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1 | Excellence in the Law CONGRATULATORY SPONSORS GOLD SPONSORS SILVER SPONSORS 2019
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Dear readers,We hope you enjoy this special Excellence in the Law section,
which recognizes a wide range of accomplishments in the Rhode Island legal community.
In the pages that follow, we celebrate a diverse group of individuals chosen by a committee drawn from members of our editorial department — Lawyers of the Year, In-House Leaders, Up & Coming Lawyers, and members of our Hall of Fame, as well as our honoree for Excellence in Pro Bono, this year’s Unsung Hero, and our honoree for Judicial Excellence.
I hope you will join us at our first Rhode Island Excellence in the Law event, which will take place on April 9 at the Providence Marriott Downtown, beginning at 11:30 a.m.
I look forward to seeing you there!
Susan A. Bocamazo, Esq. Publisher, Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly
Publisher’s Letter
Table of ContentsUp & ComingAimee E. Audette ...................................................................... 3Christina Dzierzek .................................................................... 3Joseph Molina Flynn................................................................. 4Timothy J. Grimes .................................................................... 4Jessica A. Shelton .................................................................... 5Kristen M. Whittle ..................................................................... 5
In-HouseSteven J. McDonald ................................................................. 6Robert F. Nostramo .................................................................. 7Amy C. Vitale ............................................................................ 7
Unsung HeroGerald Miele ............................................................................. 8
Pro BonoAndrew Horwitz ........................................................................ 8
Judicial ExcellenceHon. Michael A. Silverstein (ret.) .............................................. 9
Hall of FameWilliam J. Conley Jr. ............................................................... 10Patrick T. Jones ...................................................................... 13John J. Partridge .................................................................... 14John A. Tarantino .................................................................... 15Deborah M. Tate ..................................................................... 15
Lawyers of the YearPatrick C. Barry ...................................................................... 16Sonja L. Deyoe ....................................................................... 17Jennifer L. Wood .................................................................... 18
Excellence in the Law | 3 3
Attorney, Audette, Cordeiro & VioletteRoger Williams University School of Law
F or Aimee E. Audette, representation of her workers’ compensation clients involves more than legal issues.
“I’m not here to just collect a check from these cases,” she says. “I pride myself on the personal attention I give to clients.”
That could mean helping clients coordinate medical treatment, answering health insurance questions or otherwise providing guidance on how to navigate what can be the most challenging period of their lives.
“Bad things sometimes happen to good people,” Audette says. “I can’t turn back time and change the fact that my client is sick or injured, but what I can do is help.”
Acting as an advocate for her clients was a natural fit for Audette, who has repeatedly found herself “standing up for the little guy.” In college, she helped to form a Student-Labor Alliance, successfully pushing for the rights of the janitorial staff at the school to earn a living wage.
“I caught the bug after that,” Audette says. “Seeing that our effort had a direct effect really lit a fire and motivated me.”
In law school, she served as the president of the LGBTQ Alliance, working to create a safe, supportive environment for her fellow students.
Although initially resistant to becoming a lawyer, Audette realized that her passion for helping
others was a perfect fit for the law. A recent case encapsulates her practice.
Audette represented a 61-year-old man who had fallen off a truck and onto his back on the pavement. The employer stopped paying benefits to the man, who had worked for the company since he was 16 years old but had sustained a permanent injury and was now unable to work.
“The stakes were very high for my client,” Audette says. But after a contentious hearing, she prevailed.
“There can be bad days and long days in this job, but it’s all worth it when you have days like that, where you can help someone who really needs it,” she says. “To see the smile and relief on his face and hear him say that he would be able to get a good night’s sleep for the first time in weeks was the best feeling in the world.”
Active in the legal community, Audette is a member of the Rhode Island Bar Association, Massachusetts Bar Association, Rhode Island Women’s Bar Association (and the organization’s workers’ injury law group), American Bar Association and Rhode Island Workers’ Compensation Bench/Bar Committee. She also gives her time as a participant on Law Day working with Rhode Island high school students, as well as taking pro bono cases for indigent members of the community. RILW
“Bad things sometimes happen to good people. I can’t turn back time and change the fact that my client is sick or injured, but what I can do is help.”
Up & Coming
Aimee E. Audette
Christina DzierzekSenior Associate, Law Offices of Richard S. HumphreyRoger Williams University School of Law
“I wasn’t sure I would like the aspect of being in court every day, but it has turned out to be my favorite part of the job. There is always something interesting and exciting going on.”
T aking the advice to pick a subject she liked so that her job didn’t feel like work, Christina Dzierzek headed to law school.
During her second year of school, she started an internship at the Law Offices of Richard S. Humphrey and has worked for the firm ever since.
“I wasn’t sure I would like the aspect of being in court every day, but it has turned out to be my favorite part of the job,” she says. “There is always something interesting and exciting going on.”
The firm focuses on DUI defense, and because a large number of veterans have alcohol and substance abuse issues, Dzierzek often finds herself in Rhode Island Veterans Court. The Veterans Court is a problem-solving court that seeks to successfully rehabilitate participants through a program that provides the necessary tools to lead a productive and law-abiding life.
Dzierzek represents her clients from intake through graduation from the program, which includes treatment, counseling sessions and random screenings. Depending on the defendant, graduation from the program usually results in the outright dismissal of criminal charges or, in cases where the defendant has a more extensive
criminal history, an amendment to a lesser charge.
For her efforts on behalf of her veteran clients, Dzierzek was presented with the Challenge Coin from the Veterans Court Advocate.
“It is amazing how veterans prosper in this program,” she says. “It is so rewarding to be a part of it.”
Her almost 10 years of experience has helped with the challenge of sometimes having clients feel hesitant about working with a young lawyer.
“Clients come in and they worry about having a young associate, so it can take some work to get them to trust you and rely on you,” she says.
As the child of first-generation Polish immigrants, Dzierzek takes great pride in being a lawyer.
“It was a big achievement getting through the schooling and passing the bar exam,” she says.
Dzierzek gives back by taking on pro bono cases at the firm and has lectured on DUI issues for the Rhode Island Bar Association. In addition to RIBA, she is a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the National Trial Lawyers. RILW
Up & Coming
4 | Excellence in the Law4
Up & Coming
Up & Coming
Timothy J. GrimesAttorney, Decof, Barry, Mega & QuinnRoger Williams University School of Law
“The best and worst thing about this job is the clients. The people we meet are absolutely incredible, but it’s also tough because of what they have been through.”
In less than a decade of practice, Timothy J. Grimes has already worked on some of the biggest cases in the state.
He began his legal career at K&L Gates. As one of the few Rhode Island attorneys at the firm, he was tasked with managing the 38 Studios litigation, which involved a failed $75 million deal between the Rhode Island Commerce Corp. and Curt Schilling’s video game company.
“I was very lucky because I got to do a lot of the things that most associates don’t get to, like take depositions and go to court regularly,” Grimes says. “I learned a lot.”
But when the case settled and he returned to the more typical associate assignments, he made the jump to Decof, Barry, Mega & Quinn.
His two years at the firm have been busy, to say the least. Grimes has second-chaired six trials, including the largest personal injury verdict in the history of Rhode Island. In that case, the firm represented a plaintiff who was awarded $61 million in 2017 after he was taken off an anticoagulant, suffered life-threatening blood clots, nearly died and had to have his right leg amputated above the knee.
Grimes followed that up with a $32 million verdict in a 2018 case involving a plaintiff paralyzed in a swimming accident.
“The best and worst thing about this job is the clients,” Grimes says. “The people we meet are
absolutely incredible, but it’s also tough because of what they have been through.”
Grimes’s legal career almost didn’t happen. He was pre-med in college and planned on being a doctor until his junior year, when he decided to try something different and took the LSAT on a whim. His history as a “science nut” has proved useful in his personal injury and medical malpractice cases, however.
He also faced a significant obstacle with his “terror” of public speaking. In order to overcome his fears, Grimes took course after course in law school that forced him to stand up and speak in front of his classmates and teachers.
