Wisconsin Lawyer
Vol. 84, No. 10, October 2011

New Hires, Promotions, Partners

Crystal A. Banse, U.W. 2010, has joined the Wisconsin Department of Justice, Madison, as an assistant attorney general in the civil litigation unit. She also is a judge advocate for the 64th Troop Command in the Wisconsin Army National Guard.

Jeffrey A. Cooper, California Western 1984, has joined Halling & Cayo S.C., Milwaukee, and continues to focus on commercial banking, real estate, mergers and acquisitions, secured lending and commercial transactions, regulatory compliance, creditors’ rights, collection, and lender-liability defense.

Dillon J. Ambrose, Marquette 2002, has joined the Milwaukee office of Davis & Kuelthau S.C. as a litigation associate. He previously was a Navy JAG officer. Thomas W. Moniz, Marquette 2009, and Steven R. Sorenson, Marquette 1977, have joined the firm in the Oshkosh office. Both previously were with Sorenson Law Office, Ripon. Moniz focuses on general business and real estate transactions and estate planning. Sorenson focuses on corporate law, business planning, and estate planning.

Four attorneys have joined or been named to new positions at Dean Health Plan Inc., Madison. Amy Bradshaw, U.W. 2006, has been named managing compliance attorney. Christine Senty, Hamline 1997, has been named general counsel and oversees the compliance and legal services teams. Jamie Stock-Retzloff, Tulsa 1996, has joined the company as a subrogation attorney. She previously was with Gingras, Cates, & Luebke, Madison. Dean Sutton, Marquette 2003, has been named senior managing attorney.

Mary Lynn Ferwerda, Marquette 2011, has joined Grzeca Law Group S.C., Milwaukee, as an associate and focuses on corporate immigration matters.

Three attorneys have joined Hall, Render, Killian, Heath & Lyman. Mark T. Garsombke, Regent 1998 cum laude, has joined the firm as a shareholder in the Milwaukee office and is corporate counsel to health-care providers and other businesses. Joseph R. Krause, U.W. 2011 cum laude, and Anne M. Ruff, Marquette 2011 cum laude, have become associates in the Milwaukee office. Krause is with the health and business/tax practice groups. Ruff is with the health practice group.

Emily M. Hinkens, Marquette 2011 summa cum laude, has joined Andrus, Sceales, Starke & Sawall LLP, Milwaukee, and focuses on intellectual property law.

Mario Mendoza, U.W. 1996, has joined Murphy Desmond S.C., Madison, and practices in business law, municipal law, and administrative/regulatory law and governmental relations. He previously was assistant to former Madison mayor David Cieslewicz.

Scott M. Nelson, Minnesota 1986, has joined Mackall, Crounse & Moore PLC, Minneapolis, as a member and practices in estates and trusts, tax law, and business and corporate law.

Two attorneys have joined the law department of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co., Milwaukee. Michael J. Conmey, Iowa 2006, is with the investment products and advisory services team. He previously was with Godfrey & Kahn S.C., Milwaukee. Naomi J. Stieber, Marquette 2011 magna cum laude, is with the insurance products and operations team.

Todd Podell, Marquette 1993, has been appointed head of global purchasing for Alcon, an eye-care company, and is based in the company’s Fort Worth, Texas, headquarters.

Erica N. Reib, Marquette 2011, has joined Heins Law Office LLC, Mequon, and represents employees in state and federal courts and administrative agencies.

Ryan E. Ruzziconi, Marquette 2003, has been promoted to vice president, general counsel of Diplomat Pharmacy Inc., headquartered in Flint, Mich. He formerly was general counsel of Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy.

Megan Snyder, Drake 2010, has joined Axley Brynelson LLP, Madison, and practices with the business
group.

Gay Ann Spahn, U.W. 1988, has been appointed an administrative patent judge on the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Alexandria, Va. She is with the mechanical and business methods section.

Kevin Terry, Marquette 2011, has joined the Wausau office of Ruder Ware LLSC in the employment, benefits, and labor practice group and the local government and municipalities and school districts and educational institutions focus teams.

Diane Welsh, American Univ. 1998 summa cum laude, has joined von Briesen & Roper s.c., Madison, as a shareholder and chairs the newly formed government relations and regulatory law section. She previously was chief legal counsel for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services.

Three attorneys have joined Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek S.C. Michael McFarlane, Marquette 2008, is a member of the worker’s compensation team in the Milwaukee office. Melissa Selinger, Washington Univ. 2003, is a member of the trusts and estates team in the Madison office. Christopher Walker, John Marshall 2011 cum laude, is a member of the intellectual property team in the Milwaukee office.

Kendra Fisher, Marquette 2007, Cheryl Widder Heilman, Minnesota 1981, Kris Hess, Marquette 1990, and Jane Landretti, Drake 2004, have taken attorney positions with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Fisher works on air, hazardous waste, and hazardous substance spill issues. Heilman focuses on mining, solid waste, recycling, lab certification, commercial fishing, and rough fish contracts issues. Hess focuses on real estate, remediation, redevelopment, and chapter NR 45 property issues. Landretti focuses on stormwater, floodplain zoning, wastewater fees, invasive species, office of energy/utilities, and solicitation issues and assists with water-regulation contested-case hearings.

John Breffeilh, Iowa 2010, Kaitlin A. Lamb, U.W. 2011, and Hannah B. Schieber, U.W. 2011, have joined the Wisconsin State Public Defender’s office as assistant state public defenders in the appellate division in Milwaukee.

Mergers, Relocations, New Offices

DiRenzo & Bomier LLC, Neenah, has opened an office at 420 S. Koeller St., Suite 308, Oshkosh. Todd Slagter, Denver 2000, is based at the new office and continues to focus on estate planning, probate, and tax issues.

Tim Kiefer, Harvard 1998, has opened Kiefer Law Office LLC, 10 E. Doty St., Suite 800, Madison, focusing on criminal defense, OWI defense, and civil litigation. He previously was a Dane County assistant district attorney.

Appointments, Elections

Matthew Banker, Marquette 2001, has been appointed to the NCAA Division I Legislative Council, the primary legislative authority for Division I. He is assistant commissioner of the Ohio Valley Conference, Nashville, and focuses on NCAA rules compliance, academic policy, and membership outreach.

Keith R. Clifford, U.W. 1974, has been elected to the board of the National Board of Legal Specialty Certification, which oversees the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He focuses on personal injury and medical malpractice at Clifford & Raihala SC, Madison.

James E. Doyle, Harvard 1972, has been appointed to the pro bono task force of the Legal Services Corporation board. He is of counsel to Foley & Lardner LLP and a former Wisconsin governor.

The Hon. C. William Foust, U.W. 1978, has been elected “chief of the chiefs” by Wisconsin’s committee of chief judges. He sits on the Dane County Circuit Court and is chief judge of the Fifth Judicial Administrative District.

Perry Granof, U.W. 1979, has been appointed chair-elect of the professionals’, officers’ and directors’ liability general committee of the ABA’s tort trial and insurance practice section. He is of counsel at Williams Kastner and managing director at Granof International Group LLC.

Allan J. Joseph, U.W. 1962, has been appointed chair of the ABA standing committee on the federal judiciary. He focuses on government contracts law at Rogers Joseph O’Donnell, San Francisco.

Eight attorneys have been appointed by Gov. Scott Walker to the state’s new Judicial Selection Advisory Committee. Michael B. Brennan, Northwestern 1989, Gass Weber Mullins LLC, Milwaukee, chairs the committee. Members are William T. Curran, Marquette 1975, Curran, Hollenbeck & Orton SC, Mauston; Donald A. Daugherty Jr., Northwestern 1990, Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek SC, Milwaukee; Steven H. Gibbs, Hamline 1988, Hertel & Gibbs SC, Eau Claire; Gerardo H. Gonzalez, U.W. 1988, Gonzalez Saggio & Harlan LLP, Milwaukee; Katherine M. Longley, Marquette 2005, Assurant Health, Milwaukee; Eric M. McLeod, U.W. 1993, Michael Best & Friedrich LLP, Madison; and Lon E. Roberts, U.W. 1973, Ruder Ware LLSC, Wausau.

Stacey DeKalb, William Mitchell 1981, Kay Hunt, Marquette 1981, and Bob King, William Mitchell 1980, have been elected to the board of Lommen, Abdo, Cole, King & Stageberg P.A., a trial, business, and entertainment law firm with offices in Hudson, Minneapolis, and New York City.

Andrew Mishlove, U.W. 1981, has been named to the board of regents for the National College for DUI Defense. He is with the Law Offices of Andrew Mishlove, Glendale.

Ken Nowakowski, Northwestern 1980, has become leader of the consumer financial services team at Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek S.C. He is a shareholder in the firm’s Milwaukee office.

