Stephen M. Loftin, a founding member of Houston-based commercial litigation boutique Hicks Thomas LLP, has been accepted into the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA).

In a release, the firm said Loftin, whose commercial litigation practice involves energy, insurance coverage, product liability and personal injury matters, values being admitted into the invitation-only ABOTA organization. ABOTA’s guiding principle is to foster improvement in the ethical and technical standards of practice in the field of trial advocacy as well as the protection of the constitutional vision of equal justice for all Americans and the civil justice system.

“Civility and professionalism, hallmarks of ABOTA, are important to me and I’m honored to be part of this organization that seeks to preserve the right to trial by jury that is central to the American judicial system,” he said.

A graduate of the University of Houston Law Center, with a B.A. from the University of Texas, Loftin is a Life Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation and the Houston Bar Association. He has earned recognition among the top business litigation attorneys in Texas Super Lawyers. He is a member of both the State Bar of Texas and the Oklahoma Bar Association.

Composed of lawyers who have tried a minimum of 10 civil jury trials to conclusion, ABOTA dedicates itself to the preservation and promotion of the Seventh Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees the right to civil jury trials. The Texas chapter, known as TEX-ABOTA, is composed of 16 local chapters and serves as a consolidated voice of more than 1,300 members.

Dallas litigation boutique Estes Thorne & Carr announced that firm attorneys Katherine Anand, Lindsay Daye Barbee, and Terah Moxley are among those honored on the 2018 list of Texas Rising Stars.

This is the sixth consecutive year Anand has been selected based on her business litigation work. She earned her law degree from the Notre Dame Law School.

Barbee is being honored for the third time by Texas Rising Stars for her work in family law. She earned her law degree from the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law.

Moxley, recognized for her employment litigation defense work, is making her first appearance on the Rising Stars list. She is board certified in Labor and Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. She earned her law degree from Baylor Law School, graduating first in her class.

No more than 2.5 percent of attorneys in the state are chosen for Texas Rising Stars each year. They are age 40 or younger or have practiced law for 10 years or less. Selection involves a rigorous process beginning with nominations by other lawyers. The full list will be published in the April 2018 issues of Texas Monthly and the Texas Rising Stars issue of Super Lawyers magazine.

Robert M. Harper, counsel in Farrell Fritz’s estate litigation practice group, was honored as a Public Interest/Pro Bono Attorney of the Year at Touro Law Center’s Annual Goods and Services Auction on Wednesday, March 21, 2018.

Harper, a Garden City, NY resident, earned his J.D., cum laude, from the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University and his B.S. from Boston College Carroll School of Management. He is a frequent contributor to the firm’s New York Trusts and Estates Litigation blog.

Harper has worked for the rights and well-being of minors and the developmentally disabled as a Surrogate’s Court guardian ad litem, the firm said in a release. He takes on some of these guardian ad litem assignments as pro bono matters.

In 2017,  Harper devoted nearly 200 hours to his pro bono work, including many hours that involved protecting a half dozen individuals assigned to him by the Surrogate’s Court. These situations typically involve him writing reports concerning petitions for the appointment of guardians for minors and persons who have developmental disabilities. Harper spends many hours conducting research and interviews to ensure that the individuals in question will be well served through the guardianship appointment, the firm said.

Each year, Touro Law Center hosts the Goods and Services Auction to raise money to benefit the Touro Summer Public Interest Fellowship Program, which funds summer stipends for students to work in public interest law firms or non-profit organizations. The auction program also recognizes an Attorney of the Year from Long Island law firms.

Four attorneys with Texas family law firm Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson, LLP, have been named to the Texas Rising Stars list of top lawyers in the state for 2018.

Recognized for their family law expertise are partner Paula Bennett and associates Ryan Kirkham, Holly Rampy Baird and R. Porter Corrigan II, the firm said in a release. Each of the lawyers assists clients with navigating matters such as property division, child custody, pre- and post-marital agreements, parental rights, and other challenges common to family legal disputes.