“I kept putting myself in any speaking role I could find,” he says. The effort paid off.
“Whenever I go to court, I still get butterflies waiting to start. But once the argument begins, that rapidly goes away.”
A member of the Rhode Island Association for Justice, American Association for Justice and Roger Williams University School of Law Alumni Association board of directors, Grimes is also involved with the law school’s events and fundraising.
Grimes always wanted to learn how to sail and took up sailing in recent years. He now races in the Newport Bermuda Race and other international events. RILW
Joseph Molina FlynnFounder, Molina Flynn Law OfficesUniversity of Michigan Law School
Joseph Molina Flynn’s career as an immigration attorney was inspired by his background. As a boy in Colombia, his mother used to tell him he would be a
lawyer one day because of the way he jumped to the defense of his friends. At the time, her prediction seemed unlikely.
Molina Flynn later came to the United States when he was 9, overstayed his visa, and lived in the country undocumented until he obtained lawful status at age 24.
When he entered law school, Molina Flynn originally planned to be a tax lawyer, making use of his undergraduate accounting degree.
But looking to examine his immigration journey from a legal perspective, he took an immigration class, which paid off when he worked for 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Bruce M. Selya. As the only intern who had taken immigration, Molina Flynn kept finding immigration cases on his desk — and ultimately got hooked.
“As I thought about my future, I realized that this was a way for me to give something back to the community,” Molina Flynn explains of his decision to move back to the Providence area and hang out his shingle. “Immigration cases are very complicated, legally and emotionally. There aren’t a whole lot of immigration attorneys who have gone through the system themselves.”
Over the last four years, Molina Flynn has broadened his practice to take on family and criminal law cases, which often intersect with his
immigration work. After completing more than 600 hours of pro bono work during law school, his commitment to pro bono has not changed. All Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals renewals are handled without charge by the firm, along with some humanitarian cases.
As a member of the Rhode Island Hispanic Bar Association, Molina Flynn has participated in multiple citizenship and DACA renewal drives, and conducted numerous “Know Your Rights” presentations.
President of the Rhode Island Latino Political Action Committee and Civic Fund, Molina Flynn has testified at local government meetings and the State House about important legislation and hosted information sessions for the community. Molina Flynn is also a member of Gov. Gina Raimondo’s Complete Count Committee, a group that aims to maximize participation in the census in order to prevent the loss of a congressional seat in Rhode Island.
A former board member of the Young Lawyers Division of the Massachusetts Bar Association, he currently sits on the board of the Latino Policy Institute at Roger Williams University, Rhode Island Latino Arts, and the Rhode Island Public Health Institute.
Molina Flynn is also a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the Family Law Bench/Bar and LGBT Committees of the Rhode Island Bar Association. RILW
“Immigration cases are very complicated, legally and emotionally. There aren’t a whole lot of immigration attorneys who have gone through the system themselves.”
Excellence in the Law | 5 5Up & Coming
Up & Coming
Kristen M. WhittlePartner, Barton GilmanBoston College Law School
“Employment is an area of law that is not as personal as family law, but is still very impactful and makes a big difference in people’s lives.”
A n experienced civil litigator, Kristen M. Whittle focuses her practice on working with employers and insurance companies.
In her brief career, she has already obtained favorable results for her clients in both state and federal court, from achieving summary judgment on behalf of a national insurance company to persuading a judge to dismiss an employment retaliation complaint against a nursing home supervisor.
In 2017, Whittle had the opportunity to argue before the Rhode Island Supreme Court in an insurance coverage dispute involving a policy’s contractual limitations period. While the entire experience of serving as lead counsel from trial through argument before the state’s highest court was “fantastic,” the icing on the cake was the victory for her client.
The oral argument felt like a return to her first job after law school, when she clerked for Rhode Island Supreme Court Justice William P. Robinson III. Whittle then joined Barton Gilman, where she has worked for almost nine years. She made partner in January 2017.
In addition to her litigation work, Whittle keeps busy advising and counseling her clients on all aspects of the employment relationship. Recently, that means she’s been talking a lot about sexual harassment and the #MeToo movement, paid parental leave, and paid sick leave.
“I have seen a really positive trend that employers are focusing on these issues and
perhaps treating them more seriously than before,” she says. “These progressive policies are a positive change for society and I enjoy helping employers manage their obligations.”
Her interest in employment law was piqued during an internship in London with a solicitor’s firm that specialized in the area. At one point, she sat in on an arbitration of an employment discrimination case and found it fascinating.
“Employment is an area of law that is not as personal as family law, but is still very impactful and makes a big difference in people’s lives,” she says.
Outside the office, she serves as board secretary for the Rhode Island Women’s Bar Association. She also sits on the Community Engagement Committee.
Whittle coordinates Barton Gilman’s pro bono activities with the Roger Williams University School of Law’s Pro Bono Collaborative, where she serves as a member of the advisory committee. The firm works with Bradley Hospital’s Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities, helping the parents of disabled children turning 18 with issues such as financial decisions, housing choices and in some instances, establishing legal guardianship. Over the last decade, the firm has worked with more than 60 families.
In her free time, Whittle has run three marathons (one each with her father and mother) and has several other races on the schedule for this year. RILW
Jessica A. SheltonLaw Clerk, 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Roger Williams University School of Law
Jessica A. Shelton’s love of reading and writing has dictated the course of her legal career.
After graduation from law school, she spent a year in the clerk pool for the Rhode Island Supreme Court before spending a second year as a law clerk for Justice Maureen McKenna Goldberg.
Shelton then went into private practice at Roberts, Carroll, Feldstein & Peirce as a member of the health care group, focusing on medical-malpractice defense. But when she learned of the opportunity to be a law clerk for Judge O. Rogeriee Thompson of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2016, she found it hard to pass up a return to life behind the judicial curtain.
Although she enjoyed her three-year stint in private practice and gained valuable experience, she says she wasn’t convinced that she wanted to be “the person in the courtroom.”
Instead, Shelton says, “I’ve managed to find a way to clerk for as long as possible.”
That’s where her love of reading and writing comes into play.
When she’s not researching case law or helping the judge draft opinions, Shelton is working on memos in preparation for upcoming oral arguments.
“Getting to help the judges write their decisions
with the outcome the law dictates is to me much more interesting than taking a side,” she says.
In addition, Shelton manages Judge Thompson’s robust internship program, poring over all the applications, helping decide who to interview and who to hire, and then assigning the intern to a law clerk supervisor for his or her substantive work.
“I have really leaned into the role of mentor,” she says. “I take that job seriously to try to help these law students understand what it means to be a good advocate and a good law clerk.”
Shelton’s employment with the federal judiciary hasn’t prevented her from remaining involved in the legal community. One of the youngest — both in experience and age — presidents of the Rhode Island Women’s Bar Association, she was elected to the position at age 29 after practicing for only four years. But when her “exciting and productive” term came to an end, Shelton realized that the organization needed a role for former leaders.
She conceptualized and helped establish the Emeritus Committee, an advisory panel comprised of prestigious RIWBA members and past presidents, and has served as co-chair ever since.
A House of Delegates member of the Rhode Island Bar Association, Shelton also serves on the board of the Women’s Fund of Rhode Island and sits on both the Communications and Governance committees. RILW
“Getting to help the judges write their decisions with the outcome the law dictates is to me much more interesting than taking a side.”
6 | Excellence in the Law6
Boston + Providence + New York
Barton Gilman llp10 Dorrance Street Providence, Rhode Island 02903 401.273.7171
Barton Gilman is proud of our partner
Kristen M. Whittle
honored as a 2019 Up & Coming Lawyer
by the Rhode Island Excellence
in the Law Awards –
and we congratulate all of the 2019 honorees.
249458 bgLaw RILW Excellence Award Ad.indd 1 3/21/19 4:16 PM
In-House
Steven J. McDonaldGeneral Counsel, Rhode Island School of DesignYale Law School
A lthough he is a fourth-generation lawyer, Steven J. McDonald’s 27-year career in higher education came about as a matter of happenstance.
After a few years of private practice, he accepted an offer to join the team at Ohio State University and found himself enamored with the practice area as well as being an in-house attorney.
“I can really be a counselor more than just advising a client on one matter for a limited amount of time,” McDonald explains. “Here, I have the big picture. I know the people, the mission and how all the pieces fit together, which allows me to provide broader advice and a much more rewarding experience.”
He joined RISD in 2002. The best part of the job: There is absolutely no such thing as a typical day.
“After more than three decades as a lawyer and 27 years in higher education, I still see things that I have never seen before,” he says. “The sheer breadth and quantity of legal issues in higher education remains a challenge.”
As the school’s primary lawyer, McDonald manages its legal affairs and provides legal services to the trustees, administrators, faculty, staff, student leaders and affiliated entities.
Active in the higher education legal community, McDonald is a member of the New England Council of Counsel as well as the Rhode Island General Counsel Group of the Association of Independent
Colleges and Universities. A past member of the board of directors of the National Association of College and University Attorneys, he served as editor of the NACUA publication “The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act: A Legal Compendium” and was one of the developers of the NACUANOTES legal information service.
McDonald, who has served on multiple legal advisory boards, is a frequent writer and speaker who strives to educate his audiences on issues of higher education law.
“What I most enjoy is doing preventative lawyering rather than being the clean-up guy on aisle 3 after something bad happens,” he says.
At least a dozen times each school year, McDonald visits the RISD classrooms to provide an overview of intellectual property law to the students, tailored to the subject matter (film animation, for example), with an eye toward helping students and faculty understand the basic parameters of copyright and fair use issues.
“Here at RISD in particular, IP is really the lifeblood of their careers,” he says.
An admirer of the student body’s “endlessly fascinating and illuminating” efforts to create art, McDonald says his classroom visits are “the most fun thing I do. The students are relentlessly curious and want to know and understand everything.” RILW
“What I most enjoy is doing preventative lawyering rather than being the clean-up guy on aisle 3 after something bad happens.”
Excellence in the Law | 7 7
In-House
In-House
Amy C. VitaleVice President, General Counsel and Secretary Beacon Mutual Insurance Co.George Washington University School of Law
“I’m really proud that the work I do helps the company play an integral role in the state’s economy.”
Alifelong student and passionate learner, Amy C. Vitale appreciates that her role as vice president, general counsel and secretary of Beacon Mutual Insurance
Co. allows her to constantly acquire knowledge and understanding of new legal and business issues.
“I love the diversity and the changing nature of the work that I perform,” she says.
Vitale began her legal career in private practice at Partridge, Snow & Hahn, where she focused on representing financial institutions and insurance companies. Her training in such highly regulated industries made going in-house at Beacon in 2012 a natural fit. In 2017, Vitale was promoted to her current position, in which she is responsible for oversight of corporate governance and regulatory compliance.
“In my role, I am very fortunate to act as both legal advisor and a member of the senior management team, which allows me to really delve into issues that are important for the company,” she says, analogizing her role to that of a primary care physician.
“I have to be familiar with a wide variety of matters and be able to identify what the issue is so that I know when it’s necessary to bring in a specialist,” she explains. “It is a challenge but also an opportunity to try to marry the obstacles Beacon faces with practical solutions to stay strong and competitive, while providing sound advice on how to do things in accordance with law and industry practice.”
Beacon is the largest writer by premium volume of workers’ compensation insurance and related coverage in Rhode Island and the state’s insurer of last resort.
“I’m really proud that the work I do helps the company play an integral role in the state’s economy,” Vitale says.
A lifelong Rhode Islander, Vitale has been active in a variety of organizations over the years, including the Providence College Alumni Association, the East Bay Chamber of Commerce, and Rebuilding Together Providence. She also is a past president of the St. Luke’s School Parent Teacher Organization.
Vitale currently serves as a trustee and treasurer of the Ocean State Charities Trust, a nonprofit that assists state agencies providing support to Rhode Islanders in the areas of housing, health education and welfare through grant-making and investment assistance.
A member of the American Association of State Compensation Funds’ National Issues Committee and the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training Misclassification Taskforce Workers’ Compensation Fraud Subcommittee, Vitale was tapped for the Leadership Rhode Island Nu II Class, a “great opportunity” that included a community service project involving substance abuse education and prevention in response to the opioid crisis. RILW
Robert F. NostramoVice President and General Counsel, MetLife Auto & HomeSt. John’s University School of Law
When Robert F. Nostramo interviewed with MetLife during law school, he was looking for a learning experience, not a job. He had already met with several
different types of employers, from small to large firms to government agencies, and decided to see what was different about an in-house counsel position.
Almost three decades later, “I’d say things worked out pretty well,” he says.
Despite his many years with the company, Nostramo’s different positions have resulted in a wide-ranging, varied practice. For roughly the first half of his legal career, he focused on litigation, defending individual and class actions against the insurance company.
Ready for a new challenge, he was appointed as the first chief of staff for MetLife Legal Affairs, a rotational position with legal and administrative responsibilities. When he completed his rotation, Nostramo turned his attention to corporate law, leading a legal unit responsible for banking, insurance regulatory law and mergers and acquisitions. During his tenure, he guided the company’s financial holding company and federally chartered bank through the 2008 financial crisis and ensuing recession, helping MetLife not only survive but come out the other side capable of making a major acquisition.
In 2011, he moved to Rhode Island when an opportunity opened up in the MetLife Auto & Home division, where he serves as vice president and general counsel.
A “big believer in communication,” Nostramo
spends his days in meetings that could be legal in nature, business-focused or some combination of the two. He also makes a point to carve out time each week for long-term planning.
To that end, Nostramo is helping the company adapt to technological changes and embrace trends. The company is working on a fully enabled digital insurance experience, from getting a quote to filing a claim, that customers can personalize to move seamlessly between a live person and a digital product.
“We are really transforming the way we do business and even how we deliver insurance,” he says. “It has been really fun to work on that.”
Nostramo’s legal team has also helped the business adapt to the fact that fewer drivers are owning cars and instead moving to other models, whether leasing or ride-sharing. Seeing an opportunity, MetLife has partnered with Hyundai to offer a payment option that packages special lease pricing, vehicle maintenance and auto insurance for the term of a lease agreement on select vehicles.
A member of the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, Nostramo sits on the group’s legal and government affairs committee’s legal subcommittee as well as the amicus and direct litigation committee.
Along with his colleagues at Auto & Home, Nostramo has supported local charities and raised money for St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital and the American Parkinson Disease Association by running in races. RILW
“We are really transforming the way we do business and even how we deliver insurance. It has been really fun to work on that.”
8 | Excellence in the Law8
Pro Bono
Unsung Hero
Andrew HorwitzAssistant Dean for Experiential Education Roger Williams University School of LawNew York University School of Law
“What we’re accomplishing is that each client is treated with dignity and respect, gets adequate time and attention, and receives effective representation throughout the legal system.”
Andrew Horwitz has a passion for social justice.
He began his legal career as a staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society of New
York City before joining the faculty of New York University School of Law.
In 1994, he moved to Roger Williams University School of Law, where he has spent the last 25 years. For the bulk of that time, Horwitz has directed the school’s Criminal Defense Clinic, supervising second- and third-year law students as they represent indigent criminal defendants in state District Court.
“It is essentially a mini public defender’s office,” Horwitz says. “What we’re accomplishing is that each client is treated with dignity and respect, gets adequate time and attention, and receives effective representation throughout the legal system.”
Horwitz periodically teaches classes such as criminal procedure, trial advocacy and criminal procedure. In 2014, he became the assistant dean for experiential education, responsible for the administration of the entire clinical education program, including the school’s requirement that students complete at least 50 pro bono hours before they graduate.
“In the old days, students sat in doctrinal classrooms for three years, and if they were lucky got trained on how to actually be a lawyer once they graduated,” Horwitz says. “It was a terrible model of
education, and thankfully we’ve moved beyond it.”In addition to guiding law students with their pro
bono work, Horwitz has devoted untold hours of his own time to a wide variety of organizations and individuals.