Two attorneys with Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c. have been elected to bar association leadership positions. Allen C. Schlinsog Jr., John Marshall 1991 magna cum laude, is president-elect of the Eastern District of Wisconsin Bar Association. He is a shareholder in the litigation practice in the Milwaukee office and chair of the product liability and safety team. Lynn M. Stathas, U.W. 1988, is president of the Western District of Wisconsin Bar Association. She is a shareholder and chair of the litigation practice in the Madison office and also practices in labor and employment.

The Waukesha County Bar Association has elected the following officers: president – Michelle Martin, Marquette 1992, Murn & Martin S.C.; president-elect – Craig Kuhary, Marquette 1986, Walden, Schuster & Vaklyes SC; secretary/treasurer – Lori Fabian, Marquette 2003, Hippenmeyer, Reilly, Moodie & Blum SC; past president – Christine D’Angelo, U.W. 1999, D’Angelo & Jones LLP; and directors – Danni Caldwell, U.W. 1985, Waukesha County Corporation Counsel; Linda S. Coyle, Marquette 1983, Coyle Law Office LLC; Susan Herro, Hamline 1985, Herro, Chapman & Herro, Oconomowoc; Sarah Ponath, Marquette 2007, Nelson, Connell, Conrad, Tallmadge & Slein SC; and Ronald Sonderhouse, Detroit 1990, Wolff & Sonderhouse LLP. All offices are in Waukesha except as noted.

Ralph A. Weber, Columbia 1982, has been elected to the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. board. He is a founding member of Gass Weber Mullins LLC, Milwaukee.

New members of the Wisconsin Supreme Court Planning and Policy Advisory Committee (PPAC) include the following judges: the Hon. Brian W. Blanchard, Northwestern 1989, District IV Court of Appeals; the Hon. Eugene D. Harrington, Hamline 1978, Washburn County; the Hon. Elliott M. Levine, U.W. 1990, La Crosse County; the Hon. William S. Pocan, U.W. 1984, Milwaukee County; and the Hon. Mary K. Wagner, U.W. 1982, Kenosha County. The Hon. Juan B. Colás, U.W. 1981, Dane County, has been appointed PPAC vice chair. Dolores Bomrad, U.W. 1984, a Washington County court commissioner, has been appointed to the PPAC planning subcommittee.

C. Thomas Sylke, U.W. 1985, has been appointed to the board of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., the replacement for the Wisconsin Department of Commerce. He is principal of Sylke Law Offices LLC, Milwaukee, and focuses on patent and other intellectual property matters.

Authors, Speakers

Jeffrey P. Aiken, Marquette 1972, spoke at the ABA Annual Meeting in Toronto on “Psychology and the Computer: Their Effective Use in Mediation of Complex Disputes” and recently authored the booklet Preparing for Mediation: What You Need to Know (Thomson Reuters/Aspatore). He is senior counsel with Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek SC, Milwaukee.

Bob Gregg, West Virginia 1978, and Jennifer Mirus, U.W. 1993, both with the Boardman Law Firm, Madison, authored GINA II: Cautions for Employers on Inadvertent Obtaining of Genetic Information, National Journal of Local Government Law (May-June 2011). Gregg’s article Debunking the Affirmative Action Myth appeared in the spring 2011 edition of Diversity Magazine.

Paul E. Conrad, U.W. 1981, spoke about the Intergovernmental Personnel Act and federal ethics law at the 2011 conference of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics. He is a senior ethics attorney for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Washington, D.C.

Joseph S. Goode, Syracuse 1994, and Mark M. Leitner, U.W. 1985, authored Class Action Prohibitions and the Effect of Contract Rules on the Collective Pursuit of Common Claims, 30 Franchise Law Journal 166 (2011). They are trial lawyers with Kravit, Hovel & Krawczyk S.C., Milwaukee. Goode also presented a paper titled Arbitration in 2011 at the 44th Annual Legal Symposium of the International Franchise Association in Washington, D.C.

Ellen Kozak, U.W. 1969, has become a correspondent for WUWM FM radio, contributing essays on various topics. She is with Kozak Law Offices, Milwaukee.

Awards, Degrees, Honors

The Hon. James P. Daley, Marquette 1981, a retired Wisconsin Army National Guard soldier, was inducted into the Guard’s Hall of Honor in May. He is on the Rock County Circuit Court.

The Hon. James Evenson, U.W. 1973, was selected as Wisconsin ABOTA Trial Judge of the Year. He is on the Sauk County Circuit Court.

