Dickinson Wright is pleased to announce the election of 21 new member attorneys of the firm, effective January 1, 2023.
"Congratulations to this year's class of new members on this well-deserved honor. Each attorney brings unique and valuable qualities, perspectives, and skills that they have developed throughout their legal career. We are honored and proud of their accomplishments and thrilled that they are now members," says Michael Hammer, CEO of Dickinson Wright.
Below is Dickinson Wright's new member attorneys for 2023:
Nathan Armaniniis a Member in the firm's Columbus office. He practices in the area of corporate law, providing counsel to public, private, for-profit and nonprofit organization and company clients on a variety of corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions, entity formation, reorganizations, commercial contracts, and corporate governance, across a wide range of industries. He is recognized as a leader in his field byBest Lawyers in America "Ones to Watch".Nathan received his B.S. from The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business and his J.D. from the University of Cincinnati College of Law.
David Beckeris a Member in the firm's Chicago office. He is an intellectual property litigator and trial lawyer who represents his clients in cases involving patent, trademark, and copyright infringement, false advertising claims, trade-secret disputes, and enforcing or, where necessary, avoiding non-compete and non-solicitation agreements. He also represents clients and counsels them in a wide variety of employment matters. He has been recognized as a leader in his field byBenchmark LitigationandSuper Lawyers. David received his B.A. from the University of Rochester and his J.D. from DePaul University College of Law.
Juliet Boydis a Member in the firm's Troy office. She focuses her practice in the area of probate litigation. She is recognized as a leader in her field byBest Lawyers in America "Ones to Watch". Juliet received her B.A. from Wayne State University and her J.D. from Michigan State University College of Law.
Heather Frayreis a Member in the firm's El Paso office. Her immigration practice primarily involves matters tied to the recruitment, hire, transfer, and retention of international workers. She counsels corporate and individual clients on a full range of immigration matters including non-immigrant visas, permanent residency, and citizenship as well as issues tied to worksite compliance. She is recognized as a leader in her field byChambers USA, Best Lawyers in America "Ones to Watch", and Texas Super Lawyers Rising Stars. Heather received her B.A. from the University of Kansas and her J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center.
Deborah Germanyis a Member in the firm's Detroit office. She maintains a multidisciplinary practice consisting of banking and finance, mergers and acquisitions, and corporate restructuring. Deborah is experienced in a variety of financing transactions and represents both borrower and banks, middle-market lenders, and non-bank lenders. She specializes in asset based lending and cash flow lending. She advises clients from the earliest stages of financial covenant structuring, due diligence, and documenting credit facilities to work outs and collecting on asset-based loans. Her clients and deals span all platforms, industries and asset types. Deborah regularly advises companies concerning mergers and acquisitions transactions, joint ventures and strategic alliances. She manages the structuring, negotiations and deal flow of M&A deals across a variety of industries. In addition, she counsels private and not-for-profit corporations on the full range of governance issues, including governance structure and culture, fiduciary duties, risk oversight, conflicts of interest, board and committee structure, board leadership and governance "best practices." She is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, the Wolverine Bar Association, the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, the Macomb County Bar Association, the Detroit Young Professionals, and the Detroit Economic Club – Young Leaders Section. Deborah received her B.A. from the University of Michigan and her J.D. from Wayne State University Law School.
Frank Borger Gilliganis a Member of the Corporate, Securities and M&A Practice Group in the firm's Nashville office. He regularly advises clients in structuring and executing public and private securities offerings, private equity, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and corporate governance matters. He also advises clients on securities regulatory and compliance matters, blue sky laws, and raising capital through Regulation A+ and Regulation D and other exemptions from federal securities registration requirements. Frank has extensive experience preparing and reviewing SEC reports on Forms 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, 1-K, 1-SA and 1-U. Frank is also a member of the firm's cannabis practice group where he helps clients raise capital and properly structure their securities offerings in the constantly evolving legal and regulatory landscape.
Adam Grantis a Member in the firm's Detroit office. His practice is devoted entirely to litigation, with emphasis in the areas of commercial litigation and real estate/landlord-tenant litigation. He also has significant experience in the areas of financial services litigation and products liability litigation. He is admitted to practice in Michigan and Illinois and has previously been recognized as a leader in his field as a "Rising Star" byMichigan Super Lawyers. Adam received his B.A. from the University of Michigan and his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School.
