Legal People ...

Jackson Lewis PC is pleased to announce that seven attorneys from the firm’s Detroit office have been listed in the 30th Edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

Jackson Lewis congratulates the following attorneys named to the 2024 Best Lawyers in America list:

Office Managing Principal and Office Litigation Manager Emily M. Petroski (Employment Law – Management; Litigation – Labor and Employment)

Principal Roderick D. Gillum (Employment Law – Management; Labor Law – Management; Litigation – Labor and Employment)

Principal Aimee Guthat (Immigration Law)

Principal Maurice G. Jenkins (Labor Law – Management; Litigation – Labor and Employment)

Principal Marlo Johnson Roebuck (Labor Law – Management)

Principal Katherine J. Van Dyke (Employment Law – Management)

Principal Gillian P. Yee (Employment Law – Management)

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Bodman PLC is pleased to announce that Damali Sahu, a member of the firm’s Banking Practice Group, has been appointed chair of the Board of Directors of Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan.

In this role, Sahu will oversee the 25-member board of directors and provide leadership, guidance, and support for Gleaners’ mission to achieve a hunger-free community in Southeast Michigan. She will serve a term of three years and may be re-elected for up to two successive terms.

Headquartered in Detroit, Gleaners serves five southeast Michigan counties: Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Livingston, and Monroe. Gleaners provides food to more than 400 partner agencies, including schools, soup kitchens, food pantries, shelters, and others across the region, and supplements the efforts of those partners by offering direct-service, drive-up grocery distributions.

Sahu has a long history of service to charitable, community, and professional organizations. She currently serves as the vice president and treasurer of the board of directors of New Paradigm College Prep school and is on the board of directors of the Michigan Roundtable for Diversity and Inclusion. She previously served as a board member of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Risk Management Association, a board member of African-American Attorneys in Downtown Firms (AAADF), and the vice president and treasurer of the board of directors of University YES Academy in Detroit.

Sahu’s legal practice is focused on representing financial institutions in general commercial loan transactions and real estate transactions, including single lender, syndicated and second lien loan transactions and small business administration guaranteed loans. She also has experience structuring, negotiating, and documenting secured and unsecured commercial loans to borrowers in a variety of industries. She is listed in The Best Lawyers in America 2023 under Banking and Finance Law and was selected for the Crain’s Detroit Business list of Notable Women in Law in 2021.

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The Michigan Association for Justice (MAJ) has welcomed legal executive Mitchell Albers to the role of legal counsel. Albers will support MAJ’s focus on fighting for and promoting a fair and effective justice system. Steve Pontoni, MAJ executive director, made the announcement.

Albers has been working in the policy and legislative space for a decade and brings that expertise to his new role at MAJ. Most recently, he served as director of legislative affairs for the Michigan Department of Attorney General, where he coordinated lobbying efforts regarding statutory issues.

Prior to joining the Michigan Department of Attorney General, he was deputy legal counsel and policy adviser in the Michigan House of Representatives Democratic Policy Office and was lead policy adviser for the House committees on Elections & Ethics, Insurance, Ways & Means, and the House Select Committee on Reducing Car Insurance Rates.

Additionally, Albers served as assistant director of government relations for the Michigan Association of School Boards, where he spearheaded advocacy efforts on issues affecting public education.

“MAJ has an established legacy of excellence, and it’s my distinct honor to be a part of the team committed to creating a safer, fairer, and responsible Michigan,” Albers said. “Given the current activity in the state legislature, this is the perfect time for me to join MAJ. I look forward to accomplishing great things with our lobby team on behalf of Michiganders in the days to come.”

Albers earned a B.A. from Bowling Green State University in 2009 and his law degree from Western Michigan University Cooley Law School in 2013.

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Dawda Mann is proud to announce that several of its attorneys have been recognized as Super Lawyers for 2023.

The recognized attorneys from Dawda Mann are:

Alfredo Casab, Business/Corp
Randal R. Cole, Employment & Labor
Brian J. Considine, Environmental
Edward C. Dawda, Business/Corp
Daniel M. Halprin, Real Estate
Jeffrey D. Moss, Tax
John Mucha III, Civil Litigation: Defense
Glenn G. Ross, Estate & Probate
Susan J. Sadler, Environmental
Marc K. Salach, Business/Corp
Wayne S. Segal, Real Estate
Richard M. Selik, Real Estate
Tyler D. Tennent, Land Use/Zoning
Frances Belzer Wilson, Business Litigation
Kylie E. Bergmann, Real Estate
Samuel Kokoszka, Real Estate
Michael Piggins, Civil Litigation: Defense
Erin Bowen Welch, Real Estate

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Jennifer Dukarski, Butzel attorney, shareholder, and leader of the firm’s Connected and Autonomous Mobility Team, was featured during the Automotive News Congress on September 12 in Detroit.

The global event series brought together the auto industry community to share ideas, insights and inspiration.

Dukarski participated in a panel discussion titled, “Liability of ADAS and Autonomy,” along with Martin Fischer, president, ZF North America and a member of the Board of Management ZF Group; Phil Koopman, associate professor, Carnegie Mellon University; and Pete Bigelow, director of mobility coverage, Automotive News. The panel program discussed who is at fault when the robot gets in a crash – the car owner, the car builder, the tech supplier?

Dukarski focuses her practice at the intersection of technology and communications with an emphasis on emerging and disruptive issues: digital media and content, cybersecurity and privacy, infotainment and shared mobility, and connected and autonomous cars. Dukarski has become a national leader in legal issues facing emerging automotive technology including challenging intellectual property issues surrounding data, artificial intelligence and automated systems.

A self-titled “recovering engineer,” Dukarski was named one of the 30 Women Defining the Future of Technology in January 2020 by Warner Communications for her innovative thoughts and contributions to the tech industry.

Dukarski is a graduate of the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law (2010). She’s also a graduate of the University of Detroit Mercy College of Engineering and Science, (B.S., Mechanical Engineering, 1996).

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Sangeeta Shah, CEO at Brooks Kushman, was welcomed into the 2023 Class of Fellows by the Michigan State Bar Foundation.

As CEO, Shah is responsible for leading Brooks Kushman’s Executive Committee. In addition to serving as the CEO, Shah maintains an active docket as an IP practitioner with more than 20 years of experience in managing patent portfolios, PTAB matters, patent litigation and opinions. Shah works closely with several Fortune 500 clients for whom she provides strategic counseling and guidance on global intellectual property portfolios. Her patent expertise has resulted in national recognition from Managing IP, Best Lawyers, IAM, AIPLA and the PTAB Bar Association.

Prior to becoming CEO, Shah served as the firm’s chief diversity officer. In that position, she developed and implemented a range of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives within and outside of the firm through outreach programs and partnerships. Under her leadership, the firm was recognized in 2018 and 2019 by ChIPs and Diversity Lab as a national Honor Roll Firm for its dedication to advancing diversity and inclusion, and was named a Midsize Mansfield Certified Plus firm in 2022. Shah also hosts the Breaking Mindsets Podcast where she interviews leaders who defy expectations and have accomplished great change in their field.

Established in 1984, the Michigan State Bar Foundation’s Fellows Program recognizes distinguished Michigan lawyers for their professional excellence and service to the community. The Fellows Program supports the Foundation in providing leadership and grants for improvements in the administration of justice and the delivery of civil legal aid to low-income individuals and families. For additional information on the foundation and its Fellows program, visit www.msbf.org.