Most recently, he has been working with and advocating for people experiencing homelessness. A member of the Homeless Bill of Rights Defense Committee, Operation Stand Down and House of Hope, Horwitz works on driver’s license reinstatement.
“Lots of poor people have their driver’s license suspended or revoked because they are unable to pay fines, which plays into the cycle of poverty,” he says. “In particular, people coming out of prison terms are expected to be productive members of society and find a job, but the vast majority of them don’t have a license and can’t get one because of the court debt that has accumulated.”
Horwitz has also provided extensive pro bono hours to other groups including the U.S. District Court’s HOPE court, Amos House, NAACP and ACLU.
A former president of the Rhode Island Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Horwitz remains on the organization’s executive committee and currently sits on the boards of City Year Providence, OpenDoors Rhode Island, Rhode Island Center for Justice, and Transcending Through Education Foundation. RILW
Gerald M. MieleAdministrator and Financial Officer Higgins, Cavanagh & Cooney
F rom the time he was in high school, Gerald M. Miele had an interest in how laws are made and interpreted. After earning his paralegal certificate from
Roger Williams University, Miele joined a Rhode Island firm. Though he started off on the litigation side, he soon found himself handling the back end as an office administrator and manager.
In 2017, he joined Higgins, Cavanagh & Cooney, a 17-lawyer firm with just under 40 support staff employees.
A self-described “jack of all trades,” on any given day Miele finds himself interacting with building managers, reviewing the firm’s insurance policies, and negotiating with vendors to obtain a better rate on various services. Responsible for managing the firm’s finances, Miele also oversees human resources and personnel matters, helps with some recruitment, ensures that the lawyers have the proper secretarial and paralegal support, and sees to it that everyone has the technology they need.
“No day is ever the same,” Miele says. “My favorite part of the job is the diversity of it. I’m faced with new challenges and new situations on a daily basis, which always keeps things fresh.”
His first year with the firm has been busy. Cybersecurity was a major focus, with an upgrade of the firm’s procedures, security system, software and hardware. He also established a new and detailed loss prevention
and disaster recovery policy. When he joined Higgins Cavanagh, it didn’t
have much of a social media presence. Miele changed that, improving the firm’s website and presence on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
“At the beginning of the year, we had three people who were promoted to partner and we wanted everyone to know,” Miele says. “When one of the lawyers gets a good decision or wins a defense verdict, we want to make sure that news gets out, especially to our clients, to know that we are getting the right results.”
Miele also initiated HR trainings at the firm for all employees, whether full time, part time, partners or support staff.
“We wanted to make sure that everyone felt comfortable in the office and is on the same page about what is acceptable and what is not,” he says.
Despite his busy schedule, Miele is active outside the firm. He participates in the Rhode Island Law Office Administrators, an informal group of law office managers in the state. A former competitive athlete, he also volunteers with U.S. Figure Skating as an official and committee member (most recently serving as chair of the Rules Committee), and is an officer of Smithfield Youth Soccer, acting as a board member and coach. RILW
“My favorite part of the job is the diversity of it. I’m faced with new challenges and new situations on a daily basis, which always keeps things fresh.”
Excellence in the Law | 9 9
Excellence in the LawRhode Island Lawyers Weekly
In House Leaders
Congratulations to Our General CounselAmy C. Vitale, Esq.
LawyersWeeklyAmyVitaleAd.indd 1 3/12/2019 3:52:14 PM
Judicial Excellence
Hon. Michael A. SilversteinSuperior Court Judge (Retired)Boston University School of Law
A fter almost 25 years on the bench, Superior Court Judge Michael A. Silverstein retired last September at the age of 85.
“In almost every case that comes before you, somebody has a problem or they wouldn’t be in court,” he tells Lawyers Weekly. “And resolving that problem is what we’re here for.”
During his time on the bench, Silverstein presided over some of the most high-profi le cases in Rhode Island, including the 2006 lead paint trial, when a jury found three companies liable for creating a public nuisance by covering up known health risks, and litigation resulting from the collapse of the 38 Studios video game venture.
In addition to the big cases, Silverstein fondly looks back on cases “where you can save something.” He recalls Woonsocket’s Landmark Hospital, an institution in its “death throes” that went into receivership but is today a vibrant hospital.
“I feel good about the fact that the hospital has kept going,” he says.
Even before he took the bench in 1994 at the appointment of Gov. Bruce G. Sundlun, Silverstein was a well-known presence in the Rhode Island legal community.
He began his career in 1959 at a Woonsocket fi rm with just three lawyers, where he learned to do “everything.” Over the years, the fi rm evolved
into Tobin & Silverstein before later merging with Hinckley Allen. In the late 1980s, Silverstein took the helm as managing partner of the fi rm then known as Hinckley, Allen, Tobin & Silverstein.
Throughout his roughly 35 years of legal practice before taking the bench, Silverstein developed an expertise representing fi nancial institutions, particularly those in trouble. When Gov. Sundlun reached out during the 1990s’ fi nancial crisis, Silverstein provided assistance in “straightening out the situation,” later helping to draft the legislation establishing the Depositors Economic Protection Corp.
But Silverstein’s greatest legacy may prove to be the creation of the Providence Superior Court’s business calendar, which he helped establish in 1991 with then-Presiding Justice Joseph F. Rodgers Jr. The calendar achieved such success that it was rolled out to the rest of the state in 2011.
Retirement — after a legal career of almost 60 years and a habit of arriving at the courthouse by 7:30 a.m. and staying until at least 6 in the evening — will include time with family, Silverstein says.
“I’ve really enjoyed everything I’ve done both in the practice of law and in my years on the bench,” he says. “I think we’ve accomplished a great number of things, and the state has been good to me.” RILW
“I’ve really enjoyed everything I’ve done both in the practice of law and in my years on the bench. I think we’ve accomplished a great number of things, and the state has been good to me.”
10 | Excellence in the Law10
Higgins, Cavanagh & Cooney, LLP
is pleased to congratulate
our administrator, financial officer and colleague
Gerald M. Miele
10 Dorrance Street | Suite 400 | Providence, RI 02903 | 401.272.3500 470 Atlantic Avenue | Suite 400 | Boston, MA 02210 | 617.273.8230
on receiving
Excellence in the Law Honors
from
for his professional accomplishments and
civic engagement as an official with US Figure Skating.
CONGRATULATIONS TO
WILLIAM J. CONLEY, JR.
ON BEING NAMED A HALL OF FAME
2019 HONOREE FOR THE RHODE ISLAND LAWYERS WEEKLY EXCELLENCE IN THE LAW AWARD
CAROLINE, DEIDRE, DIONY, DYLAN, GINA AND KYLA
The Law Office of William J. Conley, Jr.The Hay Building • 123 Dyer Street, 2nd Floor
Providence, RI 02903
WilliamConleyLaw.com • 401.415.9835
Hall of Fame
William J. Conley Jr.Principal, Law Office of William J. Conley Jr.Catholic University School of Law
A fter almost four decades of legal practice, William J. Conley Jr. is still enamored with the law.
“Even after all these years, I really love the intellectual and strategic challenges of advocacy,” he says.
Conley began his career in the Office of the Public Defender, where he spent four years before hanging out his own shingle and opening the Law Office of William J. Conley Jr. in 1982.
“Looking around at the people I was living with and working with, I realized it was important for the community to have access to justice in a manner that was affordable to them,” he says.
The firm does “a lot of litigation” with a strong concentration in municipal and government law.
In 2013, Conley was elected to the Rhode Island Senate for District 18, representing the cities of East Providence and Pawtucket. As chair of the Senate Finance Committee, Conley is responsible for presenting a budget that his colleagues can support and will serve the citizens of Rhode Island in a financially efficient way.
“The budget impacts just about every major service the state provides, and I really appreciate the opportunity to manage it in a way that Rhode Islanders can live and thrive,” he says.
