MoveMakers & NewsMakers for February 6, 2019

Feb. 6, 2019 - See who is making news and moving where in the weekly Missouri Bar update "MoveMakers & NewsMakers."

Kansas City Area

Polsinelli shareholder Greg Kratofil, Jr. has been honored by Missouri Lawyers Weekly with the 2019 Influential Lawyers Award, which recognizes Missouri lawyers who have made substantial contributions to the legal community this year. Kratofil is recognized for his ongoing support of the tech industry and his advocacy efforts resulting in the passage of a new state law boosting education requirements in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). He is one of the original founders of the KC Tech Council and has played an integral role in the planning and advancement of tech issues in Missouri. As chair of Polsinelli’s technology transactions and data privacy practice, Kratofil works with a wide variety of cutting-edge solutions and services, and is a recognized leader in the health care technology and information securities industries. Kratofil was one of the first Kansas City lawyers to develop a portfolio of start-up tech companies and has been integral in Kansas City’s start-up community, assisting entrepreneurs with venture capital financing, copyright and trademark protection, software development and licensing. At Polsinelli, he leads a team of tech attorneys with one of the top practices in financial technology, healthcare technology, and privacy and cybersecurity in the country.

Dave White was honored to receive the 2019 Excellence Award from the National Conference of Bar Foundations at its mid-year meeting in January. He was recognized for his dedication and leadership of the Military Matters program for the KC Metro Bar Foundation. Military Matters provides pro bono legal services to veterans and those on active duty in the KC Metro area.

The American College of Bankruptcy (ACB) has selected Husch Blackwell partner John Cruciani as a Fellow in its 30th class, which will be inducted into the ACB in March 2019. The American College of Bankruptcy was formed in 1989 and has over 800 Fellows, each selected by a Board of Regents from among recommendations received from the Circuit Admissions Council in each federal judicial circuit. Cruciani’s nomination was forwarded by the ACB’s Eighth Circuit nominating committee. Each Fellow must meet the Regents’ high standards for selection, including the highest professional qualifications, ethics and scholarship. ACB members include judges, lawyers, international fellows, accountants, corporate turnaround specialists, government officials and other professionals who are experts in the field of bankruptcy and insolvency. Based in Kansas City, Cruciani leads Husch Blackwell’s insolvency and commercial bankruptcy team, counseling debtors, creditors, trustees, and buyers of distressed assets. He becomes the fourth Husch Blackwell partner to be inducted into the ACB, joining Gary Barnes (class of 2008), retired partner Benjamin Mann (class of 2014), and former partner Christopher Redmond (class of 2002). According to the ACB’s website, only 22 ACB Fellows hail from the state of Missouri.“The College adheres to rigorous standards for selecting its Fellows and is generally considered the hall of fame for insolvency professionals,” said Barnes. “John has demonstrated over many years that his practice is among the very best, and I couldn’t be more proud that John is now a member of the College.”

Distinguished family law attorney Christine Pina Rosengreen has merged her Kansas City-area practice with that of Joseph, Hollander & Craft LLC, a 17-lawyer firm serving clients throughout Missouri and Kansas through its offices in Overland Park, Lawrence, Topeka and Wichita. Rosengreen’s family law practice concentrates on divorce, paternity, custody and support modification, guardianship, guardian ad litem, and adoptions.

“This is our second merger in Kansas City and our fourth overall since 2016,” said Julia A. Craft, chair of the firm’s family law division. “We’ve been fortunate to attract top-notch talent from area firms as we are expanding all practice sectors across the firm. Christine has been a life-long advocate for children and families and is a certified family law mediator for the state of Missouri. She’s highly regarded among the Kansas City area bar and regularly teaches continuing legal education seminars on guardian ad litem practice and procedures. We’re extremely pleased to have her legal expertise as part of our team.”

“This merger is an extremely good fit for my firm and my clients,” Rosengreen added. “Joseph, Hollander & Craft is widely respected for its aggressive representation of clients, and that is exactly what vulnerable children and families need as they navigate through the courts and foster care systems of Missouri and Kansas.”