Baird, Kirkham, and Corrigan have all been recognized by Texas Rising Stars in previous years. This is Bennett’s first time being named. Corrigan is based in San Antonio; the other honorees work from the firm’s Dallas and Frisco offices.

“In putting together any list of the best and brightest attorneys in Texas, you’d have to include these four,” said firm partner Brad LaMorgese. “Their knowledge of the law and their dedication to their clients are nothing short of stellar. We’re very proud of the work they do.”

Once a year, the Super Lawyers rating service recognizes the top attorneys in the state 40 or younger, or who have been practicing for 10 years or less. The list is made up of lawyers who are nominated by their peers and then assessed in a rigorous editorial review process. Ultimately, only 2.5 percent of eligible attorneys are chosen.

The honorees will be featured in the April 2018 edition of Texas Monthly and the Texas Rising Stars issue of Super Lawyers magazine.

In addition to this year’s four Rising Stars recipients, the firm has more Top 100 Super Lawyers in Texas than any other family law firm in the state. LaMorgese and firm co-founders Richard Orsinger, Keith Nelson, Scott Downing and Jeff Anderson all made the 2017 Top 100 list.

Two trial lawyers with Texas-based Provost Umphrey Law Firm, L.L.P., earned selection to the 2018 Texas Rising Stars list for their representation of plaintiffs in personal injury litigation.

Colin David Moore and Ronnie Turner Jr. have made the annual list multiple times.

In a release, the firm said Moore has earned Rising Stars recognition each year since 2007 for his work in product liability cases resulting in personal injury. His practice also involves premises liability work and toxic tort claims involving exposure to cancer-causing asbestos materials. Recently recognized on the prestigious Best Lawyers in America list, Moore serves on the Jefferson County Bar Association’s Board of Directors.

Turner is making his fourth appearance on the list for his plaintiffs’ personal injury representation. His practice also includes premises liability and products liability cases. Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Turner also earned recognition in this year’s edition of The Best Lawyers in America. He is a member of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association and serves on the Jefferson County Young Lawyers Association’s Board of Directors.

The Texas Rising Stars list recognizes the outstanding work of the state’s top attorneys age 40 and younger or who have practiced law for no more than 10 years. Only 2.5 percent of eligible Texas lawyers are selected to the list each year based on nominations from other lawyers, independent research and a review by separate advisory boards.

East Texas trial lawyer Clyde M. Siebman of Siebman, Burg, Phillips & Smith, LLP, recently was honored by Chief Judge Ron Clark of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas based on his years of work benefitting the district.

In a surprise ceremony attended by U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant, U.S. Magistrate Judge Christine Nowak and local dignitaries, Judge Clark announced that Siebman’s portrait will now hang in the attorney conference rooms at the Paul Brown Federal Courthouse in Sherman.

Siebman is a former law clerk to the late Judge Brown and the founding president of the Eastern District of Texas Bar Association. He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and has been attorney of record in hundreds of Eastern District cases.

Chairman of the Eastern District of Texas Bench Bar Conference since 2009, he also has served on the Eastern District’s Local Rules Advisory Committee, Non-Appropriated Fund Committee, and U.S. Magistrate Judge Merit Selection Committees.

In another honor, Siebman was selected as the Dallas/Fort Worth Lawyer of the Year for patent trials in the 2018 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

Brinks Gilson & Lione, one of the nation’s largest intellectual property law firms, recently received The Chicago Committee’s Diversity Award for Most Partners of Color in Firm Management. The award is part of a newly launched law firm recognition program by The Chicago Committee.

Firm president Gus Siller, who recently began a four-year term as Brinks’ leader, accepted the award at The Chicago Committee’s Annual Meeting on February 7, 2018. Siller is the first minority and Hispanic attorney to lead Brinks, where he has practiced intellectual property law for nearly three decades.

