2010s Class Notes

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2010

James Blake Bailey was promoted to partner with Bradley Arant Boult Cummings in the firm’s Birmingham, Ala., office. Bailey is a member of Bradley’s bankruptcy, restructuring and distressed investing practice group. He represents debtors and creditors in bankruptcy, out of-court workouts and restructurings, and bankruptcy-related litigation. He also regularly represents commercial lenders and mortgage servicers in federal court commercial litigation.

Ingrid Bohme '10Ingrid Bohme was promoted to director at Cohen & Grigsby, where she is a member of the firm’s litigation group. Bohme focuses her complex commercial litigation practice on disputes over trade secrets, unfair competition, procurement law, mergers and acquisitions, and shareholder rights. She is based in Pittsburgh.

Miami-based immigration lawyer Patricia Cooper’s touching story has been in the news in recent months. Cooper’s 70-year-old father was suffering from end-stage liver disease. “On Dec. 5, [Cooper] donated more than half her liver to her father, an obstetrician who 34 years earlier had personally brought her into this world,” according to a Washington Post story. “It wasn’t even a choice. It’s my dad. Of course I’m going to do this,” she said. “I knew the mental anguish of him dying and me thinking I could have done something to save his life was going to be worse than any physical pain.” Cooper gave him the entire right lobe of her liver, about 59 percent of her own organ. Both patients are doing well and expected to make a full recovery. Cooper is an associate with Gerstein & Gerstein and a former attorney advisor with the U.S. Department of Justice at the Miami Immigration Court.

David Gettings '10David Gettings was elected partner at Troutman Sanders in Virginia Beach, Va. Gettings represents national and multinational clients in federal and state court. He specializes in class-action lawsuit defense, complex commercial litigation, consumer law and regulatory compliance. This includes defending corporations in class-action litigation under federal consumer protection statutes, financial regulations and state equivalents.

Ulrich Klockenbrink LL.M. '10Ulrich Klockenbrink LL.M. was promoted to counsel with Latham & Watkins in the Hamburg, Germany, office. Klockenbrink is a member of the firm’s finance department and advises investors, lenders and distressed companies in restructuring, insolvency and refinancing situations. He has particular industry experience in automotive, manufacturing, logistics, trade, service and finance.

Daniel Sullivan '10Daniel Sullivan was promoted to partner at Gentry Locke in Roanoke, Va. Sullivan practices on the firm’s business litigation team. His litigation experience includes business, insurance, product liability and professional liability lawsuits.

2011

Mary Ayer Robinson '11Mary Ayer Robinson and Daniel Aaron Hervig were married in Asheville, N.C., on June 10. Robinson Hervig was recognized as a board certified specialist in estate planning by the North Carolina State Bar. She practices with Roberts & Stevens in Asheville and focuses on assisting clients with advance medical directives, powers of attorney, wills and trusts, including tax planning. Robinson Hervig also assists with the administration of estates and trusts in the state.

W. Hall Carter Jr. '11W. Hall Carter Jr. was promoted to counsel with Sands Anderson in Richmond, Va. Carter focuses his practice on estate planning, estate and trust administration, tax-related matters, elder law issues and corporate law.

Jeree Thomas released her first national report with the Campaign for Youth Justice. According to the report, “Raising the Bar: State Trends in Keeping Youth Out of Adult Courts (2015-2017),” since 2005, 36 states have passed 70 positive pieces of legislation to keep youth from the adult system. The number of youth under 18 automatically excluded from juvenile court has been nearly cut in half. The number is expected to drop again in 2020 when additional states implement their laws passed in 2016 and 2017. Thomas is the policy director for the Campaign for Youth Justice, based in Washington, D.C.

2013

Peter V. Hilton self-published a fantasy novel, “A King for Ravens,” as P. Vincent Horta.

Nicole Jackson Leslie and her husband, Greg, welcomed their first child, Cameron Alexander, in April 2017. Jackson Leslie is a wealth management associate at Choate, Hall & Stewart in Boston. Her husband is a chief resident of the Internal Medicine Program at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, Mass. They said they look forward to their child’s first trip to Charlottesville.

Tayler Tibbitts and his wife, Kayla, live in Boise, Idaho, with their four children—welcoming their first daughter last year. Tibbitts manages statewide operations for NexTitle, a title and escrow company, which has a strong presence in the Northwest. Tibbitts also recently launched a technology company developing mobile applications for elk and turkey hunting. He writes that he finally has “a ‘business’ reason to spend time out and about in the woods.”

2014

Corbin Blackford and his wife, Kristin (Comm ’06, Darden ’14), finished working on their family restaurant’s 40th anniversary cookbook, “Perfectly Aged: 40 Years of Recipes and Stories from the Taste of Texas.” The 200-plus page, hardcover coffee-table style cookbook is filled with photographs from Houston’s top food photographer, features favorite recipes and tells the story of Texas Independence through the artifacts found in the restaurant’s Texas History museum. More information can be found at tasteoftexascookbook.com.

Ronika J. Carter '14Ronika J. Carter joined the intellectual property practice at Watson in Orlando, Fla. Carter counsels clients involved in IP transactions, corporate transactions, sports law and video game law.

Jacob Hasler '14Jacob Hasler joined Miller Nash Graham & Dunn in Portland, Ore., where he focuses on general business and corporate law. He was previously with Richards, Layton & Finger in Wilmington, Del.

In October, William Woodrow and his law partner, Thatcher Stone ’82, won a large jury award in the U.S. District Court for Nevada in Lewis v. Delta Airlines Inc. Woodrow writes, “This case was the first complaint that I wrote out of law school, the first summary judgment that I successfully defended and argued two years later, and the first jury trial that I led and won with my law partner.” Woodrow continued, “I’m very thankful for the top-notch preparation at UVA and the many fantastic professors who made our victory possible.”

2015

Alexander E. Matthews '15Alexander E. Matthews joined Eckert Seamans in their Washington, D.C., office and aviation group. His practice focuses on aviation regulatory and policy matters. Matthews has drafted filings for regulatory proceedings before a number of federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration and Department of Homeland Security.

Shannon Hayes '15Shannon Hayes joined Morgan, Lewis & Bockius as an associate in the investment management practice group in New York City. Hayes was also appointed to the board of directors for the Children’s Rescue Mission (crmission.org), which works to break the poverty cycle in Honduras through relief initiatives, education and empowerment. The organization has a holistic approach to helping children by also helping the society they live in. Hayes has volunteered with the group for two years. She’s also been invited to speak about women’s empowerment for a series in New York City later this year.

2016

Patrick B. Piccolo joined Blankingship & Keith’s civil litigation practice as an associate in Fairfax, Va. After graduation, Piccolo completed a clerkship with Judge Daniel Ortiz of the Fairfax County Circuit Court. He has done pro bono work for the Legal Aid Justice Center and is currently a youth ministry volunteer for St. Theresa Parish in Ashburn, Va.

2017

Amanda M. Leon '17Amanda M. Leon joined Caplin & Drysdale as an associate in the private client and tax controversy groups in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office.

Joseph Sparco '17Joseph Sparco joined Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell as an associate in the corporate and business litigation group in Wilmington, Del.

Millard V. “M.V.” Young '17Millard V. “M.V.” Young is an associate in Maynard Cooper’s corporate, securities and tax practice and a member of several related teams, including the mergers and acquisitions, securities regulation and corporate finance, and family business practices. Young is resident in the Birmingham, Ala., office.