“We are thrilled to welcome Barris Sott’s impressive group of lawyers to Kerr Russell,” said
Both firms have deep local roots, with Kerr Russell headquartered in Detroit for more than 150 years and Barris Sott based in the city since its founding in 1968. Both firms are known for handling complex matters for clients ranging from start-ups to large corporations, statewide associations, and governmental entities. The firms’ attorneys are regularly recognized for excellence in numerous practice areas while delivering personalized, client-focused service.
“This marks an exciting new chapter for us. Barris Sott is delighted to join talents with the established and dynamic team at Kerr Russell,” said
The Barris Sott attorneys joining Kerr Russell effective April 1, 2025, are:
For additional information, visit www.kerr-russell.com.
• • •
Schwartz also will be a featured speaker during the American Bar Association’s (ABA) 26th Annual Emerging Issues in Healthcare Law Conference on April 4, 2025 in Long Beach, Calif. He will participate in a panel program titled, “The Shifting Ground on the Benefits and Drawbacks of Private Equity.” The presentation will discuss the issues surrounding private equity in health care including the pros and cons and obstacles currently and going forward.
Schwartz is a co-chair of Butzel’s Health Care Industry Team and focuses his practice primarily on Health Care Law and Corporate Law. Clients have come to rely on his decades of experience in business planning, mergers and acquisitions, and in assisting health care and hospital clients in the area of health care regulatory matters, including reimbursement, fraud and abuse, hospital-physician relations, pharmacies in community and long-term care settings, and with other issues pertinent to this sector.
Schwartz is an active member of numerous associations pertinent to his areas of practice. He is a member of the American Health Law Association (AHLA); ABA, Health Law and Business Law Sections; and the State Bar of Michigan, Health Care Law, Business Law, and International Law Sections. He is a member of the Oakland County Bar Association and currently serves on the Medical/Legal Committee, comprised of attorneys and physicians working together on matters relevant to both professions. His past appointments include serving on the Michigan Health & Hospital Association’s Committee on Hospital-Physician Alignment and Health Information Strategy Committee.
Representing nonprofit organizations is another key focus of his practice. Schwartz represents organizations including trade associations, medical organizations, quasi-government organizations, and others.
Schwartz is a past president of the Jewish National Fund and past Board member of United Hebrew Schools. Prior to establishing a Health Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan, he formed a group of health care attorneys that met monthly. He has served on various other committees for several nonprofits over the years.
He is admitted to practice in Michigan and New York. Over the course of his career, he has been recognized repeatedly by various prominent legal publications for his work in the area of Health Care Law including The Best Lawyers in America®: Health Care Law, 2020-2025; Michigan Super Lawyers, Health Care, 2006-2007, 2011-2017; and DBusiness Top Lawyers in Metro Detroit, Health Care Law, 2011-2012, 2017-2023; Mergers and Acquisitions Law, 2019.
Schwartz earned a law degree from Wayne State University Law School and a B.A. from Wayne State University.
In addition, Butzel attorney and shareholder
Sendek is a trial lawyer and co-chair of Butzel’s Litigation Department. His litigation experience covers a diverse array of high-stakes business matters, including automotive supply chain disputes, theft of trade secrets, non-compete agreements, business acquisitions, shareholder fights, construction and more. He regularly appears before the federal and state courts, as well as arbitration tribunals.
He has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America®, Chambers USA, Michigan Super Lawyers and DBusiness magazine’s Top Lawyers list. Sendek has an AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rating in Martindale-Hubbell.
Sendek is an honors graduate of Notre Dame Law School. He earned a B.A. from Michigan State University.
• • •
Kokoszka brings experience in commercial real estate and corporate law, including sales, leasing, corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions and licensing. He is experienced in handling complex business transactions for a diverse range of clients, from individual investors to large corporations.
Kokoszka has been included in Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch since 2021 and was named a Rising Star in Michigan Super Lawyers in 2024. He earned his law degree from Wayne State University Law School and his undergraduate degree from Central Michigan University.
In addition, Varnum partners Eric Nemeth and Jaye Quadrozzi, have been recognized as Notable Litigators and Trial Attorneys by Crain’s Detroit.
