Dykema And Thirteen Of Its Members Ranked In Chambers USA

Press Releases

6.25.09

Bloomfield Hills, Chicago, Detroit

Dykema,a leading national law firm, announces that the firm and 13 of its Members have been recognized by Chambers USA, America’s Leading Business Lawyers 2009 as leading business attorneys in the states of Michigan and Illinois. Since 1990, Chambers has published the world’s leading guides to the legal profession and has built a reputation for in-depth, objective research. The qualities on which rankings are assessed include technical legal ability, professional conduct, client service, commercial astuteness, diligence, commitment, and other qualities most valued by clients.

Dykema is ranked as a leading firm in the following areas: Corporate/M&A; Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation; Labor & Employment; Litigation: General Commercial; and Real Estate.

J. Michael Bernard, who is the co-leader of Dykema’s Corporate Finance Practice Group, ranked as a leader in the Corporate/M&A-Michigan area. Mr. Bernard’s practice focuses primarily on business planning, general corporate and securities matters, with an emphasis on mergers and acquisitions, including asset purchases and stock purchases, representing both buyers and sellers, as well as recapitalizations; financing transactions, including private and public offerings of securities, secured and unsecured senior, mezzanine and subordinated debt facilities and seed and venture financings; corporate formation matters for emerging businesses, including shareholder control and buy-sell arrangements; and public company securities compliance and corporate governance, including directors' duties, periodic reporting, disclosure and corporate insider responsibilities for public companies. Mr. Bernard is a resident of Grosse Pointe.

James P. Feeney ranked as a leader in the Litigation: General Commercial-Michigan area. One of the nation’s most prominent automotive defense attorneys, he regularly tackles high-profile, high-stakes litigation matters as the "go to" attorney for the world’s largest automakers, equipment manufacturers and suppliers. During the course of his nearly 40-year career, he has appeared in over 1,500 cases, 70 of which have been tried to verdict. In addition to his experience with the automotive industry, a variety of companies from other industries, including pharmaceutical firms, medical device manufacturers and media companies, have relied on his litigation capabilities for their most complex matters. A resident of Birmingham, Mr. Feeney is a member of three invitation-only organizations - A Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers and a member of The American Board of Trial Advocates and the Product Liability Advisory Council.

Dennis M. Haffey, for years the Director of Dykema’s Litigation Department, ranked as a leader in the Litigation: General Commercial-Michigan area. His practice focuses on complex business litigation for both plaintiffs and defendants, at trial and appellate levels of state and federal courts, administrative agencies, arbitration and other forms of alternative dispute resolutions, with an emphasis on shareholder, partner and owner disputes, minority shareholder/owner oppression, deadlock, and dissolution; corporate mergers, acquisitions, and other transactions; dealer, distributor, agency and employment terminations; sales commission disputes; supply chain disputes; fraud, interference and other business torts; non-compete agreements and trade secrets; OEM, Tier I, Tier II and general automotive disputes; and fiduciary duty claims. Mr. Haffey is a resident of Bloomfield Hills.

Patrick F. Hickey ranked as a leader in the Litigation: General Commercial-Michigan area. He is a member of the firm’s Executive Board andhas over 20 years experience litigating commercial and employment matters in various state and federal trial and appellate courts in Michigan, and has appeared before courts and in arbitrations in many other states. He also has extensive experience in arbitrations, mediations, and other forms of alternative dispute resolution. Mr. Hickey’s litigation and arbitration experience includes matters involving non-compete agreements and other restrictive covenants, trade secrets, ERISA matters, discrimination and other employment claims, construction, commissions, UCC issues, post-acquisition disputes and general contract matters. Mr. Hickey is a resident of Farmington.

Margaret Adams Hunter ranked as a leader in the Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation-Michigan area. Ms. Hunter is the leader of Dykema’s Employee Benefits practice and Assistant Practice Group Leader of the Tax Department. She focuses on the design, implementation and administration of pension plans, welfare plans, fringe benefit plans, stock compensation plans and executive compensation arrangements for publicly owned, nonprofit and governmental employers. She also performs compliance audits on employee benefit plans and counsels clients regarding voluntary and involuntary compliance programs sponsored by the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Labor. She works closely with automotive suppliers in the negotiation of unfunded liability securitization claims by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Ms. Hunter is a resident of Bingham Farms.

Michael S. Kurtzon ranked as a leader in the Real Estate-Illinois category. He counsels institutional real estate lenders on a national basis in a variety of complex lending matters and regularly represents real estate development companies in residential and commercial construction and development projects, including mixed-use projects, land acquisitions and development, financing and documentation for condominiums and other for-sale housing projects. Mr. Kurtzon also represents real estate investors and owners in acquisitions and dispositions of properties, securitized debt financings, and negotiation of architectural and construction agreements, as well as landlords and tenants in leasing transactions. He is a resident of Evanston.

Seth M. Lloyd ranked as a leader in the Labor & Employment-Michigan category. Heis a member of both the Health Care practice group, which he headed for many years until 2001, and the Employment practice group. As a health care lawyer, Mr. Lloyd serves as principal outside counsel to a number of Michigan hospitals and health systems. He regularly represents hospitals in medical staff matters as well, including contested medical staff disciplinary hearings, and in litigation arising from credentialing disputes. He also represents health care providers in Civil False Claims Act investigations and litigation, in qui tam and whistleblower lawsuits, and in fraud and abuse matters. As an employment lawyer, Mr. Lloyd focuses his practice on representing employers in all kinds of employment litigation, including discrimination and harassment litigation. Because of his twin specialty of health care law, he often represents health care organizations faced with such litigation. Mr. Lloyd is a resident of Grosse Pointe Park.

Aleksandra A. Miziolek ranked as a leader in the Corporate/M&A-Michigan area. Ms. Miziolek currently serves as Director of Dykema’s Business Services Department and co-leader of the Infrastructure and Project Finance Industry Team, with an emphasis on Public Private Partnerships. She has extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions of public and privately held companies in the automotive, building supply, and transportation industries, among others. She has also counseled public clients in areas such as corporate governance and fiduciary duties. Ms. Miziolek has served as Chairperson and Council Member of the Business Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan. Ms. Miziolek is a native Detroiter and currently resides in Grosse Pointe Park.

Cameron H. Piggott ranked as a leader in the Real Estate-Michigan area. Mr. Piggott is Department Director of the Real Estate and Environmental Department and Practice Group Leader of the Real Estate Practice Group. He practices general real estate law, with an emphasis on commercial and residential development, leasing, construction, public/private projects, master planned communities, complex real estate transactions and eminent domain. Mr. Piggott has been involved in all aspects of complex real estate transactions, in which he has represented developers, users, lenders, health care systems, manufacturers, investors, municipalities and other public bodies. Mr. Piggott is a member of the American College of Real Estate Lawyers. He currently resides in Grosse Pointe Shores.

Paul R. Rentenbach ranked as a leader in the Corporate/M&A-Michigan area. Mr. Rentenbach has over 36 years of experience in corporate and municipal finance, mergers and acquisitions and capital raising for clients in a wide variety of industries, including automotive suppliers, retailers, technology providers and business services providers. From 1994 to 2002, Mr. Rentenbach served as Practice Group Leader or co-leader of the Firm's Corporate Finance Practice Group. For the past several years he has focused his practice on corporate transactions, corporate governance, mutual fund regulation and governance and representing clients in the financial services industry (including investment advisers, broker-dealers, investment bankers and hedge fund sponsors). Mr. Rentenbach is a resident of Grosse Pointe Park.

Joseph A. Ritok ranked as a leader in the Labor & Employment-Michigan area. He specializes in union-management relations and the defense of complex employment matters before federal and state agencies and courts throughout the United States. Mr. Ritok handles all employment and labor matters, including appearing before the National Labor Relations Board and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance. He is a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and a member of the Advisory Board of the Michigan Institute of Continuing Legal Education, American Bar Association, American Employment Law Council, Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, and State Bar of Michigan. Mr. Ritok currently resides in Grosse Pointe Park.

Ronald L. Rose ranked as a leader in the Banking & Finance: Bankruptcy-Michigan area. He is the former co-leader of the Bankruptcy practice group and is a member of the firm’s Real Estate Workout Team. He is a fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy. Mr. Rose’s experience includes bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, and commercial matters, covering issues arising under the Uniform Commercial Code and the Bankruptcy Code. He has represented parties in complex commercial and corporate transactions and in significant bankruptcy litigation. He has also represented trustees in bankruptcy proceedings and debtors, purchasers of assets, secured and unsecured creditors and unsecured creditors’ committees in both bankruptcy proceedings and out-of-court restructuring. Mr. Rose is a resident of Birmingham.

Daniel J. Schairbaum ranked as an up-and-coming attorney in the Real Estate-Michigan area. He advises clients in all aspects of commercial real estate transactions, including acquisition, disposition, development, leasing, zoning, land use and management. Mr. Schairbaum also represents general contractors and owners in design and construction law matters. He is active in a number of professional associations including the State Bar of Michigan Public Outreach Committee, the Urban Land Institute, the International Council of Shopping Centers, the Ann Arbor Chamber of Commerce, and the American Bar Association. Mr. Schairbaum is a resident of Ann Arbor.