CLEVELAND – (BUSINESS WIRE) – Thompson Hine LLP has elected eleven new partners effective January 1, 2021. The new partners, located in five offices of the firm, represent a wide range of areas of activity including litigation, corporate reorganization, creditors’ rights and bankruptcy, construction, corporate transactions and securities, personal and succession planning, real estate and taxation.
“These future leaders of our company have outstanding skills in their areas of activity and welcome the innovative ideas that drive our commitment to adding value for our customers. Each of them strive to help clients achieve their business goals by providing exceptional legal services while providing clients with greater efficiency, predictability and transparency. We are proud to welcome these attorneys to our partnership, ”said Deborah Z. Read, managing partner of Thompson Hine.
The new partners are:
John C. Allerding, member of the Corporate Restructuring, Creditors & Bankruptcy practice group in the Atlanta and Cleveland offices. He represents clients in a variety of industries on a wide variety of matters including commercial and creditors’ rights, bankruptcy, distressed and special asset exercises, drafting and negotiating asset purchase contracts, preferential litigation, fraudulent transfer disputes and disputes under the Uniform Commercial Code, mandates in favor of Creditors, trade disputes, contract analysis and negotiation, litigation regarding liability of company directors and officers, defense of financial institutions and mortgage service providers under various federal and state consumer protection laws, and trust reformation and litigation. However, it was inducted into the Ohio Super Lawyers® Rising Stars list in 2014 and from 2016 to 2021. He received his JD from the University of Michigan Law School and his BA, summa cum laude, from Baldwin-Wallace College.
Kris Brandenburg, member of the Real Estate Practice Group in Cincinnati. He focuses on serving local and national commercial real estate developers, owners and operators. His practice includes urban renewal, multi-family, mixed-use, hospitality, office and retail projects. Brandenburg was included in the list of Ohio Super Lawyers Rising Stars from 2015 to 2020. He received his JD from Northern Kentucky University’s Chase College of Law and his BA from the University of Cincinnati.
Jennifer N. Elleman, a member of the Corporate Transactions & Securities practice group in Dayton. Her practice focuses on drafting and negotiating commercial contracts in a variety of industries, with a particular focus on technology licenses and sales contracts. Elleman represents technology providers and companies that license information technology solutions on software licensing issues (both on-premise and SaaS), database and content licensing agreements, managed technology service agreements, and technology outsourcing agreements. She is also a co-head of the company’s Contract Solutions group, which provides a process-driven approach to contracting that allows customers to develop cost-effective alternatives for managing their contracts. Elleman received her JD with honors from Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law and her BA magna cum laude from Miami University.
Craig A. Foster, a member of the Corporate Transactions & Securities practice group in Columbus. He primarily supports the company’s investment management and privacy & cybersecurity practices. He assists registered investment advisors in all aspects of their business, including incorporation, registration, licensing, disclosure, privacy, client contracts, employee agreements, compliance programs, responding to regulatory reviews, and reviewing websites and advertisements. He also advises clients of investment companies and has extensive experience in organizing and setting up funds, drafting prospectuses and service agreements, advising fund management boards, finding relief, answering inquiries from supervisory authorities and coordinating with fund service providers. In addition, Foster, who has earned IAPP (International Association of Privacy Professionals) (CIPP / US) certification, advises clients on compliance with federal, state and international laws on data protection and information security. He received his JD from Harvard Law School and his BA with honors from the University of Virginia.
Sean Ganley, a member of the Corporate Transactions & Securities group of companies in Cleveland. He focuses on representing entrepreneurs, emerging companies, early stage investors and venture capital companies. He advises corporate clients from start-up through financing to exit and has experience in complex corporate finance matters, mergers and acquisitions, as well as corporate organization and management. Ganley received his JD magna cum laude from Case Western Reserve University Law School and his MBA and BA cum laude from John Carroll University.