Tony Greeris a Member in the firm's Nashville office. He practices in the area of insurance regulatory law, with particular emphasis on traditional life, health, and property and casualty insurers, as well as captives, risk retention groups, and self-insurance funds. He also has experience working on state securities and professional employer organization matters. Tony has also practiced in the areas of state and federal taxation. He is recognized as a leader in his field byCaptive International US. Prior to going into private practice, he worked for the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance. Tony received his B.A. from Vanderbilt University; his J.D. from Samford University Cumberland School of Law; and his LL.M. in Taxation from New York University.
Dino Hadzibegovicis a Member in the firm's Silicon Valley office. His practice focuses on patent and trademark litigation, patent portfolio analysis and due diligence. He has represented plaintiffs and defendants in cases related to mobile platform architectures, networking, semiconductors, wireless technology and telecommunication standards, satellite programming transmissions, televisions, network security and airline booking systems. He has been involved in all aspects of litigation from portfolio analysis and pre-filing investigations through trials, post-trial motions and appeals. Dino received his B.S. in Computer Science from Georgia Institute of Technology and his J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law.
Brian Kocakis a Member in the firm's Columbus office. He practices corporate transactional and real estate law, with an emphasis on general corporate law, mergers, acquisitions, dispositions, finance, and business development. He provides counsel to developers, individual landowners, small and medium-sized businesses, and financial institutions for all matters related to the purchase, sale, financing, and development of commercial, residential, and mixed-use real estate projects. He is a member of the Ohio State Bar Association, the Columbus Bar Association, and the Urban Land Institute. Brian received his B.S. from The Ohio State University, Austin E. Knowlton School of Architecture and his J.D. from Capital University Law School.
Lucie Kroumovais a Partner in the firm's Toronto office. She focuses her practice on corporate, securities and gaming law matters, including merger and acquisition transactions (domestic and cross-border), private and public equity and debt financings, secured lending, strategic alliances, complex commercial arrangements, corporate governance and continuous disclosure matters for public and private companies. She is also engaged with iGaming clients in relation to licensing, compliance, marketing initiatives and regulatory matters. Lucie is a member of the Canadian and Ontario Bar Associations and the Law Society of Upper Canada. She received her LL.B. from Osgoode Hall Law School.
Sung (Sungwook) Leeis a Member in the firm's Ann Arbor office. He has experience in various aspects of patent and trademark practices including patent and trademark application preparation, patent and trademark prosecution, and patent and trademark litigation. Further, his patent practice focuses on mechanical and electro-mechanical structures such as automotive components, power systems, semiconductors, medical devices, and office products. He is recognized as a leader in his field byBest Lawyers in America "Ones to Watch". Sungwook received his B.S. from KAIST, his M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan, and his J.D. from Wayne State University Law School.
Logan Mayfieldis a Member in the firm's Lexington office. His practice focuses on matters relating to complex business and commercial litigation. He is recognized as a leader in his field byKentucky Super Lawyers Rising Stars, Best Lawyers in America® "Ones to Watch",andThe Legal 500. He is a member of the Federal Bar Association, the Kentucky Bar Association, and the Fayette County Bar Association. Logan received his B.A. from the University of Kentucky and his J.D. from the University of Kentucky College of Law.
Christine Pirikis a Member in the firm's Columbus office. As an attorney with over 31 years in public service, her tenure with the state of Ohio included 18 years of executive management experience, including seven years as Chief of Staff and nine years as Deputy Legal Director for the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio and the Ohio Power Siting Board. In her various roles as a regulator, Chris was involved in most of the major energy regulatory issues Ohio faced in the last decades. She now brings that experience and perspective to bear on behalf of the Firm's private sector clients. Her clients include solar developers, including utility-scale, small-scale, and distributed generation solar developers, offshore and terrestrial wind developers, natural gas pipeline companies, and retail electric and gas governmental aggregators. Chris received her B.A. from Otterbein University and her J.D. from Capital University Law School.
