James H. Fisher ’76 received a 2020 Champion of Justice Award from the State Bar of Michigan. He earned the award primarily due to his efforts to improve indigent defense systems throughout Michigan. Fisher is of counsel at the Grand Rapids office of Dickinson Wright and earned his bachelor’s from Kettering University.
Gary Benjamin ’78 was appointed to the Cuyahoga County Council’s Community Reinvestment Advisory Subcommittee of the Community Development Committee. Benjamin is advocacy director for Community Legal Aid Services Inc. and a part-time faculty member at Wayne Law. He earned his bachelor’s from Ohio Wesleyan University.
Terrence J. Miglio ’79 joined Butzel Long as a shareholder in the firm’s Ann Arbor office. He earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
I.W. (Bill) Winsten ’79 was named the 2020 Detroit Bet-the-Company Litigation Lawyer of the Year by The Best Lawyers in America. Winsten is a partner at Honigman and leader of the firm’s complex commercial litigation practice. He earned his bachelor’s from Wayne State University.
Sharon Brinks ’80 continues her fourth year serving as attorney/magistrate in Kentwood, Michigan, at 62-B District Court. She also continues to head her private practice, Brinks and Associates. Brinks earned her bachelor’s from Calvin University.
Daryl Royal ’81 was appointed as chairperson of the Michigan Workers’ Disability Compensation Appeals Commission. He earned his bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
Joanne Geha Swanson ’81 was named to the 2020 Women in the Law list by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. Swanson is a member at Kerr Russell and earned her bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
Judy Keenan ’83 was appointed as the new district director of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) New York District. Keenan joined the EEOC’s New York District in 2001 and has served in several roles. She earned her bachelor’s from Eastern Michigan University.
Crispin Birnbaum ’84 received an award from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court for her pro bono work as an Access to Justice Fellow. Her work focused on expanding free legal services to provide sealing and expungement of criminal records. Before becoming a fellow, Birnbaum retired in 2018 after a 34-year career in the public sector, where she served as general counsel of two state agencies.
Patricia M. Nemeth ’84 was featured in the Leading Lawyers magazine article, “Working out Labor Law’s Challenges.” Nemeth is founder of Nemeth Law and earned her bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Rasul M. Raheem J.D. ’84, LL.M. ’03 was appointed commissioner to the American Bar Association Commission on Interest Lawyers’ Trust Accounts. He also spoke at the Minnesota Banking Forum on “Risky Business and Risk Mitigation: Cannabis-Related Businesses and Banking Law” in September 2020. Raheem is a senior counsel at Dykema in Detroit and earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Robin Axelrod ’87 was appointed chief clinical officer at Boon Health. Axelrod recently completed her appointment to the Michigan Governor’s Council on Genocide and Holocaust Education. She earned her bachelor’s and master of social work from the University of Michigan.
Marc M. Bakst ’88 was named to the executive committee of the board of directors of the Jewish Family Service of Metropolitan Detroit. Bakst is a member of Bodman’s Detroit office and earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Rob Buchanan ’88 was sworn in as the 86th president of the State Bar of Michigan. Buchanan is co-founder and managing partner of Buchanan Firm in Grand Rapids, and concentrates his practice on plaintiff medical malpractice, auto and truck accidents, and commercial litigation. He earned his bachelor’s from Kalamazoo College.
Diane Fears ’89 received Wayne State University’s 2020 Distinguished Service Award. This award recognizes significant service to students, the university, department or community organizations, and committee work or other service beyond job responsibility. Fears is director of Career and Professional Development and the Student Voluntary Pro Bono Program at Wayne Law.
Valerie Foster ’90 was appointed as the first deputy director of the Kent County Office of the Defender, which is one of the oldest public defender offices in Michigan. Foster joined the Kent County Defenders as a staff attorney in 1994. She earned her bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
Seth D. Gould ’91 was named president of the board of directors of the Jewish Community Relations Council/AJC. Gould is a partner at the Miller Law Firm and earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Michelle C. Harrell ’93 was named to the 2020 Women in the Law list by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. She is a shareholder at Maddin Hauser Roth & Heller and earned her bachelor’s from the University of Detroit Mercy.
