LEGAL PEOPLE

Butzel Long attorney and shareholder Reginald A. Pacis will participate in a panel presentation for the 9th Annual James Madison College Career Day at Michigan State University on Jan. 28. Panelists will answer questions about their industries, the working environment, breaking into the job market and more. "It is always important to give back to the community," said Pacis. "It is my hope that a discussion concerning my career, along with other professionals, will allow future contributors to our society to forge their own trail of success." Based in Butzel Long's Detroit office, Pacis concentrates his practice in immigration law and has handled a variety of immigration matters including H-1B specialty occupation cases, L-1 Intracompany transfers, Labor Certification matters, Immigrant Visa Petitions/ Adjustment of Status applications and interviews, TN Free trade cases, H-1B Department of Labor Investigations, I-9 employer verification compliance, and U.S. Port of Entry airport and land port interviews. Pacis is listed in The Best Lawyers in America (Immigration Law). He is a member of the American Bar Association, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), and the Samahang Pilipino Ng Oakland Filipino organization. He served two consecutive terms from 2003 to 2004 and 2004 to 2005 as chairperson of the Michigan Chapter of AILA and was a member of the AILA National Board of Governors for those terms. He previously served as secretary (2001 to 2003) and membership chairperson of the Michigan Chapter of AILA (1998 to 2003). Pacis has been a speaker on immigration topics at many business, Hispanic, and Filipino presentations. Pacis has served in a variety of committees in the Filipino community and is a member of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce of Michigan. He completed an appointment by former Governor Granholm for service on the Advisory Committee for Asian Pacific American Affairs (ACAPAA). He served on the Michigan AILA Advocacy Committee from 2007 to 2010. Pacis previously served as chairperson of the Michigan AILA Committee responsible for liaison with the Michigan Customs and Border Protection ("CBP") Agency, a division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security presiding over inspections and security of the U.S. border, from 2005 to 2007. His service expanded to the AILA National CBP liaison Committee as a member and vice chair. He now serves as chair of the AILA National CBP liaison Committee. Pacis earned his law degree from the Detroit College of Law at Michigan State University in 1996 and his B.A. from James Madison College at Michigan State University in 1992. He joined the State Bar of Michigan in 1997. * * * Giarmarco, Mullins, & Horton PC is pleased to announce that Christopher J. Ryan has joined the firm. Ryan joins the firm as an associate in the business practice group focusing on health care law, and in the litigation group practicing medical malpractice defense. He graduated from the Haworth College of Business at Western Michigan University and attended law school at the Michigan State University College of Law. He earned his law degree with a concentration in Health Law. Ryan is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, the Medical Legal Subcommittee of the Health Care Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan, the American Health Lawyers Association, the American Bar Association and the Oakland County Bar Association. He has published articles and given presentations on a variety of medical-legal topics. * * * Benchmark Litigation 2012 has listed Varnum as one of the leading litigation firms in Michigan. The guide is the only publication to focus exclusively on litigation. Only 11 firms in Michigan are listed in the 2012 edition. In addition to the recommendation of the firm, Benchmark also acknowledges several individual attorneys. Brett Rendeiro was recognized as "Future Stars." Of the ten "Future Stars" named, two are Varnum attorneys. . Rendeiro is the lead litigator in Varnum's Metro Detroit office. Originally part of Varnum's nationally-recognized Employment Law Group, Rendeiro has evolved into a trial advocate with substantial experience in complex commercial, real estate, lending and employment disputes. Additionally, two attorneys in the Metro Detroit office of statewide law firm Varnum LLP were recognized with "Lawyer of the Year" status in their areas of practice in the U.S. News - Best Lawyers® second annual survey of law firms in the United States. Attorney Paul L. B. McKenney was recognized for Tax Litigation and Controversy, and Thomas H. Bergh was recognized in the area of Trusts and Estates Litigation. In addition to the individual recognition, the firm received 25 first tier rankings and 19 second tier rankings. * * * Mary Massaron Ross and Hilary A. Ballentine, appellate attorneys at Plunkett Cooney, were among several attorneys who recently co-authored a book on the legal topic of eminent domain. Sponsored by the American Bar Association's Section of State and Local Government Law, "Eminent Domain: A Handbook of Condemnation Law" introduces general practitioners working for those condemning property and property owners resisting it alike to the many intricacies of condemnation practice. Massaron Ross and Ballentine co-authored the book's first chapter, titled: "Public Use and Public Purpose." In it, they discuss how public use evolves to public purpose, the state law variations on public use and purpose, and public use versus public necessity. This question of public use has been hotly debated in courts and legislatures around the country in the wake of two ground-breaking decisions, County of Wayne v. Hathcock,684 N.W.2d 764 (Mich. 2004) and Kelo v. City of New London, 545 U.S. 469 (2005), both of which dealt with the public use doctrine. Mary Massaron Ross was counsel of record and successfully argued the Hathcock case in the Michigan Supreme Court on behalf of the property owners. "This was an exciting opportunity for Hilary and me to be involved in a topic that is so important. And it was a great chance for me to write about the public use doctrine and its meaning as the courts have defined it in the wake of Hathcock," said Massaron Ross, who serves as the firm's Appellate Law Practice Group Leader. "Condemnation is a complex area of law. This book will help clarify the legal and factual issues that lawyers working in this area are likely to see on a daily basis." The book also discusses the long and distinguished legal history of eminent domain, which dates back to the first limits on sovereign power in the Magna Carta. It delves into the newer concept of just compensation and the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Kelo v. New London, which make the exercise of eminent domain controversial. And it offers practical insight into questions of how to value property, severance damages, condemnation in the areas of flooding and erosion, and other significant areas of condemnation law. A member of the firm's Detroit office, Massaron Ross is president elect of DRI - The Voice of the Defense Bar. She is a past chair of the Appellate Practice Section of the State Bar of Michigan, DRI's Appellate Advocacy Committee, and the ABA Council of Appellate Lawyers (CAL), a division of the Appellate Judges Conference. A member of the prestigious American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, Massaron Ross co-chairs the Michigan Appellate Bench Bar Conference Foundation, an organization of Michigan appellate judges and lawyers. She is also a former chair of the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Amicus Curiae Briefs, the five-member committee that oversees preparation of ABA briefs for filing in the U.S. Supreme Court. A member of the firm's Detroit office, Ballentine concentrates her practice in appellate law. Her practice includes general liability, property, municipal, constitutional, and medical liability appeals. Ballentine has handled numerous appeals in the state and federal appellate courts, including the Michigan Court of Appeals, the Michigan Supreme Court, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Ballentine is active in the Michigan Defense Trial Counsel and serves as co-chair of its amicus section. As a member of DRI, Ballentine co-authored an amicus brief in the United States Supreme Court case of Delbert Williamson v. Mazda Motor of America, Inc, et. al. She has also authored several publications, including a guide to appellate practice in the Sixth Circuit. Published: Mon, Jan 2, 2012