Meet Our Top 2023 Authors: 5 Articles Worth Another Look
Each year, the Communications Committee, which serves as the Editorial Advisory Board for Wisconsin Lawyer magazine, recognizes writing excellence. The Hon. Charles Dunn Author Award is named in honor of Wisconsin’s first supreme court chief justice. On April 30, 1836, President Andrew Jackson commissioned Charles Dunn as chief justice of the Wisconsin Territory. Dunn continued in this office until the territorial courts were superseded by the state courts in 1848. He was a member of the 1848 Wisconsin Constitutional Convention, where he chaired the judiciary committee.
The 2023 Charles Dunn Award goes to Jesse B. Blocher, who authored the article “Pugilist’s Guide to Brief Writing.” The committee also recognized several other authors who went above and beyond to pen excellent articles in 2023. The other articles deserving “special commendation” for writing excellence are also noted.
Best of the Best: Writing Excellent Briefs
Article: “Pugilist’s Guide to Brief Writing” (May 2023)
Award: Hon. Charles Dunn Author Award
Author: Jesse B. Blocher
Judges’ comments: The article is engaging, relevant, and applicable to your average practitioner. It is well written and easy to digest, entertaining, and the applicability to many practitioners is big. It was a fan favorite among the nominations!
Blocher, Marquette 2006 summa cum laude, is a shareholder attorney at Habush, Habush & Rottier S.C.®, Waukesha, where he focuses on litigating personal injury cases. He was named a Board Certified Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. In his practice and as co-chair of the Wisconsin Association for Justice’s amicus committee, he frequently authors appellate briefs.
Articles Deserving Special Commendation
Article: “Policy or Prejudice? Examining the Historical Roots of the Governor’s Power to Remove a District Attorney” (July/Aug. 2023)
Award: Special Commendation
Author: Steven M. Biskupic
Judges’ comments: The drafters of the Wisconsin Constitution wanted district attorneys to be accountable to the voters at the county level. But the state constitution also gave the governor the right to remove an individual district attorney. This article is an important reminder of what happens if the governor’s view differs from the views of a county’s voters.
Biskupic, Marquette 1987, is a partner at Biskupic & Jacobs S.C. in Mequon, concentrating in litigation. Between 2002 and 2009, Biskupic was the presidentially appointed U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Wisconsin.
Article:“Neurodisability in Clients and Parties” (Dec. 2023)
Award: Special Commendation
Author: Dr. Joseph Alan Wszalek
Judges’ comments: To effectively represent and interact with people involved in the justice system, lawyers and judges must recognize and understand neurodisabilities and then provide appropriate accommodations. The author explains a complicated topic in understandable terms and provides concrete examples of appropriate accommodations.
Wszalek, U.W. 2015 cum laude, Order of the Coif, PhD, is a neuroscientist and neuroethicist and an expert in brain injury, language and communication, and cognitive neuroscience. He heads the Center for Neurolaw and Equity in San Francisco.
Article: “In a Wrong Place at a Wrong Time: Data Breach Victims and Their Standing to Sue” (Jan. 2023)
Award: Special Commendation
Author: Alex Phillips
Judges’ comments: The author does a great service to readers by examining how data breaches harm, how courts grapple with them, and how the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Transunion v. Ramirez may shape the determination of which harms qualify as “concrete” under Article III.
Phillips, U.W. 2017, is with Turke & Strauss LLP, Madison, focusing in commercial litigation, class actions, and employment law.
Article: “The Art of Advancing Wisconsin Constitutional Claims” (March 2023)
Award: Special Commendation
Author: Caleb R. Gerbitz
Judges’ comments: The author offers solid tips to help clients prevail in Wisconsin courts when their cases include state constitutional claims. This is the kind of practical article that enhances lawyers’ skills. Kudos.
Gerbitz, Mitchell Hamline 2020, is an associate attorney at Meissner Tierney Fisher & Nichols S.C., Milwaukee. He previously clerked for Justice Brian Hagedorn of the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
New Hires, Promotions, Partners
Michelle Behnke, U.W. 1988, will join Boardman Clark, Madison, in August 2024. Behnke was recently named by the American Bar Association (ABA) nominating committee to become the 2025-26 president of the ABA and was president of the State Bar of Wisconsin in 2004-05. In her law practice, she has primarily focused on business transactions, real estate, and estate planning.
Sean Lees, Marquette 2015, has joined Lindner & Marsack S.C., a management-side labor and employment law firm, and practices from the Milwaukee office. Lees focuses on a broad range of labor and employment law matters. Previously, he headed the labor law division at MacGillis Wiemer LLC and served as labor relations advisor for Ascension, a major health-care provider.
Todd Podell, Marquette 1993, has joined BNSF Railway as vice president and chief sourcing officer. Podell leads the teams and processes associated with BNSF’s purchasing, sourcing, and supply chain programs. Previously, he was with Discover Financial Services, most recently serving as senior vice president and chief procurement and corporate services officer. Before that, Podell held business transformation and supply chain leadership roles with Novartis, McDonald’s, and other major corporations.