Gretchen Lawrie ’93, LL.M. ’97 was granted tenure and promoted to associate professor effective August 2020 at California State University Los Angeles, where she teaches taxation in the College of Business and Economics.
Kimberly G. Altman ’95 was appointed as a United States magistrate judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. She was a career law clerk for Senior Judge Avern Cohn. Altman earned her bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
Brad Lerner ’95 was named health policy director for Behavioral Health for Anthem, Inc. Through its affiliated companies, Anthem serves more than 108 million people, including more than 42 million within its family of health plans. Lerner oversees all behavioral health public policy issues for the company. He earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Lynda D. McGhee ’95 was named to the 2020 Women in the Law list by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. McGhee is executive director of the Michigan Children’s Law Center and earned her bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Jason W. Bank ’97 was appointed as vice chair of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Michigan’s Panel of Facilitative Mediators. Bank is a member at Kerr Russell. He earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Hala Y. Jarbou ’97 was confirmed with significant bipartisan support to serve on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, making her the first Chaldean American to serve on the federal bench. She earned her bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Christine Morse ’98 was elected representative of Michigan’s 61st District. Morse previously served as Kalamazoo County commissioner representing District 9 since 2018. She earned her bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
Mary Kay Shaver ’99 was named to the 2020 Women in the Law list by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. She is a partner at Varnum’s Grand Rapids office and earned her bachelor’s from Grand Valley State University.
Nicole E. Wilinski ’00 was named to the 2020 Women in the Law list by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. She is an attorney at Collins Einhorn Farrell and earned her bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Anthony P. Cracchiolo ’01 was listed in Chambers High Net Worth 2020 as one of Michigan’s leading attorneys for private wealth law. Cracchiolo is a member at Bodman in the firm’s Troy office. He earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Carlos Escurel ’01 joined Foley Baron Metzger & Juip as associate principal. His primary focus is handling complex medical malpractice claims and premises liability claims. Escurel earned his bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
Chiara F. Mattieson ’03 was named to the 2020 Women in the Law list by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. She owns Mattieson Law and earned her bachelor’s from Wayne State University.
Amanda Afton Martin LL.M. ’04 joined Foster Swift as a senior attorney in the firm’s Southfield office. She is a member of the firm’s trust and estates practice group. Martin earned her bachelor’s from Eastern Michigan University and juris doctor from Michigan State University.
Elayda Clara Sanchez LL.M ’05 completed her voluntary service (2017-20) to the State Bar of Michigan’s Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Committee, where she shared valued principles of diversity and inclusion in the legal profession. She specializes in large employer ERISA benefit plans for General Motors Co. She is also a certified public accountant in the state of Michigan.
Corey M. Beaubien ’06 authored “A New Fault Line in the Modern Era of U.S. Patent Eligibility” in the 11th edition of the International Comparative Legal Guide to Patents 2021 in September 2020. Beaubien is managing shareholder at Reising Ethington and earned his bachelor’s from Kettering University.
Catherine Brainerd ’06 was named the chair of Rhoades McKee’s employment law practice team. She also chairs the firm’s diversity and inclusion committee and human resource committee. She earned her bachelor’s from Central Michigan University.
Klint Kesto ’06 joined Fraser Trebilcock, where his practice will focus on litigation and general business law. He earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Paul Saba ’06 was promoted to vice president and senior counsel at Marriott International. In this role, Saba is responsible for the negotiation of new hotels and branded residences deals to add to Marriott’s portfolio throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan and master’s in dispute resolution from Wayne State University.
Jennifer Symanns ’06 was appointed to The Dispute Resolution Center’s board of directors and currently serves as the vice president. Symanns earned her bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Celeste E. Arduino ’07 was named to the 2020 Women in the Law list by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. Arduino is a member at Bodman in its Troy office. She earned her bachelor’s from Bowling Green State University.
Michael Carter ’07 was named executive director of the Federal Community Defender Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. Carter earned his bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Tad Roumayah ’10 was named a senior shareholder at Sommers Schwartz. He represents employees subjected to discrimination, harassment, whistleblower retaliation, wrongful termination, and violations of state and federal statutes. He earned his bachelor’s from Oakland University.
Zach Pouga Tinhaga LL.M. ’10 was named one of the American Bar Association’s On the Rise – Top 40 Young Lawyers. He was also honored as one of the National Bar Association’s “40 Under 40: Nation’s Best Advocates.” Pouga Tinhaga recently joined Ernst & Young as a partner in its national tax group. He earned his LL.B. and master’s from the University of Douala, and his doctorate of juridical science and international tax master of laws from the University of Michigan Law School.
Victoria M. Burton-Harris ’12 was appointed as Washtenaw County’s chief assistant prosecuting attorney. Burton-Harris is the first female chief assistant prosecuting attorney in Washtenaw County, as well as the highest-ranking woman ever in the prosecutor’s office. She earned her bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Steven Schaefer ’13 joined the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, D.C., as a civil rights analyst for the Conscience and Religious Freedom Division. He earned his bachelor’s from Michigan State University and master’s from Michigan State University and Hillsdale College.
Michael Serra ’13 authored an article published in October’s Michigan Bar Journal about the enforceability of clickwrap contracts titled “If Software Terms are ‘Agreed To’ and No One Is Around to Read Them, Is a User Legally Bound?” Serra is corporate legal counsel at Cisco Systems and earned his bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
Daniel S. Schrode II ’14 was promoted to partner at Secrest Wardle. Schrode is a member of the firm’s motor vehicle litigation practice group. He earned his bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
Kelly V. Carter ’15 was named to the board of directors for Ingenuity, an arts education 501(c)(3) with core programs in data, advocacy, grant-making and professional learning in Chicago. Carter is associate managing director of U.S. state and local tax for CIBC U.S. She earned her bachelor’s from Central Michigan University.
Erica J. Shell ’15 was elected president of the board of directors of the Detroit Bar Association Barristers Section for a term running from July 2020 to July 2021. Shell is a senior associate at Bodman’s Detroit office and focuses her practice on issues that arise during real property acquisition and development. She earned her bachelor’s from Vanderbilt University and master’s from the University of Detroit Mercy.
Nicolas Guibert de Bruet ’17 co-wrote “McDonald’s Wins A Food Fight,” which was published in the American Bar Association Forum on Franchising’s Franchise Law Journal. Guibert de Bruet owns his own firm based in Birmingham, Michigan. He earned his bachelor’s from Oakland University.
Andrele St. Val LL.M. ’18 joined the University of Pittsburgh School of Law as assistant professor of legal writing. St. Val started her own legal writing consulting business, Expert Legal Writing Solutions, which provides court-ready motions and briefs, as well as legal research and editing services to attorneys. She earned her bachelor’s from the University of Central Florida and juris doctor from the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University College of Law.
Casey Verville ’18 joined Cotney Construction Law as an associate in its Portland office. Her practice includes various areas of construction law, specifically contract review and drafting, insurance, and contract litigation. Verville earned her bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
William R. Hancock ’19 joined Howard & Howard as an intellectual property attorney. He joined the firm in 2015 as a full-time intellectual property intern while attending law school. He earned his bachelor’s from Purdue University.
Kelley Donnelly ’20 joined Jaffe Raitt Heuer & Weiss as an associate in the firm’s litigation practice group. Donnelly earned her bachelor’s from Wayne State University.
Taras Garapiak ’20 joined Rossman as an associate specializing in business law. Garapiak earned a bachelor’s in political science and international studies from the University of Michigan-Dearborn.
Brett Garwood ’20 joined Howard & Howard concentrating on business and corporate law. Garwood earned a bachelor’s in business from Kalamazoo College.
Taylor Hilton ’20 joined the Department of Justice Executive Office of Immigration Review in Cleveland as a judicial law clerk. Hilton earned her bachelor’s from the University of Michigan.
Paul Matouka ‘20 completed a post-graduation internship in London with WilmerHale’s international commercial arbitration group. Matouka earned his bachelor’s from Michigan State University.
