class action 1964
1978
The WSBA announced that Judge Paul Bastine has been elected Governor for District 5. He was sworn in for a three-year term at the WSBA Annual Awards Banquet and Business Meeting in September and assumed the Board of Governors position.
L. Randolph Harris is a shareholder in LeClairRyan’s San Francisco office. Harris works with a broad array of privately held companies and their owners on business and tax matters. He advises clients with regard to taxable and tax deferred mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, restructuring, integrated tax planning, federal and state tax controversy resolution and real estate transactions. Harris is certified by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization as a specialist in taxation law.
1973 Upon his graduation from college, Ronald Wheatley decided to take an adventure. He joined the Peace Corps in Nigeria, Africa, from 1963 to 1965. While there, Wheatley had an unforgettable experience in a country that he got to know and love before a civil war began. Now years later, Wheatley has recorded his experiences from Nigeria and has turned them into a novel. “A Song of Africa” has been described as a love story set in Nigeria during the Biafran War in 1966. The novel is historical fiction and is based upon Wheatley’s experiences that he continues to reflect on with nostalgia.
1979 Bridget McInerney Harris is a shareholder in LeClairRyan’s San Francisco office. She represents individual clients in estate planning, trust funding, trust administration and sophisticated estate and gift planning. Harris is certified by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization as a specialist in estate planning, trust and probate law.
1980
1976 George C. Mastrodonato was named a shareholder at Carney Bradley Spellman, PS. He joined Carney Bradley Spellman in April 2010. His practice focuses on Washington state and local taxes.
George C. Mastrodonato
Mike Bahn retired from public service with the Department of Health and the state’s Medical Quality Assurance Commission as of December 2010 and subsequently finished his three-year term with the WSBA’s Disciplinary Board in September 2011. As of May 2012, Bahn was appointed by Gov. Chris Gregoire to the Washington State Executive Ethics Board, which resolves issues of unethical conduct of state government employees.
1977
1981
Richard W. Kuhling, partner in the law firm of Paine Hamblen, LLP, was recently recognized pro bono counsel by Columbia Legal Services for his contribution of time and resources in service of their mission to achieve social and economic justice for thousands of low-income people across Washington state.
Nevada Business Magazine’s fifth annual “Legal Elite” issue has named Richard Campbell to its Northern Nevada’s Richard Campbell Top 75 Attorneys list. Lawyers recognized in the issue were chosen by their peers through an online voting process. Campbell,
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managing attorney for the firm’s Nevada offices, is a Reno-based partner in the firm’s litigation practice group. Serving as lead trial counsel in commercial, construction and employment matters, he litigates cases in federal and state courts throughout Nevada. He earned his J.D. from Gonzaga School of Law and B.S. in English literature from Montana State. Kevin J. Curtis, a principal at Winston & Cashatt, was elected president of the Washington Defender Association (WDA). Curtis has been a member of WDA since 1986 and has served on the association’s board of directors since 2004. He has also served as past president of the Washington Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
1984 Claudia Bixler married David Brueggeman on Dec. 28, 2011, at the Coeur d’Alene Resort. Claudia and David reside in Creston, BC. After law school Claudia continued to work as Claudia Bixler a studio musician and became a corporate vice president in charge of music production until 2009. Currently, David and Claudia are awaiting their next great adventure together. She says “some of life’s sweetest gifts surprise you later in life.” Bill Hooks, a Helena attorney who has represented people charged with crimes for more than 20 years, has been hired as Montana State’s new chief public defender.
1985 Joseph Tramuta has been promoted to partner with Minnella, Tramuta & Edwards, LLC in Middlebury, Conn. The State Bar of Montana presented Joseph M. Sullivan, attorney in the Great Falls law firm of Deschenes & Sullivan, it’s Distinguished Service Award. The award
is in recognition and appreciation for outstanding leadership and service as a trustee, executive committee member, bar Joseph M. Sullivan president (20102011), and for dedication to the legal profession.
in Portland, Ore., where he represented indigent clients facing criminal prosecution. Judge McShane is the recipient of the 2012 Oregon State Bar President’s Public Service Award.
Kelly Cline has been promoted from Senior Vice President to Executive Vice President, Business and Legal Affairs, Entertainment for Fox Cable Networks. In his new role he will be responsible for FX, Fox Movie Channel, National Geographic Channel and NG Wild. He joined the company in 1989 as counsel for 20th Century Kelly Cline Fox Television.
Tracie Lindeman, clerk of the Nevada Supreme Court, has been elected to the Executive Committee on the National Conference of Appellate Court Clerks. Lindeman is the 16th person to serve as clerk of the Nevada Supreme Court since its inception in 1864. Lindeman received her J.D. from Gonzaga and her B.A. from Stanford. She enjoys spending time with her daughters and participating in outdoor activities such as hiking, camping and skiing in the nearby Sierra Nevada Mountains.
1986 David Torres, who practices in Bakersfield, Calif., was elected to the State Bar Board of Trustees for the 5th District of California. For more than 20 years Torres has been a successful attorney at law in Kern County, focusing his practice on federal and state criminal defense. David Torres
1988 President Obama nominated Judge Michael J. McShane for a District Court judgeship. Judge McShane has been a judge on the Multnomah County Circuit Court in Oregon since 2001, where he has presided over a wide variety of matters, including civil, criminal and family court cases. He previously served as a Judge Pro Tempore on the same court from 1997 to 2001. Prior to becoming a judge, he spent almost a decade serving as a public defender at the Office of the Metropolitan Public Defender
Michael Zdancewicz has opened his own firm Windtberg & Zdancewicz, PLC in Tempe, Ariz. To find out more information about the law firm, please visit www.wzfirm.com.
1993
1994 Molly McQueen joined Deutsche Bank in August as the assistant vice president. McQueen has more than 16 years of experience as a corporate, transactional, regulatory and compliance attorney. She resides in Jacksonville, Fla.
1995 Jennifer Etkin joined the Expedia, Inc. legal team as corporate counsel in September. She practices in the area of marketing and advertising, reviewing marketing and Jennifer Etkin advertising and drafting contracts. Prior to joining Expedia, Etkin was senior corporate counsel at T-Mobile, Inc. practicing in the arenas of privacy, and marketing and advertising. Etkin has 8 year-old twin girls and resides in West Seattle.
1999 Mary Verner has been recognized by Yale University as a distinguished alumna. As such, she was invited by Yale to address its students and alumni on the topic of sustainability and cities. Verner earned a master’s degree at Yale prior to obtaining her law degree at Gonzaga. She is CEO of Spokane Tribal Enterprises.
2000 Elizabeth Chatham joined Davis Miles as a partner in Phoenix. Chatham’s practice focuses on employment-based immigration, specifically Elizabeth Chatham nonimmigrant visas for professionals. Chatham also is experienced in family-based immigration, naturalization, adjustment of status, nonimmigrant petitions and consular processing. Shelley Buckholtz, an experienced attorney and legal adviser, joined Helsell Fetterman. Buckholtz has more than 11 years of experience providing outside general counsel to businesses and individuals in Washington state. At Helsell Fetterman, Buckholtz will work with the business, real estate and tax practice groups. Buckholtz looks forward to the firm’s collegial atmosphere and emphasis on client success. “I am excited to join a firm that has similar priorities and values to my own,” she commented.
2001 Armstrong Teasdale announced the addition of litigation partner Tracy DiFillippo to the Las Vegas office. DiFillippo handles matters in the areas of construction, medical and dental malpractice, Tracy DiFillippo bankruptcy and insurance. She is admitted to practice in Nevada and GONZAGA LAWYER
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