Butzel attorney Debra A. Geroux will be a featured presenter during the Michigan Ambulatory Surgery Association (MASA) Quarterly Meeting on Friday, March 1, in Lansing. The focus of her presentation is, “Privacy Concerns with AdTech and Social Media in Healthcare.” She will discuss “HIPAA-Compliant Social Media Activity,” “Pixel Tracking on Healthcare Social Media / Websites,” and “Penalties for Violations of HIPAA and the FTC Act.”

Geroux is co-chair of Butzel’s Health Care Industry Team. Her health care practice focuses on health care compliance, cybersecurity and privacy, and statutory reporting obligations. She has assisted health care practitioners in defense of state and federal debarment, fraud, waste and abuse investigations and litigation, licensing and credentialing, government and commercial payor audits and a host of other health care issues. She also has experience in supply chain and source contracting for a large Michigan-based health system, including negotiations of its IT contracts.
Geroux earned her Certified in Healthcare Privacy Compliance (CHPC) designation from the Compliance and Certification Board. She also holds a Certified in Healthcare Compliance (CHC) designation.

Geroux has been named to Best Lawyers in America, Lawyer of the Year, Health Care Law, 2022 and 2024, and Best Lawyers in America, Health Care Law, 2018-2024 and Commercial Litigation, 2021-2023.

In addition, Jennifer Dukarski, Butzel attorney, shareholder and leader of the firm’s Connected Car and Autonomous Vehicle Specialty Team, will be featured during the University of Windsor Law and Technology Lab Conference titled, “Disruptive Technology: AI and its Impact on the Legal Profession and the Automotive Industry – What Path(s) for Regulation?” on Friday, March 1.  She will participate in a panel discussion on the challenges of AI in the emerging legal and regulatory environments.

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.

She 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 thoughts and contributions to the tech industry.

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On behalf of Secrest Wardle, the Executive Committee is pleased to announce that Justin A. Grimske has been promoted to senior partner effective February 15.

Grimske began his career with Secrest Wardle in 2012, became a partner in 2017, and an executive partner in 2022. He is a member of the Amusement and Leisure, Construction, Motor Vehicle Litigation, Premises Liability, and Trucking/Commercial Litigation Practice Groups and proudly serves as the chair of the Amusement and Leisure Practice Group, a group that has been instrumental in the development of amusement and leisure case law in Michigan.

Grimske has been selected to the Super Lawyers magazine list of Michigan Rising Stars from 2019 to the present and has been selected as a Best Lawyers Ones to Watch from 2021 to the present. 

Additionally, he was selected as one of “Michigan’s Go To Lawyers” for negligence law by Michigan Lawyers Weekly in 2023.

Grimske is admitted to practice law in the State of Michigan and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.

The Secrest Wardle Executive Committee is also pleased to announce that effective February 15, the following attorneys were promoted to the position of executive partner: Drew W. Broaddus, Brandon C. Hagaman, Amber Rouse Holloway, Christina K. Korkes, Robert J. Penrod, Daniel S. Schrode II, and Cleveland B. Simmons.

In addition, the Executive Committee announced that effective February 15, the following attorneys were promoted to the position of partner: Mohammad G. Beydoun, Jeffrey Bullard Jr., Zachary J. Diederichs, Andrew S. Gipe, and Fadee A. Nakkash.

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Taft Detroit announces a team of six new partners to the firm, bolstering its business and litigation practice groups. They are joining from Dinsmore & Shohl with Gus Andreasen, Joe DeVito, Ian Larkin, Tom Walters, and Evonne Xu based in the Taft Detroit office.

Newly elected Taft partner Joe DeVito said, “Our team is extremely honored and excited to be a part of Taft for many reasons, most importantly being the highly skilled practitioners and breadth of practice areas, which truly offers a full service legal option for our clients. In addition, the fast moving entrepreneurial and collegial culture is a perfect fit for our team. We are all confident that the Taft chapter of our careers will be the best yet!”

Andreasen is focused on private equity and corporate transactions, restructuring and distressed transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and private securities offerings. He regularly represents companies in global acquisitions and dispositions, as well as those in connection with distressed assets. Additionally, Andreasen often serves as general counsel for board and senior management, providing advice and assistance for general corporate matters and corporate governance. Throughout his career, he has been recognized as a top lawyer by various publications and earned the Martindale-Hubbell® AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rating.