“We are honored to receive this award and believe it reflects the important work we are doing to build and maintain a diverse and inclusive firm,” Siller said. “It’s essential to our firm’s success and integrity that we maintain an inclusive environment in which our many talented, diverse attorneys can flourish. It remains our mission to create and impart inclusion initiatives that address the challenges facing our profession while also contributing to the growth and development of our lawyers.”

The Chicago Committee is a nonprofit, membership-based organization founded in 1987 to provide networking opportunities and support for minority lawyers working at large law firms in the city. Since the organization’s inception more than 30 years ago, it has expanded its scope to include substantive programming for its membership, their attorneys and the broader legal community.

“Brinks was one of the first firms to join The Chicago Committee, and our early support is another example of our long-held belief and core value that diversity and inclusion are essential to the fabric of our success,” Siller said. “Our firm has a history of supporting diversity and, as well as seeking it out or creating it if need be. We know diversity and inclusion are the right way forward for our firm, our clients, and the communities in which we serve. We thank The Chicago Committee for recognizing our steadfast commitment to diversity and inclusion.”

Paige D. Bartholomew of Farrell Fritz has been selected to receive the Hon. Judith S. Kaye Scholarship. The scholarship seeks to increase the number of women taking leadership roles in commercial cases litigated in New York’s state and federal courts.

Established by the New York Bar Foundation through a gift from the New York State Bar Association’s Commercial and Federal Litigation Section, the scholarship is awarded to female litigators and covers the cost of their registration at the 2019 Litigation Academy.

Bartholomew, a Massapequa, NY resident, earned her J.D. from Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center and her B.A. from Siena College. She is a frequent contributor to Farrell Fritz’s New York Commercial Division Practice blog.

Hunter Lewis of the family law boutique Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson has been appointed to the Committee for a Qualified Judiciary or CQJ, a nonprofit organization that evaluates the qualifications of judicial candidates in Dallas.

“I am looking forward to working with this committee to qualify the candidates running for judicial positions,” said Lewis. “It’s an important responsibility and a significant service to voters. I have already served on my first panel and thoroughly enjoyed it.”

The CQJ, founded in 1982, has a mission to advance a competent, fair and impartial judicial system by deciding whether candidates are qualified based on merit, not political party. The goal is to inform voters about the candidates’ qualifications. The committee meets only during the election cycle and does not seek to endorse any candidate in a judicial race.

“We always encourage our attorneys to get involved in outside organizations,” said firm partner and co-founder Keith Nelson. “Hunter is a knowledgeable family law attorney and has lent his expertise to different committees.”

Board Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Lewis is a 2010 graduate of Baylor University School of Law. He has also earned selection to the Texas Super Lawyers listing each year since 2013 and was recognized in The Best Lawyers in America legal guide in 2016. A member of The National Advocate: Top 40 Under 40, he is active with the State Bar of Texas and the bar associations of Dallas, Collin and Tarrant counties, as well as the Texas Family Law Foundation and the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers Foundation.

Attorney Charla D. Davies received Board Certification in Family Law by Texas Board of Legal Specialization (TBLS). Davies currently practices at Langley & Banack, Inc. where she is part of a group of 10 family law attorneys, five of whom are board certified.

Board Certification is a voluntary designation program certifying Texas attorneys in 22 specific areas of law. Board Certified attorneys must be licensed for at least five years, devote a required percentage of practice to a specialty area for at least three years, attend continuing education seminars, pass an evaluation by fellow lawyers and judges, and pass a 6-hour written examination. There are more than 100,000 attorneys licensed to practice in Texas; only 7,450 are Board Certified.

Davies received her Bachelor of Arts from The University of Texas at San Antonio and her Juris Doctorate from St. Mary’s University School of Law. Davies has represented clients in divorce, enforcement of property division, enforcement of child visitation and support, establishment of paternity, modification of custody and child support, grandparent’s rights, termination & adoption, as well as premarital and post marital agreements. She also practices Collaborative Law and is a member of both the Collaborative Law Institute of Texas and the Collaborative Professionals Association of San Antonio.

