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    Wisconsin Lawyer
    February 12, 2019

    Members Only

    If you have moved, become a partner or an associate, or received a promotion or an award, let us know.

    New Hires, Promotions, Partners

    Andrew P. Baker, U.W. 2018, has joined the Law Offices of Michael J. Anderson LLC, Lake Mills, as an associate, focusing on business law, commercial and consumer collections, commercial real estate, and insurance coverage.

    Rachel B. BeauchampRachel B. Beauchamp, William Mitchell 2008, has become a shareholder with Cousineau, Van Bergen, McNee & Malone P.A., Minnetonka, Minn. She practices in Minnesota and Wisconsin in transportation law (including commercial trucking, FELA, and admiralty), appellate law, insurance coverage, personal injury defense, premises liability, subrogation, dram shop, construction defect litigation, and general liability.

    Patricia E. DavisPatricia E. Davis, William Mitchell 2011, has been promoted to shareholder at Kendricks, Bordeau, Keefe, Seavoy & Larsen P.C., Marquette, Mich. Her areas of practice include estate planning, corporate law, and nonprofit corporations.

    Chase HorneRaluca Vais-OttosenTwo attorneys have been promoted to partner at DeWitt LLP, Madison. Chase Horne, U.W. 2011, practices in litigation and environmental law, representing clients in business and shareholder disputes, construction disputes, personal injury matters, and employment issues. Raluca Vais-Ottosen, Louisiana State 2004, focuses on employment and U.S. immigration and nationality law, including family-based and individual immigration applications, employment-based visas, permanent residence (green card), and U.S. citizenship.

    Nathan O. HadsellNathan O. Hadsell, U.W. 2005, is a founding member of Masini, Vickers, Ruksakiati & Hadsell P.C., Chicago. He continues to focus on construction law and commercial litigation.

    Jaclyn C. KallieJaclyn C. Kallie, Marquette 2012, has joined the civil litigation section at Gimbel, Reilly, Guerin & Brown LLP, Milwaukee. She previously worked in private practice concentrating in complex civil litigation and insurance defense.

    Terrence M. PolichBethesda ZewdieTwo attorneys have joined the Madison office of Lawton & Cates S.C. as associates. Terrence M. Polich, U.W. 1998, concentrates in personal injury, professional negligence, business disputes, lemon law, and consumer warranty issues. Bethesda Zewdie, U.W. 2018, focuses on civil litigation and immigration matters.

    Jessica A. LiebauJessica A. Liebau, Marquette 2011 cum laude, has been named partner with Wessels Law Office LLC, Mequon, where she focuses on elder law, guardianships, special needs planning, public benefits such as Medicaid, estate planning, and trust and probate administration.

    Steven L. Miracle, Marquette 2013 cum laude, has joined Milwaukee-based Meissner Tierney Fisher & Nichols S.C. as an associate. He focuses on commercial litigation, primarily insurance defense and coverage issues. Previously, he was an associate with Borgelt, Powell, Peterson & Frauen S.C., Milwaukee.

    Four attorneys have been promoted to shareholder at Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c.

    Milwaukee office: Bryant E. Ferguson, Marquette 2010 magna cum laude, is with the employee benefits practice and focuses on advising large institutional investors. He reviews partnership agreements, private placement memoranda, and other offering and disclosure documents; negotiates investment terms; and represents buyers and sellers of private fund interests in the secondary market.

    Brittany Lopez Naleid, U.W. 2010 cum laude, is with the labor and employment practice and focuses on representing employers in employment discrimination, wrongful termination, harassment cases, shareholder disputes, employment-related immigration matters, and nonemigrant visa petitions. She also represents low-income clients as part of Reinhart’s pro bono program.

    John K. Tokarz, U.W. 2011 summa cum laude, is with the corporate law, food and beverage, and institutional investor services practices and focuses on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, divestures, and securities offerings and closely held and family-owned businesses. He is also a certified public accountant.

    Madison office: Joshua D. Taggatz, Minnesota 2010 magna cum laude, is with the litigation practice in the Madison office and handles real estate disputes, condominium issues, business transactions, and foreclosure matters. He also represents hospices in Medicare and Medicaid audits.

    Two attorneys have joined Reinhart. Matthew J. Ackmann, Marquette 2016, is with the trust and estates practice in the Waukesha office. Heidi M. Gabriel, Marquette 2013 cum laude, is with the corporate law practice in the Madison and Milwaukee offices and focuses on corporate and tax matters. Gabriel, also a certified public accountant, previously worked in the state and local tax group for a Big Four accounting firm.

    The Hon. Richard J. Sankovitz, Harvard 1983, has joined Milwaukee-based Resolute Systems, a national mediation and arbitration firm. He left the Milwaukee County Circuit Court in December 2018. Judge Sankovitz presided in four of the five divisions of the court, including the civil and family divisions, and in almost 300 jury trials. He is one of the principal authors of the Local Rules of the First Judicial District.

    Tricia L. Schulz, U.W. 2006, has been elected partner at Foley & Lardner, Madison. She continues to focus in intellectual property law.

    Mergers, Relocations, New Offices

    Victoria Davis Dávila, Marquette 2011, has moved her practice, the Law Office of Victoria L. Davis Dávila LLC, to 1433 N. Water Street, Suite 400, Milwaukee. She focuses on the legal needs of individuals with special needs and their families.

    The Wisconsin-based law firm DeWitt Ross & Stevens S.C., and its Minnesota affiliate DeWitt Mackall Crounse & Moore S.C., have reorganized to DeWitt LLP.

    The lawyers and staff formerly with Hesson & Birtch LLC, Neenah, have joined von Briesen & Roper s.c. The Neenah office is located at 244 East Doty Avenue. Grant E. Birtch, U.W. 1990, and Jeffrey L. Hesson, Marquette 1983, are shareholders in the Neenah office. Birtch focuses on estate planning, probate, real estate, and corporate matters. Hesson focuses on general business planning; organizing, acquiring, and selling businesses; contract review and drafting; risk analysis and planning; nonprofit and foundation matters; and director issues. Gerald H. Rammer, U.W. 1970, is counsel in the Neenah office and focuses in estate planning, estate administration, trust administration, and tax.

    Richard A. Westley, U.W. 1975, Bridgette M. Blitch, Denver 2008, and Joseph E. Blitch, Florida 1994, have formed Blitch Westley S.C., with offices in Madison and Windemere, Fla. Lauren E. Rosenbaum, Marquette 2015, is an associate. The firm represents business clients throughout the United States in litigation, corporate structuring, and transactional and administrative matters, with special emphasis on the transportation industry.

    Appointments, Elections

    Ellen Nowak, Marquette 1998, has been reappointed to the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. She previously served on the commission from 2011 to February 2018.

    Michael Rust, Marquette 2006, has been elected president of the Association for Conflict Resolution. His term begins September 2019. He is executive director of the Winnebago Conflict Resolution Center Inc., Oshkosh.

    Ron TuslerRon Tusler, Marquette 2010, a Wisconsin state representative and a personal injury attorney, has been appointed chair of the Committee on Campaigns and Elections for the 2019-20 Wisconsin Assembly session.

    Authors, Speakers

    Alex Flynn, Marquette 1984, lectured on criminal law and trial practice and procedure at Matej Bel University Faculty of Law in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, in November 2018, under the auspices of the Center for International Studies Senior Lawyer Program. He practices in Milwaukee.

    Carlton D. Stansbury, Iowa 1990 with distinction, presented “Deceptively Simple to Unnecessarily Complicated: Lessons from Real Life UCCJEA Cases,” at the National CLE Conference in Snowmass, Colo. He is a shareholder with Burbach & Stansbury S.C., Milwaukee, and focuses in family law.

    James Casey, Dayton 1988, was a featured speaker at the inaugural Frank P. Zeidler Legacy Breakfast held in Milwaukee in November. He spoke about the legacy of the late Milwaukee mayor and the importance of civil discussions between people who often significantly disagree. The Frank P. Zeidler Center for Public Discussion exists to further such civil dialog, and Casey noted the important role that lawyers, and the State Bar of Wisconsin, have in furthering that civil discussion. He practices in antitrust law in Washington, D.C., and is an adjunct associate professor at the City University of New York.

