LEGAL PEOPLE

Maddin, Hauser, Roth, & Heller PCis pleased to announce that David M. Saperstein has been appointed to the State Bar of Michigan's Professional Ethics Committee. The Professional Ethics Committee's jurisdiction is to offer analysis and guidance concerning the Michigan Rules of Professional Conduct and, to the extent that they relate to attorney conduct in Michigan, provisions of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, the ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct, and other applicable professional conduct standards, as well as emerging issues of professional conduct affecting lawyers. The announcement was made by the firm's president and CEO, Steven D. Sallen. A shareholder of the firm, Saperstein concentrates his practice in the areas of professional liability defense and appellate law, primarily defending attorneys, registered representatives and broker-dealers, insurance agents, accountants, and real estate agents. Among his numerous published law articles, Saperstein's "Let's Talk Civility," published in Michigan Lawyers Weekly, reviews civility requirements for attorneys and the consequences of inappropriate behavior. Saperstein has served as an officer of B'nai Israel Synagogue of West Bloomfield, chair of the Oakland County Bar Association's Race Judicata Committee, and other community organizations. He has been named a Top Lawyer by DBusiness Magazine and Runner of the Week by the Detroit Free Press. Saperstein's story about trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon, "Ever Feel Like the Butter's Sliding Off Your Biscuit?" was published and illustrated in the London-based magazine Like the Wind. He has presented his original bibliodrama, "Milcah and Iscah: A Reunion of Sisters," at various venues, including Limmud New York and Limmud Michigan, conferences of Jewish learning. - - - Jaffe, Raitt, Heuer, & Weiss PC recently appointed Lisa M. Starita as an associate in the firm's Electronic Payments Group. Starita will concentrate her practice on payments compliance and contractual issues involving money transmitters, payment facilitators, mobile application payment providers, independent sales organizations, sponsorship and licensing agreements, and agent bank and association contracts. Prior to joining Jaffe, Starita was vice president and counsel, privacy and legal compliance at Merchant Customer Exchange LLC in Boston. In this role, she was responsible for all activities, training, policies and procedures related to organizational compliance and privacy programs. She also served the organization as its acting general counsel since April 2017. Previously, Starita served as legal counsel, regulatory compliance at Vantiv LLC in Governor's Hill, Ohio, where she supported the strategic development and tactical implementation of a corporate-level regulatory compliance program in the payments industry. She also served as a staff attorney at Element Payment Services, Inc., a Vantiv Company, in Chandler, Ariz. She earned her law degree from Arizona State University College of Law in Tempe. While at Arizona State University, she completed a legal internship at Franz & Associates PC, a student attorney position in the immigration law and policy clinic, and a legal externship at the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs. She earned a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. and a Bachelor of Science degree in justice studies from Arizona State University. Starita was also a cadet / officer candidate at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. In addition, Jaffe recently appointed Amee Smith as an associate in the firm's Corporate Practice Group. Smith will concentrate her practice on general corporate matters, mergers and acquisitions, finance matters, and startup and emerging company matters, including entity formation and venture financing. Prior to joining Jaffe, she served as an associate at Sidley Austin LLP in Chicago, where she represented corporate clients, equity sponsors, finance companies, and commercial and investment banks in connection with a wide variety of debt facilities, including cash-flow and asset-based loans, cross-border and multicurrency facilities, acquisition financings, and debtor-in-possession financings and restructurings. While at the firm, Smith was recognized by Chambers and Partners as an "Associate to Watch" in the area of Banking & Finance Illinois. Smith earned her law degree from Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. She earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. - - - Plunkett Cooney has increased the depth of its Transportation Law Practice Group with the addition of attorney D'Antae D. Gooden. A member of Plunkett Cooney's Bloomfield Hills office, Gooden focuses his litigation practice in the areas of third-party motor vehicle negligence, no fault law, premises liability, and employment litigation. Gooden has experience handling first-party personal injury protection claims, third-party auto negligence claims, as well as cases involving alleged fraud and suspicious insured claims related to motor vehicle accidents. He also has experience handling employment law matters that include allegations of discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation and civil rights violations. Gooden graduated from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law in 2018. He received his undergraduate degree from Michigan State University in 2015. - - - Travis W. Weber, the former chief legal counsel to Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, has joined the law firm of Warner, Norcross, & Judd LLP. Weber will draw upon his experiences in Lansing as part of the firm's Government Affairs Practice Group helping clients navigate the complexities of state and government regulation. He concentrates his practice on drafting legislation, licensing and permitting work, legislative monitoring and analysis, campaign strategies and election law, procurement, economic development services, crisis management, lobbying services and related areas. He will practice in the firm's Southfield and Lansing offices. Weber previously served as chief legal counsel to the governor, lieutenant governor and executive staff where he managed litigation for the executive office and served as a liaison between the governor's office and the attorney general. In this role, Weber regularly provided counsel on issues ranging