Texas family law boutique Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson, LLP, announced that attorneys Holly Rampy Baird and Ryan Kirkham have been selected to D Magazine’s annual listing of the Best Lawyers Under 40.

“Holly and Ryan are exceptional attorneys with unique perspectives and experiences that set them apart from most other family law attorneys, regardless of age,” said firm partner Keith Nelson. “We are proud to have them as colleagues, and more importantly, their clients love them.”

Baird’s practice focuses on divorce and complex property division, modification actions, enforcement actions and child custody litigation and mediation. In addition to this D Magazine honor, she has earned a place on the Texas Rising Stars list of the Top 100 Up-and-Coming lawyers and the Top 50 Up-and-Coming Women lawyers.

Kirkham works in international family law issues. He lived and worked abroad for several years before joining Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson. His practice focuses on divorce, jurisdictional disputes, asset tracing and complex property issues. He has twice been selected among the leading young family law attorneys in the state by Texas Rising Stars.

The 2018 list includes 135 of the top young attorneys in North Texas. Honorees are selected in a process that includes peer nominations and extensive review by a blue-ribbon panel of attorneys and D Magazine’s editorial leadership.

D Magazine has selected Sayles Werbner shareholder Rob Sayles to the 2018 edition of Best Lawyers Under 40, a list that recognizes outstanding young attorneys in North Texas.

“I’m truly honored to be included among this group of impressive lawyers,” said Sayles. “When you are recognized by your peers for working hard to represent your clients in tough legal disputes, it means a lot. I am truly grateful.”

Sayles represents plaintiffs and defendants in a litigation, including commercial disputes, product liability, personal injury and wrongful death claims. His success record in 2017 includes obtaining a summary judgment on a covenant not to compete claim where his client faced more than $3.6 million in damages and negotiating significant settlements on behalf of clients injured in car accidents. He also defended the City of Dallas in several lawsuits filed by firefighters and police officers claiming billions of dollars in back pay.

Sayles is among 135 attorneys included in the Best Lawyers Under 40 list, which is selected from peer nominations and a review by a blue-ribbon panel of lawyers and D Magazine editors. The full list is available in the January issue of D Magazine.

In addition to the D Magazine recognition, Sayles has been featured on the Texas Super Lawyers Rising Stars list annually since 2012. He was also honored in the 2017 edition of D Magazine’s Best Lawyers in Dallas for representation of clients in business and commercial litigation. He is a graduate of the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law and the University of Texas at Austin.

Farrell Fritz announced that Charlotte A. Biblow will be honored by the American Heart Association at their 2018 Long Island Go Red for Women luncheon to be held Wednesday, February 28, 2018 at Crest Hollow in Woodbury, NY.

Biblow, a Bayside, NY resident, is an environmental law partner in the firm’s Uniondale office. She served as a board member of the Association’s Long Island chapter from 1993-2007. In 2005, she received the association’s James W. Dowling Award for outstanding service in advancing the heart program and stimulating public support to reduce disability and death from cardiovascular diseases and stroke.

Biblow earned her J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law; her M.S. from Hunter College and her B.S. from the State University of New York at Albany.

For the sixth year in a row, the commercial litigation and intellectual property firm Ahmad, Zavitsanos, Anaipakos, Alavi & Mensing P.C., or AZA, is being recognized among the nation’s Best Law Firms by U.S. News & World Report and The Best Lawyers in America.

“Ahmad, Zavitsanos, Anaipakos, Alavi & Mensing is our go-to firm for any high-stakes litigation. They are smart, tough and effective,” one C-Suite client executive told the publications’ researchers.

Houston’s AZA is listed in the 2018 top tier of area metropolitan law firms for commercial litigation. The selection of Best Law Firms is based on a rigorous process that includes client and lawyer evaluations and peer review from other attorneys in the same practice areas.

