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1980s Class Notes

1980

John Gleeson stepped down as a federal judge in the Eastern District of New York in March after serving on the bench for 21 years. He joined Debevoise & Plimpton in New York as a litigation partner in the white-collar and regulatory defense and commercial litigation groups. He concentrates his practice on internal investigations, white-collar defense and complex civil litigation. Gleeson was awarded the Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Law by the University of Virginia this spring and gave a talk at the Law School in April (see full story).

Richard J. Pocker joined current and former high-level law enforcement officials from across the nation as a founding member of Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime and Incarceration. Associated with the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law School, this organization’s 150-plus members from 50 states advocate for sentencing reform and criminal justice reform, to harmonize public safety con­cerns with smarter criminal sentencing approaches.

In February, Pocker briefed Senate staff, the press and the Democratic Senate leadership regarding sentencing reform legislation. He is the administrative partner for the Nevada office of New York–based Boies, Schiller & Flexner.

Jane Whitt Sellers was listed among Virginia Business magazine’s legal elite for 2015 in business law. She is a partner with McGuireWoods with offices in Richmond, Va., and Charlotte, N.C.

Barbara A. Young is listed in New England Super Lawyers 2015 in mergers and acquisitions, and Chambers in corporate/ mergers and acquisitions. She is a partner with Verrill Dana in Westport, Conn., where she focuses her practice on business and transactional law.

1981

James P. Rutherfurd joined Pine Brook Partners, a private equity firm based in New York, as managing director and head of investor relations. 

1982

Frank B. Atkinson was listed among Virginia Business magazine’s legal elite for 2015 in legislative/ regulatory/administrative law. He is a partner with McGuireWoods in Richmond, where he is chair of McGuireWoods Consulting.

Charles JohnsonEdmond M. Ianni was appointed general counsel of the venture capital and private equity firm Ben Franklin Technology Partners. A former chairman of the Delaware State Bar Association Corporate Counsel Section and its International Law Section, Ianni previously served as chief strategy officer for Millennium, as an investment banking executive with Fortune 500 PNC, as director of strategic development for the state of Delaware, as in-house counsel at Fortune 500 Columbia Energy Group (now NiSource Inc.), and as managing director and general counsel of EMI Strategic Capital. Ianni is based in Delaware. He led a recent American Bar Association webinar on capital and risk management that focused on innovative strategies and legal structures. 

David N. Powers joined The Strand Partners Inc., a family investment firm in Boca Raton, Fla., as chief operating officer and co-chief investment officer. The Strand Partners was established by his brother, Bill, in 2010. Powers previously practiced with Baker Botts.

In January Deborah A. Sink became general counsel and policy compliance officer with the West Virginia Investment Management Board in Charleston. She previously practiced law for 23 years, then taught math in a public high school for seven years before returning to law.

Mary Ellen Wilkinson retired in June after practicing law for 11 years with a small firm and 20 years in the legal department of a bank. She volunteers at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, Va. “I try to swim one mile a week for exercise at a local indoor pool,” she writes, “and I take care of one dog and three cats.”

1983

Mark Davidson was listed in Super Lawyers Business Edition 2015 in business/corporate law. He is a partner with Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard in Greensboro, N.C., where he focuses his practice on the planning, negotiation and documentation of a wide range of business transactions.

Jeffrey E. Oleynik was listed in Super Lawyers Business Edition 2015 in bankruptcy: business law. He is a partner with Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard in Greensboro, N.C.

1984

Desiree Coopers collection of 31 very, very short stories, “Know the Mother,” has been published by Wayne State University Press. Cooper is the director of community and media relations for Planned Parenthood in Michigan. In a recent Oakland Press article, Cooper describes her last decade as one of “constant reinvention,” as an attorney, a two-time Pulitzer-nominated columnist for the Detroit Free Press, a poet, a frequent contributor to National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered,” an advocate, a businesswoman and a mother. Throughout, she has always wanted to write books.

Cynthia Hogan was featured in ESPN magazine’s “How Roger Goodell and Cynthia Hogan Are Turning the NFL into a Political Machine” in January. She is the NFL’s top lobbyist and chief strategist for player safety. She was hired as senior vice president of public policy and government affairs in 2015 during the Ray Rice controversy. A former aide to Vice President Joe Biden, she helped write the Violence Against Women Act. 

