Lathrop GPM Promotes Seven Attorneys to Partnership
Kansas City, Mo. and Minneapolis (Jan. 2, 2020) – Lathrop GPM is proud to announce seven of its attorneys became partners effective Jan. 1, 2020. Lathrop GPM law firm is the result of the recent combination of Gray Plant Mooty and Lathrop Gage LLP. The newly elected partners are Ally Cunningham, Neil Goldsmith, Alyssa Hirschfeld, Gizie Hirsh, Frank Sciremammano, Judith Stone-Hulslander and Michael Sturm.
Ally Cunningham (Environmental & Tort – Kansas City, Mo.): Cunningham focuses her practice on representing clients in administrative negotiations with federal and state agencies, advising clients regarding their regulatory requirements and assisting with litigation of environmental claims. In addition to traditional legal counseling, she brings experience in the strategy and creation of public relations and the management of political issues related to pending litigation or compliance issues, with a particular emphasis in environmental and agribusiness matters. Cunningham’s experience includes working large, complex environmental civil litigation, especially those involving class action components. Prior to joining the firm, Cunningham worked in the Missouri Attorney General’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Missouri State Capitol. Cunningham sits on the Statewide Board of Directors for Missouri Court Appointed Special Advocates, and on the Board of Directors of the Mizzou Alumni Association, Boone County Chapter. Cunningham received her Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from the University of Missouri School of Law in Columbia.
Neil Goldsmith (Employment & Labor – Minneapolis): Goldsmith counsels employers on labor relations issues and handles complex employment litigation matters as well as day-to-day advising questions for large and small companies nationwide. He works with clients across several industries, including health care, manufacturing, retail, food service, agribusiness, energy, transportation, hospitality and higher education. Goldsmith has successfully defended employers in discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblower, non-compete, and wage and hour cases before state and federal trial and appellate courts. He is a member of the Committee on Legal Education for the National Association of College and University Attorneys (NACUA). Minnesota Super Lawyers named Goldsmith a 2019 “Rising Star” and the Minnesota State Bar Association named him among its 2016 “North Star Lawyers.” Goldsmith received his Juris Doctor, cum laude, from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, Missouri.
Alyssa J, Hirschfeld (Corporate & Business – Minneapolis): Hirschfeld concentrates her practice on general corporate law transactions and mergers and acquisitions. She represents clients in a variety of industries and as a member of the American Bar Association’s Target M&A Deal Points Study Working Group, she also maintains a deep and current knowledge of negotiating trends in transactions. Hirschfeld works on all phases of mergers and acquisitions transactions and regularly works with all sizes of private companies on shareholder agreements, general corporate and contract issues, corporate governance and financing matters. In addition, she represents companies obtaining senior or mezzanine financing, or lenders providing such financing. Hirschfeld received her Juris Doctor from Boston College Law School in Newton, Massachusetts.
Gizie D. Hirsh (Employment & Labor – Kansas City, Mo.): With more than a decade of experience in the immigration field, Hirsh leads the firm’s business immigration practice. She assists a variety of domestic and international businesses with hiring foreign talent from around the world based on non-immigrant and immigrant visa categories. The clients she serves include technology firms, healthcare providers, architectural firms, educational institutions, manufacturers, entertainment firms, religious organizations and financial service firms. Hirsh also counsels foreign investors on immigration matters and employers on immigration compliance, including I-9 and audits. She focuses her practice on representing businesses and individuals before United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Department of Labor, the Department of State and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. She is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity Fellows Program. Hirsh received her Juris Doctor from the University of Missouri – Kansas City School of Law.
Frank J. Sciremammano (Franchise & Distribution – Washington D.C.): Sciremammano focuses his practice on franchise, distribution and business litigation and white-collar defense matters. He advises some of the nation’s largest franchisors and regularly defends and prosecutes cases on their behalf in matters involving the enforcement of covenants not to compete, vicarious liability, business torts and trademark infringement, among others. Sciremammano’s experience also includes representing clients in commercial contract disputes and defending individuals in connection with various fraud and trade secret disputes. He represents clients ranging from individuals and small employers to public entities and international corporations. Sciremammano received his Juris Doctor, summa cum laude, from Syracuse University College of Law in New York.
Judith Stone-Hulslander, Ph.D. (Intellectual Property – Boston): With approximately 20 years’ intellectual property experience, Stone-Hulslander focuses her practice on patent preparation, prosecution and client counseling in all areas of biotechnology. She holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology and prior to obtaining her law degree, she worked more than five years as a technical specialist and patent agent. Stone-Hulslander has particularly strong patent experience with therapeutic antibodies and antibody-like molecules for a variety of disease indications, and also has done extensive patent work in the areas of molecular virology, RNA therapeutics, glycoengineering technologies and gene therapy technologies. Stone-Hulslander is a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Intellectual Property Law Association and the Boston Law Patent Association. Stone-Hulslander received her Juris Doctor from Suffolk University Law School in Boston, and her Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, Mass.
Michael L. Sturm (Franchise & Distribution – Washington, D.C.): Sturm has nearly three decades of experience litigating on behalf of franchisors in federal and state courts across the country and in arbitration proceedings. His experience includes counseling on virtually every type of substantive claim that arises in the course of the franchise relationship and he also has extensive experience with the jurisdictional and procedural issues that arise frequently in franchise litigation, including litigation with franchisee associations and multi-party litigation. In addition, Sturm has broad experience in complex, high-stakes commercial litigation matters and is a frequent speaker at legal and franchising events. Sturm received his Juris Doctor, cum laude, from Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts.