LEGAL PEOPLE

Weltman, Weinberg & Reis Co., LPA, a creditors' rights law firm, is pleased to welcome new associate William Clos. Clos will be practicing in the Litigation & Defense Group, handling complex litigation with a focus on commercial defense. He has litigation experience taking cases to trial in both federal and state courts. Throughout the course of his career, he represented individuals in a wide range of legal areas including civil litigation, criminal defense, landlord/tenant disputes, probate court proceedings, bankruptcy proceedings, domestic/divorce proceedings and commercial transactions. He earned his B.S. in Political Science from Eastern Michigan University in 2001 and his law degree from Michigan State University College of Law in 2004. A member of the State Bar of Michigan, Clos is licensed in Michigan and is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court (Eastern & Western Districts of MI). * * * The law firm of Brooks Wilkins Sharkey & Turco, PLLC, with offices located in Birmingham, recently announced the hiring of associate attorney Brad A. Danek. Danek comes to BWST with over four years litigation experience, previously working at the Vandeveer Garzia firm in Troy. His experience includes complex commercial litigation, insurance coverage disputes, commercial arbitrations and personal injury defense. * * * Monica Moore, a senior attorney at Detroit-based employment law firm Nemeth Burwell PC, has been named one of the Michigan Chronicle's Women of Excellence for 2012. The Detroit-based Michigan Chronicle will recognize Moore and other awardees for their contributions to the Southeast Michigan region at a Women's Retreat and afternoon High Tea at the Westin Book Cadillac on Friday, March 30. At Nemeth Burwell, Moore focuses her practice on employment counseling and litigation. Areas of particular interest include Title VII, Americans with Disabilities Act, and Michigan's Civil Rights Act, and protecting confidential and electronic employer data. Moore is active in the legal profession and is a member of the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association and the State Bar of Michigan; she is a board member of Executive Women International and a member of the National Association of Minority and Woman Owned Law Firms (NAMWOLF). Moore's community service activities include Big Brothers Big Sisters and Special Olympics of Michigan (Soccer Tournament co-chair). She is a graduate of the 2005-2006 Leadership Detroit XXVII Class. Moore earned her Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from the University of Alabama and a law degree from the Wayne State University School of Law. * * * Richard D. Rattner, a partner at Williams, Williams, Rattner, & Plunkett PC in Birmingham, has been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2012 and as among "The Top 100" Michigan attorneys listed in SuperLawyers 2011. Rattner's law practice focuses on real estate, land use, zoning and corporate law. "The Top 100" is a listing of lawyers who received the highest point totals in the "SuperLawyers 2011" nomination, research and blue ribbon review process. * * * Two partners in the Southfield office of Warner, Norcross, & Judd LLP have been recognized as leading Michigan attorneys by Chambers USA 2012. Mary Jo Larson and Lisa B. Zimmer were among 10 attorneys at Warner Norcross to be recognized by Chambers. Both were acknowledged for their expertise in employee benefits and executive compensation. For the 10th consecutive year, Chambers recognized Warner Norcross as a leading law firm in the state. In addition to its strength in employee benefits, the firm was acknowledged in the areas of banking and finance, corporate, mergers and acquisitions, and commercial litigation. * * * Rose J. Willis, an associate in the Troy office of the law firm of Miller Canfield, recently served as moderator for the "Corporate Practice of Medicine" webinar hosted by the American Health Lawyers Association, the nation's largest educational organization devoted to legal issues in the healthcare field with more than 10,000 members. Willis advises clients on their compliance with the Federal Stark Law, Federal Anti-Kickback Statute, and other healthcare fraud and abuse laws. She assists healthcare clients with a variety of matters including forming and maintaining effective compliance programs, establishing group purchasing organizations, and structuring physician/hospital relationships. Willis also advises her clients on matters involving health technology, electronic health records and HIPAA privacy issues. She also drafts corporate governance documents and advises clients on corporate related matters. She earned her law degree from Michigan State University College of Law and her B.B.A. from Saginaw Valley State University. Additionally, Beverly Hall Burns, a principal in the Detroit office of Miller Canfield, was appointed to a four-year term by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder to the Early Childhood Investment Corporation (ECIC). Burns has more than 30 years of experience representing and advocating for employers, whether at the negotiating table, in hearings, in board rooms or community gatherings. She has negotiated labor agreements with unions ranging from the Steelworkers to the American Federation of Teachers and from the Teamsters to the Service Employees International Union. For school district clients, she has acquired a niche specialty in special education and has represented schools from the Individual Educational Program meetings to litigation in federal court. She is recognized in The Best Lawyers in America and Michigan Super Lawyers for her work as a labor and employment attorney. Burns is chair of the Michigan Humane Society and a member of the Grosse Pointe Chamber of Commerce. She also is a member of the American Bar Association, State Bar of Michigan, Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, Michigan Council of School Attorneys Board of Directors, Michigan State Bar Foundation and the Commercial Real Estate Women Professional Advisory Board. She earned her law degree from the University of Michigan Law School, and a B.A. from Michigan State University. * * * Detroit law firm Barris, Sott, Denn & Driker, P.L.L.C., is pleased to announce that Matthew Bredeweg and Leo Gibson have become members of the firm. Bredeweg graduated from Wayne State University Law School in 2004 and graduated from Hope College with a bachelor of arts degree in 1998. His practice covers all aspects of commercial litigation. Gibson graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 2002 and graduated from Boston College with a bachelor of arts degree in 1998. He was named as a Michigan Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine in 2010. His practice covers commercial litigation, creditors' rights, and real estate law. * * * Andrew B. Wachler of Wachler & Associates PC spoke to an audience of health care lawyers about the current audit environment at the American Health Care Lawyers Association (AHLA) Meeting on "Long-Term Care and the Law," in Phoenix. Wachler has been practicing health care law for more than 25 years. He counsels health care providers and organizations nationwide in a variety of health care legal matters. In addition, he writes and speaks nationally to professional organizations and other entities on health care law topics such as Medicare appeals, Stark and fraud and abuse, HIPAA, and other topics. Additionally, Amy K. Fehn spoke about successful audit strategies regarding MICs, MACs and RACs, to an audience of orthopaedists from the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, at the group's annual meeting in San Francisco. Fehn has represented physicians and health care organizations in health care regulatory and corporate matters as well as the defense of Medicare Audits and other third-party audits for the past 14 years. Prior to graduating from law school, she served as a registered nurse in the coronary care unit, and later worked as a clinical systems analyst for the hospital's information systems. * * * Attorneys Abe Barlaskar and Courtney L. Bollman recently joined Plunkett Cooney as members of the firm's Litigation Practice Group. Barlaskar, who works in the firm's Bloomfield Hills office, concentrates his litigation practice in the areas of premises and retail liability and motor-vehicle negligence, including claims involving first- and third-party liability and no-fault law. Barlaskar represents retail clients in litigation matters involving premises liability, negligence and general liability litigation. He also represents insurance companies and corporations in motor vehicle negligence claims and no-fault insurance coverage disputes. A member of Plunkett Cooney's 2010 Summer Associate Program, Barlaskar joined the firm after he graduated from Thomas M. Cooley Law School in 2011. While in law school, he worked as a summer clerk for U.S. District Court Judge Marianne O. Battani, Eastern District of Michigan. Barlaskar earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan in 2005. Admitted to practice in state and federal courts in Michigan, Barlaskar is a member of the Oakland County Bar Association, the State Bar of Michigan, the American and Federal bar associations and the DRI-The Voice of the Defense Bar. Bollman is a member of the firm's Litigation and Labor and Employment Law practice groups. Bollman focuses her litigation practice in the areas of employment law, including discrimination and retaliation claims, premises liability and general liability. A member of Plunkett Cooney's 2010 Summer Associate Program, Bollman earned her law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law in 2011. Bollman also completed an externship for U.S. District Court Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan, Northern District of Illinois. Admitted to practice in state and federal courts in Michigan, Bollman is a member of the State Bar of Michigan and the Oakland County and Federal bar associations. * * * Sommers Schwartz is pleased to announce the following appointments to thefirm's Board of Directors: Joseph H. Bourgon was elected to the Board and will serve as chairman and chief executive officer. Bourgon will be responsible for strategic planning, operations and financial management of the firm. Daniel D. Swanson and Matthew G. Curtis were re-elected to the Board of Directors. Swanson is a senior shareholder and a member of the firm's Business Litigation Department. Curtis is a senior shareholder and a member of the firm's Tort Litigation Department. In addition, Richard L. Groffsky was elected to the Board and was appointed as the chair of the Tort Litigation Department. Groffsky is a member of the Tort Litigation Department. Kevin J. Stoops, was elected to the Board and was appointed as the chair of the Business Litigation Department. Stoops is member of the Business Litigation Department. Published: Mon, Mar 12, 2012