Class Action - October '22

John J. Giardino III ’82 has become a partner with Pryor Cashman in the firm’s litigation group in the New York City office. He was previously managing partner with Michelman & Robinson LLP in New York City, where he resides.

Hon. Mark A. Montour ’83 has been appointed an associate justice of the New York State Supreme Court, Appellate Division, 4^th Department, in Buffalo. Montour is the first Native American justice to serve in the state's Appellate Division. He previously served as a New York State Supreme Court justice, 8^th Judicial District, in Niagara Falls, N.Y. Montour is a resident of Lancaster, N.Y.

Brian C. Mahoney ’87 has become a partner with Lippes Mathias LLP in Buffalo, where he resides. Mahoney practices in the areas of sports, entertainment & hospitality, litigation, and government & state attorneys general investigations.

Brian M. Martin ’88 is a lecturer in law at Stanford Law School in Stanford, Calif., teaching a course on the role of the general counsel. Martin is executive vice president and general counsel with Lyten Inc., an advanced materials start-up company in Sunnyvale, Calif. He lives in Pleasanton, Calif.

Mason P. Ashe ’89 received the Wharton Teaching Excellence Award from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania for his teaching legal studies and business ethics. Ashe is founder/CEO of Ashe Sports & Entertainment Consulting in Washington, D.C. He is a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council and past recipient of the UB Law Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumnus Award for business. Ashe resides in Leesburg, Va.

Martin Sanchez ’90 is director of Human Resources & EEO officer with GLSEN in New York, N.Y. GLSEN is an education organization working to end discrimination, harassment, and bullying based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression and to prompt LGBT cultural inclusion and awareness in K-12 schools. Sanchez lives in New Rochelle, N.Y.

Elizabeth Kim ’94 was promoted to director, Office of Ocean and Polar Affairs, with the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. She is a resident of Bethesda, Md.

Jonathan S. Beane ’98 has joined the advisory council for Ready Life, an innovative fintech platform with a suite of financial tools that empower individuals to create and preserve generational wealth, co-founded by Dr. Bernice A. King, daughter of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Beane, senior vice president, chief diversity and inclusion officer with the National Football League, will help champion financial education and wealth-building among athletes. He is a past recipient of the UB Law Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumnus Award for business and a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council. Beane lives in White Plains, N.Y.

Erin C. Duggan Pemberton ’01 was named to the executive council of the Nebraska State Bar Association. She is a managing partner with Wolfe Snowden in Lincoln, Neb., where she resides.

Melissa A. Potzler ’02 (J.D.) ’04 (LL.M) has become chief compliance officer, child protection policy coordinator and in-house counsel with the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo. She is a resident of Orchard Park, N.Y.

Lucille A. Dadd ’04 has become chief legal talent and development officer with Harter Secrest & Emery LLP in the Rochester, N.Y., office. She previously served as director of legal talent and development with the firm. Dadd lives in Lima, N.Y.

Nicole R. Hart ’05 of New Rochelle, N.Y., was named general counsel and chief compliance officer with Lighthouse Guild, a not-for-profit vision and health care organization in New York City. She was most recently managing director of the trusts and estates department with Wealthspire Advisors LLC in New York City.

Michael R. Hernandez ’08 has become New York policy director with Rewiring America in Albany, N.Y., the leading electrification nonprofit. Hernandez previously served as director, intergovernmental relations, with the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, in Albany, where he resides.

Siana J. McLean ’10 has become of counsel with the immigration firm Richards and Jurusik in the Buffalo office. She is also a solo practitioner in St. Catharines, Ont., Canada. McLean is a resident of Niagara Falls, N.Y.

Patrick J. Slagle ’10 was appointed county attorney with the Chautauqua County Law Department in Mayville, N.Y. He previously served as first assistant county attorney. Slagle lives in Jamestown, N.Y.

Candace Morrison ’15 has become associated with Lipsitz Green Scime Cambria LLP in the firm’s labor and employment department in Buffalo, where she resides.