Early in her career, Rosengreen represented clients in criminal and family matters in Iowa. She returned to the Kansas City area to serve as law clerk to Judge Vernon E. Scoville, III, in the Jackson County Sixteenth Circuit Court of Missouri. She later worked as a staff attorney for Jackson County CASA, representing the best interests of children as a guardian ad litem, a role she continued after returning to private practice in 2013.

Rosengreen is a graduate of the University of Kansas School of Law where she was active in defending indigent clients through the Paul E. Wilson Project for Innocence and Post-Conviction Remedies and served as vice president of KU’s Women in Law organization.

She is a member of the Kansas City Metro Bar Association, The Missouri Bar and the Kansas Bar Association.

St. Louis Area

The Association of Corporate Counsel - St. Louis Chapter (ACC STL), the pre-eminent professional development organization serving in-house counsel, elected its 2019 Officers and Board of Directors.

The 2019 ACC STL leadership team includes:

• President: Chrissy Teske, Senior Attorney, Commerce Bancshares, Inc.
• President-Elect: Brian Parsons, Senior Counsel, Macy’s Inc.
• Secretary: John Rebman, Sr., Corporate Counsel, Regulatory Law & Policy, Monsanto Company
• Treasurer: Sven Fickeler, Senior Corporate Counsel, Bunzl Distribution USA, LLC
• Immediate Past President and Co-Sponsorship Chair: Toni Douaihy, Vice President, Assistant General Counsel, Macy’s Inc.
• Advocacy Co-Chair: Barbara Barrett, Chief Compliance Officer, Reliant Care Management Company
• Advocacy Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: John Farmer, Vice President Litigation, Charter Communications
• Communications Chair and Director-at-Large: Danielle Langeneckert, Director, Contract Design, The Resource Group
• Corporate Counsel Institute Chair: Ty Ulmer, Chief Counsel, The Boeing Company
• Diversity Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Tamee Reese, Assistant Vice President Senior Legal Counsel, AT&T Mobility & Entertainment
• Diversity Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Denise Whitener, Managing Counsel, Wells Fargo Law Department
• General Counsel Forum Co-Chair: Kate Molamphy, General Counsel, ICL Americas
• General Counsel Forum Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Erika Schenk, General Counsel & Vice President of Compliance, World Wide Technologies
• Annual Golf / Spa Event Co-Chair: Peter Barkofske, Associate General Counsel, Graybar Electric Company, Inc.
• Annual Golf / Spa Event Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Jay Repaso, Manager Legal Services, Mastercard
• Law School Relations Chair and Director-at-Large: Kate Krebel, Corporate Counsel, DRS Technologies, Inc.
• Membership Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Beverly Garner, Associate General Counsel, Bunge N.A.
• Membership Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Jennifer Feldhaus, Vice President, Associate General Counsel, Maritz
• PAN – Labor & Employment Chair: Latieke Lyles, Counsel, Macy’s Inc.
• Pro Bono Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Patricia Duft, Vice President, Legal, Medtronics
• Pro Bono Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Paula Finlay, Assistant Vice President – Senior Legal Counsel-Labor & Employment, AT&T
• Program Chair and Director-at-Large: Jennifer Herner, Associate General Counsel, World Wide Technology
• Professional Development and Director-at-Large: Sharhonda Shahid, Vice President, Fleishman-Hillard, Inc.
• Social Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Nancy McCahan, Managing General Counsel, Sugar Creek Capital
• Social Co-Chair and Director-at-Large: Margy Weisman, Assistant General Counsel, ESCO Technologies
• Sponsorship Co-Chair: Kristol Simms, Corporate Counsel, Ameren
• Past President Committee Chair: Christopher Goddard, Assistant Vice Chancellor and Associate General Counsel, Washington University

Haar & Woods, LLP is pleased to announce that Jozef Kopchick has become a partner in the firm, where his practice will continue to focus on business litigation, professional liability defense, and appellate litigation. Kopchick graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School in 2011. He also holds a degree in history from Yale University.

Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C., is pleased to announce the elevation of St. Louis-based lawyers Keith K. Grissom, Carson Maricle and Jennifer L. Therrien to officer, effective Feb. 1.

“We congratulate Keith, Carson and Jennifer as our new Officers at the firm,” said Timothy R. Thornton, Greensfelder's chief executive officer. “Our clients and our firm benefit greatly from their contributions across diverse practice areas including business services, construction, and trusts and estates.”

A member of Greensfelder’s trusts and estates practice group, Grissom counsels businesses and individuals on matters including estate planning and closely-held business succession planning. His experience includes addressing income, estate, generation-skipping transfer and gift tax issues related to estate planning and trust administration. In addition, he has experience in business entity formation, mergers and acquisitions, real estate and other tax issues, including tax structuring and controversy.

Grissom received his J.D. from Suffolk University Law School. He also holds a master of laws in taxation from Washington University School of Law and a bachelor of science from the University of Central Missouri.

Maricle is a member of the firm’s business services practice group, focusing on general corporate and financial transactional matters, particularly in mergers and acquisitions, debt refinancing and the representation of start-up companies. He also has experience in the areas of taxation and estate planning law.

Maricle received his J.D. (cum laude) from Southern Illinois University Law School. He also holds a master of laws from Washington University School of Law and a bachelor of arts from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

A member of Greensfelder’s construction practice group, Therrien represents owners, contractors, specialty contractors and suppliers for claims relating to contract disputes, delay, wrongful termination and errors and omissions. She also handles contracts drafting, review and negotiations, as well as day-to-day client counseling. In addition, she is a member of Greensfelder’s cross-disciplinary e-discovery team.

Therrien received her J.D. (magna cum laude) from Washington University School of Law and her bachelor of science in business administration (magna cum laude) from Washington University in St. Louis.

Other Areas

Gregory (Greg) R. Jones, an associate in the personal injury group at Goldenberg Heller & Antognoli, P.C., was the first-place winner in the 2019 Lincoln Award Legal Writing Contest sponsored by the Illinois Bar Journal editorial board and Young Lawyers Division. His article, “General and Boilerplate Objections: Curbing Routine Abuse of the Discovery Process,” appears in the current issue of the Illinois Bar Journal.

At Goldenberg Heller, one of the most experienced personal injury and business and commercial litigation firms in the St. Louis-Southern Illinois region, Jones’ practice focuses on representing plaintiffs who have been harmed by negligent acts of others. He specializes in personal injury litigation, workers’ compensation, medical malpractice, and products liability. He joined Goldenberg Heller as an associate in 2017.

He graduated from Washington University School of Law where he worked as a research assistant for Associate Dean for Clinical Education and Professor of Law Robert R. Kuehn. While earning his law degree, he contributed extensive hours of pro bono work to the St. Louis County Counselor’s Office and the St. Clair County Public Defender’s Office. At commencement, he was recognized for his outstanding commitment to public service.He earned his bachelor of science in business administration degree from Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis in 2012.

Polsinelli shareholder R. Dan Boulware has been honored by Missouri Lawyers Weekly with the 2019 Influential Lawyers Award, which recognizes Missouri lawyers who have made substantial contributions to the legal community this year.

Boulware is a shareholder and serves as managing partner of Polsinelli’s St. Joseph office. As a trial lawyer, he focuses on commercial litigation. Boulware is being recognized for his representation of 372 property owners in the Ideker Farms et al v. United States of America class-action suit stemming from the Army Corps of Engineers’ management of the Missouri River. A Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, Boulware is recognized by his peers to be among the top one percent of all trial attorneys in the country. He has served as lead trial counsel for many large, high-profile cases and has recovered millions of dollars for his clients through trial and settlement throughout his career. He was recently honored with the prestigious Purcell Professionalism Award (2018) by the Missouri Bar Foundation.

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