LEGAL PEOPLE

Dykema Gossett PLLC and its attorneys have garnered high rankings in multiple practice areas and in key regional markets in the 2011 "Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business" guide. The firm was ranked in four distinct practice areas and 13 attorneys, representing multiple offices and practice areas, were ranked individually. Among the 13 ranked attorneys, four of the firm's 10 offices and six practice areas were represented: Labor & Employment * Joseph A. Ritok Jr. - For the second year in a row Ritok earned the highest Chambers ranking. As co-leader of the firm's Labor & Employment practice, Ritok's national practice is focused on the defense of management in complex labor and employment matters, including in the areas of both litigation and traditional labor. * Martin Jay Galvin - Galvin's practice is concentrated on representing management in tradition labor, employment litigation and appellate matters. For more than three decades, he has represented clients in collective bargaining negotiations, arbitration hearings, union issues, unfair labor practice proceedings, occupational safety matters, and wage and hour hearings. Corporate/M&A * J. Michael Bernard - As leader of Dykema's Corporate Finance group, Bernard focuses his practice on business planning, general corporate and securities matters, particularly those relating to public and private offerings. He has experience in mergers and acquisitions across a broad spectrum of industries including automotive, manufacturing and technology. * Aleksandra A. Miziolek - Dykema's Automotive Industry Group leader concentrates her practice on infrastructure and project finance and is largely focused on mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance and SEC disclosure matters. * Jin-Kyu Koh - Koh is the Office managing member of Dykema's Detroit office and co-leader of the firm's Life Sciences team. He has experience in mergers and acquisitions of both public and private companies. He regularly represents companies in a wide range of financing transactions and also provides general corporate representation. Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation * Margaret Adams Hunter - Hunter heads the firm's Employee Benefits practice and is co-leader of Dykema's Tax practice. She focuses on the design, implementation and administration of pension plans, welfare plans, fringe benefit plans, stock compensation plans and executive compensation arrangements. Litigation: General Commercial * James Feeney - He is regarded as one of the nation's most prominent trial attorneys regularly tackling high-profile, high-stakes litigation matters for the world's largest companies, particularly product liability matters for automotive clients. Throughout his career, he has been involved in nearly 1500 cases, 70 of which he has tried to verdict. * Dennis M. Haffey - Haffey's practice focuses on business litigation for both plaintiffs and defendants, at trial and appellate levels of state and federal courts, administrative agencies, arbitration and other forms of alternative dispute resolutions. For six years, he headed Dykema's Litigation practice. Litigation: General Commercial; Labor & Employment * Patrick F. Hickey - Hickey is co-leader of Dykema's Labor & Employment group. His practice is focused in employment and commercial litigation matters, including non-compete, trade secret, ERISA and discrimination matters. Hickey is also experienced in multiple forms of alternative dispute resolution. Real Estate * Cameron H. Piggott - Piggott is the director of Dykema's Real Estate and Environmental department, and serves as co-leader of the firm's Real Estate group. He practices general real estate law with an emphasis on commercial and residential development, leasing, sale, financing, foreclosure or workout for a wide range of projects, developers and other real estate users. He is also the principal author of the Michigan legislation that authorizes business improvement districts. * Brian J. Page - Page is a commercial real estate and business attorney, who also serves as co-leader of the firm's national Lending team. He has more than 25 years of experience focused on capital and finance, commercial real estate development, leasing, acquisitions/divestitures, construction projects and business planning matters. Senior Statesman Banking & Finance: Bankruptcy * Ronald L. Rose -Rose, the former co-leader of the firm's Bankruptcy group, concentrates his practice on bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, and commercial matters covering issues arising under the Uniform Commercial Code and the Bankruptcy Code. He also has experience representing clients in real estate, healthcare and automotive insolvency matters. Additionally, Dykema recently announced the addition of Carl Rashid Jr. to its Real Estate Practice Group as a member in the firm's Detroit office. Rashid will lead the firm's Property Tax Appeals Practice Team. Rashid focuses his practice on property tax appeals and general real estate, with vast experience in all