    Awards, Degrees, Honors

    James M. Burrows, Marquette 2011, has been named 2018 Pro Bono Attorney of the Year at Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c. Burrows is with the litigation practice in the Milwaukee office and focuses on intellectual property litigation. He is a senior member of the firm’s Domestic Abuse Injunction Program, which provides free representation to low-income domestic abuse victims, and a volunteer at the Marquette Legal Aid Clinic and the Milwaukee Justice Center, and he has been both a lead attorney and a mentor to younger lawyers with Reinhart’s Prisoner Civil Rights Program.

    Emery K. HarlanEmery K. Harlan, U.W. 1989, a partner at MWH Law Group, Milwaukee, has been named one of Wisconsin’s most influential black leaders by Madison 365. He focuses on defending companies and governmental entities in high-profile, aggravated discrimination matters. Harlan has served as a board member for the Blood Center of Wisconsin, Milwaukee Health Services, and Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts. He is the State Bar of Wisconsin’s 2018 Lifetime Legal Innovator andhas been a leader in promoting greater diversity and inclusion in the legal profession. He co-founded the National Association of Minority & Women Owned Law Firms and has served as an advisor to the Minority In-House Counsel Association.

    Paul A. Sturgul, U.W. 1973, was named Volunteer Attorney of the Year for 2018 by the Elder Law and Disability Rights Section (ELDRS) of the Michigan State Bar. Sturgul is past chair of the ELDRS and has also been chair of the State Bar of Wisconsin Elder Law and Special Needs Section and president of the National Elder Law Foundation. He practices with Sturgul & Long, Hurley.

    Pat Sullivan, Marquette 1984 cum laude, has been elected to the American Board of Trial Advocates and as a Fellow of the International Society of Barristers. His practice at Siesennop & Sullivan LLC, Milwaukee, focuses on the defense of long-term care facilities and other health-care professionals in civil litigation.

    Eric J. Haag, U.W. 1996, a partner at Atterbury, Kammer & Haag S.C., Middleton, received the 2018 President’s Award from the Wisconsin Association for Justice (WAJ). The award honors the work of members who help improve the U.S. civil justice system or ensure access to the courts for all and the right of trial by jury. Haag focuses in plaintiffs’ personal injury litigation and also handles civil rights claims, medical malpractice, class actions, and fire loss cases. He is a former member of the WAJ board. Eric M. Knobloch, Marquette 2007, with Gruber Law Offices LLC, Milwaukee, received the WAJ’s Outstanding Young Trial Lawyer Award for 2018. He has spent his entire career dedicated to helping injured clients hold wrongdoers responsible. He is a member of the WAJ board.

    In Memoriam

    Joseph C. Crawford, William Mitchell 1989, Inver Grove Heights, Minn., Aug. 20, 1944 – March 12, 2018.

    Hon. James P. Fiedler, Marquette 1952, Madison, Dec. 23, 1928 – Jan. 15, 2019.

    Lynn Ellen Hackbarth, Marquette 1983, Milwaukee, Dec. 27, 1956 – Dec. 30, 2018.

    Troy Michael Hellenbrand, Fordham 1987, Waunakee, Aug. 16, 1962 – Jan. 2, 2019.

    Robert W. Kohn, U.W. 1960, Santa Barbara, Cal., Feb. 13, 1934 – Nov. 9, 2018.

    Jan Leslie Meese, Washburn 1995, Rice Lake, May 8, 1955 – Nov. 2, 2018.

    Karen R. Olson, Vermont 1985, Amery, April 28, 1959 – Jan. 2, 2019.

    Sherin Schapiro, Marquette 1964, Milwaukee, Oct. 25, 1937 – Dec. 21, 2018.

    John W. Tessner, Gonzaga 1984, Saint Paul, Minn., March 14, 1945 – Nov. 27, 2018.

    How to Place your Announcement

    If you have moved, become a partner or an associate, or received a promotion or an award, let us know. Talks, speeches (unless they are of national stature), honors from other publications, and political announcements are not accepted. Notices about State Bar members in good standing are printed as space is available, and at no cost, must be submitted in writing, and may be edited. Questions: (608) 250-6139.

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