Arrianna Z. Hart ’20 has become associated with Goldberg Segalla LLP in Buffalo, practicing commercial litigation and arbitration. She is a Buffalo resident.

Courtney A. Way ’20 has become an adjunct professor at St. John Fisher University. Way is an assistant district attorney with the Livingston County District Attorney’s Office in Geneseo, N.Y. She resides in Oakfield, N.Y.   

Adam W. Amirault ’21 has been promoted to managing attorney of the Appeals & Post-Conviction Unit with the Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo. He is a resident of Beamsville, Ont., Canada.

Capt. Rina M. Hernández ’21 was promoted to captain with the U.S. Air Force JAG Corps. Hernandez completed officer training and JAG school at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Ala., and then was stationed at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota.

Bar Association of Erie County's 135^th Annual Awards Celebration:

• Lawyer of the Year: Trini E. Ross ’92, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of New York, Buffalo
• Outstanding Jurist Award: Hon. Lisa Bloch Rodwin ’85, Erie County Family Court, Buffalo (retired)
• Charles H. Dougherty Civility Award: Joel L. Daniels ’63, Law Office of Joel Daniels, Buffalo
• Award of Merit: Hugh M. Russ III ’87, Hodgson Russ LLP, Buffalo
• Special Service Award: Samantha I.V. White ’08, Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo

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50^th Annual Buffalo Black Achievers Awards 2022:

• Judge Samuel L. Green Award: Trini E. Ross ’92, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of New York, Buffalo
• Crystal J. Rodriguez-Dabney ’06 (J.D.), ’07 (LL.M), City of Buffalo
• Sarah M. Washington ’16, National Fuel Gas Distribution Corp., Williamsville, N.Y.

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Buffalo Business First 40 Under 40:

• Andrew P. Devine ’12, Phillips Lytle LLP, Buffalo
• Earl K. Cantwell III ’14, Aleron Group, Buffalo

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Daily Record Power 20 - Intellectual Property Law:

• Michael E. Storck ’85, Lippes Mathias LLP, Buffalo
• Michael J. Berchou ’93, Harter Secrest & Emery LLP, Buffalo
• Alana M. Fuierer ’95, Heslin Rothenberg Farley & Mesiti, P.C., Rochester, N.Y.

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Daily Record Power 20 - Trusts and Estates:

• Holly A. Beecher ’97, Phillips Lytle LLP, Buffalo
• Jason P. Livingston ’05, Pullano & Farrow PLLC, Rochester, N.Y.

Grassroots Gardens of Western New York 2022 Community Champion for Change:

• Samantha I.V. White ’08, Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo

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Minority Bar Association of Western New York's 6th Annual Awards Brunch:

• Trailblazer Award: Trini E. Ross ’92, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of New York, Buffalo

• Trailblazer Award: Hon. Betty Calvo-Torres ’98, New York State Court of Claims, Buffalo 
  

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Minority Bar Foundation 39^th Annual Scholarship and Awards Celebration:

• Trailblazer Award: Hon. Kevin M. Carter ’89, New York State Unified Court System, 8^th Judicial District, Buffalo
• Legal Service Award: Stephanie J. Calhoun ’08, New York State Attorney General’s Office, Buffalo

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President’s Lifetime Achievement, the highest civil volunteerism award presented by the president of the United States:

• Joseph M. Hanna ’05, Goldberg Segalla LLP, Buffalo

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Rochester Business Journal Forty Under 40:

• Heather Neu ’10, Law Office of Heather Neu, Rochester, N.Y.

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Women’s Bar Association of the State of New York, Western New York Chapter's Annual Awards Dinner:

• 2022 M. Dolores Denman Lady Justice Award: Holly Baum ’88, Law Office of Holly Baum, Buffalo 
• 2022 Carol A. Condon Outstanding New Lawyer Award: Taylor C. Schubauer ’17, William C. Bernhardi Law Offices PLLC, West Seneca, N.Y.
• 2022 Diversity Leadership Award: Samantha I.V. White ’08, Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo