PRESS RELEASE. KCMBA Spotlights Award Winners at the 2014 Bench-Bar & Boardroom Conference

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1 PRESS RELEASE April 29, 2014 For Immediate Publication Tracey DeMarea Director of Membership and Communications KCMBA Spotlights Award Winners at the 2014 Bench-Bar & Boardroom Conference The Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association is honoring Lynne Bratcher, Dean of the Trial Bar; Lawrence (Larry) A. Rouse, Dean of the Trial Bar; R. Frederick (Fred) Walters, Dean of the Trial Bar; Mary Beth Blake, Baron of the Boardroom; Michelle Stark Kaufman, Baron of the Boardroom; John Aisenbrey, Distinguished Counselor; Jill Katz, Distinguished Counselor; Sam Wendt, Thomas J. Conway Award; Andrew LeRoy, Young Lawyer of the Year; and Professor Mary Kay O Malley, Kelly J. Moorhouse Dedication to Children Award. This year s recipients will be recognized at an awards dinner Friday, May 16, during the 41 st Annual Bench-Bar & Boardroom Conference at the Chateau on the Lake in Branson, Missouri. Deans of the Trial Bar: One of KCMBA s top honors, the designation of Dean of the Trial Bar is awarded annually to individuals whose litigation skills and professional demeanor have resulted in consistent recognition by their peers as exemplary. Lynne Jaben Bratcher Lynne Jaben Bratcher, is a trial lawyer with Bratcher Gockel & Kingston, L.C., in Kansas City, Missouri handling plaintiffs discrimination, civil rights, and personal injury cases. She has tried close to one hundred jury trials in federal and state courts, and has argued numerous appeals in both federal and state appellate courts. She was an adjunct professor of Trial Advocacy at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law from 1995 to 2001 and also coached the ATLA student trial competition, with teams competing both regionally and nationally. Bratcher has been certified as a practitioner of psychodrama since 2007 and is a Fellow in the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers in She and Marie Gockel started their trial firm in 1995, with the addition of Kristi Kingston

2 in The firm of Bratcher Gockel & Kingston, L.C. is a rare plaintiffs trial practice law firms in Kansas City with three women at the helm. Lawrence A. Rouse Lawrence Rouse has prosecuted and defended lawsuits in Kansas City and across the nation. He has acted as lead/liaison counsel in MDL and complex litigation matters, patent, copyright, trademark, and construction cases. He has represented telephone directory companies in class action and copyright litigation throughout the U.S. From , Rouse was judicial law clerk to Chief Judge T. Virgil Pittman, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama. Following his clerkship, he joined Stinson Mag & Fizzell, where he practiced until helping form Rouse Hendricks German May PC in R. Frederick Walters Fred Walters is a plaintiffs civil litigation trial attorney with Walters, Bender, Strohbehn & Vaughan, P.C., located in downtown Kansas City, Missouri. Walters began his distinguished career in 1970, when he went to work as a clerk for the Missouri Court of Appeals. In 1976, Walters entered private practice at Linde, Thompson, Langworthy, Kohn & VanDyke, P.C., where he became a partner and practiced until 1991 as a civil litigation trial attorney and head of the firm s Missouri civil litigation practice group. In 1991, Walters was a founding shareholder of the firm known at its outset as Walters Bender & Strohbehn, P.C., and since 2000 as Walters Bender Strohbehn & Vaughan, P.C. Since that time, Walters has devoted his time to the litigation and trial of complex class-action lawsuits, with his primary focus on the protection of consumers from predatory lending practices of large financial institutions. In addition to class action litigation, Walters also practices in the areas of personal injury, wrongful death, consumer fraud, construction law, product liability, and commercial litigation. Baron of the Boardroom: Another of KCMBA s top awards, Baron of the Boardroom is honored annually for their distinguished careers representing corporate/business clients. Michelle Stark Kaufman Michelle Stark Kaufman is a partner in the Kansas City office of Dentons. She is a member of the firm's health care and corporate practices. Kaufman's experience includes general business and corporate legal work. She provides day-to-day legal advice to business clients and assists with their transactions and contracts. She works extensively with clients in the health care industry. Kaufman represents individual and institutional health care providers in their business relationships, organizational issues, managed care contracting, and compliance with health care regulations. Clients value her practical approach, extraordinary responsiveness, and commitment to client service. Mary Beth Blake Mary Beth Blake is a creative problem solver who works with health systems, hospitals, physician groups, hospice organizations, and dental groups. She is an active participant with clients as they plan for the future and update their operations and policies to comply