Jesse L. Jenike-Godshalk, member of the Business Litigation Practice Group in Cincinnati. He represents clients in state and federal courts and his practice focuses on complex commercial disputes, particularly intellectual property disputes involving patents, trademarks, or copyrights, as well as defending class action lawsuits. He was named to the Ohio Super Lawyers Rising Stars list from 2019-2021. Jenike-Godshalk received his JD summa cum laude from the University of Cincinnati College of Law, his MA from the University of Chicago, and his BA summa cum laude from the University of Cincinnati.
Mendy Piekarski, member of the Business Litigation Practice Group in New York. His experience includes litigation and arbitration in federal and state courts in legal areas including complex breaches of contract, shareholder and securities disputes, class action defense, business affairs, fraud, internal investigations, and SEC and FINRA investigations. He represents asset-based lenders and dealer cash advance firms, real estate developers, financial institutions, broker-dealers and technology companies. Piekarski received his JD from Boston University School of Law and his BS from Binghamton University.
Kevin R. Tabor, member of the Cleveland Tax Practice Group. He focuses on federal income tax law and Ohio tax law and advises on both transactional and tax disputes. As part of its transaction practice, Tabor advises clients on all aspects of corporate and personal taxation with particular experience in cross-border tax issues. His tax controversies include representing clients before the IRS and the Ohio Department of Taxation on audits, administrative complaints, litigation, and criminal tax investigations. He also advises clients on renewable energy transactions, including issues related to the Section 48 Energy Investment Tax Credit, Equipment Leasing and Economic Substance Doctrine. Tabor is a Chartered Accountant in Ohio and was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America © – 2021. He received his JD from Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law and an M.Acc. and BSBA, magna cum laude, from Ohio State University.
Bill Thrush, Cleveland Construction Practitioner. His experience in litigation includes representing clients in court, arbitration, mediation, and appeals covering a wide range of complex construction and real estate affairs valued at millions of dollars. His transactional practice includes preparing and negotiating construction contracts, draft agreements, leases and other contractual documents for construction and real estate clients. Thrush is a professional engineer (licensed in Oregon) and was a LEED accredited building design + construction professional. In 2019 and 2020 he was listed in The Legal 500 as a “Rising Star” and “Recommended Attorney” for construction work. Thrush received his JD from Lewis & Clark Law School and his BS from the University of Dayton.
Ashley A. Weyenberg, member of the Personal & Succession Planning practice group in Dayton. Her practice focuses on high net worth, business related individuals and families in the US and abroad. She advises on demanding national and international estate and trust planning, administration and compliance. Succession and management of closely related companies; Structuring and operating family offices and private trust companies; charitable planning; and matters relating to the IRS, including soliciting private preliminary rulings and handling audit disputes. Weyenberg also volunteers for and supports organizations that work for social, racial and economic justice and equality. She received her LL.M. with Honors from Georgetown University Law Center, her JD with honors from Ohio Northern University College of Law, and her BS magna cum laude from Trine University.
Renee Zaytsev, member of the Business Litigation Practice Group in New York. She represents corporations and trustees in high stakes commercial disputes, with an emphasis on securities and shareholder disputes. Her experience includes representing corporations and their directors and officers in defending against shareholder derivative and class action lawsuits against securities. She also supports companies and their board members in the management of process risks and advises them, among other things, on corporate governance issues and proxy competitions. Zaytsev also has extensive experience representing hedge funds, private equity firms and emerging businesses in complex litigation. She received her JD from Georgetown University Law Center and her BA from Stanford University.
About Thompson Hine LLP. Thompson Hine LLP, a full-service commercial law firm with approximately 400 attorneys in 8 law firms, was ranked # 1 by The Financial Times in the Most Innovative North American Law Firms: New Work Models category and was one of seven selected became the American attorney’s first Legal Services Innovation Award. Thompson Hine has distinguished itself in all areas of service delivery innovation in the BTI Brand Elite, where it was recognized as one of the top 4 companies for “Value for the Dollar” and “Commitment to Help” and as one of the top 5 companies was recognized. Make changes to improve the customer experience. “The company’s commitment to innovation is reflected in Thompson Hine SmartPaTHTM – a smarter way of working – predictable, efficient and focused on customer goals. For more information, visit ThompsonHine.com and ThompsonHine.com/SmartPaTH.