John D. (J.D.) Tripoli, Ave Maria 2007, has joined Littler, an employment and labor law practice representing management, as a shareholder in its Milwaukee office. Tripoli focuses on employment-related litigation, including discrimination, wage and hour, restrictive covenants, and misclassification, and has experience in all phases of trial and appellate litigation. Tripoli also guides employers through investigations brought forward by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, National Labor Relations Board, Department of Labor, and state civil rights agencies. Previously, he was with Eimer Stahl LLP and before that, served as a law clerk to the Honorable Michael B. Brennan on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and acting chief legal counsel to Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.
Appointments, Elections
Joshua L. Gimbel, U.W. 1987, has been elected to the board of the Legal Aid Society of Milwaukee. Gimbel is a partner with Gimbel, Reilly, Guerin & Brown, a Milwaukee-based trial and litigation law firm. Gimbel also is a board member of Discovery World, the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and the Wisconsin Policy Forum.
Awards, Degrees, Honors
The Wisconsin Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) has selected the Hon. Eugene Gasiorkiewicz, Mississippi 1974, Racine County Circuit Court, to receive its Trial Judge of the Year award. In nominating Judge Gasiorkiewicz, lawyers from “both sides of the aisle” noted his work ethic, knowledge, and evenhandedness. Judge Gasiorkiewicz also will preside over the mock trial that ABOTA and the State Bar of Wisconsin conduct at the annual Trial Institute, to be held in November 2024.
Retirements
The following judges recently retired from the bench: Hon. J.M. Bitney, Hamline 1985, Barron County Circuit Court; Hon. Timothy G. Dugan, Marquette 1978, Wisconsin Court of Appeals District I; Hon. Lindsey C. Grady, Marquette 2000, Milwaukee County Circuit Court; Hon. Maureen M. Martinez, Marquette 1996, Racine County Circuit Court; and Hon. Bruce E. Schroeder, Marquette 1970, Kenosha County Circuit Court.
In Memoriam
Thomas E. Anderson, U.W. 1962, Fitchburg, Oct. 26, 1932 – March 14, 2024.
Randall M. Aronson, U.W. 1981, Beaver Dam, Jan. 29, 1951 – Feb. 2, 2024.
Dawn Sturdevant Baum, U.W. 2001, Green Bay, July 3, 1976 – June 10, 2023.
Paige J. Donnelly, Minnesota 1960, St. Paul, Minn., March 18, 1932 – March 10, 2024.
Royce A. Finne, U.W. 1977, Green Bay, Sept. 21, 1950 – March 12, 2024.
Mark J. Guttag, Marquette 1987, Fairfax, Va., April 7, 1962 – Feb. 15, 2022.
Brian J. Henderson, Marquette 1974, Milwaukee, Feb. 9, 1948 – Jan. 12, 2024.
Ralph F. Herlache, U.W. 1967, Sturgeon Bay, March 27, 1941 – June 15, 2018.
Wyatt Honse, Northwestern 2017, Madison, Feb. 23, 1988 – Dec. 26, 2023.
David L. Jenkins, U.W. 1972, Portage, Feb. 9, 1943 – June 7, 2023.
David A. Lange, Marquette 1989, Blue Mounds, Dec. 29, 1960 – Feb. 25, 2024.
Felicia M. Petroff, Minnesota 2007, Wauwatosa, Jan. 24, 1981 – June 19, 2022.
Ray J. Riordan Jr., U.W. 1968, Madison, Sept. 25, 1943 – Nov. 27, 2023.
Joseph D. Roach, Hamline 1994, Edina, Minn., Jan. 16, 1958 – Jan. 15, 2024.
Timothy M. Schultz, Marquette 1980, Olathe, Kan., April 7, 1954 – Nov. 9, 2023.
John R. Sweeney, Notre Dame 1973, Madison, July 11, 1944 – March 17, 2024.
Vicki E. Zick, Marquette 1999, Johnson Creek, Sept. 6, 1952 – Feb. 26, 2024.
Catherine Zimmerman (former Board of Governors member), Fond du Lac, Sept. 16, 1942 – March 8, 2024.
How to Place your Announcement
If you have moved, become a partner or an associate, or received a promotion or an award, let us know! Email announcements to: MembersOnly@wisbar.org. Notices about State Bar members in good standing are printed as space is available, and subject to editing. Writing guidelines are available here. Questions? Email us or call (608) 250-6127.
Photo placement: Submit a professional-quality photo. If the photo is used, the State Bar will issue an invoice ($35 each). Group photos are not accepted. High-resolution electronic photos are preferred.
Deadline: The first of the month preceding publication. For example, to place an announcement in the May issue, it must be received before April 1.
Ineligible announcements: Talks, speeches (unless they are of national stature), honors from other publications, and political announcements are not accepted.
» Cite this article: 97 Wis. Law. 68-69 (May 2024).
