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2000
Shaheen Sheik-Sadhal, a Southern California-based writer born to Indian immigrants in Strongsville, Ohio, was awarded the 2023 Ohio Writer’s Scholarship, sponsored by the Sandra Carpenter Memorial Fund/Stockholm Writers Festival. The committee selected Sheik-Sadhal on the merits of her memoir, which documents her journey with her mother as they left everything they knew in Ohio, including her father and their tight-knit South Indian community, to start anew in Southern California. The scholarship sponsors a native, longtime resident or Ohio-educated writer pursuing publication. Sheik-Sadhal was awarded entry to the Stockholm Writers Festival and a meeting with a literary agent.
2001
In May, the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board determined that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board must reinstate Administrative Patent Judge Michael Fitzpatrick to its patent review panels after improperly removing him five years ago. The MSPB agreed that the PTAB retaliated against Fitzpatrick following his protected whistleblower disclosures.
Gunes Hopson reports that she enjoys running her business, Luxe Travel by Gunes. Hopson provides curated luxury travel planning services.
The 2023 graduates of the Ohio State University’s College of Law voted Darren Nealy the 2022-23 Outstanding Staff Member of the Year. This is the third consecutive year Nealy has won the award for his work as assistant dean of students. In addition to his administrative duties, Nealy teaches a graduate- and doctoral-level course, Legal Aspects of Higher Education Administration, at the university’s College of Education and Human Ecology and a course at the College of Law on the Supreme Court’s 1967 Loving v. Virginia decision. Nealy also serves as president of the National Association of Law Student Affairs Professionals.
2002
Andrew “Drew” Cannady married Charles Cockrell in Richmond, Va., on April 22. Peter Dziedzic and many other UVA alumni friends and family members attended. Cannady wrote, “The drag queen at the after-party did not believe that I was celebrating my 21st birthday (rude), but otherwise, a fun time was had by all.” The couple recently moved to Norfolk. Cannady was promoted to assistant general counsel for legal services with the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Cockrell is the safety and mission assurance director at NASA’s Langley Research Center.
Fox Rothschild partner Afi S. Johnson-Parris, right, was named chair-elect of the American Bar Association’s Law Practice Division, which teaches the business of practicing law through marketing, management, technology and finance to more than 27,000 members.
2003
Ilana Berry published her first novel, “The Peacock and the Sparrow,” with Altria Books, a division of Simon & Schuster. Berry served as a spy with the CIA for six years, living and working throughout the Middle East, Europe and the Balkans, with a year in Baghdad during the war. The novel—written under the pen name “I.S. Berry”—is a modern, literary tale of espionage set against the Arab Spring, and Berry said it’s based mainly on her own experiences as a spy.
Harold Johnson, right, partner and chair of Williams Mullen’s education practice, is co-hosting the podcast “Gavels & Gowns” with Micah B. Schwartz ’08, a partner in the firm’s labor, employment and immigration section. The podcast explores topics important to leaders of primary and secondary institutions and higher education.
Roscoe Jones Jr. was elected to the Council on Foreign Relations and named a fellow of the American Bar Foundation. Jones co-chairs Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s public policy group and is a core member of the congressional investigations practice in Washington, D.C.
2005
Megan F. Raymond joined Groombridge, Wu, Baughman & Stone as a partner in Washington, D.C., at the end of 2022. Founded late last year, the patent litigation firm, half of which is owned by women, has offices in New York and D.C. and approximately 25 attorneys. Raymond’s practice is focused on proceedings at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, although she also continues to try patent cases in district court and argues appeals before the federal circuit. She was elected secretary of the PTAB Bar Association this year and co-developed the association’s inaugural Women at the PTAB report on gender diversity in the association. She is the primary author of the “Post-Grant Proceedings Before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (Second Edition),” published in September.
2006
Tam Dinh joined Cantor Colburn as counsel in Hartford, Conn. Dinh has more than 15 years of domestic and foreign patent drafting, prosecution and counseling. His patent practice focuses on small molecules, proteins/polypeptides and polynucleotides, and he is also experienced with polymers, medical devices and analytical instruments.
2007
Alexander R. Hunt is a board-certified trial attorney in Florida. He practices with Goldman Daszkal in Deerfield Beach in the areas of personal injury, medical malpractice, wrongful death, class action, civil rights litigation, aviation and maritime law.
2008
The Los Angeles Business Journal featured Daniel Dubelman in its 2023 Leaders of Influence: Private Equity, Investors & Advisors special report in June. Dubelman is a partner with Massumi + Consoli, a boutique private equity-focused transactional firm.
Daniel J. Durst, right, is a partner with Williams Mullen in Richmond, Va. Durst advises high net-worth individuals, business owners and professionals with their estate planning needs, including the preparation of wills and trusts. He was named a fellow of the American College of Trusts and Estate Counsel in 2019 and has been listed in Best Lawyers in America for trusts and estates law since 2018.
Om Jahagirdar joined Amtrak as deputy general counsel, focusing on real estate and infrastructure. His work entails large capital projects related to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, such as New York’s Penn Station, Washington, D.C.’s Union Station and a series of rail projects to modernize the northeast corridor, known as the Gateway Program.
Rebecca E. Ivey was named a Pro Bono Service Honor Roll Member by the Virginia Access to Justice Commission after reporting 40 or more hours of pro bono service to the Virginia State Bar. Ivey practices with Williams Mullen in Richmond.
Micah B. Schwartz, right, a partner in Williams Mullen’s labor, employment and immigration section, is co-hosting the podcast “Gavels & Gowns” with Harold Johnson ’03, partner and chair of the firm’s education practice. The podcast explores topics important to leaders of primary and secondary institutions and higher education.
2009
Former federal prosecutor Eric Gerard joined Sorrels Law as a partner in Houston. His practice focuses on catastrophic injury, product liability and other complex litigation for injured plaintiffs. Gerard has received several honors and awards throughout his career, including being named a Texas Rising Star, one of Houston’s top personal injury lawyers by Houstonian Magazine, and a fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation and the Houston Bar Foundation.
Andrew Halbert was elevated to counsel with Fox Rothschild in Chicago. Halbert represents public and private clients, including cannabis companies, in a broad range of transactions.
Patrick McCann Jr. was named a Georgia Rising Star in Georgia Super Lawyers. McCann is a shareholder with Chamberlain Hrdlicka in Atlanta. He focuses on representing taxpayers at all stages of tax controversy, including examination, appeals and litigation. He also advises clients on various tax planning and restructuring matters designed to withstand future Internal Revenue Service scrutiny.
On Sept. 30, 2022, Paul Mysliwiec received the U.S. Attorney’s Award for the District of New Mexico. Awarded each year to one assistant U.S. attorney, the award acknowledges exemplary performance by a federal prosecutor.
In the year leading up to his selection, Mysliwiec conducted six federal jury trials, each featuring some COVID-19 protocols. While every jury trial is difficult, these trials were unusually challenging, ranging in subject matter from prohibited possession of a firearm by a foreign national, to attempted murder of a government witness, to cyberstalking by publishing “revenge porn,” to a two-week trial related to multimillion-dollar government contract fraud. Two of the trials were conducted in successive weeks, and one was a conflict case in a different state. During the same time, Mysliwiec continued to negotiate pleas for his other cases and investigate new crimes, including the attempted murder of a federal task force officer and several investigations into white supremacist groups.
