We are pleased to announce Attorney Michael M. Kennedy and Attorney Jason R. Meehan have joined O’Neil Cannon

Attorney Michael M. Kennedy, a graduate of Marquette University Law School, will join the firm’s Business Law Practice Group, where he will assist clients in a wide variety of business law matters. Drawing upon his experience as in-house counsel for a large construction company, Michael provides a high-level understanding of contract management and regulation.

Attorney Jason R. Meehan, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin Law School, will join the firm’s Litigation Practice Group, where he will assist clients in a wide variety of litigation matters. Prior to joining the firm, Jason was working at the Wisconsin State Public Defender’s office, where he managed and represented hundreds of clients charged with misdemeanor and felony cases in Milwaukee County.

We are very pleased to have Michael and Jason join OCHDL.

O’Neil Cannon, founded in Milwaukee in 1973, is a full-service law firm that primarily focuses on providing business law and civil litigation services to closely-held businesses and their owners. The firm represents corporations, institutions, and partnerships at all stages of the business life cycle, helping them start, grow and transition from one generation to the next.

In a recent article authored by a professor at Marquette University, O’Neil Cannon was prominently mentioned for its activity and success before the Wisconsin Supreme Court. In the article, the professor discusses what law firms were most active and successful before the Court during the Court’s past three terms (2018-2021).

The article notes that 13 law firms, including OCHDL, have had at least three oral arguments before the Court during the Court’s past three terms and, of those firms, OCHDL had the third most oral arguments. The article also notes that only two of these 13 law firms prevailed in all of their cases before the Court, with OCHDL being one of them.

Additionally, the article examined how each law firm won (or lost) the support of each individual justice in the respective cases they argued. Only one of the firms—OCHDL—was successful in obtaining at least two-thirds of the votes cast by every justice who participated in their cases.

OCHDL is honored to be recognized for its success in representing clients before the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Grant Killoran of O’Neil, Cannon, Hollman, DeJong and Laing was elected to the Board of Governors of the American Bar Association at the ABA’s Annual Meeting in Chicago in August 2021. Grant will serve a three-year term and represent District 9, which includes the states of Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Missouri.

The 43-member Board of Governors is comprised of 19 District representatives, 18 members-at large, and the following officers of the ABA (serving ex-officio): the ABA President, President-Elect, Chair of the House of Delegates, Secretary, Treasurer, and Immediate Past President. The Board of Governors oversees the general operation of the ABA and develops specific plans of action. Grant also has been appointed as the Board of Governors’ liaison to the ABA’s Section of Health Law, Commission on the American Jury, and Forum on Housing and Community Development Law.

With his election to the ABA Board of Governors, Grant also becomes a member of the ABA House of Delegates. The House of Delegates is the ABA’s policymaking body and is responsible for control and administration of the ABA. Grant previously served in the House of Delegates for many years as a representative of the State Bar of Wisconsin.

Attorneys Seth Dizard (Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization), Pete Faust (Mergers and Acquisitions), Greg Lyons (Litigation – Insurance), and Steve Slawinski (Construction) have been named by Best Lawyers® as the 2022 “Lawyer of the Year” in Milwaukee for their area of practice.

Only one lawyer in each practice area and designated metropolitan area is honored as the “Lawyer of the Year.”  Lawyers are selected based on the assessments of other leading lawyers in the same category.

This designation reflects the high level of respect lawyers have earned for their abilities, professionalism, and integrity.

We are pleased to announce 19 of our lawyers have been included in the 2022 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America, and an additional five have been selected as 2022 Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch.

The following are the O’Neil, Cannon, Hollman, DeJong and Laing lawyers named to the 2022 lists:

Best Lawyers in America

• Douglas P. Dehler – Litigation – Insurance

• James G. DeJong – Corporate Law, Mergers and Acquisitions Law, and Securities / Capital Markets Law

• Seth E. Dizard – Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law and Litigation – Bankruptcy

• Peter J. Faust – Corporate Law and Mergers and Acquisitions Law

• John G. Gehringer – Commercial Litigation, Construction Law, Corporate Law, and Real Estate Law

• Joseph E. Gumina – Employment Law – Management and Litigation – Labor and Employment

• Dennis W. Hollman – Corporate Law and Trusts and Estates

• Grant C. Killoran – Commercial Litigation and Litigation – Health Care

• JB Koenings – Corporate Law

• Dean P. Laing – Commercial Litigation, Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs, and Product Liability Litigation – Defendants

• Gregory W. Lyons – Commercial Litigation and Litigation – Insurance

• Patrick G. McBride – Commercial Litigation

• Joseph D. Newbold – Commercial Litigation

• Chad J. Richter – Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships) and Corporate Law

• John R. Schreiber – Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law and Litigation – Bankruptcy

• Jason R. Scoby – Corporate Law

• Steven J. Slawinski – Construction Law

Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch

• Trevor C. Lippman – Litigation – Trusts and Estates

• Erica N. Reib – Labor and Employment Law – Management and Litigation – Labor and Employment

• Kelly M. Spott – Trusts and Estates

• Christa D. Wittenberg – Commercial Litigation

About Best Lawyers

Best Lawyers has published their list for over three decades, earning the respect of the profession, the media, and the public as the most reliable, unbiased source of legal referrals.

Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch recognizes associates and other lawyers who are earlier in their careers for their outstanding professional excellence in private practice in the United States.

Lawyers on The Best Lawyers in America and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch lists are divided by geographic region and practice areas. They are reviewed by their peers on the basis of professional expertise, and they undergo an authentication process to make sure they are in current practice and in good standing.

Grant Killoran authored an article in the June, 2021 edition of the Wisconsin Lawyer magazine, entitled “The Legal Treatment of Vaccine Injury Claim.” Their article analyzes how claims for vaccine injury, including claims related to the newly-developed COVID-19 vaccines, are handled under existing law, including the statutory processes applicable to such claims.

Read the full article here.

Grant Killoran is featured in the June/July edition of the ABA Journal along with the other nominees for the American Bar Association’s Board of Governors. Grant is the nominee for the District 9 seat on the ABA Board of Governors, which includes the states of Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Missouri. The election for the ABA Board of Governors will take place at the ABA’s Annual Meeting in Chicago in August, 2021.

You can read the full article here.

Attorney Steve Slawinski will be presenting at the State Bar of Wisconsin Annual Meeting and Conference on Thursday, June 10. The session will focus on establishing, proving up, and collecting damages incurred by prime and subcontractors in an array of scenarios, including unforeseen site conditions, changes in scope of work, delays resulting from utility conflicts, and more.

The 2021 Annual Meeting and Conference lineup includes outstanding educational sessions, with topics that cover every practice area and experience level. If you would like to register for this virtual event click here.

Attorney Greg Lyons was recently named a Fellow with the American Bar Foundation, a membership that is limited to one-third of one percent of the lawyers in America.

The Fellows of the American Bar Foundation is a global honorary society of attorneys, judges, law faculty, and legal scholars whose public and private careers have demonstrated outstanding dedication to the highest principles of the legal profession and the welfare of their communities. Established in 1955, the Fellows support the research of the American Bar Foundation and currently has a membership totaling over 14,000 individuals across the globe. Membership in the Fellows is limited to one percent of lawyers licensed to practice in each jurisdiction.

The American Bar Foundation is among the world’s leading research institutes for the empirical and interdisciplinary study of law. An independent, nonprofit organization for more than 65 years, it seeks to advance the understanding and improvement of law through research projects on the most pressing issues facing the legal system in the United States and around the world today. It seeks to expand knowledge and advance justice through innovative, interdisciplinary, and rigorous empirical research on law, legal processes, and legal institutions. Its research findings are published in a wide range of forums, including leading academic journals, law reviews, and academic and commercial presses.

For more information on the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation and the American Bar Foundation, click here.

Attorneys Christa Wittenberg and Dean Laing authored an article in the Wisconsin Lawyer magazine, entitled “A Litigation’s Reprise: Strategies for Requesting Attorney Fees.” Their article discusses strategy considerations for litigants requesting attorneys’ fees (or objecting to requests for attorneys’ fees) after the merits of the case have been resolved. As noted in the article, sometimes disputes over attorneys’ fees can be just as contentious as the underlying dispute, and strong lawyering can have a significant impact.

Read the full article here.