2010s-2020s Class Notes

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2010

Sutton Ansley and his wife, Karen, welcomed a daughter, Emerson Elizabeth, on Dec. 6. The couple's other daughter, Archer, 3, loves being a big sister. The family continues to live in Washington, D.C. Ansley is a partner at Weil, Gotshal & Manges and specializes in patent litigation.

Steven Garrett was named a partner with Boulette Golden & Marin in Austin, Texas. Garrett's practice is focused on labor and employment law, specifically litigating noncompete and trade secret matters, defending employment discrimination and harassment claims, advising clients on work separation agreements, assisting with federal and state agency compliance and investigations, negotiating collective bargaining agreements and representing clients in corporate immigration matters. 

Following years of service as a career prosecutor, Lisa H. Miller was selected to serve as a deputy assistant attorney general of the Department of Justice's Criminal Division. Miller, the first woman promoted from within the division to hold her position, is responsible for more than 170 prosecutors in the criminal fraud section and more than 30 attorneys in the criminal appellate section. 

Miller was the first woman to hold her prior position, chief of the market integrity unit within the DOJ's Fraud Section.

Jason Morris was named Norfolk Southern's vice president of labor relations in 2021. Morris joined Norfolk Southern's law department in 2010, handling safety, labor and employment issues. He moved to the company's safety and environmental department, serving as system director for safety before being promoted to assistant vice president in 2018. Morris, a U.S. Air Force veteran, previously served as a legislative director in the U.S. House of Representatives and as a logistics readiness officer in the Virginia Air National Guard. 

2011

Megan F. Engel '11Megan F. Engel was promoted to partner at Reed Smith in Washington, D.C. A member of the life sciences health industry group, Engel's practice focuses on assisting health care providers faced with False Claims Act litigation and government or internal investigations. Her practice extends to compliance with regulatory fraud and abuse issues in health care. 

Lydie Essama Glynn was sworn in as associate judge of the District Court of Maryland for Baltimore City in June. Glynn was appointed by Gov. Larry Hogan after working as chief solicitor in the litigation and appeals division of the Baltimore city solicitor's office. She previously worked as an assistant attorney general in the contract litigation unit at the Office of the Attorney General, as an assistant solicitor in the litigation division of the city's solicitor's office and as an associate at a law firm. 

7 Alumni Among 'Rising Stars' for 2022

Alexandra Garrison Barnett '10, Pedro Bermeo '12, James McDonald '07, Jason McManis '13, Brandon Moss '11, Brian Rabbitt '08, Jennifer Roy '11

<p>Alexandra Garrison Barnett &#39;10,&nbsp;Pedro Bermeo &#39;12,&nbsp;James McDonald &#39;07,&nbsp;Jason McManis &#39;13,&nbsp;Brandon Moss&nbsp;&#39;11,&nbsp;Brian Rabbitt &#39;08,&nbsp;Jennifer Roy &#39;11</p>

Seven alumni were among Law360’s Rising Stars for 2022, a list of attorneys under age 40 whose accomplishments as lawyers “transcend their age.”

Honorees were selected based on their career accomplishments in their respective disciplines.

Alexandra Garrison Barnett ’10 of Alston & Bird was named a top employment attorney for playing a lead role in defending employer clients, including UPS, from lawsuits by workers.

Pedro Bermeo ’12 of Davis Polk was named a top capital markets law practitioner for helping to advise billion-dollar underwriting.

James McDonald ’07 of Sullivan & Cromwell was named a top compliance attorney for his roles in cryptocurrency cases and a $6 billion settlement with regulators.

Jason McManis ’13, the litigation department head for Ahmad Zavitsanos & Mensing, was named a top trial attorney for his role in major cases, including one brought by a group of doctors against UnitedHealthcare.

Brandon Moss ’11 of Wiley Rein was named a top white-collar practitioner for her role in defending a former pharmaceutical executive.

Brian Rabbitt ’08 of Jones Day was named a top white-collar practitioner for his accomplishments while at the U.S. Department of Justice, including a landmark Foreign Corrupt Practices Act settlement.

Jennifer Roy ’11 of Latham & Watkins was named a top environmental practitioner for guiding major utilities and energy companies on environmental policy and regulatory compliance.

—Mike Fox

2012

Matthew Harvey was elected to partner with Holland & Hart in January. Based in Boise, Idaho, Harvey focuses on patent prosecution, patent analysis, and intellectual property due diligence matters across electrical engineering and standards-essential technologies. 

Caitlin Poe '12Caitlin Poe, a Williams Mullen partner, was named to Benchmark Litigation's 40 & Under Hot List. This is the fifth consecutive year she was included on the list, which recognizes attorneys who are "among the top emerging talent in their respective litigation communities in the U.S. and Canada." 

Poe is a litigation attorney and regulatory adviser who represents criminal and civil clients, with a particular focus on representing professional clients adverse to the state or federal government. Her experience includes criminal and civil cases involving securities regulation, intellectual property, consumer protection, environmental compliance, health care fraud and financial fraud. She is based in Raleigh, N.C.

Brendan M. Staley was promoted to partner with Hunton Andrews Kurth in Richmond, Va. Staley focuses his practice on public finance, with emphasis on the areas of federal tax and securities law, state and local government law, economic development incentives and public-private partnerships. He has experience in advising, negotiating and documenting tax-exempt bond transactions for governmental and 501(c)(3) entities, as well as in structuring public finance and project development transactions for a wide range of public and private infrastructure and economic development projects. 

2013

Lucy Dinkins '13Lucy Dinkins was named a shareholder of Wyche in Columbia, S.C. Dinkins focuses her practice on litigation, representing plaintiffs and defendants in a wide range of complex matters. She has experience in federal and state court with medical malpractice, personal injury, health care, products liability, shareholder disputes, trademark and copyright infringement, breach of contract, construction, employment and dram shop liability.

Dinkins was named a leading lawyer by Best Lawyers and Super Lawyers. She has also been recognized for excellence in her area of practice by Columbia Business Monthly in the magazine's Legal Elite issue for the past three years.

S. Jae Lim and Jessica Cunningham Lim '14 were thrilled to welcome their daughter, Harper Joy, to the family May 26. She joined her big sister, Kennedy, and brother, Connor.

Warren J. McCarty '13Warren J. McCarty was recognized on the 2022 Texas Rising Stars list. McCarty has been on the list for multiple years based on his work in intellectual property litigation with Caldwell Cassady & Curry in Dallas.

Kate Saltz was promoted to partner with Hunton Andrews Kurth in Richmond, Va. Saltz counsels clients on corporate finance, public and private securities offerings (as both issuers' and underwriters' counsel), mergers and acquisitions, and other corporate matters, with a particular concentration on real estate investment trusts and other real estate related specialty finance companies.

Adam Yost '13Adam Yost, an attorney in Bradley Arant Boult Cummings' Dallas office, earned the Certified Information Privacy Professional credential through the International Association of Privacy Professionals.

Yost is an associate in Bradley's government enforcement and investigations practice group. He focuses his practice on helping corporations and individuals navigate regulatory investigations, civil enforcement actions and criminal investigations brought by various government agencies. 

2014

Michael Albert was promoted to partner with Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd in San Diego. His practice focuses on complex securities litigation, and he is a member of the firm's lead plaintiff advisory team. 

S. Jae Lim '13 and Jessica Cunningham Lim were thrilled to welcome their daughter, Harper Joy, to the family May 26. She joined her big sister, Kennedy, and brother, Connor.

Emily Feder led the discussion on the debt market outlook as part of a panel at Bisnow's national capital markets and commercial real estate finance conference in May. Feder, an associate with Allen Matkins in Los Angeles, focuses on all types of real estate transactions, from acquisition and disposition to leasing and finance. 