James Purringtonis a Member in the firm's Troy office. He is an intellectual property attorney who assists clients with patent application preparation and prosecution worldwide, including experience in the following technologies: power electronics, automotive systems and equipment including safety systems, lighting, brakes, suspension, motors and motor control techniques, electric and hybrid vehicle powertrain systems, optics and optoelectronic devices, display technologies, sensing and sensor data processing. He is a member of the State Bar of Michigan and the Michigan Intellectual Property Law Association. James received his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Michigan Technological University and his J.D. from Western Michigan University Thomas M. Cooley Law School.
Christopher Ryanis a Member in the firm's Ann Arbor office. He is a civil litigator with a special focus on the healthcare industry and co-chairs the firm's healthcare litigation task force. For over a decade, Chris has represented businesses, physicians, hospitals, and insurance companies in a wide range of litigation matters and in all phases of litigation. He has assisted clients in matters of medical malpractice, licensing investigations, breach of contract, medical staff issues, billing investigations and audits (including RAC audits) and employment. He is recognized as a leader in his field byMichigan Super Lawyers Rising Starsand AV Preeminent Rated byMartindale-Hubbell. Christopher received his B.B.A from Western Michigan University Haworth College of Business and his J.D. from Michigan State University College of Law.
Alma Sobois a Member in the firm's Troy office. Ms. Sobo focuses her practice in the areas of commercial and business litigation, consumer protection, municipal law, and class actions. Ms. Sobo has represented clients through all phases of litigation, including pre-litigation dispute resolution, complex civil discovery practice, mediation, trials, appeals, and enforcement of judgment. Ms. Sobo was selected as aMichigan Super Lawyers"Rising Star" in business litigation in 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022. Ms. Sobo also received theBest Lawyers in America's 2023 "Ones to Watch"award in commercial litigation and municipal law. Ms. Sobo received her B.A. from the University of Michigan, cum laude, and her J.D. from Wayne State University Law School, cum laude. Ms. Sobo is fluent in Bosnian, Croatian, and Spanish.
Cindy Villanuevais a Member in the firm's Phoenix office. She practices in the areas of domestic and international trademark and copyright prosecution, licensing, enforcement, and litigation. She assists clients with brand development and with identifying various protectable aspects of the clients' products, services and concepts. She also helps clients with clearing all aspects of advertising, promotional and marketing materials and products, including trademark, copyright and right of publicity clearances. She is recognized as a leader in her field byBest Lawyers in America, Southwest Super Lawyers, Phoenix Business Journal, Profiles in Diversity Journal, Hispanic National Bar Association, and Los Abogados Latino Bar Association. Cindy received her B.A. from the University of California, Irvine and her J.D. from the University of California at Los Angeles School of Law.
Brooks Westergardis a Member in the firm's Reno office. His practice is focused on commercial litigation. He served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Justice James W. Hardesty of the Supreme Court of Nevada. After completing his clerkship with Justice Hardesty, he served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Judge Howard D. McKibben of the United States District Court, District of Nevada. He is recognized as a leader in his field byMountain State Super Lawyers Rising StarsandNevada Business Legal Elite. Brooks received his B.A. from the University of Nevada, Reno and his J.D. from Willamette University College of Law.
Holly Zoeis a Member in the firm's Phoenix office. Her practice centers on real estate and corporate matters with an emphasis on socially good projects in the spaces of renewable energy, healthcare, not-for-profits, and small- and mid-sized family owned businesses. Holly serves as an advocate, advisor, and counselor for her clients with respect to a wide range of issues including project development deal negotiation and acquisition, formation and governance, finance and restructuring, real estate acquisition and disposition, land use and zoning matters, and general business matters. Holly is admitted to practice in Arizona and Michigan. She is recognized as a leader in her field byBest Lawyers in America "Ones to Watch". Holly received her B.S. from Michigan State University and her J.D. from Arizona State University.
Alexandre Zuccois a Member in the firm's Grand Rapids office. He is an estate planning attorney focused on advising clients on the design of customized estate plans. In addition to estate planning, Alex also has experience in advising personal representatives, trustees, and beneficiaries in the administration of probate estates and various types of trusts. Alex is recognized as a leader in his field byBest Lawyers in America "Ones to Watch", Michigan Super Lawyers Rising Stars, andGrand Rapids Magazine, and is a member of the Board of Directors for Western Michigan Estate Planning Council. Alex received his B.A. from Michigan State University (James Madison College) and his J.D. from Wayne State University Law School.