manner of property tax disputes involving valuation, classification and related issues, as well as general real estate. He also has experience in eminent domain, government affairs, state and local taxes, economic development and tax incentives. Rashid joins Dykema from Butzel Long PC, where he was a shareholder and former member of its Board of Directors. Previously, Rashid served as an assistant corporation counsel of the City of Detroit, representing the Finance Department, the Detroit Board of Assessors and the City Treasurer. He serves on the Board of Trustees of Oakwood Healthcare System and the Finance Committee of Oakwood Healthcare, Inc., and is a former city councilman of the City of Grosse Pointe. He is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, the Metropolitan Detroit Bar Association's Committees on Real Property and Taxation, and the American Bar Association. An author and speaker on various topics relating to property tax, Rashid has authored property tax legislation in the state of Michigan, including the Commercial Redevelopment District Act (PA 255 of 1978), and PA 317 of 2000, involving personal property taxes. He is co-author of Michigan Tax Practice and Procedure, co-editor of Michigan Real Estate Law, and has served as co-chair and lecturer for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE) seminars and as a lecturer for the Michigan Municipal League. Rashid earned a B.S. in Accounting from St. Joseph's College and his law degree from Michigan State University College of Law. * * * Michael K. Hauser, a shareholder at Maddin, Hauser, Wartell, Roth, & Heller PC, was selected by the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants (MACPA) as one of its featured presenters at its Management Information and Business Show, which is scheduled for Wednesday through Thursday, June 29-30. Hauser co-presented "Short Sales - an Alternative to Foreclosure: Real Estate and Tax Perspectives." He spoke about the tax effects of short sales, foreclosures and debt work-outs in a variety of situations. "With the tremendous number of commercial real estate foreclosures, short sales and discounted loan pay-offs that are taking place, and will continue to take place for the next several years, it is critical that CPAs learn more about these transactions to be able to fully assist their clients," said Hauser. Hauser focuses his practice on partnership and corporate tax, state and federal taxation of real estate transactions, gift and estate tax, and general business matters. He is an adjunct professor in the Cooley Law School LLM program. In addition, the legal research publication "Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business 2011" has announced that five attorneys at Maddin Hauser have been selected for recognition. The attorneys come from Maddin Hauser's real estate and employee benefits practice groups. Those recognized from Maddin Hauser's Real Estate practice group included: Michael W. Maddin, president emeritus and Founder; Mark R. Hauser, managing director and founder; and Lowell D. Salesin, a shareholder and member of the Executive Management Committee. Charles M. Lax and Gary M. Remer, firm shareholders, were honored in the Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation list. Maddin and Hauser were lauded for their representation of real estate developers in large acquisitions. Maddin was recognized in the projects sphere and Hauser in the loan restructuring and modification niche. Salesin has a diverse practice but was recognized for his work on behalf of buyers and on restructuring leases. The Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation team offers its clients an array of expertise, including in taxation, retirement plans, executive compensation and compliance with HIPAA and COBRA. Lax, who often represents clients involved in controversial cases before the IRS, or those facing compliance issues for the Department of Labor, is a former member of the IRS' Advisory Committee on Tax Exempt and Government Entities. * * * Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, and Cohn LLP Partners Daniel W. Linna Jr. and Richard E. Zuckerman recently participated in a webinar titled "Joint Defense Agreements: Benefits, Pitfalls and Best Practices." The webinar was presented by the Commercial Litigation Committee, Business Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan. Linna is a partner in Honigman's Commercial Law, Bankruptcy and Reorganization Department where he represents clients in a variety of commercial disputes in state and federal courts, including bankruptcy courts. His litigation experience includes trials, significant motions, claim-and-delivery actions, tooling-lien disputes, management of complex e-discovery issues, mediation, case evaluation, arbitration and appeals. Linna earned his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School. He earned a B. A. in Communications from the University of Michigan, and also received an M.A. in Public Policy and Administration and a B.A. in Political Science from Michigan State