DeVito is a corporate attorney, focusing on mergers and acquisitions, commercial real estate lending and restructuring transactions, real estate sales and leasing, international business transactions, and securities. He represents clients across several industries, including automotive, industrial, health care, fintech, service, and technology on all aspects of their strategic and legal objectives. He is recognized as a top lawyer within the legal community and has been named “Deal Maker of the Year” by various M&A publications.

Larkin is a transactional attorney, focusing on mergers and acquisitions, entity reorganizations, commercial lending, real estate, and a variety of general business matters for public companies, closely held businesses, and large private entities. Larkin counsels commercial clients on matters vital to their business, such as contracts, distribution agreements, and supply agreements, and advises them on leveraging transactions to achieve their goals. In addition, he serves as the outside general counsel for numerous businesses assisting them with day-to-day issues.

Walters is a trial attorney and a business adviser, focusing on complex commercial litigation. Throughout his career, he has prosecuted and defended business litigation cases, including automotive supply chain controversies, manufacturing disputes, real estate development and leasing, construction-related conflicts, sales representative commission claims, business stakeholder separations, and intellectual property matters. In addition, Walters has first-chair jury trial and arbitration experience.

Xu counsels clients across the world on corporate matters of all sizes, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and alliances, finance, and stock acquisitions and sales. She also counsels commercial clients on issues vital to their business, such as contracts, real estate transactions, distribution agreements, licensing agreements, and supply agreements. Fluent in English and Chinese, Xu assists Chinese companies operating throughout the United States, as well as U.S. companies conducting business throughout China. She was recently named a Notable Woman in Law by Crain’s Detroit Business.

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Varnum intellectual property attorney Staci DeRegnaucourt has been named to the 2024 World Trademark Review 1000.  DeRegnaucourt has been named to the WTR 1000 for nine consecutive years.  She is one of only seven Michigan attorneys with a Gold Ranking.

DeRegnaucourt provides a full range of intellectual property services including trademark, copyright, and patent clearance, procurement, licensing and enforcement. She also represents clients in IP litigation matters and proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB), the International Trade Commission (ITC), and United States courts.

DeRegnaucourt is a graduate of Michigan State University College of Law. She received her undergraduate degree in civil engineering from Michigan State University.

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Bodman PLC is pleased to share that attorneys Jacqueline W. August and Albert H. Pak have been appointed to leadership positions on the executive board of the Michigan Asian-Pacific American Bar Association (MAPABA).

August serves as the president emeritus. In this role, she will assist the president and other members of the Executive Board when needed. Pak will serve as vice president, a role in which he will support the president and perform all other duties incident to the office. Both will serve a one-year term in their executive leadership roles through February 2025.

August is a member of the firm’s Enterprise Procurement Practice Group. She represents business clients in connection with the drafting and negotiation of a broad range of commercial contracts, including vendor contracts for goods and services. She also has experience managing litigation claims related to premises liability and insurance defense matters, including conducting depositions, completing facilitations, attending motion and case evaluation hearings, and advising clients on case progression.

Pak is a member of the firm’s Exempt Organizations and Impact Investing Practice Group. He counsels nonprofit and other tax-exempt organizations and the investors who support them on a broad range of legal, operational, and financial issues. Pak also has experience in the nonprofit sector.

Founded in 1985, the mission of the MAPABA is to promote improvements in the administration of justice, to advance relations between the legal profession and the public, to secure equality of Asian Pacific Americans in society, to advocate the interest of Asian Pacific Americans in the legal profession, and to promote equality and social justice for all people.

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Maddin Hauser is pleased to announce that Gary M. Remer has joined the firm as a shareholder. A business lawyer whose counsel includes insights on M&A, franchising, tax, and employee benefits matters, Remer has been an advisor and ally to businesses for almost 30 years.

As outside general counsel for many of his clients, Remer assists businesses with legal and operational issues, from entity formation and governance to employment matters and succession planning. Well-versed in the legal, strategic, and practical landscape of franchising, he represents franchisors and franchisees at all stages of their business lifecycles.

Before his legal career, Remer was an IRS agent and Certified Public Accountant. He earned his law degree and Bachelor of Arts in Accounting from Michigan State University.