Nemeth leads Varnum’s Tax Planning, Compliance, and Litigation Practice Team in the Novi office. His practice includes a strong focus on representing businesses, individuals, and other entities in the defense of IRS, FBI, Homeland Security, state police, and other law enforcement agency investigations. He has led or assisted in matters for clients on five continents and most of the United States. He provides legal advice and counsel to clients regarding the tax implications of assets held outside of the United States.
Quadrozzi, based in the firm’s Birmingham office, specializes in complex commercial litigation, focusing on business disputes with a particular emphasis on intellectual property, including patent, trade secret, and copyright infringement cases. With experience handling multimillion-dollar cases across federal and state courts nationwide, she has built a career marked by high-profile, precedent-setting cases. Quadrozzi represented Oakland County in the City of Detroit bankruptcy, the largest municipal bankruptcy filing in U.S. history. Quadrozzi’s courtroom successes include obtaining a complete dismissal of a $40M breach of fiduciary duty claim against a nationwide accounting firm in federal court in the Northern District of California and achieving a total victory including findings of willful patent infringement representing a global leader in arthroscopic surgery following a jury trial in the Eastern District of Texas.
• • •
Attorneys list.
A litigator who has represented business clients for more than 27 years, Brady focuses his practice on supply chain litigation and counseling, representing automotive suppliers in contract negotiations and supply chain disputes. He served as lead counsel in the landmark Michigan Supreme Court AirBoss case, which helped clarify suppliers’ contract rights.
Brady is the executive partner of Warner’s Detroit office, where for the past four years he has led operations for 45 attorneys and 20 staff. He also co-chairs the firm’s Automotive Industry Group, providing strategic direction for the 70-plus statewide attorneys who serve more than 240 automotive supplier clients worldwide. Brady is immediate past chair of the firm’s Litigation and Dispute Resolution Practice Group.
Brady has been recognized for his work in commercial litigation by Best Lawyers in America© every year since 2015 and by Michigan Super Lawyers since 2009. He has been included in DBusiness Top Lawyers and has been named in the publication’s Detroit 500 for the past three years. Michigan Lawyers Weekly named Brady among the 2022 Leaders in the Law.
Brady is a member of the American Bar Association, Federal Bar Association, State Bar of Michigan, and Oakland County Bar Association. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University and a law degree from University of Michigan Law School.
Ratliff is a trial and appellate litigator, focusing on complex and high-stakes commercial disputes. He often represents global automotive suppliers in international supply chain disputes. He has experience briefing and arguing cases in state and federal courts of appeals throughout the country, including in the U.S. Supreme Court. Ratliff combined his appellate expertise with his deep knowledge advocating on behalf of automotive suppliers as counsel to the prevailing party in the Michigan Supreme Court 2023 AirBoss case.
Ratliff has been recognized by Best Lawyers® Detroit on its “One to Watch” lists for his work in appellate, criminal defense and commercial litigation. He was included on the Michigan Super Lawyers Rising Star list for the past three years.
Ratliff is a member of the American Bar Association, State Bar of Michigan, Detroit Bar Association, and Oakland County Bar Association. Ratliff earned a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University and a law degree from Vanderbilt University Law School.
Wassom litigates disputes and counsels clients in matters of commercial branding, publicity rights, creative expression and privacy. His practice serves businesses in many industries, winning significant and often ground-breaking litigation victories for his clients in federal and state trial and appeals courts across the country. He chairs Warner’s Emerging Media and Technology Industry Group and was instrumental in launching Michigan’s first business court. Wassom is also certified as an Artificial Intelligence Governance Professional and a Certified Information Privacy Professional.
Wassom is active in the digital media industry as a frequent speaker and writer who has published books and dozens of articles, essays and other contributions to noteworthy publications. He has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America© every year since 2011 and by Michigan Super Lawyers since 2013 after first appearing on its Rising Star list on three occasions. He has been included in DBusiness Top Lawyers and has been named a Leading Trademark Professional by World Trademark Review.
Wassom is active in leadership of the International Trademark Association and serves in the Federal Bar Association, American Intellectual Property Association and other professional groups. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Wayne State University and a law degree from Case Western Reserve University.
• • •
practice.
Ramar brings more than a decade of experience dedicated exclusively to defending healthcare providers in medical malpractice litigation, as well as regulatory and state licensing matters. Prior to joining Ottenwess Law, he was a partner at a metro-Detroit law firm, where he led the Medical Litigation Practice Group.
