Alumni Class Notes

1950's

HON. DON BINKOWSKI, '57, a retired Warren District Court Judge, is listed in the current edition of Who's Who in American Law, 2007-2008.

1960's

WILLIAM D. BOOTH, '62, was named to the 2007-2008 list of The Best Lawyers in America. A member of Plunkett Cooney's Bloomfield Hills, MI office, he has been included on the list for over 20 years. Booth is a past President of the Oakland County Bar Association and a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Society of Barristers.

JOSEPH A. GOLDEN, '67, a shareholder of the Royal Oak, MI firm of Pitt McGehee Palmer Rivers & Golden, P.C., was named one of Michigan's Top 100 Super Lawyers for 2007 and is listed in Best Lawyers in America for the 15th consecutive year.

1970's

CAROL ANN MARTINELLI, '77, vice president and NCS Counsel of LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc. in Troy, MI, was reappointed as chair of the Pro-Bono Committee of the Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section of the American Bar Association and as a member of the Section's Planning Committee for the 2007-08 year. Ms. Martinelli was also recently awarded the State Bar of Michigan Real Property Law Section's "C. Robert Wartell Distinguished Service Award" for exemplary service on behalf of the Section over an extended period of time.

CHRISTINE D. OLDANI, '75, was named to the 2007-2008 list of The Best Lawyers in America. A member of Plunkett Cooney's Detroit, MI office, Ms. Oldani has 30 years of practice and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Appellate Attorneys.

MICHAEL F. SCHMIDT, '75, was elected President of Harvey Kruse, P.C., a 34 attorney civil litigation defense firm with offices located in Troy, Grand Rapids and Flint, MI. Mr. Schmidt has served on the firm's Board of Directors since 1979 and has been Treasurer since 1990.

1980's

D. JENNIFER ANDREOU, '85, Plunkett Cooney shareholder, was recently named Practice Group Leader of the firm's Medical Liability Practice Group.

HON. MARYLIN E. ATKINS, '80, was recently appointed Chief Judge of the 36th District Court for an unprecedented fifth term by the Michigan Supreme Court. Chief Judge Atkins joined the court in 1991 as a magistrate and was appointed judge in 1994 by former Governor John Engler.

MICHAEL S. BOGREN, '82, has been re-elected Secretary/Treasurer of the Board of Directors of Plunkett Cooney. Bogren has held the board's Secretary/Treasurer position for six consecutive years. He has been named to the 2007-2008 list of The Best Lawyers in America.

CHARLES W. BROWNING, '81, was re-elected to his seat on the Board of Directors of Plunkett Cooney. He is the Co-Leader of Plunkett Cooney's Insurance Law Practice Group.

THOMAS CROOKES, '87, was recently named partner in the firm of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP's Akron, OH office. He is a member of the firm's labor and employment group.

DAVID GREGORY, '80, the Dorothy Day Professor of Law at the St. John's University School of Law in Queens, New York City, recently chaired the Transatlantic Perspectives on ADR Conference at the University of London. The conference featured UDM Clinical Professor Michael Bryce, with a keynote address by the immediate past Lord Chief Justice of England, Harry Woolf; the proceedings are published in 81 St. John's Law Review 1 (2007).

PATRICK F. HICKEY, '84, has been elected to serve a second term on Dykema Gossett's Executive Board. Mr. Hickey has over 20 years experience litigating commercial and employment matters in various state and federal trial and appellate courts in Michigan and various other states.

ROBERT G. KAMENEC, '82, was named to the 2007-2008 list of The Best Lawyers in America. Mr. Kamenec currently serves as Plunkett Cooney's Insurance/Professional Liability Department Leader. He is a member of the American Academy of Appellate Attorneys and a past "Lawyer of the Year," as selected by Michigan Lawyers Weekly.

MARK S. KOPSON, '85, Plunkett Cooney Healthcare Industry Group Leader, spoke on Nov. 19 about payor-provider contract and relationship issues to attendees of the American Podiatric Medical Association's (APMA) 14th Annual CAC/PIAC meeting in Arlington, VA.

SCOTT K. LITES, '85, was recently elected to his first term as member of the Board of Directors of Plunkett Cooney. Lites currently serves as chairman of the firm's finance committee and is a member of Plunkett Cooney's Business Law and Healthcare practice groups.

HON. DENISE LANGFORD MORRIS, '82, received the prestigious State Bar of Michigan 2007 Champion of Justice Award.

1990's

M. SCOTT BOWEN, '90, was named Michigan Lottery Commissioner by Governor Jennifer Granholm.

DAVID C.C. EBERHARD, '94, has joined Warner Norcross & Judd LLP as senior counsel. Eberhard concentrates his practice in corporate law with an emphasis on business acquisitions, commercial real estate and development, business and estate planning.

