Dickinson Wright is pleased to announce that Benjamin Sobczak has joined the firm's Troy office as a member.
Sobczak is a litigator with an emphasis on shareholder and close corporate disputes, collection actions, private securities litigation, class action defense and business torts. In that capacity he has received several accolades including the 2018 Crain's "Business Litigation of the Year" award, inclusion in the 2018 Benchmark Litigation "40 & Under Hot List," and 2016-17 Rising Star nominations from Michigan Super Lawyers.
Sobczak also serves as outside general counsel providing regulatory and transactional-based services to cannabis companies in various jurisdictions throughout the U.S. and Canada. He is a frequent speaker at professional seminars and conferences and is recognized as a leading legal contributor to the Michigan cannabis industry. In light of those contributions, in 2022 he was fortunate enough to be appointed to a council position with the State Bar of Michigan's Cannabis Law Section.
Prior to joining Dickinson Wright, Sobczak served as the chief legal officer for a vertically integrated cannabis company with operations in Michigan and Massachusetts. In that role, Sobczak gained experience as a business operator and entrepreneur.
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Plunkett Cooney attorney Kaitlin M. Gant recently earned the ANSI-accredited Certified Information Privacy Professional/United States (CIPP/US) credential through the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP).
An associate attorney in the Bloomfield Hills office of Plunkett Cooney, Gant focuses her practice on first- and third-party motor vehicle liability cases.
Many of the motor vehicle negligence cases involve the investigation of fraudulent and suspicious claims. Gant's experience with privacy and data security laws and regulations comes from her years working in a compliance role with in-house counsel at a global consulting and business management firm. Gant's practice also includes Native American Indian tribal law matters.
Gant received her law degree from Michigan State University College of Law in 2020 and her undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan in 2017.
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The Alternative Dispute Resolution Section of the State Bar of Michigan is proud to announce that the following individuals are the recipients of the ADR Section's major awards in 2022:
• Lee Hornberger is the recipient of the Distinguished Service Award. A former chair of the ADR Section, he has been instrumental in keeping neutrals up to date on relevant law through his yearly case reviews at the Annual Conference and is a regular contributor to section webinars. In his time since serving as chair, he has promoted the inclusion of women and people of color in the ADR community.
• Gregory Conyers is the recipient of the Diversity and Inclusion Award. He serves as the director of diversity of the State Bar of Michigan. In that role, he has been promoting diversity in the bar and ADR for more than a decade and championing DEI since before it was mainstreamed.
• Belinda Dulin is the recipient of the Nanci S. Klein Award. She is the executive director of the Dispute Resolution Center for Washtenaw and Livingston Counties. She is instrumental in efforts to increase the use of restorative justice practices and principles as part of local efforts to reform the criminal legal system. She also chairs the social justice committee of the Michigan Community Mediation Association.
• Lisa Timmons is the recipient of the Hero of ADR Award. She is the executive director of the Mediation Tribunal Association. She moderated and helped create the "Diversifying the Practice of ADR" presentation at the ADR Section Annual Conference in 2021. She serves on the ADR Section Council and contributes her time to activities that promote the diversification of the legal community.
• Betty R. Widgeon is the recipient of the George N. Bashara Jr. Award. As the immediate past chair of the ADR Section, she has continued her work on behalf of the dispute resolution community in Michigan, while increasing her national recognition as a neutral par excellence.
The award recipients will be honored at an awards ceremony on October 1 as part of the ADR Annual Conference.
For additional information about the ADR Section and the ADR annual conference and awards ceremony, September 30-October 1, visit https://www.tribeunltd5.com/.
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Varnum partner Matt Bower has been named co-director and adjunct professor of the newly-launched Arts and Entertainment Law Clinic at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.
The clinic will provide students with access to a comprehensive intellectual property law practice experience. Specific client projects may include filing copyright registrations, preparing clearance reports and fair use analyses, drafting and commenting on music agreements, personal services agreements, location agreements and image releases, and advising on defamation and publicity matters.
Bower is a business law attorney with a strong focus on startups and emerging companies. He has experience in a range of intellectual property matters including copyright protection and licensing, publicity rights, publishing, public art and fair use. He serves as lead attorney for Varnum's Ann Arbor office and leads the firm's Venture Capital and Emerging Companies practice.
"I look forward to being part of this historic and important clinic," Bower said. "The arts and entertainment professions are important to me on both a professional and personal basis, and I am excited about helping young attorneys understand the unique needs of clients in the creative economy."
Bower has strong ties to the creative community. He is a member of the board of the Ann Arbor Art Center, serving on the Executive Committee and Art in Public Committee. He was active for many years with Creative Many Michigan and its predecessor, ArtServe Michigan. He served on the board and as a volunteer in the Lawyers for the Creative Economy program and on the board for Michigan Youth Arts. In 2020, the Arts, Communication, Entertainment and Sports (ACES) Section of the State Bar of Michigan presented Bower with the Hensel Award in recognition of his significant contributions to the arts community in Michigan.
Bower earned an MFA in Theatre from the University of Michigan in addition to his law degree from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.
