We are saddened to announce that our office lost a brilliant legal mind and tireless advocate in Steven Bachmann Dietz recently.

Steven joined HoganWillig in 2009 and prior to that, he was an associate at Lorenzo & Cohen, where he worked closely with Steven M. Cohen (former partner of Lorenzo & Cohen and now Litigation Chair of HoganWillig) for many years. Throughout his legal career, Steven focused his practice in personal injury and commercial litigation, as well as civil rights and constitutional law cases. His ability to form complex legal arguments and steadfastly argue legal theories proved time after time the true power of the pen over injustice.

Steven truly loved his work and was a cherished member of our HoganWillig family who will be deeply missed. We have set-up a webpage in memory of Steven for fellow colleagues to share their condolences. We welcome you to share a memory or note of sympathy as well to Steven’s wife, Mary, and their two young daughters, Julia and Liliana.

http://www.hoganwilligblog.com/sbd/

HoganWillig, a full-service law firm with offices in Amherst, Buffalo, Lancaster and Lockport is proud to announce that Elizabeth M. DiPirro has been elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. Ms. DiPirro joins this elite group comprised of only a dozen top divorce and family law attorneys in WNY, including Nelson F. Zakia and Thomas R. Cassano of HoganWillig. Membership into this premier group requires extensive testing, peer review, evaluation by judges and recognition as a first-rate matrimonial lawyer. Ms. DiPirro has limited her practice to the area of family law for more than 20 years and has been an integral part of HoganWillig’s matrimonial department since 2006 which is the largest Family Law group in WNY.

HoganWillig is proud to announce that we won silver honors in the Large Business Category for Business First’s ”Best Places to Work” competition. We are among a group of 73 elite local companies in Western New York that were featured in the March issue of Business First. This is the fourth year in a row that HoganWillig has placed. We are proud of our employees and grateful to our management who promote a healthy work/life balance for all our employees.

From Buffalo Business First

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz has tapped former congressman John LaFalce to serve as chairman of the Erie County Industrial Development Agency and replaced a total of three board appointees.

LaFalce, a Democrat, will replace Phil Ackerman, National Fuel Gas Corp. past chairman and current board member, when ECIDA directors meet later this month. Ackerman was named ECIDA chairman by then-Erie County Executive Chris Collins, who lost in November to Poloncarz.

Poloncarz is also replacing Phil Corwin, another Collins appointee, with Brenda McDuffie. Corwin was the agency’s vice chairman. McDuffie, the Buffalo Urban League president and chief executive officer, will assume the vice chairman’s slot on the board.

A third Collins appointee, local attorney and Indian rights specialist Barry Brandon, is being replaced on the ECIDA board by Chris Johnston, World Trade Center Buffalo Niagara president.

All three new appointments were supported by Betty Jean Grant, Erie County Legislature chairperson. The trio will mark their first IDA meeting this month.

“I am honored to appoint these three outstanding individuals to serve on the Board of the ECIDA,” Poloncarz said in a prepared statement. “As County Executive, one of my top priorities is to promote job creation and economic development in Erie County. They bring a wealth of business, governmental and international trade experience to the table, and share my vision of strengthening local business and bringing new jobs to Erie County by leveraging our strategic international border with Canada. I look forward to working with them and the other board members to create a more streamlined, sustainable and efficient approach to economic development in Erie County.”

Grant agrees.

“With these appointments there is a new feeling of diversity and energy at the ECIDA,” she said. “With their extensive business and governmental experience, I am sure they will be valuable additions to the board.”

LaFalce served in Congress from 1975 to 2002 and before that was in the New York state Senate and Assembly.

During his Congressional tenure, LaFalce served as chairman of the House Small Business Committee and as Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, which had jurisdiction over all financial issues, including banks, housing and community development, and international financial institutions.

After his retirement from Congress, LaFalce became a member the senior advisory board to the Canadian-American Business Council and is an Honorary Chair of the Canadian American Border Trade Alliance.

LaFalce is currently the special counsel to HoganWillig .

McDuffie has been leading Buffalo Urban League since 1998.

Prior to her work with the league, McDuffie served as the executive director for the Buffalo and Erie County Private Industry Council. She has also served as the president of the NYS Association of Employment and Training Professionals, and was a member of the steering committee that produced the recommendations for New York State’s future Workforce Development System.

Additionally, she is currently serving as secretary for the Independent Health Association.

Johnston has been World Trade Center Buffalo Niagara president since 2007. Other professional experience includes work with the City of Buffalo to streamline the Department of Economic Development; development of import and export compliance programs for corporations in numerous industries while with Thompson Hine LLP; and work as an International Trade Specialist with the U.S. Department of Commerce in Washington.

HoganWillig, a full-service law firm with offices in Amherst, Buffalo, Lancaster and Lockport is pleased to announce that associate Erica M. Moore has been admitted to the New York State Bar. Ms. Moore earned her J.D. from the State University of New York at Buffalo where she also graduated, cum laude, with a BA in both Psychology and History. Ms. Moore has been a law clerk at HoganWillig since 2010 and will now be joining their Matrimonial and Family Law Department which is the largest of its kind in WNY.

HoganWillig, a full service law firm with offices in Erie and Niagara counties, is pleased to welcome Kevin J. Miller, Esq. Mr. Miller earned both his J.D. and M.A. in Economics from the State University of New York at Buffalo and has obtained his Accredited Estate Planner ® and Certified Financial Planner ™ designations. He most recently was an Assistant Vice President of the Financial Services Group at M&T Bank.  Mr. Miller will be focusing his work in HoganWillig’s Estate Planning & Asset Protection Department where he will provide comprehensive estate planning for sophisticated and complex individuals and business clients.

Check out Tammy Riddle, Esq., President of the WNY Chapter of the Women’s Bar Association and an attorney at HoganWillig, appearing on WGRZ’s “The Healthy Zone” to discuss the upcoming “Think Pink” event that is offering free mammograms to women, 40 or order, who are uninsured or underinsured.

Tags: breast cancer awareness month, free mammogram, hoganwillig, tammy riddle