2015

Kevin Benedicto '15Morgan Lewis associate Kevin Benedicto was unanimously confirmed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to serve as a member of the city's police commission. As a commissioner, Benedicto oversees the police department and the Department of Police Accountability. The commission sets policy for the police department and conducts disciplinary hearings on charges of police misconduct.

In his practice, Benedicto represents and advises clients in a variety of litigation matters, including complex litigation, cybersecurity and data privacy, securities investigations and litigation, business and corporate disputes, insurance coverage litigation and toxic torts. He is dedicated to pro bono and is co-leader of the firm's working group studying equality in law enforcement. In this capacity, Benedicto has contributed to several local police reform efforts in San Francisco and across the country.

Joel Johnson '15As of August, Joel Johnson is an associate professor of law at Pepperdine Caruso School of Law. Johnson previously served with the criminal appellate section of the Department of Justice. Johnson's legal research focuses on constitutional limits on substantive criminal law and explores the implications of those limits for statutory interpretation, criminal procedure and federal courts. His most recent article, "Dealing with Dead Crimes," is forthcoming in the Georgetown Law Journal.

Kiara Imani's (Williams) '15In addition to Kiara Imani's (Williams) work as a business affairs consultant, she is actively engaged in the creative world. Imani co-hosts a late-night talk show on Los Angeles radio station KBLA Talk 1580. Wanting to change the narrative around the unresolved trauma the Black community often faces, she wrote a book, "Therapy Isn't Just For White People." Imani and the nonfiction autobiographical narrative book were featured in Essence and Forbes magazines. Imani and two collaborators released a card game, LikeU, that celebrates human connection and meaningful conversation.

2016

Lauren S. Kramer '16Lauren S. Kramer was featured in Law.com's "How I Got Into Law School" series in May. Kramer is an associate in the mergers and acquisitions group with Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in New York. 

James F. Smith '16James F. Smith joined Caldwell Cassady & Curry in Dallas and primarily focuses on intellectual property litigation. He most recently served as a law clerk for Kimberly A. Moore at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Smith previously represented intellectual property clients at a California firm for several years. 

2017

Ashley Williams '17 Ashley Williams '17 joined Blank Rome's Washington, D.C., office in the white-collar defense and investigations practice group. Williams has notable experience advising clients on potential exposure under the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other anti-corruption laws in connection with internal and government investigations, as well as pre- and post-integration due diligence. Williams previously practiced with White & Case.

2018

Joseph Hykan joined Lewis Roca as an associate in Denver. In the business litigation practice group, Hykan focuses on commercial litigation. He provides counsel to clients addressing disputes and class actions in various industries including life sciences and financial services.

Michael C. Lee has joined Vinson & Elkins as an associate in its Dallas office, where he joins his father, James J. Lee '76, who is a senior partner with the firm. Michael's practice focuses on complex commercial litigation. 

2019

Colin Giuseppe Cox was named to the board of directors of the Miami-Dade Bar Association and co-chair of its international law committee. Cox is a member of Haynes and Boone's International Practice Group in Dallas. He is licensed to practice in both Florida and Texas. In June he was appointed as secretary and treasurer of the business law section of the State Bar of Texas.

Chinny Sharma is a scholar-in-residence at the Strauss Center at the University of Texas at Austin. Sharma's focus covers an array of topics at the intersection of technology, policy and law. Her courses will include internet law and policy and computer crimes, and she will play a key role in the center's Integrated Cybersecurity Studies program. Sharma is a member of the Internet Law Foundry and was a Yale Cyber Leadership Fellow. 

2020

Robert Paradela Jr. '20Robert Paradela Jr. joined the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., office of Stearns Weaver Miller in its labor and employment law group. Paradela focuses his practice on representing employers before administrative agencies such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the National Labor Relations Board, and in federal and state courts in cases alleging discrimination, sexual harassment, wrongful termination claims, retaliation, wage and hour claims, and charges of unfair labor practices.