News

Janet Ward Black ’85 has been named to North Carolina Lawyers Weekly’s annual Power List for personal injury lawyers. A personal injury attorney and principal owner of Ward Black Law in Greensboro, one of the largest woman-owned law firms in the state, Black is representing several North Carolina counties in opioid litigation and has represented numerous individuals hurt by products such as asbestos. Black previously served as an assistant district attorney in Cabarrus and Rowan counties.

Norwood Blanchard III ’99 and Alex C. Dale ’01 were named to Business North Carolina’s Legal Elite list. Blanchard is a partner at Crossley McIntosh Collier Hanley & Edes in Wilmington, where he practices civil litigation, employment law, and municipal law. Dale practices business law at Ward and Smith in Wilmington, where he chairs the firm’s appellate practice.

Brent Clinkscale ’86 T ’83 was interviewed in Legal Industry Reviews on his career path and practice. Clinkscale is an independent arbitrator, mediator, facilitator, and litigation consultant at Clinkscale Global ADR based in Greenville, S.C. Previously he was a litigator and partner at Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd and Womble Bond Dickinson. Clinkscale also advises moot court teams at the Charleston School of Law and the University of South Carolina School of Law.

Frank Rudy Cooper ’95 was interviewed on his research into the link between masculinity and police-civilian conflicts, the psychological impact of exposure to videos of violent and deadly police encounters, and what policing reforms have proven effective. Cooper is the William S. Boyd Professor of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Boyd School of Law and director of its Program on Race, Gender & Policing.

Robert DeNault ’21 and Hensey Fenton III ’19 returned to Duke Law for the 28th Annual National Security Law (LENS) Conference for a panel discussing “Corporations and National Security Law: Is the Private Sector the New Battleground?” DeNault is an associate at Gibson Dunn and Fenton is an associate at Covington & Burling.

George Donnini '98 has been elected to the board of directors of Butzel in Detroit. Donnini has spent more than 20 years at the firm and served in a number of leadership roles. Currently he is a litigation department chair and co-chair of the firm’s white collar criminal defense practice. Donnini was named a “Notable Veteran” by Crain’s Detroit Business in 2020 and is a founding member of the Detroit chapter of the Veterans Bar Association.

Blair Hedges ’00 has joined Carlton Fields’ real property litigation practice as a shareholder in its Orlando office. Hedges brings more than 20 years’ experience litigating complex commercial and real estate matters, securities class actions, shareholder derivation lawsuits, and actions brought by the SEC. Previously he was vice president, senior litigation counsel at Fidelity National Financial.

Sara Lester '03 has been named chief human resources officer at Dartmouth as of June 1. Since 2018, Lester has managed human resources at Educational Testing Service. Prior to leading ETS's human resources department, Lester served in its general counsel’s office, beginning in 2010.

Michael McGrath ’02 has joined Dechert as partner in the financial services group in its Boston office. An asset management and investment funds lawyer with deep experience in the U.S. financial services regulatory environment, McGrath was formerly at K&L Gates, where he was a partner and co-practice area leader of the asset management and investment funds practice.

Gregory Omer ’90 joined Armstrong Teasdale as partner in the firm’s St. Louis office. Omer brings more than 25 years of experience in banking and corporate law, with both government and in-house experience. Previously he was general counsel and executive vice president at a regional bank holding company, a partner at two national law firms, and chief counsel for the Missouri Division of Finance.

Daniel Rosenthal ’02 was appointed president and CEO of Global Critical Logistics. Rosenthal most recently was chief revenue and operating officer of Root, Inc. In 2009 he co-founded Milestone Aviation Group, the world’s largest helicopter financier that was acquired by GE Capital for $1.8 billion in 2015, after which he oversaw four subsidiaries of GE Capital Aviation Services. Rosenthal also served in leadership roles at NetJets.

Matthew Sawchak JD/LLM ’89 was named a member of NC Lawyers Weekly's Class of 2023 “Leaders in the Law.” Sawchak has been a business litigation attorney at Robinson Bradshaw in Raleigh since 2020. He served as solicitor general of North Carolina from 2017 to 2020. Since 2011, Sawchak also has served as a practitioner in residence at Campbell University's Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law, where he focuses his scholarship on federalism in antitrust and trade regulation as well consumer protection and advises the Campbell Law Review.

Joel Taubenblatt '95 has been named chief of the wireless telecommunications bureau of the FCC's new Space Bureau. Taubenblatt has been acting chief for several years. Prior to that he served as deputy bureau chief, chief of the competition and infrastructure policy division, and chief of the broadband division at the FCC. He joined the agency in 1996 as an attorney in the Common Carrier Bureau, and is a recipient of the FCC’s Gold Medal Award for Distinguished Career Service.