Warren P. Kraft, Marquette 1982, received the inaugural Brad D. Bailey Assistant City/County Attorney Award from the International Municipal Lawyers Association. He is assistant city attorney and director of human resources for the city of West Bend and also of counsel to Murphy Desmond S.C., Madison.

The Hon. Jeffrey A. Kremers, U.W. 1975, received the E. Michael McCann Distinguished Public Service Award from the Milwaukee Bar Association in June. He is chief judge of the Milwaukee County Circuit Court.

The Hon. John R. Storck, Harvard 1979, received the inaugural Mayville High School Distinguished Alumnus award at a ceremony in June. He is on the Dodge County Circuit Court.

David J. Wambach, Marquette 1985, was named the 2011 Prosecutor of the Year by the Wisconsin Association of Homicide Investigators for his successful prosecution of a 30-year-old cold-case murder. He also received a certificate of achievement from Gov. Scott Walker for his work on the case, which was featured in an April 2011 episode of 48 Hours: Mystery.

Three attorneys have been honored by the Wisconsin District Attorneys Association. Thomas B. Eagon, U.W. 1985, was named Prosecutor of the Year. He is Portage County district attorney. Jeffrey S. Froehlich, U.W. 1997, was named Assistant District Attorney of the Year. He is the Calumet County assistant district attorney. Dana J. Johnson, Minnesota 1990, was named Deputy District Attorney of the Year. He is a Brown County deputy district attorney.

Pro Bono, Public Service

Michael F. Hupy, Marquette 1972, made a substantial pledge to the Marquette University Law School Building Fund for work on Eckstein Hall. He is with Hupy and Abraham S.C., Milwaukee.

Retirements

The following Wisconsin judges have retired recently: The Hon. Edward R. Brunner, Akron 1974, District III Court of Appeals; the Hon. Darryl W. Deets, Illinois 1976, Manitowoc County; the Hon. Thomas G. Grover, Marquette 1972, Menominee/Shawano counties; the Hon. Robert A. Hawley, Villanova 1974, Winnebago County; the Hon. Barbara A. Kluka, Marquette 1978, Kenosha County; the Hon. William M. McMonigal, Marquette 1971, Green Lake County; the Hon. James O. Miller, U.W. 1971, Columbia County; the Hon. Daniel R. Moeser, U.W. 1971, Dane County; the Hon. Donald A. Poppy, U.W. 1974, Calumet County; the Hon. Benjamin D. Proctor, U.W. 1971, Eau Claire County; and the Hon. Francis T. Wasielewski, U.W. 1968, Milwaukee County.

In Memoriam

Hon. Dennis J. Barry, Marquette 1973, Racine, Apr. 4, 1947 – Aug. 18, 2011.

Hon. Henry B. Buslee, U.W. 1952, Fond du Lac, July 12, 1924 – Aug. 5, 2011.

Einer Christensen, U.W. 1952, Racine, June 25, 1927 – Dec. 2, 2010.

William J. Connell, Marquette 1954, Wauwatosa, Oct. 3, 1930 – Nov. 11, 2010.

Phil Elliott Jr., U.W. 1961, West Allis, Dec. 20, 1937 – Jan. 31, 2011.

Hon. Terence T. Evans, Marquette 1967, Milwaukee, March 25, 1940 – Aug. 10, 2011.

Allan A. Hindin, Marquette 1942, Milwaukee, Aug. 25, 1918 – Apr. 30, 2011.

Curtis Kirkhuff, U.W. 1960, Madison, April 8, 1932 – Aug. 15, 2011.

Carlos F. Lima, Minnesota 1979, Middleton, Feb. 27, 1949 – May 9, 2011.

Gary T. Monson, Richmond 1974, Viroqua, Nov. 3, 1944 – Feb. 24, 2011.

Thomas K. Mullins, Marquette 1989, Milwaukee, Sept. 23, 1962 – Aug. 7, 2011.

J.E. Nugent, U.W. 1970, Waupun, Feb. 3, 1941 – March 26, 2011.

Hon. Thomas J. “T.J.” O’Brien, William Mitchell 1949, Hudson, Oct. 12, 1923 – July 28, 2011.

Donald S. O’Neil, Marquette 1947, San Antonio, Texas, Oct. 27, 1918 – May 4, 2011.

Rodney J. Satter, U.W. 1957, Prairie du Chien, Sept. 15, 1925 – July 10, 2011.