JOSEPH G. FABRIZIO, '99, a partner at the law firm of Fabrizio & Brook, P.C., recently filed nominating petitions to place himself on the ballot as a challenger in the upcoming election for Judge of the 52-2 District Court.

JASON W. JOHNSON, '94, was recently promoted to Senior Corporate Counsel by Capitol Bancorp Limited of Lansing, Michigan. He directs all litigation for Capitol's 57 nationwide affiliate community banks, including Michigan litigation handled by in-house attorneys, and manages the activities of all retained outside counsel.

AMY JOHNSTON, '94, a principal of Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone P.L.C., has been inducted as a Fellow into the Litigation Counsel of America (LCA). In addition, she has been named the co-chair of the State of Michigan Delegation of the LCA.

GEORGE C. KOUTOURAS, '93, was honored with an appearance in the 2008 BNA Tax & Accounting calendar for the month of August. The calendar, put out by BNA and Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC, is "dedicated to all whose expertise helps the tax and accounting communities practice in the highest traditions of their professions."

DENNIS W. LOUGHLIN, '97, has joined Warner Norcross & Judd LLP as senior counsel. Loughlin concentrates his practice in bankruptcy and insolvency, creditors rights and commercial litigation, with an emphasis on automotive suppliers and tool, die and moldmakers.

CHRISTOPHER A. McMICAN, '94, was elected principal at Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone P.L.C. He is listed in the 2007 and 2008 editions of The Best Lawyers in America, and Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business 2007 for his work in employee benefits law.

MARK E. NETTLETON, '95, a member of the law firm of Mika Meyers Beckett & Jones PLC, has been elected to the Board of Directors of the State Bar of Michigan's Public Corporation Law Section.

E. DALE WILSON, '99, was elected shareholder by the law firm of Butzel Long. He concentrates his practice in the areas of commercial lending, real estate and transactions and commercial law and transactions.

2000's

SUSAN D. BANKS, '07, was recently hired by Brooks Kushman P.C. A registered patent agent, Banks specializes in patent prosecution and regulatory compliance issues.

ELIZABETH J. BLOUNT, '07, joined the national insurance law practice of Plunkett Cooney in its Detroit office. Her coverage practice involves the defense of environmental contamination, Michigan no-fault insurance, construction defect and product liability claims.

DEANNE L. BONNER, '00, recently began a new law firm, Bonner Di Salvo PLLC, in Detroit, MI.

KELLY MARSH CASPER, '05, recently joined the Downtown Detroit office of Ernst & Young, LLP in the State and Local Tax (SALT) group.

MELODEE J. HENDERSON, '07, won the First Prize in the Nathan Burkan Memorial Copyright Competition at Hamline University School of Law. The winning essay is entitled, "Ringtones: The Cash Cow of the Music Industry Brings a Wave of Controversy to the World of Copyright, Requiring a Serious Comprehensive Revision to Section 115 of the Copyright Act." The Nathan Burkan Memorial Competition is sponsored annually by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).

CARRIE LEWAND-MONROE, '06, was appointed executive director of the State Land Bank Fast Track Authority by Governor Jennifer M. Granholm. As executive director, Lewand-Monroe will be responsible for developing marketing strategies for the properties once they have cleared title and for overseeing the actions of the State Land Bank Fast Track Authority.

MICHAEL E. McKEE, '07, joined Howard & Howard Attorneys, P.C. Mr. McKee concentrates his practice in intellectual property with a focus on patent preparation/prosecution in the chemical arts.

MATTHEW R. MOWERS, '01, was recently appointed as shareholder at Brooks Kushman. Mr. Mowers is the firm's first "homegrown" shareholder, having started with Brooks Kushman just out of high school and continuing through college and law school.

JEROME PESICK, '04, was selected for the 2008 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America in the specialties of Eminent Domain and Condemnation Law. He was also selected as a 2007 Michigan Super Lawyers in the area of real estate law and eminent domain. Mr. Pesick is the managing shareholder of Steinhardt Pesick and Cohen, P.C.

LEILA W. ROGERS, '06, has joined Dean & Gibson PLLC's Charlotte, NC office as an associate attorney. Ms. Rogers' primary practice is in general civil litigation.

BREANNE M. SMITH, '07, has accepted a position as Assistant District Attorney with the Bronx, NY District Attorney's Office in the Criminal Court Bureau.

BREANNE M. SMITH, '07, has accepted a position as Assistant District Attorney with the Bronx, NY District Attorney's Office in the Criminal Court Bureau.

KELLY A. WALTERS, '04, has joined Dykema Gossett as an associate in the Employment Department. While in law school, Ms. Walters was a law clerk with the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office and interned with the Honorable Maura D. Corrigan in the Michigan Supreme Court and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. She also currently serves on the UDM School of Law Alumni Board.