In both his law office and the Legislature, his
focus on municipal law allows him to have a direct impact on the daily lives of his fellow Rhode Islanders.
“In the very first term of my first year in the Senate, we passed marriage equality in the state of Rhode Island,” Conley recalls. “It was amazing to be able to participate in something that brought so much joy to such a large group of people.”
In addition to wearing hats as both a lawmaker and a lawyer, Conley finds time for professional and civic involvement. Former chief counsel for the Rhode Island Ethics Commission and member of the Rhode Island Bar Association’s Character and Fitness Committee, Conley also served as a member of the board of directors of the Rhode Island Legal Services Corp. for almost a decade.
He currently sits on the Board of Bar Examiners, a “tremendous experience” that he cites as “one of the most important things I’ve been able to contribute to the profession.”
Although it remains a challenge to balance his two roles, Conley feels fortunate to have found a path that allows him to do both.
“I feel incredibly privileged at this point in my career to be able to continue the practice of law and serve in the Rhode Island Senate and to do the best I can at both,” Conley says. RILW
“I feel incredibly privileged at this point in my career to be able to continue the practice of law and serve in the Rhode Island Senate and to do the best I can at both.”
S C H O O L O F LAW
RO
GE
R W
ILLIAMS UNIVERS
ITY
proudly congratulates the members of its family who have been chosen as
2019 Lawyers Weekly Excellence in the Law Honorees
Pro Bono HonoreeProfessor Andrew Horwitz, Assistant Dean for Experiential Education
Judicial HonoreeThe Honorable Michael A. Silverstein ’16H
Lawyers of the YearSonja L. Deyoe ’00
Jennifer Wood, Executive Director of the Rhode Island Center for Justice, a public interest law firm created in
collaboration with RWU Law
Hall of FamePatrick T. Jones, Jones Kelleher LLP, RWU Law Board of Directors
Up & Coming HonoreesAimee E. Audette ’14Christina Dzierzek ’10Timothy J. Grimes ’12Jessica A. Shelton ’11
Thank you for your outstanding contributions to our communities!
Boston(617) 737-3100
www.joneskell.com Providence(401) 273-0800
We congratulate our partner and friend,Patrick T. Jones, honoree of
Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly’s Excellence in the Law 2019 Hall of Fame Award.
proudly continuing a tradition of excellence
Excellence in the Law | 13 13
BOSTON | PROVIDENCE | SOUTHCOAST 401-861-8200
CONGRATULATIONS!Jack Partridge is not only a founding partner of our law firm, he is also a mentor, friend, and trusted advisor. The lawyers and staff of Partridge Snow & Hahn are proud to see him receive Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Jack is in very good company. Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly is honoring greatness found throughout the Rhode Island legal community with its Excellence in the Law awards. Congratulations to all those being recognized.
Find the experience you’re looking for at psh.com.
• Public Relations• Business Development Coaching • Networking Advice
Ellen KeileyPresident, EMK Consulting Group, LLC
BEST BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT COACH
WINNER
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www.emkconsultinggroup.com | [email protected]
EMK Congratulates the Honorees!
Hall of Fame
Patrick T. JonesFounding Partner, Jones Kelleher Boston College Law School
Aproduct of Jesuit education, Patrick T. Jones measures success by what he does for other people. By that standard, Jones has more than earned his Hall of
Fame status. Beginning his career as a trial lawyer in 1978,
Jones helped in 1984 to found Cooley, Manion, Jones, where he led the fi rm’s catastrophic personal injury and medical malpractice department. He worked on some of the most high profi le litigation in the region, including his representation of Victoria Snelgrove’s family when she was accidentally shot and killed by Boston police offi cers after a Red Sox game.
A Cleveland native who stayed in New England after transplanting to the East Coast for college and law school, Jones found himself working on cases in Rhode Island so often that his pro hac vice motions began to be denied.
He took the Rhode Island bar exam at age 52, which paid off when he found himself representing more than 80 estates and injured survivors of the fi re at the West Warwick nightclub The Station. As associate lead counsel for the Station Fire litigation that lasted almost eight years, Jones and the other lawyers reached settlements in excess of $176 million for the victims.
“Having the chance to work with great lawyers and be in a group that put a plan together for recovery for those who were injured or lost loved ones was the professional highlight of my career,”
Jones says. In 2014, when the partners at Cooley, Manion,
Jones found their clients increasingly in confl ict, they amicably parted, resulting in the creation of Jones Kelleher, which focuses exclusively on personal injury cases, specializing in medical malpractice, fi re, construction, product liability, civil rights and premises liability. Jones cites the creation of the fi rm as one of his proudest professional achievements.
“My work won’t change someone’s injury, but it will help them deal with it in some meaningful way and hopefully change their life for the better,” Jones says. “I am fulfi lled by that effort and want to make it happen for as many people as possible.”
A former president of both the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys and the Rhode Island Association for Justice, Jones remains on the board of governors for both organizations. He currently sits on the board of the Citizens Energy Corporation as well as Roger Williams University School of Law, and is a fellow of the Rhode Island Bar Foundation, a senior fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America and a member of the Justinian Law Society.
After spending many years chairing the boards of various schools (including Catholic Memorial in Roxbury and St. Sebastian’s School in Needham), Jones focuses his attention on the Pine Street Inn, where he chairs the board of directors and spearheaded a $1 million fundraising effort for the organization, which provides assistance to the homeless population in New England. RILW
“My work won’t change someone’s injury, but it will help them deal with it in some meaningful way and hopefully change their life for the better.”
14 | Excellence in the Law14
NavigatiNg Complex legal issues: Divorce w Child Custody w Child Support w Personal Injury
Business & Commercial Litigation w Probate & Estate Administration
50 Park Row West w Suite 109 w Providence, RI 02903 w ph 401.351.7700
mcintyretate.com
wDEBORAH MILLER TATE
Congratulations on your selection to
The RI Lawyers Weekly Hall of Fame
Unparalleled ExperienceUnsurpassed ServiceUnmatched Dedication
mCiNtyre w tate llp
One Citizens Plaza, 8th FloorProvidence, RI 02903
401.274.7200www.apslaw.com
Providence ~ Newport ~ Boston ~ Manchester, NH
Congratulations to John A. Tarantino
Shareholder & President of the firm, on receiving the Lawyers Weekly Rhode Island
Excellence in the Law Hall of Fame Award.
A well-deserved award for an exceptional lawyer and a good friend.
Hall of Fame
John J. PartridgeSenior Counsel, Partridge, Snow & HahnHarvard Law School
After more than fi ve decades in legal practice, John J. ‘Jack’ Partridge continues to have an infl uence in Rhode Island.
In 1988, he and seven like-minded partners opened the doors of Partridge, Snow & Hahn, where his practice has focused on strategic business decision-making, corporate governance for profi t and non-profi t entities, fi nancial institution law and family wealth transition. The fi rm has grown to include offi ces in Providence, Boston and New Bedford, Massachusetts. Partridge cites being able to serve loyal clients — with some relationships lasting more than 50 years — as one of his career highlights.
Over the years, Partridge has been involved with some of the state’s most interesting legal matters, including the fi nancial crisis of 1991, the closing of the Rhode Island Group Health Association and the creation of the Beacon Mutual Insurance Company. A longtime advocate for “good government,” Partridge was a member of the 1973 Constitutional Convention that secured the fi rst disclosure of campaign contributions and fostered the passage of legislation that opened public records in Rhode Island.
Partridge was also the driving force behind an intensive mentoring program for the fi rm’s attorneys that was launched more than a decade ago. The program helps lawyers to identify their
strengths and interests and connects them with legal, business, civic or charitable organizations where they can make the greatest contribution.
“Mentoring a number of great lawyers and others, particularly young women in the profession, that have been successful in their careers in the law or otherwise has been important,” he says.
Legal counsel for 27 years to the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, where he also served as a board member, Partridge represented the Department of Business Regulation and provided counsel with respect to insurance, health care, general corporate issues, fi nancial institutions and receiverships.