University. Zuckerman is a partner and former chair of the firm's Litigation Department. He is also co-chair of Honigman's White Collar Criminal Defense and Investigation Practice Group. Zuckerman focuses his practice on federal and state white collar criminal defense, civil and criminal antitrust and tax litigation, securities fraud defense, and environmental crimes defense. He is a former attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice Organized Crime and Racketeering Section, where he supervised complex, multi-agency investigations and prepared and tried criminal cases developed from those investigations. Zuckerman earned his law degree from Southwestern University School of Law and a B.A. from the University of Michigan. * * * The law firm of Miller Canfield hosted a delegation of executives of Indian automotive component suppliers at the Troy Marriott Hotel on June 7. The delegation was organized by India's Automotive Component Manufacturing Association (ACMA) and was in the U.S. to explore further business collaboration with the North American automotive industry. ACMA is the key trade association for the Indian automotive component industry and is actively involved in the formulation of policies pertaining to the Indian automotive industry. ACMA represents over 600 Indian automotive component manufacturers. Miller Canfield's Automotive Group and India Team presented an overview of doing business in North America and how to acquire and establish business operations in North America. The India Team at Miller Canfield represents companies doing business with, in and from India and the U.S. The India Team is based in the firm's New York Office and also includes lawyers from the firm's offices in Detroit, Chicago and Canada. Lawyers qualified to practice in the U.S., India and other foreign jurisdictions provide global business services including establishing operations, investing in emerging enterprises, or outsourcing products and services in India. While the firm's services include cross-border M&A, private equity, capital markets, debt restructuring, and general corporate advisory work relating to India, no U.S. law firm, including Miller Canfield, is authorized to practice law in India. * * * Judith Greenstone Miller, a partner in the Southfield office of Michigan-based Jaffe, Raitt, Heuer, & Weiss PC, has been appointed as the chair of the American Bankruptcy Institute's (ABI) National Task Force on Ethics Standards in Bankruptcy Practice. Jaffe CEO Richard Zussman made the announcement. The American Bankruptcy Institute is the largest multi-disciplinary, non-partisan organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency. The ABI was founded in 1982 to provide Congress and the public with unbiased analysis of bankruptcy issues. The Ethics Standards in Bankruptcy Practice Task Force will study the need for a national set of standards for professional conduct by lawyers in bankruptcy cases, in addition to promulgating a set of standards that can be added to the national dialogue now ongoing. Miller is also a member of the firm's bankruptcy and insolvency practice groups, specializing in creditors' rights and commercial litigation. Her practice involves representing debtors, secured and unsecured creditors, creditors' committees and trustees in bankruptcy proceedings, primarily involving Chapter 11 reorganizations. She also represents parties in litigation in complex commercial disputes and lectures nationally on bankruptcy, ethics and creditors' rights issues. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Wayne State University Law School. * * * Nichols & Eberth PC announces that Paul A. Saba and Brent M. Lamkin have become associates of the firm. Saba is an associate attorney who specializes in immigration law. In addition to his immigration practice, Saba is also trained as a mediator and dispute resolution specialist in civil, employment and business disputes. Saba was a solo practitioner in Dearborn for two years before joining Nichols & Eberth, and prior to that, he was an associate at a labor and employment law firm in downtown Detroit. Saba is a certified mediator for the state of Michigan. He is also fluent in Arabic. He is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, the Michigan Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the Dearborn Bar Association, the Wayne County Family Bar Association, and the Arab-American Bar Association. Lamkin is an associate attorney who contrates his practice in family law, bankruptcy, estate planning, probate and real estate. Prior to joining the firm, he gained more than seven years of experience representing debtors in bankruptcy. He also has a background in insurance defense. Lamkin is a 1997 graduate of Wayne State University Law School. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Michigan - Dearborn in 1991. He is admitted to practice in all Michigan courts and the federal court for the Eastern District of Michigan. * * * Patricia Nemeth, founding partner of Detroit-based employment law firm Nemeth Burwell PC, has received the Outstanding Board Leadership Award from Dearborn Heights-based Vista Maria, the oldest and largest private, not-for-profit child welfare agency in Michigan for girls and young women. She was honored at Vista Maria's annual meeting and special recognition breakfast on June 28 at the Dearborn Inn. Nemeth has been an active volunteer at Vista Maria since 2000 and has served as vice chair of Vista Maria's Board since 2003. During her board tenure, Vista Maria has expanded its programs to include two on campus alternative education charter schools through the Village of Hope initiative. In addition to alternative education, the Village of Hope will continue to expand the reach of Vista Maria's services and programs to members of the community by providing access to daily living assistance, such as low-cost meals and housing, and a safe nurturing place to establish healthy relationships to ensure future success. As an attorney, Nemeth founded Nemeth Burwell in 1992. Since that time she and Linda Burwell, who joined Nemeth in 1994, have grown the firm to 28 total staff, making it the largest women-owned law firm in Michigan to exclusively represent management in the prevention, resolution and litigation of labor and employment disputes. Nemeth is a member of the State Bar of Michigan - Labor and Employment Section and International Section, and the American Bar Association - Labor Section and Alternative Dispute Resolution Section. In addition to being a litigator, Nemeth is certified as a mediator. She is included in the 2011 edition of the "Best Lawyers in America®" and has been named a "Michigan Super Lawyer" since the honor began in the state in 2006. Nemeth is included in DBusiness magazine's 2011 list of metro Detroit's finest barristers and was named one of 25 Leaders in the Law in 2009 by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. Nemeth earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan and law degrees from Wayne State University School of Law. In 2009, she received the Distinguished Alumni award from Wayne State. Nemeth is a member of the State Bar of Michigan and the Illinois Bar. * * * Meg Alli in the Bloomfield Hills office of Ogletree Deakins has been elected as a Fellow into the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers. Membership is by nomination only and is limited to those who have met the College's criteria for a period of no less than 20 years. * * * Assets International, a private investigation agency specializing in locating missing heirs and beneficiaries, including owners of gas, oil and other mineral rights, announced that Kathryn Anderson and Alberto Delgado have joined the company as associate counsel. The announcement was made by Michael Zwick, president. In their new roles at Assets International, Anderson and Delgado will be responsible for overseeing aspects of the asset recovery process, from handling decedent estates in probate court to drafting and reviewing asset recovery documents. Delgado's professional background includes extensive experience in the hotel industry, where he became an operations executive of a regional hotel company. He graduated from Michigan State University College of Law and obtained a bachelor's degree from Southern New Hampshire University and an MBA in hospitality administration from Johnson & Wales University. Before joining the Assets International team, he practiced in the fields of commercial litigation, estate planning, family law, and taxation. With Spanish as his native tongue, Alberto provides Assets International with an edge in being able to work cooperatively with people from diverse cultures. Alberto takes enormous pride in doing pro-bono legal work to military personnel under the Service to Soldiers program. Previous to joining Assets International, Anderson worked for the Michigan Attorney General and the Washtenaw County Public Defender. She earned a bachelor's degree from Eastern Michigan University and her law degree from Michigan State University College of Law. Anderson has also been very active in an array of women's organizations including the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure and Zonta International. * * * Clark Hill attorney Daniel J. Bretz was elected as a Fellow to the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers. The sixteenth induction ceremony will be held in conjunction with the American Bar Association's Labor and Employment Law Section's Continuing Legal Education Conference on November 15, 2011 in Seattle, WA. Bretz is the co-chair of Clark Hill's Labor & Employment Law Practice Group and serves on the firm's Executive Committee. Bretz represents clients across the entire spectrum of employment and labor law. His clients include the health care, transportation, construction, automotive and hospitality industries. He has served as first chair in class actions and individual cases involving discrimination, harassment, contract and labor issues. Chambers USA: Leading Lawyers for Business describes Bretz as "a leading light among litigators." Published: Mon, Jul 4, 2011