Michael J. Lockerby has been named a 2016 BTI client service all-star by the BTI Consulting Group. He is a partner with Foley & Lardner in Washington, D.C., where he is co-chair of the distribution and franchise pra­tice and a member of the appellate, intellectual property litigation, antitrust and privacy, security and information management practices, and the automotive and food and beverage industry teams.

William T. Lundeen writes, “Allison and I cherish this season as parents of three active daughters who are still at home.” He practices law in River Forest, Ill.

Matthew A. Muir Ll.M. was sworn in as a judge of the High Court of New Zealand in December 2014. He is based in Auckland.

Alan RumphAlan Rumph died on Feb. 21. Following Law School, he was attorney-advisor to Judge Mary Ann Cohen of the U.S. Tax Court and practiced tax law with Ivins, Phillips & Barker in Washington, D.C. He returned to his home state of Georgia to practice law in Macon with Smith Hawkins Hollingsworth & Reeves, and in 2013 joined Baker Donelson in Atlanta. Rumph was nationally recognized for his expertise in federal health care regulatory law.

1985

Brian B. Darville returned to Oblon, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt as senior counsel in the trademark and designs group in Alexandria, Va. He advises on all aspects of trademark and copyright law, portfolio management and maintenance, and licensing of intellectual property, litigation and ecommerce.

Rebecca M. Lamberth, a partner with Duane Morris in Atlanta, has been named co-head of the firm’s 250-lawyer commercial, securities and antitrust litigation division. She practices in the area of securities and complex commercial litigation, representing public and private companies, including REITs, and has extensive experience in complex business and securities litigation, securities disclosure and corporate governance.

Gary Miller is now executive vice president and general counsel of Wellmont Health System in Kingsport, Tenn. Miller has played an integral role in Wellmont’s growth as a multifaceted health system that includes six hospitals and dozens of other medical facilities.

Christopher Seaver joined The Rohatyn Group, an emerging markets asset management firm, as partner. Based in Hong Kong with oversight of regional initiatives in Asia, Seaver will also serve on the executive com­mittee. He was previously CEO of CLSA Capital Partners.

In December, Stanley Weston was reappointed to the Commission on Ethics by Florida Gov. Rick Scott for a term that ends in June 2017. Weston is a partner with Moseley, Prichard, Parrish, Knight & Jones in Jacksonville, where he counsels employers on compliance in industry, government and labor matters.

Rebecca Wiggs was featured in Portico, a Jackson, Miss., metro area publication, as a “legacy lawyer.” Each year the magazine revisits past rising star lawyers and asks who have been their mentors. Wiggs was honored as a mentor of note. Wiggs is a member of Watkins & Eager in Jackson. Her experience spans from general product liability and medical malpractice to labor and employment, consumer finance and appellate advocacy.

Christopher J. Winton was elected as a fellow in the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and is listed in Best Lawyers 2016 in trusts and estates. He is a managing member with Ray, Winton & Kelley in Charleston, W.Va., and concentrates his practice mainly in estate planning and administration, business planning, taxation and civil litigation. 

1986

David L. Faigman has been named acting chancellor and dean of the University of California Hastings College of the Law. He is the John F. Digardi Distinguished Professor of Law at UC Hastings and holds an appointment as professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco.

William A. Isaacson was named a 2015 litigator of the year by American Lawyer. He is a partner with Boies, Schiller & Flexner in Washington, D.C., where he focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation, including trial work and arbitration.

Stephen J. Mcewen JR. LL.M., the president judge emeritus of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania, was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Council of Chief Judges of the State Courts of Appeal in October. He served as honorary consul of Bulgaria from 2004-14 and has received honorary LL.D. degrees from the University of Scranton, Widener University School of Law, and deSales University. He presently serves as litigation conciliator of Delaware County, Pennsylvania. 

Elizabeth StewartElizabeth J. Stewart has been named a fellow of the American College of Coverage and Extra­contractual Counsel. She is a trial lawyer with Murtha Cullina in New Haven, Conn., where she is a member of the insurance coverage practice group and focuses on policy­holder insurance coverage and complex commercial litigation.

