LEGAL PEOPLE

Butzel immigration law attorney Reginald A. Pacis was featured during a State Bar of Michigan (SBM) Labor & Employment Section webinar titled “Immigration Basics for Employment Lawyers” on Wednesday, September 20. Pacis, a member of the SBM Immigration Law Section, was one of two presenters who provided a framework for spotting and handling everyday immigration issues that arise in employment settings.

Pacis focuses his practice in immigration law and has handled a variety of immigration matters including H-1B specialty occupation cases, L-1 Intracompany transfers, Labor Certification matters, Immigrant Visa Petitions/Adjustment of Status applications and interviews, TN Free trade cases, H-1B Department of Labor Investigations, I-9 employer verification compliance, and U.S. Port of Entry airport and land port interviews.

In 2018, Pacis was appointed by former Michigan Governor Rick Snyder to the Michigan Asian Pacific American Affairs Commission (MAPAAC) for a term that began in 2019. MAPAAC helps address the needs and concerns of the Asian Pacific American (APA) communities in Michigan. In 2021, he was appointed by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer to the position of trustee to MAPAAC until his term ended earlier this year.

Pacis was named Immigration Lawyer of the Year in 2023 and 2013, respectively in the field of Immigration Law by The Best Lawyers in America and has been listed in Best Lawyers for several years.

Pacis is a member of the American Bar Association, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), and the Samahang Pilipino Ng Oakland Filipino organization. He served two consecutive one-year terms from 2003 to 2005 as chairperson of the Michigan Chapter of AILA and was a member of the AILA National Board of Governors for those terms.

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Super Lawyers has published its annual listing of Michigan attorneys who have distinguished themselves in the practice of law. Eighteen lawyers from Kotz Sangster offices across Michigan have been honored by their peers as 2023 Super Lawyers and Rising Stars.

The firm notes the recognition awarded to health care attorney Keith J. Soltis who serves as managing director of the firm’s Bloomfield Hills office. Soltis has been included in the Super Lawyers Top 100 listing.

Kotz Sangster attorneys honored as Super Lawyers and Rising Stars, along with the areas of practice for which they have been recognized, are:

—Michigan Super Lawyers

R. Edward Boucher – Construction Litigation
George F. Curran III – Environmental
David R. de Reyna – Estate & Probate
Jovan Dragovic – Health Care
Mowitt S. Drew III – Family Law
Timothy P. Dugan – Construction Litigation
Dennis K. Egan – Business Litigation
Walter B. Fisher Jr. – Employee Benefits
Jeffrey M. Sangster – Construction Litigation
Robert D. Sheehan – Business Litigation
Keith J. Soltis – Health Care
Kathryn R.S. Spray – Business/Corporate
Gregory L. Wysocki – Mergers & Acquisitions

—Michigan Rising Stars

Evan M. Lumley – Construction Litigation
Bruce A. Margulis – Mergers & Acquisitions
Amber D. Peters – General Litigation
Tyler P. Phillips – Construction Litigation
Joshua L. Whicker – Business Litigation

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Foley, Baron, Metzger, & Juip PLLC congratulates associate attorney Silvia A. Mansoor who was elected as the vice-chair of the State Bar of Michigan Young Lawyers Section. By virtue of her election, Mansoor also holds a seat with the State Bar of Michigan Board of Commissioners.

Founded in 1940, the Young Lawyers Section is the oldest and one of the largest sections of the State Bar of Michigan. Upon admission to practice in Michigan, attorneys automatically become members of the Young Lawyers Section until their 36th birthday or 5 years in practice, whichever is longer. The Young Lawyers Section is comprised of three districts that represent the entirety of the young lawyers in the state, regularly carries out legal and public-facing events, and provides a great environment into leadership within the community.

Mansoor has been an active member of the Young Lawyers Section since about 2017.

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September 15th marked the start of Hispanic Heritage Month, which is a time to celebrate Hispanic and Latinx/o/a American independence, culture, and heritage.

In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, BSP Law organized a drawing competition for the students at César Chávez Academy Upper Elementary in Detroit. Students were given the opportunity to create a drawing depicting what Hispanic Heritage Month means to them. Out of several creative and thoughtful submissions, BSP Law selected two winning drawings, and those students each won a pizza party for their class. BSP Law also made a donation to the Academy.

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Bodman PLC is pleased to announce that 58 of the firm’s attorneys have been included in the 2023 edition of Michigan Super Lawyers.