3 with the ever-changing healthcare environment or respond to regulatory issues and requirements. Her depth of experience includes management and compliance associated with the federal drug program known as 340B. As a founder of the Center for Practical Bioethics, she is committed to finding solutions to the issues associated with decision making in difficult health care situations. She holds experience in physician contractual arrangements regulated by the Stark and Anti-Kickback laws, as well as sorting out the state regulatory issues that arise in business transactions. Distinguished Counselors: Created in 1988 as the Congenial Counselor Award, this award was renamed the Distinguished Counselor Award in It is presented each year to one or more members of the KCMBA whose life and practice display sterling character and integrity, coupled with dedication to the highest standards of professionalism, the legal profession and the law. John C. Aisenbrey John Aisenbrey, a former federal prosecutor, concentrates his practice on complex commercial litigation and white-collar criminal matters. He has represented corporations, accounting firms, and individuals in a variety of commercial disputes including commercial fraud and contract disputes, malpractices and regulatory investigations. He has managed internal investigations for corporations concerning potential criminal conduct including bribery, fraud, embezzlement, submission of false claims to the government, and environmental law issues. He also has extensive experience representing financial institutions, health care providers and individuals in all phases of federal criminal investigation and prosecution, including subpoena compliance, grand jury proceedings, parallel proceedings, and defense at trial and on appeal. Aisenbrey has substantial jury trial experience, having taken more than 60 jury cases to verdict as lead trial counsel in federal and state courts around the country. Jill M. Katz Jill M. Katz is a sole practitioner in the area of Family Law. She spent her first year as a lawyer at Legal Aid of Western Missouri in their Municipal Court Unit. From there she moved to Jackson County, Missouri Family Court representing the Juvenile Officer in delinquency, abuse and neglect matters from 1990 until In 1993 she joined Stinson, Mag & Fizzell P.C. which later became Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP. She focused on the representation of indigent parents and children in matters of abuse, neglect, delinquency, paternity, protective orders, dissolution, custody modifications and adoptions. In 2005, Katz opened her sole practice where she continues her focus on the practice of law related to family and custody issues. Katz has been Mediator in child custody matters since She is a frequent lecturer in the areas of mediation, family and juvenile law. Her presentations focuses on family advocacy with an emphasis on Guardian ad Litem responsibilities, client safety issues specific to domestic violence and the new and emerging field of permanency mediation.

4 Thomas J. Conway Award: This award honors a young trial lawyer who exemplifies two traits of the late Tom Conway outstanding trial skills and the ability to be a fierce advocate, while simultaneously a good friend to opposing counsel. Samuel M. Wendt Samuel Wendt is a founding member of Wendt Goss, P.C. and has dedicated his practice to representing injured people and their families. Wendt has successfully represented countless people involved in automobile and commercial vehicle accidents, victims of medical malpractice and nursing home neglect, and wrongful death claims. He has also represented hundreds of clients injured by defective medical devices and pharmaceuticals, such as diet pills, Guidant and Medtronic Defibrillators, Vioxx, Avandia, and Yaz/Yasmin, to name a few. Young Lawyer of the Year Award: This award recognizes a young lawyer for significant community, civic and professional work. Andrew S. LeRoy Andrew LeRoy's practice concentrates on hunting and farming accidents and nursing home negligence cases. He has handled complex product liability cases involving ATVs, Remington Model 700 rifles, tree stands and other farming equipment. His product liability work has allowed him to develop a national practice handling cases in Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Dakota and Tennessee. While in law school, LeRoy was the Chief Honor Court Prosecutor and a Trial Advocacy Scholar. He is a member of the Order of Barristers, a national distinction given to only ten members of his graduating class recognizing excellence in legal advocacy. Kelly J. Moorhouse Dedication to Children Award: In honor of Kelly J. Moorhouse, this award recognizes a KCMBA member s dedication to the representation of children and families in the greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Mary Kay O Malley: Mary Kay O Malley has been the director of the Child and Family Services Clinic and clinical professor at UMKC School of Law since Following law school, Professor O Malley was employed as an attorney for the Juvenile Officer at the Jackson County Family Court for six years. While with the juvenile office, Professor O Malley prosecuted cases involving child abuse/neglect, delinquency, and certification. For over 3 years she was the managing attorney for the permanency team with primary responsibility for termination of parental rights actions filed by the Juvenile Officer. After leaving the court, she was a partner with Raith and O Malley P.C., focusing her practice in the area of juvenile and family law. Professor O Malley has often served as appointed Guardian ad litem for children in domestic relations cases and is a frequent presenter for Guardian ad litem training CLEs. She has also been a contributing author for the Missouri Bar CLE Juvenile law Deskbook.

5 ### The Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association serves approximately 5,000 members in the nine-county Kansas City metro area: Johnson and Wyandotte counties in Kansas and Cass, Clay, Jackson, Johnson, Lafayette, Platte and Ray counties in Missouri. The mission of this Association is to serve our members and our community by promoting justice, professional excellence and respect for the law.