, the pair represented the family of Parker Waldridge, one of five victims of the worst oilfield incident in Oklahoma history (and the deadliest in the U.S. since the 2010 Macondo Deepwater Horizon blowout). Waldridge was burned alive trying to escape a well fire sparked by a blowout that occurred while workers were performing drilling operations. The fire was so intense that it could be seen on satellite images. Lyons and Simmons have noted that the human tragedy from this case is one that still haunts them, as the circumstances that led to the blowout should never have happened.

Shortly before the start of that trial, the firm obtained a settlement with the last remaining defendant. The combined settlements in the case resulted in one of the largest recoveries for a wrongful death claimant in Oklahoma history. But for the attorneys of Lyons & Simmons, financial restitution is simply not enough in cases such as this. Through their investigative work, the partners were able to demonstrate the circumstances and practices that led to the tragedy, which will help to change the culture that allowed it to occur.

Such efforts to institute change are a recurring theme in the firm’s work.

“Our clients’ problems are our problems. I literally lose sleep at night thinking about how they have been wronged and how I intend to fix it,” says Lyons. “We are always ready to go into battle for our clients.”

Emblematic of their commitment to change was a particularly unsettling sexual assault case. The client, who suffered from dementia, was sexually assaulted in her own home by a cable installer. The team’s investigation would ultimately uncover a blind spot in the hiring practices of communications companies, which allowed dangerous predators to be employed. Lyons and Simmons were in the middle of depositions with corporate representatives when it became obvious that the “ball had been dropped” during the employment screening process. After shining a light on these negligent practices, the company was finally ready to take responsibility for its shortcomings.

“Most of our cases are David vs. Goliath stories,” says Simmons. “It is usually us against some giant institution represented by a team of big-firm lawyers whose strategy is to outspend and outflank you. We are not going to be intimidated. We just say, ‘Bring it on.’ We will be ready.”

Learn more.

Akerman LLP, a top 100 U.S. law firm serving clients across the Americas, today announced the growth of the Litigation Practice Group in New York with Massimo D’Angelo. He advances Akerman’s real estate strengths representing landlords, owners, tenants and tenant groups, bringing experience in dispute resolutions surrounding force majeure, contract negotiations, tenant-landlord conflicts, and business interruption insurance and coverage.

D’Angelo focuses his practice on real estate litigation and transactional work. He represents condominium and cooperative boards on matters related to general corporate governance and he serves as lead trial counsel for boards and developers on construction defect cases. D’Angelo regularly represents commercial and residential landlords in connection with complex real estate litigation matters and advises clients in connection with real estate administrative and environmental proceedings. D’Angelo has extensive experience in conducting trials and arguing appeals in both state and federal court.

D’Angelo is fluent in Italian and conversant in French and Spanish.

General Counsel for Anchor Insurance Holdings Allan Rotlewicz returns to RumbergerKirk as a partner in the Tampa office. He will continue to serve as Anchor’s outside general counsel, while also providing counsel to clients in first party property and casualty defense claims. Rotlewicz worked as part of the firm’s casualty litigation, insurance coverage and toxic torts practice groups from 2011 through 2017 before leaving to join Anchor where he continued his relationship with RumbergerKirk as a client of the firm.

Before joining RumbergerKirk, Rotlewicz practiced in New York after graduating from Brooklyn Law School in 2008 and earning his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Muhlenberg College in 2005.

Barnes & Thornburg has added Mark Stignani as a partner in its Minneapolis office. Stignani joins the firm’s Corporate Department and brings a consultative, data-driven approach to client matters.

Stignani advises clients in various corporate, restructuring and intellectual property matters through the use of data analytics. As part of his analytical approach, Stignani examines executive teams, patent and trademark filings, SEC filings, and other public records to create a behavioral profile of his clients or their competition, to answer their legal questions as well as identify their financial and legal needs, providing recommendations that may result in cost savings.

Stignani counsels clients in high-tech industries including software and hardware, manufacturing, semiconductors,, information technology and telecommunications, and has a wide range of experience using data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) to advise in areas ranging from retail to automotive and from health and beauty to financial services.

Stignani received his B.S. from the University of Minnesota and his J.D. from William Mitchell College of Law.

With more than 700 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from offices in Atlanta, California, Chicago, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minneapolis, New York, Ohio, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, Texas and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit us online at www.btlaw.com or on Twitter @BTLawNews

Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C., is pleased to announce that its Chicago Officer Beata Krakus has been named by Who’s Who Legal: Franchise as one of the world’s top franchise lawyers for 2020. She is included among only 18 U.S. lawyers on the Global Elite Thought Leaders list.

Announced earlier this year by Who’s Who Legal: Franchise, Krakus also is included among the top U.S. franchise attorneys for 2020, along with Greensfelder Officers Dawn M. Johnson, Susan Meyer, and Leonard D. Vines. All are members of the firm’s Franchising & Distribution practice group.

Who’s Who Legal: Franchise describes Krakus as “a highly recommendable franchise lawyer” whom clients turn to as “our first choice in the USA.” Also ranked by Chambers USA for Franchising, Krakus works with clients across the United States and around the globe, preparing franchise programs for concepts including real estate brokerages, hotels, restaurants, and fitness and personal health systems. Her practice also encompasses other distribution models, and she assists clients in managing their distribution networks. In addition, she is a frequent writer and speaker on franchise topics pertaining to national and global audiences, including for organizations such as the International Distribution Institute, ABA Forum on Franchising, International Franchise Association, and many others.