Ramar has represented a range of healthcare providers across Michigan, including physicians, dentists, chiropractors, hospitals, urgent care centers, long-term care facilities, and allied health professionals. He has achieved favorable settlements, dismissals, and no-cause verdicts in complex cases involving wrongful death, state licensing issues, failure to diagnose, surgical complications, and more. His defense of licensed professionals also extends to state licensing board investigations, where he has secured favorable outcomes that have avoided disciplinary actions or license restrictions.
Ramar earned his law degree from the University of Toledo College of Law in 2013. He received his undergraduate degree from Michigan State University in 2010. During law school, he interned for U.S. District Court Judge Sean Cox, Eastern District of Michigan.
Ramar has been recognized by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America™ for Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants from 2023 to 2025, and has been named to the Michigan Super Lawyers Rising Stars list from 2022 through 2025. In 2022, Michigan Lawyers Weekly honored him as an “Up & Coming Lawyer.”
Ramar has delivered presentations on litigation strategy, medical documentation, and trial preparation at industry-leading seminars and institutions. He is actively involved with ALFA International, serving on the Professional Liability Practice Group Steering Committee, and participates in its International Practice Group and Future Leaders Forum. He is also a member of the State Bar of Michigan’s Negligence Law and Litigation Sections.
• • •
Hammoud is managing member of
Hammoud was chief deputy attorney general of Michigan representing the state and oversaw the department’s three bureaus and the offices of Human Resources, Fiscal Management, Legislative Affairs and Public Information and Education. As Michigan’s solicitor general, she was the youngest to hold the position and the first Arab-American Muslim solicitor general in the United States. She is the first Arab American Muslim woman to argue before the United States Supreme Court, winning the case of Brown v. Davenport in 2022. As former lead attorney under the Wayne County prosecutor, she helped establish the Business Protection Unit and advocated on behalf of various ethnic and immigrant communities.
Hammoud is on the Executive Committee of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. She has previously served on the Michigan Middle Eastern American Affairs Commission and the Legislative Committees for Hispanic/Latino, Asian Pacific American and Middle Eastern American Affairs. In 2023, Hammoud was selected as the Woman of the Year by fellow Michigan Lawyers Weekly “Influential Women of Law” honorees.
• • •
Latiff serves as chair of McDonald Hopkins’ Litigation Department, overseeing a team of 89 lawyers and paralegals. In this role, he manages case strategy, staffing, business development, and mentoring. He is also on the firm’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee. He does this, while maintaining his own robust litigation practice. He is a litigator with experience leading high-stakes commercial, business, supply chain, real estate and healthcare disputes. He has defended public and private corporations in shareholder disputes, director and officer liability claims, and recall litigation for Fortune 500 companies. Latiff also serves as counsel to one of Michigan’s largest construction associations for OSHA matters and leads a national OSHA practice.
Lowe is co-chair of McDonald Hopkins’ Business Litigation Practice Group. He maintains a litigation practice which focuses on non-compete litigation including enforcing non-compete agreements and advising clients on the appropriate scope of restricted covenants, and data privacy litigation, including defense of class action lawsuits involving cybersecurity incidents and indemnification claims. As a practice group leader, Lowe works with a team of 35 litigators. In this role, he helps staff cases and ensures associates and junior partners across offices have the resources needed to succeed, while fostering business development opportunities nationwide.
• • •
Beyond the courtroom, Padgett serves as president-elect of the Kiwanis Club of Utica-Shelby Township and is currently participating in Leadership Macomb. He has also previously contributed to the legal profession as an adjunct professor at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law, teaching Advanced Advocacy.
• • •
Stawski has more than 30 years of experience in Family Law and Appellate Litigation. Her expertise includes litigating and settling complex, high profile family law cases as well as advising individuals on a full range of domestic relations issues arising from marriage, divorce and custody. These issues include divorce, annulment, separate maintenance, paternity, custody, change of domicile, child and spousal support (alimony), parenting time, division of marital estates, grandparenting time, and appeals, among others. Additionally, she has experience with cases involving international issues concerning the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of Child Abduction.
Stawski maintains an AV peer review rating with Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory. She has also been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America© 2018 – 2025 in the field of Family Law, DBusiness magazine’s list of Top Lawyers in 2013, 2014 and 2025 in the practice area of Family Law, and the 2014 – 2024 issues of Michigan Super Lawyers magazine. Additionally, she has been designated a “Leading Lawyer” in Family Law for the years 2013 to the present.
• • •
Crain’s Detroit Business has named
A former federal prosecutor, Gabel handles sensitive internal investigations, government-facing litigation, and complex commercial disputes for major companies. He represents businesses and individuals in high-stakes matters involving allegations of fraud, breach of contract, and possible violations of federal and state law, including the False Claims Act, Stark Law, Anti-Kickback Statute, Controlled Substances Act, Foreign Corrupt Practice Act, Taft-Hartley Act, and Americans with Disabilities Act.
In the past year, Gabel has led high-profile investigations on behalf of Michigan State University and Indiana University. He has also led the defense of several large health care systems in Michigan in connection with False Claims Act allegations, drug diversion, ADA, and serious physician misconduct cases, including allegations of murder and sexual assault.
Gabel served on the Local Rules Committee for the Eastern District of Michigan, including a term as president. The administrative and hiring partner for the firm’s Detroit office, he maintains an active pro bono practice, assisting victims of sexual exploitation obtain restitution and supervising investigations of police misconduct. Gabel also serves on the advisory board of Thrive-Global.
• • •
Dickinson Wright attorneys selected for this year’s Notable Litigators & Trial Attorneys include:
• • •
Based in the firm’s Troy office, Czapski is the co-chair of Bodman’s Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution Practice Group and chair of the Insurance Practice Group. She has more than three decades of experience representing major corporate clients in litigation and alternative dispute resolution proceedings and counseling clients in business disputes, claims, decisions, and risk management issues.
Czapski has been an active member of the Defense Research Institute (DRI), serving as the chair of the Life, Health, Disability, and ERISA Committee for two years and was recently appointed as a national director.
• • •
With 30 years of experience, Johnston is recognized by Chambers USA and other organizations as one of Michigan’s premier litigators. She represents Fortune 100 companies and global businesses across industries, including energy, automotive, finance, manufacturing, and real estate.
One of her most significant cases involved a $300 million pricing dispute, in which her client was accused of underpaying a supplier. The supplier’s five law firms launched an aggressive litigation strategy, but Johnston and her team uncovered fraudulent evidence presented by the supplier’s general counsel and modified by opposing counsel. This discovery led to the firing of the opposing counsel and a confidential settlement that saved her client millions of dollars.
Beyond her courtroom success, Johnston is dedicated to the legal community. She co-chairs the Federal Bar Association’s Law Day Committee, serves on the Michigan Supreme Court’s Model Civil Jury Instructions Committee, and is a Fellow of the Oakland County Bar Foundation, Michigan State Bar Foundation, and American Bar Foundation.
Cranmer, who has practiced for nearly 50 years, is a Fellow of both the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers.
His notable cases include:
• Defense of former Detroit Police Chief William Hart, who faced embezzlement charges in a four-month trial.
• Defense of prominent attorney Geoffrey Fieger, alongside trial lawyer Gerry Spence, in a campaign finance case.
• Defense of State Department official Ray Smith, charged with perjury and obstruction of justice in connection with the first post-9/11 terrorism trial.
Cranmer has held numerous leadership positions within the State Bar of Michigan, including serving as president from 2005-2006. He is also a longtime member of the Board of Trustees of the Michigan State Bar Foundation and is the former Chairperson of the State Appellate Defender Commission.
• • •
Chutkow is seen as the crisis counsel of choice for officers, directors, boards, and executives, and because he is based in Michigan, he brings deep local experience and presence that cannot be replicated by out-of-state lawyers with little or no familiarity with the region’s investigators, prosecutors, judges, and juries.
Chutkow earned a law degree from the University of Chicago Law School and a B.A. from Yale University.
• • •
Bolton’s practice focuses on helping business leaders, in-house counsel, and individuals remove barriers to success by providing creative business-centric dispute resolution and transactional services, both within and outside state and federal tribunals nationwide. Bolton also counsels clients in high-stakes litigation, while managing risks and resolving disputes arising out of client operations. He represents clients in a variety of industries, including automotive, construction, financial services, franchise, health care, manufacturing, private equity, real estate, retail, technology, and transportation.
• • •
Truex has been practicing law for more than 48 years. He has been a senior partner since 1988 and is president/co-managing partner, a position he has held since 2013. In that time, Truex has handled numerous high exposure cases.
Full access to public notices, articles, columns, archives, statistics, calendar and more
Three-County & Full Pass also available