Co-founder and former co-chair of the Pawtucket Foundation, Partridge sits on the boards of the Pawtucket Boys & Girls Club and Social Enterprise Greenhouse, and serves as treasurer of the Ocean State Charities Trust’s board of directors. He is also the past chair of the board of directors of Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island and co-founder of the Providence College Liberal Arts Honors Council, as well as a member of the Providence College President’s Council.
Partridge is a member of the Rhode Island Bar Association, the Massachusetts Bar Association and the Federation of Regulatory Counsel, and a founding member of the Governor’s Insurance Council. RILW
“Mentoring a number of great lawyers and others ... that have been successful in their careers in the law or otherwise has been important.”
Excellence in the Law | 15 15
Hall of Fame
Hall of Fame
Deborah M. TatePartner, McIntyre TateNew England School of Law
“You’ve never felt more like a lawyer than you do coming up with a question that incoming lawyers should know in order to practice here.”
Although Deborah M. Tate always knew she wanted to be a lawyer, the path that led to more than three decades in the area of domestic relations came as
something of a surprise. An accounting major with plans to be a corporate attorney, she first began working on the financial aspects of divorce cases before recognizing that family law was a perfect fit.
“I never expected or planned it, but I realized that this area of law suited me so much better,” she says. “I was able to use my financial background, work directly with people and go to court.” Tate, who was raised in a working class family in Massachusetts and commuted to high school in Rhode Island, also appreciates that her practice allows her to help people going through a difficult time in their lives.
In 1983, she helped found the firm that is today known as McIntyre Tate.
“I’m very proud to have helped create the firm,” Tate says. “We pride ourselves on the service and attention that we provide to clients, the professionalism and civility that we give to our adversaries and the way we treat all the people we deal with.”
Tate typically spends her mornings in court and her afternoons with clients, but as a self-described “bar junkie” she has been actively involved with professional organizations and
affinity groups since the beginning of her career. President of the Rhode Island Bar Association
from 1999 to 2000, Tate has served as vice president of the Rhode Island Bar Foundation since 2012. A founding member of the Gallogly Family Law Inn of Court, she helped to found and is the immediate past president of the Northeast States Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. She also sits on the board of governors of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and has been a diplomat with the American College of Family Trial Lawyers since 2004.
Tate was appointed to the Rhode Island Commission on Judicial Tenure and Discipline as well as the Rhode Island Supreme Court Ethics Advisory Panel, serving a two-year term as chair. In 2013, she was tapped for the Rhode Island Board of Bar Examiners. Until the state elected to adopt the uniform bar exam, Tate developed the essay question on family law twice a year.
“You’ve never felt more like a lawyer than you do coming up with a question that incoming lawyers should know in order to practice here,” she says. “The experience is one of the most satisfying contributions to the legal profession I’ve had.”
A frequent speaker and writer on family law issues, Tate has co-authored “A Practical Guide to Divorce in Rhode Island” since 2009. RILW
John A. TarantinoPresident and Shareholder, Adler, Pollock & SheehanBoston College Law School
Once John A. Tarantino accepted the fact that he wouldn’t be playing in the outfield for the Boston Red Sox, he turned to the law as a possible career
choice. Almost 40 years later, it appears he made the right decision.
“There is nothing like having someone say, ‘I want you to be my lawyer,’ and putting that kind of trust in you, particularly when the stakes are high,” he says.
Tarantino began working at Adler, Pollock & Sheehan as a summer associate. He stayed at the Providence firm part time for the remainder of law school and never left. Now president of Adler Pollock, he initially found himself frustrated by the cases he was working on.
“My wife told me, ‘Then be the best possible lawyer at those cases,’” Tarantino recalls.
Taking her advice, he tried as many cases as he could get his hands on, built experience in the courtroom, and honed his skills as a litigator. Those efforts paid off in the ensuing decades.
“From my perspective, the hardest thing to learn is how to try a case,” he says. “But that skill set is transferrable, from civil cases to criminal to commercial or product liability. Once you know how to try a case, you can transfer those trial skills to any substantive area of law.”
Tarantino has done just that, working on issues ranging from antitrust to criminal law, and from insurance disputes to defense of government officials.
“I am terrific at cocktail parties,” Tarantino says, laughing. “I know a little bit about a lot of things.”
For almost a decade, he was involved in the longest jury trial in Rhode Island state history, the massive lead paint contamination lawsuit in which he successfully defended Atlantic Richfield Co. While jurors ordered the other defendants to pay millions of dollars, Tarantino’s client was found not responsible, a verdict that was affirmed on appeal.
“It was extremely rewarding to have a jury pay attention to a really complex case that lasted 18 weeks and ultimately come back and rule in favor of my client,” he says.
Throughout his career, Tarantino has made time for professional organizations and giving back to the community. He is a former chairman of the Rhode Island Legal Services Campaign for Equal Justice and has served as president of the Rhode Island Bar Association, Rhode Island Bar Foundation, New England Bar Association and Defense Counsel of Rhode Island.
A founding member and former regent of the National College for DUI Defense, Tarantino currently chairs the Client Security Fund Committee of RIBA and is active in the alumni associations of Dartmouth College and Boston College Law School. He also devotes his time to Read to Succeed, a charitable organization that incentivizes young inner city children to read. RILW
“There is nothing like having someone say, ‘I want you to be my lawyer,’ and putting that kind of trust in you, particularly when the stakes are high.”
16 | Excellence in the Law16 Lawyers of the Year
Patrick C. Barry
F ollowing a three-week trial before Superior Court Judge Kristin E. Rodgers in May, a Providence jury returned its verdict in Smith v. The University of Rhode
Island, et al., concluding that the university was negligent in not posting warnings or otherwise alerting guests that swimming was prohibited at its Whispering Pines Conference Center in West Greenwich.
While swimming underwater on the property in 2014, plaintiff Brett A. Smith hit his head on a submerged rock and was paralyzed from the chest down.
In the culmination of the ensuing lawsuit, a jury awarded Brett and his wife, Stacie, $28.56 million in damages, among the largest negligence verdicts in Rhode Island history. The combined judgment for the couple was $32.14 million after a 23 percent reduction for comparative fault and addition of pre-judgment interest.
At the center of the litigation was the Smiths’ trial attorney, Patrick C. Barry of Decof, Barry, Mega & Quinn, who successfully argued that, in light of the outdoorsy nature of the property and the way it was marketed, it was reasonably foreseeable that guests at Whispering Pines would go swimming in waters that the facility knew to have submerged rocks and stumps.
“The Smiths are two of the most remarkable people I’ve ever met, in many, many ways,” Barry says in looking back on the trial. “Although hard-fought, the trial was very civil and very professional. As intense as it was in terms of the issues and the severity of Brett’s injuries and what was really riding on this verdict, it was a very enjoyable experience.”
Barry relishes his role in the courtroom, and, when pressed to describe a few of his strengths as a trial lawyer, allows that judges and peers sometimes characterize him as “meticulous.”
“But once I get in a courtroom, it practically feels like home to me,” he says. “That’s what some of it comes down to. And the more people in that courtroom, the better.”
Barry recently sat down to discuss this year’s notable verdict.
***Q. Were there any unique facts in the case contributing to the verdict?A. A key component was that URI runs what is essentially a for-profit hospitality operation at Whispering Pines. Therefore, some of the defenses that might have been available to a state university, such as sovereign immunity, were not available. The conference center is a business and will be judged as such under the law, just as it would be if it were a Motel 6 or a Westin. Along with that is the fact that the water was marketed so heavily. The property was presented as “lakefront property” with “tranquil waters.”
Q. What was the reaction in the courtroom when it became clear there would be a sizable verdict?A. We didn’t have a “gasp in the room” moment. The verdict form was long, and once the jury had found negligence and awarded the monetary damages, there were still three fast ball questions coming across the plate: assumption of risk, open and obvious danger, and comparative negligence. Although the jury found 23 percent
comparative negligence, they could have conceivably assigned 90 or 95 percent fault to Brett, which would have virtually wiped out the verdict. So by the time we got through those last three and realized we were prevailing on them, the moment for the gasp had sort of expired. But there was a great sense of relief and accomplishment. My clients were a little overwhelmed, but they always looked at this trial as a way of getting a fair analysis of all the facts and a judgment by members of the community. I think that meant as much to them as anything else — that a jury validated their beliefs and their decision-making that day as being understandable under all of the circumstances.
Q. Why do you think the jury rejected the defenses of assumption of risk or open and obvious danger?A. I’m convinced that we prevailed on those issues for two reasons. The first was my strategy to carefully lay out the facts of what Brett did, because his situation of how he ended up in the water, what he did in the water, and ultimately his dive from the rock was very different from the “classic” Rhode Island diving cases where the courts have applied those defenses. Those cases typically involved what might be called a “sudden diver,” where someone maybe runs down a dock and dives in head first. Brett was very different. He spent a long time in the water, was swimming around with others, had a sense of its depth, and saw others dive in safely. The second thing is that Brett explained to the
jury himself, in detail, how much time he spent in the water, what he did, and why he did not perceive any type of risk.
Q. Are there any particular takeaways from this trial that you’ll remember for future cases?A. Just in the last week, a colleague described a trial lawyer’s practice as requiring a weird mix of confidence and paranoia. That’s an apt description, because there are times at trial when your worries and concerns can outweigh your confidence. But this one felt a little different; I had a lot of confidence. I think a big takeaway for me is knowing how to trust my own read of the situation and my belief in what I think is going on in the courtroom.
Q. In addition to this negligence verdict, your firm recently won a large medical malpractice verdict. To what do you attribute the firm’s success at trial?A. It’s a combination of things. What’s become different over the last few years is that the practice that we do, the complex injury cases, the medical malpractice cases, has become very sophisticated. There’s an emphasis on expert witness development, discovery of that information, and using medical and scientific sources outside the testimony of the case. For example, if an expert is going to testify on a medical issue, now it helps to have the published
support backing that, such as textbooks and medical journals. It’s gotten so complex on both sides that it has become difficult to pursue cases that probably would have been pursued 10 years ago. And while you of course have to be completely locked down on the facts of the case, the pieces of evidence, and the testimony, you also have to be aware of the latest research on trial strategies and jury behavior. We’ve been able to keep up with those sorts of changes, and fortunately we’re doing it well.
Q. What is going on post-verdict? Will there be an appeal?A. I can’t comment at this time on the appeal or the current status of the case. But during the post-trial motions it was our position that this was a fair verdict that attained substantial justice between the parties. We did not fight the finding of comparative negligence and were willing to
accept the jury’s verdict as it came down. Judge Rodgers is to be commended for handling the post-trial motions efficiently and professionally. Even with a case of this magnitude, final orders and judgment entered within a couple of months of the verdict.
Q. You’re active in the Rhode Island Association for Justice. What are the “big issues” currently facing trial lawyers?A. The biggest of the legal issues confronting trial practice today is probably mandatory arbitration clauses, which are showing up more and more in our everyday dealings, such as cellphone and banking contracts. It’s an unfair system that’s not built in a way that really gives you a chance to opt out; you either sign the form contract or don’t get the service. But that takes an individual’s right to a jury trial, which is enshrined in the Seventh Amendment, and removes it to an arbitration proceeding. Both plaintiff and defense lawyers share my concern that we’ve got to protect the right to a civil jury trial. In a less technical but equally important way, those clauses are also resulting in fewer jury trials and fewer young lawyers who are learning to try a case. We could find ourselves in a situation where, even if the law swings back toward the jury trial, we may not have experienced people to actually try them. RILW
Decof, Barry, Mega & QuinnWidener University School of Law
“Once I get in a courtroom, it practically feels like home to me. ... And the more people in that courtroom, the better.”
Excellence in the Law | 17 17Lawyers of the Year
Sonja L. Deyoe
Among the standout Rhode Island court holdings in 2018 were two federal decisions that spoke to civil rights protections under Title IX and
the state’s responsibility of providing special education services to students with disabilities.
In consideration of a motion to dismiss in Doe v. Brown University, U.S. District Court Judge John J. McConnell Jr. ruled in September that the “continuing violation doctrine” applies to Title IX hostile environment/sexual harassment claims, thus defeating a statute of limitations defense put forth by the university. It was the first court within the 1st Circuit to recognize the doctrine in the context of Title IX.
Then, in November, a panel of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in K.L. v. Rhode Island Board of Education, et al. vacated a trial court decision in ruling that Rhode Island school districts, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, are required to provide a “free appropriate public education” to individuals with disabilities until the age of 22 because educational programming is provided to students of the same age without disabilities.
A common denominator in the holdings was Sonja L. Deyoe, the Providence attorney who represented the plaintiff in each case.
Having practiced law for nearly 20 years, Deyoe decided to hang out her shingle in 2013 and now primarily focuses on employment discrimination.
But the former Army and Air Force reservist takes on additional causes when she thinks she can make a difference, particularly in civil rights matters.
“My goal is to do what I can to help people in areas where they are most likely to be benefited,” she says. “With a class of around 1,600, the special education case has been the perfect example of being able to engage in litigation that has a lot of impact, and that’s important to me.”
Deyoe was influenced by her family and by the farming community in which she was raised in upstate New York, where service to others was an instilled value.
“Whatever I’m doing, that is part of my end game,” she says.
The civil litigator recently took time out to discuss the significance of her recent successes.
***Q. What is the significance of the “continuing violation” holding and what is happening with the case now?A. The litigation is ongoing and at this point we’re doing discovery, the interrogatories, depositions and requests for documents. Even though Judge McConnell’s holding here was on a motion to dismiss, the ruling on the doctrine is still very helpful, because it will apply to other cases and there’s a lot of this sort of litigation that goes on.
But if you look at the Title VII jurisprudence, it’s very clear that if you have a hostile environment, if you’ve got all of these actions that are sort of cumulating to end up with the plaintiff suffering injury because of the environment, you can have a continuing violation. And Title IX and Title VI, although generally interpreted more conservatively, borrow from the more extensive jurisprudence regarding Title VII.
Q. How do you think the Title IX landscape is going to change with the new guidance from U.S. education secretary Betsy DeVos?A. When the previous guidance came out under the Obama administration, it caused more litigation because it seemed to give a lot more protection to individuals who were bringing complaints. From my perspective, and from the perspective of a lot of other lawyers as well, there has been an issue with respect to due process and how the standards seem to have gone too far in favor of the person that brought the complaint with the university. I understand that it’s incredibly difficult to bring these sorts of complaints and to go through that process, but to some extent I think the new guidance is a correction. I don’t know ultimately if that’s going to be a good thing, because it may swing too far in the other direction. But hopefully it will come back to a place where it’s easier for someone who’s had a complaint brought against them to be able to defend.
Q. How confident were you in the strength of your position in the IDEA case?A. First of all, although I was the lead counsel in Rhode Island, I have to give credit to two other attorneys who were involved in the joint effort: Jason Kim from California and Paul Alston from Hawaii, who had mounted similar litigation in the 9th Circuit. They are incredibly smart and really well-versed in this area. Jason actually argued at the 1st Circuit.
The second thing to know is that the state has
filed a petition for a hearing en banc. I don’t really have a way of predicting where that will go, and anything could happen, but my thought is that we stand an incredibly good chance of the holding staying in place.
It never went through my head that we would lose the case, and we came out of oral arguments feeling pretty confident. The judges were very targeted and focused on what was set forth in the opinion, which is the idea that when you’re defining “public education,” you should be looking in terms of both control by the state and funding. We couldn’t help but leave there with the expectation that the lower court was going to be reversed. The Rhode Island Developmental Disabilities Council and various educational and parents groups are very, very excited about this decision coming down and the change that it makes. We’re currently working with agencies like the Groden Center in trying to figure out the best way to help members of the class once we are in a position to craft remedies.
Q. What is involved with your work as a “cooperating attorney” with the ACLU?A. In Rhode Island, being a cooperating attorney means that the ACLU calls you up and asks if you want to get involved with a particular case. Although I decide case strategy in any case I take
on, the ACLU offers its depth of knowledge and understanding concerning the issues it chooses to bring forward and provides a baseline of support for its volunteer attorneys. But in the IDEA case, it so happens that the plaintiff and her mother walked in my door several years ago and told me about a “crazy idea” they had about the Rhode Island statute, and it went from there.
Q. Where else have your attentions been focused in 2018?A. Well, I’ve been busy practicing law, but I’ve also been plotting and planning an approach to the civil death statute, trying to figure out how to bring that issue before the court in such a way to directly attack its constitutionality.
Rhode Island appears to be the only state enforcing such a law, and I find it particularly
concerning that people who get life sentences can be released and still not have any civil rights. While the U.S. Supreme Court has been pretty clear that claims under 42 U.S.C. §1983 can’t be waived, there is absolutely nothing I can do to address state law claims on behalf of those deemed “civilly dead.” There’s not a lot of political will for legislators to deal with an issue affecting 240 or so prisoners who have life sentences, but I am going to do everything I can to see that this statute is either repealed or that it’s overruled and held unconstitutional.
Q. Compared to your previous experience in firms, your solo practice must afford more flexibility in taking on the causes that resonate with you.A. Yes, there’s certainly the ability to choose the type of work that comes in, but a solo practice also gives me the ability to more directly control my hours of work. That doesn’t mean there aren’t times when I work a lot, but I don’t have to answer to people. Of course, I answer to my clients, but that’s a different animal.
And we have five lawyers [in this suite], so there’s a certain camaraderie. We don’t work together, as we have our own cases and do our own things. But to the same extent that I had when I was in a firm, I have the ability to bounce things off of these guys. I enjoy it. RILW
Law Offices of Sonja DeyoeRoger Williams University School of Law
“Rhode Island appears to be the only state enforcing [a civil death statute], and I find it particularly concerning that people who get life sentences can be released and still not have any civil rights.”
18 | Excellence in the Law18 Lawyers of the Year
Jennifer L. Wood
In the past year, the Rhode Island Center for Justice has continued its advocacy on behalf of low-income clients, remaining true to its original focus on the challenges that they may confront
in housing, utility protections and fair wages.But the nonprofit in 2018 also partnered
with local organizations in expanding its reach into other areas such as public education and Medicaid policy.
Orchestrating the myriad efforts of the three-year-old public interest law firm is the seemingly indefatigable Jennifer L. Wood, who as its executive director fills the dual roles of running a nonprofit while also managing the legal work of the center’s staff and its cohort of public interest fellows, law students and interns.
“I consider it a privilege to be doing this work,” Wood says. “This is what I always wanted to do. When I went to college, I knew that the reason I was going into higher education and then into law school was so that, at some point, I might be lucky enough to have a job where I could have this kind of impact.”
***
Q. What was the center’s involvement with the state’s policy change to include new Hepatitis C medications as part of the standard treatment protocol for Medicaid patients, dropping the requirement that they be in advanced stages of the disease?
A. This issue really serves as a case study of our year, as it reflects our partnership model with community organizations that make us aware of unmet needs that should be addressed.
When curative treatments for Hepatitis C were identified several years ago, the new medications were extremely expensive to administer per patient. The figure that gets thrown around is $80,000 per patient for the entire course of treatment. So states across the country, including Rhode Island, were not authorizing the new treatment protocols for coverage by Medicaid, thinking that it would be a budget buster.
In this case, Dr. Lynn Taylor in Rhode Island and Harvard’s Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation came to meet with us and the Pro Bono Collaborative of Roger Williams School of Law, and Jones Kelleher joined in as co-counsel. We all worked together to craft a demand letter, preparatory to filing suit, which was basically the equivalent of a legal complaint and spelled out our basis for advocating for a change in the policy. And I give a lot of credit to the Medicaid director, who quickly said we should forge a solution rather than engage in a pitched battle.
The patient we worked with in this case, our “named plaintiff” who stands for dozens of other patients being helped by this policy change, has now been cured. And as is often the case with a new treatment, the cost has also come down dramatically per patient treatment cycle, closer to $20,000.
That’s exactly what we’re here to try to do — to be the glue in bringing a team together to try to solve community problems that are identified by our partners. It was a great outcome that happened very quickly.
Q. Can you elaborate on the recent federal class action suit asserting that Rhode Island students are not receiving an adequate education in civics?A. There are only a few lawyers in Rhode Island who take cases on behalf of students and families, but I worked as general counsel at the Department of Education for a decade and this is an area of my expertise.
We are advocating for all public school students in Rhode Island, maintaining that they have a right to an adequate education to prepare them for participation in democratic institutions as adults. It’s teeing up the proposition that there are enumerated rights in the federal Constitution, such as the right to participate in electoral politics and the right to participate and be protected by a jury of one’s peers, that are being denied to Rhode Island students because they are not receiving civics education in any formal or organized way. I want to be clear that we believe that numeracy and literacy are integral to being civilly prepared, but the majority of Rhode Island public school students in districts of every description, not just the more distressed districts, are not systematically receiving civics instruction.
Q. And you’re also mounting an effort concerning solitary confinement?A. Yes, a number of inmates have been suing pro se in federal court over being subjected to very extended stays in solitary. I’m talking hundreds of days, not dozens of days, so there are serious
concerns about its duration and frequency. A state legislative commission has just said that if you’re mentally ill, no amount of solitary confinement is appropriate to the circumstances.We have been appointed as pro bono civil counsel by the federal court for our client who had mental health problems upon arriving at the ACI, was placed in solitary, and then those problems were greatly exacerbated. We are hosting a Liman Fellow who will be focusing on that work. That is integral to our model: providing a platform from which the public interest lawyers of the future can be trained to do their work.
Q. Have you expanded into immigration issues from your initial focus areas of housing, utilities and wages?A. It’s an extension of what we do and is already a part of our core work; we are already very aware that a large proportion of our client base is comprised of immigrants. We’re not representing them in their immigration matters, but in their other civil rights, whether that be in the wage arena or in housing. We have partnered up with the Immigrant Coalition, which is a very robust group of over 30 organizations coming together at a time of an immigration crisis in this country. Since 2016, the policies of the federal government
toward immigrants have been draconian, and there’s a climate of fear and a systematic, we think, regime of fear being imposed upon our immigrant neighbors. There’s also a chilling effect on households where one or more of the parents may be immigrants but the children are citizens.
Q. Does your work to ensure fair wages often center on the immigrant community?A. Yes, because they often do not know what their rights are as much as an English-speaking and American-born worker, who may be more aware of the minimum wage, what that number is, and that you’re entitled to overtime if you work more than 40 hours per week. And there are particular industries where that may be a more prevalent problem, such as landscaping, construction or housecleaning, and where there may be more immigrant workers who
are not as well-informed on their rights. It’s not exclusively a problem for immigrants, but they do make up a large proportion of those affected.
Q. You’ve seen some recent successes in winning lower rates for low-income utility customers.A. Every time there’s a rate case, someone has to be there championing the needs of low-income consumers, and the last rate case resulted in a meaningful real-term reduction from year to year. The most important structural change is a tiered rate: If you’re low-income at a certain level, you pay a discount, but if you’re very low-income, you have an enhanced discount.
But the larger picture is not just about the electric bill or the gas bill; it’s also about things such as who will have access to electric car charging stations. Will they be placed in low-income neighborhoods? Is that a meaningful point of access for low-income consumers, or are electric cars going to be the purview of the affluent?
We also want to look at whether the benefits of energy efficiency programs are going to the unsustainable and degraded properties where many of our clients live, or whether they go more to middle-class consumers who are putting upgrades into the homes they own and reside in. RILW
Executive Director, Rhode Island Center for JusticeNortheastern University School of Law
“That’s exactly what we’re here to try to do — to be the glue in bringing a team together to try to solve community problems that are identified by our partners.”
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