from election and campaign finance matters, emergency financial management, lobby law and ethics compliance, construction of international trade crossings, tobacco, gaming and liquor control issues, business regulation, labor policy, local government, public finance and other matters. Prior to his service to Snyder, Weber was deputy legal counsel and senior policy advisor to Speakers of the House of Representatives Jase Bolger and Kevin Cotter where he was instrumental in counseling the Republican caucus on the Detroit bankruptcy. He also worked at another large Detroit law firm and as a judicial clerk for U.S. District Court Judge Rudy Lozano, Northern District of Indiana. Active professionally and in the community, Weber is on the board of commissioners for the State Bar of Michigan. A passionate supporter of children's health and wellness, Weber serves on the board of the Children's Hospital of Michigan Foundation. He also serves on the board for Northern Michigan University. Weber received his bachelor's degree from Michigan State University and his law degree from Valparaiso University Law. - - - Brooks Kushman is proud to announce the transition to a newly appointed Executive Committee to serve as the firm's governing leadership. Mark Cantor will continue his role as chairman of the board and general counsel of the firm and will work with the new Executive Committee to ensure a smooth transition. Shareholders elected Frank Angileri, Sangeeta Shah, Michael Brodbine, Elizabeth Janda, and Matthew Jakubowski to serve as the Executive Committee, which will assume leadership of the firm, effective January 1, 2019. Additionally, in connection with the transition, the shareholders have elected two new officers. Frank Angileri was elected president of the firm and Sangeeta Shah was elected chairperson of the Executive Committee. Angileri and Shah have been instrumental in achieving extraordinary results for clients, growing the firm's client base, increasing employee enrichment, driving pro bono efforts, and implementing training and mentoring programs. "It has been an honor serving as the firm's president for over a decade" said Cantor. "This move is part of a succession plan that has been in place for several years. We are confident that we have all the right pieces in place to lead the firm into the future and to continue to achieve success and long-term growth. Each of these members has played a significant role in shaping the firm's culture and client growth over the last decade, and I am confident the firm is in excellent hands." The continued focus of the Executive Committee will be to ensure operational excellence, client satisfaction, expertise and know-how across practice areas and industries, mentoring and training and diversity and inclusion. The firm's new Executive Committee members mission is to invest in resources that are consistent with the values on which the firm was founded Excellence, Passion, Integrity and Collegiality. "Brooks Kushman has a very strong reputation within the legal community and I look forward to building on this reputation and working with my fellow committee members to further advance and grow the firm," said Shah. "We will continue to employ and refine best practices to train our dynamic and diverse teams and implement the latest client-centered technology. We set the bar high and are excited and optimistic for the future." The team has begun to implement changes to continue the firm's vision for the future. The firm has invested heavily in technology and operational enhancements, to increase efficiencies and better deliver service offerings targeted to each clients' business and legal needs. "The firm's focus is always going to be operational excellence," said Angileri. "We understand the legal landscape has changed drastically over the last several years and we have taken steps to be at the forefront of those changes. Our priority will continue to provide clients with the highest level of service in a more efficient and streamlined manner." Brooks Kushman's new Executive Committee was elected by the shareholders based on their accomplishments and role as leaders within and outside the firm. Each member has been instrumental in the success of the firm. - - - Dickinson Wright PLLC is pleased to announce that attorney Lynn Capp Sirich has been elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML). "I'm delighted to be joining this group of highly-respected and skilled domestic relations attorneys as a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers," says Sirich. "The AAML is dedicated to promoting the highest degree of professionalism and excellence in the practice of family law." With more than 26 years of experience in all areas of family and domestic relations law, Sirich guides her clients through this legal process, always mindful of the fact that she is assisting clients through an often emotional and traumatic period of their lives with more than just their immediate divorce and child custody issues, as the business of divorce incorporates many different legal specialties. Her range of services includes divorce, complex property settlement, business valuation issues; child and spousal support matters; prenuptial and postnuptial agreements; annulment and separation matters; custody, parenting time and grand parenting time issues; guardianships; step parent adoption; change of domicile, personal protection orders; Friend of the Court matters; enforcement and post judgment issues. When disputes end up in the courtroom, Sirich is also a seasoned litigator. Sirich has also served as a guardian ad litem for children. Sirich is a member of the American Bar Association, the State Bar of Michigan (Family Law Section), the Oakland County Bar Association, the Wayne County Family Law Bar Association (past-president), the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, and the Michigan Inter-Professional Association. She is a Life Fellow and serves as vice-president of the Board of Trustees for the Oakland County Bar Foundation. She also serves on the Board of Directors for Humble Design. She is recognized as a leader in her field by DBusiness Top Lawyers and recently was recognized by Crain's Detroit Business as one of "2017 Notable Women Lawyers in Michigan." Sirich received her B.A. from Michigan State University, James Madison College and her law degree from the Detroit College of Law. Published: Mon, Jan 28, 2019