Read details of the award.

For a second consecutive year, the family law boutique Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson, LLP, has earned both national and metropolitan Best Law Firms honors from U.S. News & World Report and The Best Lawyers in America for its family law, mediation and appellate practices.

This marks the ninth consecutive year the firm has been ranked among the top family law firms in Dallas-Fort Worth. The firm’s appellate practice earned its second national recognition.

“We take particular pride in earning this recognition, which speaks to the overall excellence of our firm and the individual attorneys, because it is rooted in both client and referring attorney feedback,” said firm partner Keith Nelson.

To be eligible for Best Law Firms rankings, a firm must have at least one lawyer listed in the previously released 2018 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson has 10 attorneys honored by Best Law Firms.

Partners Richard R. Orsinger, Keith Nelson, R. Scott Downing, Jeffrey O. Anderson, William M. Reppeto III, Brad LaMorgese, Lon Loveless, Paula A. Bennett, and Amber Liddell Alwais and of counsel Marilea Lewis were honored individually for their work in Family Law. In addition, Mr. Orsinger and Mr. LaMorgese were honored for their work in Appellate Law, with Ms. Lewis recognized for her Mediation practice.

Final selection to the Best Law Firms list is based on client and attorney evaluations, along with peer review by lawyers within the same practice areas and editorial review. The full 2018 Best Law Firms list can be found at http://bestlawfirms.usnews.com/.

Day Pitney announced that the firm has received a perfect score of 100 percent on the 2018 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), a national benchmarking survey and report on corporate policies and practices relating to LGBT workplace equality, administered by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.

In a release, the firm announced that Day Pitney also received a perfect score on the index last year. With its 100 percent ranking for the second consecutive year, Day Pitney again earned the designation as a Best Place to Work for LGBT Equality by the foundation.

“Day Pitney is honored to be recognized as a leading supporter of the LGBT community. Through the efforts of the DP Alliance, the firms LGBT awareness group, the firm has become a tremendous supporter of LGBT initiatives internally and externally,” said Kathy Bowman-Williams, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Day Pitney. “We will continue to look for opportunities as a firm to support the LGBT community.”

The 2018 CEI rated more than 1,000 businesses in the report, which evaluates LGBT-related policies and practices including non-discrimination workplace protections, spousal and partner medical benefits, transgender-inclusive health care benefits, competency programs and public engagement with the LGBT community. For more information on the 2018 Corporate Equality Index or to download a free copy of the report, please visit www.hrc.org/cei.

Five partners in Estes Thorne & Carr, as well as the firm itself, have received recognition from lawyer rating publications, including The Best Lawyers in America and Super Lawyers.

Receiving Best Lawyers honors are Dawn Estes, Jessica Thorne, Lori Carr and Carol Payne. They were selected for the awards by their peers in the profession.

All three, as well as partner Linda Moore, also were named Super Lawyers, a rating service of lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. This selection process includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations.

And the firm was recognized by U.S. News & World Report in its Best Law Firms list for 2018.

Read more about the partners.

Ware, Jackson, Lee, O’Neill, Smith & Barrow, LLP has been named in U.S. News and World Report and Best Lawyers list of “Best Law Firms for 2018.”

According to U.S. News and World Report, “Firms included in the 2018 ‘Best Law Firms’ list are recognized for professional excellence with persistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal expertise.”

The firm received recognition for a variety of litigation areas, including construction, mass torts, commercial, labor and employment, environmental, and trusts and estates.

Read more about the recognition.

Farrell Fritz announced that, for the sixth consecutive year, the firm has received a Tier 1 Ranking by Best Lawyers. The firm will be listed in the 2018 edition of U.S. News – Best Lawyers’ “Best Law Firms.”