Published by London-based Law Business Research Limited, Who’s Who Legal: Franchise seeks to identify the top lawyers in franchise law with experience assisting clients in the establishment, maintenance and growth of their franchise businesses. Only lawyers who receive the highest number of recommendations from peers and clients as determined through independent research are listed in the publication. The Who’s Who Legal guides serve as reference sources for companies seeking to corroborate the reputations of lawyers recommended by another party.

Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C., founded in 1895, is a full-service law firm with offices in St. Louis, Chicago and Southern Illinois. Greensfelder offers comprehensive legal solutions for clients locally, nationally and internationally. Areas of practice include business services; communications and media; construction; educational, religious and tax-exempt organizations; employee benefits; employment and labor; energy; franchising and distribution; health care; intellectual property; litigation; real estate; securities and financial services; and trusts and estates. Find out more at www.greensfelder.com.

The International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) has announced that E. Kenly Ames, a partner at English, Lucas, Priest & Owsley, LLP in Bowling Green, Kentucky, has accepted an invitation to join the IADC, the preeminent invitation-only global legal organization for attorneys who represent corporate and insurance interests.

Ames focuses her practice on resolving business disputes – both in court and out. Her practice has a particular emphasis on matters that involve trade secrets, non-competition/non-solicitation contracts, trademark and copyright infringement, licensing, the internet, and unfair competition issues. She also has experience in litigation involving construction, securities fraud, class actions, complex insurance coverage, and reinsurance disputes.

Ames is a member of the Civil Rules Committee and chair of the E-Rules Subcommittee of the Kentucky Supreme Court, a member of the Civil Justice Reform Commission established by the Kentucky Supreme Court, and a member of the Kentucky Bar Association’s Board for the Civil Litigation Section. In addition, she is a former president of the Federal Bar Association’s Kentucky chapter.

Ames received her J.D. from Columbia Law School and her Bachelor of Arts (summa cum laude) from the University of Pennsylvania.

About the International Association of Defense Counsel
The IADC is the preeminent invitation-only global legal organization for attorneys who represent corporate and insurance interests. Founded in 1920, the IADC has members who hail from six continents, 51 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 and their clients, as well as the broader civil justice community. For more information, visit www.iadclaw.org.

Rusty Hardin has been named a Texas Legal Legend by the Litigation Section of the State Bar of Texas. This honor is reserved for those attorneys who, after decades of practice, have shown a commitment not only for their profession, but also for giving back to their local communities.

Mr. Hardin began his career more than 45 years ago, serving as a high-level prosecutor in the Harris County District Attorney’s office. He entered private practice in 1991, and since then has tried over 100 jury trials in areas ranging from Commercial Litigation to Criminal Defense. He’s previously held several leadership positions on committees for the State Bar of Texas as well as on the faculty of numerous public and professional organizations and is frequently invited to speak to national and regional bar associations and business groups.

In receiving this honor, Mr. Hardin joins a long list of distinguished attorneys, including James “Jim” Coleman, Joe Jamail, Carolyn Wright-Sanders, and Lloyd P. Lockridge.

Learn more

Orlando, Florida — For the second year in a row, RumbergerKirk will host a series of workshops for Florida A&M University (FAMU) College of Law students during the 2020-2021 academic year. The RumbergerKirk Professional Development Series will move to a virtual format and will feature five workshops designed to help prepare the next generation of leaders for the ever-changing legal industry.

The workshop series kicks off Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020 with a presentation on “Taking the Bar Exam and Bar Admissions Process,” presented by Richard Greenberg, Partner; Michaela Kim, Associate; and Sara Lewis, Associate.

RumbergerKirk has assembled a group of presenters for the workshops that will be conducted via Zoom, including partners, associates and professionals from the firm, as well as local judges and other legal experts. Several of the workshops will feature breakout sessions and polling questions to ensure a more interactive and engaging experience for the law students.

The additional RumbergerKirk Professional Development Series workshop topics are:
• October 22, 2020 – Associate Life: What to Expect Your First Three Years, presented by Jason Bullinger, Associate; Vaughn Glinton, Associate; and Christian Tiblier, Associate.
• November 5, 2020 – Courtroom Etiquette and Professionalism, presented by Suzanne Hill, Partner; Judge Bob LeBlanc, Ninth Judicial Circuit; and Judge Margie Schreiber, Ninth Judicial Circuit.
• January 7, 2021 – Interviewing Skills, presented by Angela Sterley, Human Resources Director
• February 4, 2021 – Taking Depositions, presented by Skip Eubanks, Partner; Darryl Gavin, Partner; and Shenele Pettis Bright, Associate.

For more information email Hammond.

Sidley Austin LLP is pleased to announce that Eric Winwood has joined the firm as a partner in its Dallas office. He will be a member of Sidley’s Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation practice and the leader of the firm’s Dallas Tax, Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation group. Previously, Winwood was an employee benefits and executive compensation partner with Baker Botts LLP and a member of its Oil and Gas M&A team.

Winwood is a Chambers-ranked practitioner who advises clients on compensation and benefits matters, including those associated with domestic and international M&A and private equity transactions, spinoffs, and joint ventures. He has significant experience in the energy sector. Winwood also frequently advises on fiduciary, prohibited transactions, and plan assets matters in connection with establishing, operating, and investing in private equity funds, joint ventures, and other investments.

Winwood’s arrival follows closely that of notable airline and aviation partner Bart Biggers, and continues the expansion of the firm’s corporate capabilities in Texas.