The local Bodman attorneys listed in Michigan Super Lawyers 2023 (by office location, including practice area) are:

—Detroit

Marc M. Bakst (Bankruptcy: Business)
Andrew H. Curoe (Estate & Probate)
Laurence B. Deitch (Business/Corporate)
Robert J. Diehl Jr. (Creditor-Debtor Rights)
Kathleen O’Callaghan Hickey (Banking)
David P. Larsen (Estate & Probate)
Ralph E. McDowell (Bankruptcy: Business)
Jeffrey G. Raphelson (Business Litigation)
Nicholas P. Scavone Jr. (Real Estate)
Joseph J. Shannon (Business Litigation)
Larry R. Shulman (Banking)
Brian R. Trumbauer (Creditor-Debtor Rights)
Jaimee L. Witten (Creditor-Debtor Rights)

—Troy

Adam Behrendt (Business Litigation)
John T. Below (Employment & Labor)
John C. Cashen (Employment & Labor)
Steven R. Cole (Real Estate)
Michelle Thurber Czapski (Business Litigation)
Stephen P. Dunn (Business Litigation)
Gary S. Fealk (Employment Litigation: Defense)
Marguerite Munson Lentz (Estate & Probate)
Thomas J. Tallerico (Business Litigation)
Thomas Van Dusen (Business Litigation)

The local Bodman attorneys selected for the 2023 Michigan Rising Stars list are:

—Detroit

Sarah L. Cylkowski (Business Litigation)
Fawzeih Daher (Appellate)
Nathan D. Dupes (Business Litigation)
Kelly M. Lockman (Real Estate)
Alexandra C. Markel (General Litigation)
Chelsey L. Marsh-Jones (Real Estate)
Julia C. Massaro (Estate & Probate)
Nicholas P. McElhinny (Mergers & Acquisitions)
Christopher J. Rambus (Estate & Probate)
Noel J. Ravenscroft (Bankruptcy: Business)
Thomas J. Rheaume Jr. (Business Litigation)
Rebecca C. Seguin-Skrabucha (Employment & Labor)
Erica J. Shell (Real Estate)

—Troy

Donovan S. Asmar (Business Litigation)
Joseph P. Michniacki (Business/Corporate)
Ryan M. Olson (Business/Corporate)
Karolina M. Powalka (Real Estate)
Jacob J. Simon (Business/Corporate)
Melissa M. Tetreau (Employment & Labor)

Bodman is also pleased to announce that the editors of Michigan Super Lawyers have included Michelle Thurber Czapski on the publication’s list of the Top 50 Women Lawyers in Michigan.

Czapski, of Bodman’s Troy office, is chair of the firm’s Insurance Practice Group and co-chair of the Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution Practice Group. She represents major corporate clients in litigation and alternative dispute resolution proceedings across the United States. She has been listed on the Super Lawyers Top 50 Women list since 2019 and is also included in the publication’s list of Michigan’s Top 100 lawyers.

Among Czapski’s other recent accolades, she was named a “Go-To Lawyer” for Business Litigation by Michigan Lawyers Weekly and received recognition in Benchmark Litigation as a “Litigation Star.”

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Taft is pleased to welcome several new associates to the firm.

The new associates (admissions pending) will join the Detroit Taft offices and practice groups:

Jeremy Ellis, Business
Kenny Nelson, Litigation
Samantha Scott, Private Client
Grayson Trepeck, Business

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Attorney Nadine A. Hessi is the newest member of the Trusts & Estates Practice Group of Plunkett Cooney.

Hessi, who recently joined the firm as an associate in the firm’s Bloomfield Hills office, focuses her practice on trust and estate planning matters, as well as probate and trust litigation. She advises clients on trust agreements, tax law, prenuptial agreements, powers of attorney, wealth strategy planning, retirement planning and charitable trusts. Her litigation practice includes representation in claims involving alleged breach of fiduciary duty and will/trust contests.

In addition to her estate planning and probate litigation practice, Hessi assists members of the Business Transactions & Planning Group with corporate and transactional services.

A 2021 graduate of Wayne State University Law School, Hessi served as an intern to U.S. District Court Judge Sean F. Cox, Eastern District of Michigan, and as an intern for Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Mariam Bazzi.  She received her undergraduate degree from Wayne State University in 2018. Hessi is fluent in Arabic.