Farrell Fritz has been ranked as a Tier 1 firm on Long Island in Employment Law – Management, Litigation – Trusts & Estates and in Trusts & Estates Law. It also has been ranked as a Tier 2 firm on Long Island in Health Care Law and as a Tier 3 firm in Real Estate Law.

Within New York City, Farrell Fritz has been ranked as a Tier 2 firm in Litigation – Bankruptcy and as a Tier 3 firm in Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law.

Rankings were derived from a combination of clients’ feedback, ratings from attorneys at other firms and the information the firm provided in response to a Best Lawyers survey.

The International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) has been named the 2017 Outstanding Alliance Award recipient by the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform (ILR).

The award recognizes the IADC’s collaboration with ILR on reform issues that are central to ILR’s program abroad, such as third-party litigation funding transparency and class action reform in Canada. The IADC also was honored for its work as a valuable partner with ILR on reform issues in the United States, including preventing the expansion of class actions in the states and addressing regulation through litigation.

“The IADC is tremendously honored to be recognized by the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform for its collaboration with ILR on many critical areas of legal reform in the United States and around the world,” said Andrew Kopon Jr., IADC President and a founding member of Kopon Airdo, LLC in Chicago. “We are grateful to the leadership of ILR for the opportunity to work together and to provide an important avenue for the IADC’s 2,500-plus members to contribute to these efforts in meaningful ways.”

In a release, the association said:

The Outstanding Alliance Award is part of ILR’s Annual Legal Reform Awards that honor individuals and organizations whose outstanding work in partnership with ILR has contributed to making the United States and key foreign civil justice systems simpler, fairer, and more efficient for all. The IADC and its leadership were formally recognized at ILR’s 18th Annual Legal Reform Summit on Oct. 25 in Washington, D.C.

“Receiving ILR’s Outstanding Alliance Award demonstrates that the IADC has emerged as a valuable partner and strong voice for reforms that seek to improve civil justice systems,” said Mark Behrens, chair of the IADC’s Civil Justice Response Committee and co-chair of the Public Policy Group at Shook Hardy & Bacon in Washington, D.C.

The following are among the IADC’s recent legal reform initiatives on which it has partnered with ILR:

Opposed the proposed adoption of a rule to permit a class action procedure in Mississippi’s state court system;

Supported requiring disclosure of third-party litigation funding at the outset of a lawsuit, specifically joining ILR’s petition proposing an amendment to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure to require disclosure;

Opposed the proposed American Bar Association (ABA) resolution attacking restrictions on punitive damages for manufacturers of FDA-approved drugs and devices, specifically leading a coalition of opposition that included all leading national organizations for lawyers who primarily represent civil defendants (the ABA did not move forward with the proposed resolution); and

Provided expert input into the ILR’s consideration of the options for meaningful class action reform in Canada.

“The IADC’s alliance with ILR is another example of a highly successful IADC program that benefits our in-house counsel, insurance executive, and outside lawyer members in the United States, Canada, and abroad and also helps the IADC attract the best and brightest defense lawyers from around the globe to support these advocacy efforts,” said Gordon McKee, an IADC Board member and a partner with Blake, Cassels & Graydon, LLP, in Toronto, who leads the IADC’s efforts on Canadian class action reform.

According to Kopon, the IADC’s partnership with ILR has been highly successful, with the IADC consulting for ILR on numerous matters, and ILR leaders supporting multiple IADC initiatives. ILR President Lisa Rickard has spoken at several IADC events, including its domestic and international Corporate Counsel College education programs.

“The IADC looks forward to continuing to support ILR in the furtherance of legal reform in many areas in the coming year,” Kopon said.

ILR, which is a separately incorporated affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, is the country’s most influential and successful advocate for civil justice reform in the United States and abroad. ILR conducts cutting-edge research, advances pragmatic solutions and advocates for those solutions with Congress, state legislatures, federal regulators, international policymakers and the courts to effect meaningful change. To read more about ILR, visit http://www.instituteforlegalreform.com.

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