MoveMakers & NewsMakers June 7, 2019

June 7, 2019 - See who is making news and moving where in the weekly Missouri Bar update "MoveMakers & NewsMakers."

Kansas City Area

Copilevitz & Canter announces it is consolidating all of its operations into the Kansas City office, which currently has 50 employees. With the retirement of Washington, D.C. based partner Mackenzie Canter, long-time partners Greg Lam and Bill Raney will have their names added to the firm name which is now Copilevitz, Lam & Raney.

The firm was founded in 1977 by Errol Copilevitz and is located in the Crossroads District. It concentrates its practice on the representation of tax-exempt organizations and those who work with tax-exempt organizations and provides counsel for the telecommunication industry.

Armstrong Teasdale partner Karrie J. Clinkinbeard has been re-elected to the firm's executive committee for a three-year term. Clinkinbeard,managing attorney of the firm’s Kansas City office, is an experienced litigator with substantial trial experience across the Midwest including Oklahoma, Texas and Nebraska. A Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator, she focuses her practice on fire, explosion and electrocution litigation, toxic torts and catastrophic incidents, product liability, contract disputes, personal injury and life, health and disability matters.

Springfield Area

Carnahan, Evans, Cantwell & Brown, P.C. is pleased to announce that David K. Olive was recently selected to participate in Leadership Springfield Class 37. Leadership Springfield is a nine-month comprehensive community-based leadership program. Olive is an associate and member of the Transactional and Estate Planning Practice Groups of Carnahan, Evans, Cantwell & Brown, P.C. He concentrates his practice in the areas of tax planning, corporate transactions, employee benefits, medical marijuana, hemp, and business succession planning for family-owned businesses.  Olive received both his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Missouri in 2010 and 2013, respectively. While in law school, he was a founding member of the Tax Law Society at the University of Missouri School of Law. In 2014, Olive received his LL.M. in taxation from Washington University in St. Louis, where he earned the CALI Excellence Award for highest grades earned in Federal Tax Procedure & Corporate Taxation.Prior to joining the firm, Olive was a trust officer at two national trust companies, where he handled complex issues related to trust and estate settlement administration.Olive is a member of the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, the Springfield Metropolitan Bar Association and the American Bar Association (Tax Law Section).

St. Louis Area

Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C., is pleased to announce that Daniel R. Ritter has joined the firm’s St. Louis office as an associate in the employment and labor practice group.

“It is a pleasure to welcome Dan to Greensfelder,” said Kevin T. McLaughlin, an officer and leader of the firm’s employment and labor practice group. “Dan’s experience in all phases of litigation along with his working knowledge of federal regulations through his past work for the government give him a great background to help support our employment and labor clients.”

Ritter counsels and defends businesses and organizations on employment and labor law matters of all types, including litigation and disputes, as well as day-to-day counsel. He handles issues related to state and federal discrimination laws, employee agreements and policies, and human resources training, among other areas. He has represented employers in industries including manufacturing, health care, and energy. Separate from his employment and labor practice, Ritter has litigation experience in product liability, insurance and commercial actions.

Ritter also teaches an introductory course about U.S. law and methods as an adjunct professor at Washington University School of Law.

Prior to joining Greensfelder, Ritter was an associate at Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP. In addition, he has worked as an analyst and legal intern for several government agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Defense.

Ritter received his J.D. from Washington University School of Law and his Bachelor of Science (magna cum laude) from Truman State University.

The Jefferson College Faculty Senate recently selected Jennifer Collins Hansen as Jefferson College’s 2019 Alumna of the Year. She was presented the award during the college’s annual honors recognition ceremony, and she was also honored during the 54th annual commencement ceremonies held in May.

Hansen is a lawyer and owner of the Hansen Firm, LLC, which is dedicated to serving the interests of individuals and small business owners. Before opening her own firm, Hansen was a litigator at a large St. Louis firm.

She believes that her experience at Jefferson College taught her how to create a future for herself, because the college cared about her when she needed it most.

Hansen is a 1994 graduate of Windsor High School and 1996 graduate of Jefferson College. She completed her undergraduate degree in English literature from Missouri State University in 1998 before moving to Washington, D.C. to work as a press secretary for Linda Chavez, nominee for Secretary of Labor in the Bush administration. She returned to St. Louis to attend law school and received her law degree from Saint Louis University in 2004.

She has served on the board of directors for Jefferson College Foundation since 2014 and is currently its president. She also serves on the board of the St. Louis Area Diaper Bank.

Hansen and her husband, Justin, have a son, Van.

Alumnus of the Year Award recipients must have graduated from Jefferson College with a certificate or associate degree; achieved distinction in his/her chosen field of employment; been involved in community service; and are not presently serving as a trustee or an employee of Jefferson College.

Armstrong Teasdale partner Martha N. Hereford has been elected to the firm's executive committee for a three-year term. Hereford is a member of the firm’s corporate services practice group and provides immigration and naturalization services to businesses, families and individuals. She has an extensive background in providing all types of business immigration services for national and international corporations in a wide variety of industries, including agriculture, engineering, information technology, scientific research, finance, insurance, manufacturing, energy, higher education, health care and architecture. Her clients include multinational, publicly traded and closely held corporations, Fortune 500, as well as small to mid-sized companies. 

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