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Bodman PLC is pleased to announce that Michael B. Peterman of the firm's Detroit office has been named 2023 Detroit Lawyer of the Year for Banking and Finance Law by The Best Lawyers in America.
Peterman in a member of Bodman's Banking and Real Estate practice groups. With more than 30 years of experience as a finance and real estate attorney, he focuses his practice on real estate and commercial loan originations, real estate sales and acquisitions, and commercial leasing.
He represents national and regional financial institutions in all areas of commercial lending with an emphasis on bi-lateral and syndicated real estate and construction originations and workouts, commercial and industrial asset-based loans, and international financing. In his real estate practice, Peterman represents large corporate clients in connection with the management of national real estate portfolios, including site acquisitions and dispositions and commercial leases for retail, office, and industrial properties.
Peterman has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America continuously since 2013.
In, addition, Bodman is pleased to announce that it has received the most favorable rating of any Michigan-based firm appearing on the National Law Journal 2022 Women in Law Scorecard, an annual analysis of gender diversity at large law firms.
The National Law Journal compiles the Women in Law Scorecard by evaluating demographic data provided in a survey of the 350 largest law firms nationally. Of the 262 firms that participated in the 2022 survey, Bodman placed at number 67.
"Building and maintaining a diverse and inclusive work environment is a strategic priority for Bodman," said firm Chair Carrie Leahy. "We are focused on attracting and retaining diverse talent and encouraging all to become leaders within the firm. I'm proud of the effort we have made thus far and am committed to continually look for ways to do even better."
As part of Bodman's commitment to diversity, the firm recently initiated a year-long Mansfield Certification process, which is aimed at increasing the representation of diverse attorneys in firm leadership. Bodman has maintained a standing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee for more than a decade and recently hired a full-time manager of diversity and talent who will help guide and administer the firm's DEI efforts.
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Lipson Neilson is proud to announce that attorney Jessica L. Wynn acted as the surety editor and a contributing author for the "Recent Developments in Fidelity and Surety Law" section of the 2022 Spring issue of Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Law Journal. This is Wynn's first time as surety editor and sixth consecutive year as a contributing author for this Journal.
A member of Lipson Neilson's team of Surety & Fidelity Law attorneys, Wynn's practice focuses on Contract Surety Law, Construction Law, Commercial Surety Law, Probate Litigation, Fidelity Law, and Commercial Disputes.
Wynn is an active member and acts in leadership positions,= in legal industry associations including ABA's Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section Fidelity and Surety Law Committee, Defense Research Institute's Fidelity and Surety Steering Committee, Northeast Surety and Fidelity Claims Association, Wayne County Probate Bar Association, and the Woman's Lawyers Association of Michigan.
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Dykema announced that Sheryl Toby, a member in the firm's Bloomfield Hills office, was named as one of 38 women in the United States to Euromoney's Women in Business Law Expert Guide 2022 for Restructuring and Insolvency.
Toby is known for her tenacity and creativity on behalf of creditors, debtors, and lenders who find themselves addressing precarious financial situations. She has decades of experience as lead counsel in numerous significant bankruptcy cases throughout the country.
In both traditional and advanced technology manufacturing, Toby works closely with purchasing groups, in-house legal, finance, and other business teams to develop effective strategies that address the full spectrum of supply chain challenges. In addition, her experience spans matters such as the development of unique collaborative agreements in advanced vehicle manufacturing, front-end procurement, contracting best practices, as well as addressing "stop-ship," financially troubled suppliers, and other litigation threats.
Toby was also recently named "Lawyer of the Year" in Bankruptcy by The Best Lawyers in America 2023.
Toby earned her law degree from Wayne State University Law School and her B.A. from Michigan State University.
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Bushra Malik, Butzel attorney and shareholder, was chair of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) 2022 Fall Conference & Webcast on September 11 in Maui, Hawaii. Moreover, she was a featured panelist during a program titled, "Braving the Tidal Wave of Mistakes: How to Solve Problems and Mistakes Created by the Government, Your Client, and Others."
Malik, based in Butzel's Troy office, practices in the area of immigration law, focusing on the representation of multinational and domestic clients' inbound and global migration needs.
Her experience includes Employment based (Extraordinary Ability, Outstanding Researcher, Multinational Manager, and PERMs) and Family based Permanent Residence Petitions, Non-Immigrant Petitions (H-1B/Specialty Occupation, J-1/ Exchange Visitor, L-1/Intracompany Transfers, O-1/Extraordinary Ability, TN/ NAFTA); Employer Compliance (I-9 Audits and H-1B Public Access File Audits); J-1 waivers; Compliance under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiate (WHTI); U.S. Passports; complex naturalization matters; and currency seizures.
She was recently named to the Best Lawyers in America® 2023. Malik was included in the 2022 edition of Best Lawyers® second annual Best Lawyers in the Midwest publication.
Malik currently serves on the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Department of State National Liaison Committee. She previously served as the chair of the AILA Michigan Chapter; is the past chair of AILA's Global Migration Section; and speaks regularly at AILA national and international conferences.