1987

Kim BoyleKim M. Boyle has been selected as a fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America based on her excellence in litiga­tion among all segments of the bar. She is a partner with Phelps Dunbar in New Orleans, where she focuses her practice in the areas of labor and employment, civil rights, constitutional law, commercial, torts and general litigation.

Timothy S. Goettel is listed in North Carolina Super Lawyers 2016 and Best Lawyers 2016 in corporate law and mergers and acquisitions law. He is a partner with Smith Anderson in Raleigh, where he handles complex acquisitions and divestitures across a range of industries, advises clients on significant corporate governance matters, and represents issuers in public and private offerings and financing trans­actions.

Scott C. Oostdyk was listed among Virginia Business magazine’s legal elite for 2015 in civil litigation. He is a partner with McGuireWoods in Richmond.

Robert SaundersRobert Saunders has been selected as a member of the board of directors for Carol Woods, an accredited nonprofit continuing care retirement community in Chapel Hill, N.C. He is a partner with Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard in Raleigh and Greensboro, where he focuses his practice on tax and business law. He has extensive experience in the nonprofit sector.

David SpiroDavid K. Spiro recently co-founded Spiro & Browne, in Richmond, Va., with David G. Browne.  The firm specializes in bankruptcy and commercial litigation. Spiro formerly practiced with Hirschler Fleischer, where he served as co-chair of the bankruptcy practice group.

Thomas J. Stallings was listed among Virginia Business magazine’s legal elite for 2015 in health law. He is a partner with McGuireWoods in Richmond.

Beth Wilkinson was named a 2015 litigator of the year by American Lawyer. Her most recent high-profile defense wins in court were for Pfizer, Altria and Kynetic. In January she launched Wilkinson Walsh + Eskovitz, a trial firm with offices in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. Her firm launched with clients that include Pfizer, Medtronic, the Na­tional Football League, Major League Baseball, and three former aides to Hillary Clinton (in connection with emails Clinton sent when she was secre­tary of State). Wilkinson was previously with Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.

1988

John M. Cooper writes that he and his wife, Monica, visit UVA regularly these days to see their son, Matthew, who is a second-year undergraduate. Matthew is a member of the Whomping Wahoos, the UVA quidditch club team. Cooper is a founding partner with Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers in Norfolk.

Cynthia L. Hostetler is a full-time independent public corporate board member. She currently has directorships with S&P 500 Vulcan Materials, public BDC TriLinc Global, and Aberdeen Funds, part of the largest asset manager in Europe. She and her husband, Nicholas, live in Washington, D.C., and Oxfordshire, England.

Michael S. Kun and Susan Stevens Mullen have co-written a novel, “We Are Still Tornadoes,” which will be published by St. Martin’s Press in October.

1989

Steve Clark is assistant vice president of gift planning at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va. He was previously assistant vice chancellor for university development at North Carolina State University. His new position marks a return to Virginia Tech, where he worked from 19942013 as associate director of planned giving, director of gift planning and assistant vice president for gift planning.

Adam D. Mitzner’s fourth novel, “The Girl From Home,” a legal thriller like his previous three novels, “A Conflict of Interest,” “A Case of Redemption,” and “Losing Faith,” was published in April by Simon & Schuster’s Gallery Press. Mitzner is head of litigation at Pavia & Harcourt in New York City. He writes that he would love to hear from anyone who’s read any of his books or just wants to say hello, and can be contacted at adam@adammitzner.com.

Carlton ReevesU.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves of the Southern District of Mississippi was recognized Feb. 23 with Mississippi State’s 2016 Distinguished Jurist Award. A native of Yazoo City, Reeves previously was a partner in Pigott Reeves Johnson, P.A., the Jackson-based firm he co-founded. Prior to that, he served as an assistant U.S. attorney and a litigator for the law firm Phelps Dunbar. After he received his award, Reeves, the second African-American appointed a federal judge in Mississippi, told students at Mississippi State to vote and serve on juries when called. “You have the opportunity open to you to be citizen soldiers right here at Mississippi State, and you can make an impact right here in this great state of Mississippi,” he said.

Brian C. Riopelle was listed among Virginia Business magazine’s legal elite for 2015 in intellectual property law. He is a partner with McGuireWoods in Richmond, where he is chair of the IP litiga­tion/patents depart­ment and member of the technology oversight committee. 

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