Armstrong Teasdale LLP issued the following announcement on May 27.
Armstrong Teasdale announces that 10 attorneys have been named to the 2021 Pennsylvania Super Lawyers® and Rising Stars lists. Partners Timothy Bergère, Michael Engle, Carrie Love, Richard Scheff and Rafael Zahralddin have been recognized as 2021 Super Lawyers, and Partners David Herman, Katharine Ladd, Ashley Shapiro, Michael Witsch and Associate Bianca Valcarce have been recognized as 2021 Rising Stars.
Super Lawyers is an annual list of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Selection for Super Lawyers includes peer nominations, a blue-ribbon panel review process and independent research on candidates.
The Rising Stars list consists of the state’s top young attorneys. Candidates must be 40 years old or younger, or have practiced for 10 years or less.
Bergère, who was recognized for the environmental sector, focuses on serving Fortune 500 clients across the country. He regularly manages and resolves environmental liability issues arising from former holdings and operations, including Superfund “tail” liability that sometimes follows historic operations. He has played a role in dozens of Superfund cases nationwide, and his resolution of those matters often requires innovative and creative problem solving, including the strategic use of environmental insurance policies or qualified settlement funds to manage and transfer risk.
Engle, who was recognized for the Criminal Defense White Collar division, is a skilled trial lawyer with more than 20 years of experience handling complex criminal cases, internal investigations and compliance matters. He also handles a variety of civil litigation matters, especially the defense of False Claims Act or qui tam actions. A fellow of the esteemed American College of Trial Lawyers, Michael regularly represents individuals, public officials and professionals, public and private companies of all sizes, nonprofits and other organizations in federal and state court litigation matters.
Love primarily serves clients in the health care and life sciences industry, including some of the country’s largest pharmaceutical and medical device companies, and was recognized in the Criminal Defense White Collar division. She has experience serving on secondment as Chief U.S. Compliance Officer for a pharmaceutical client and is a strong advocate for both corporate and individual clients. She has helped clients win or favorably resolve cases involving both federal and state enforcement agencies, and private plaintiffs.
Scheff, who was recognized in the Criminal Defense White Collar division, focuses on government and corporate investigations. He has appeared and handled matters in courts across the country, and he has represented clients in administrative matters before the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Securities and Exchange Commission, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of the Comptroller of Currency and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. He performs internal investigations for and counsels large, public and private companies as well as individuals, and has successfully represented numerous corporations, institutions, boards and senior executives in proceedings in state and federal enforcement matters.
Zahralddin, who was recognized for Creditor Debtor Rights, is a skilled business lawyer and litigator with significant experience advising clients in corporate and commercial litigation, insolvency, distressed M&A, compliance, corporate law and entity formation, corporate governance, commercial transactions, cyber law, regulatory actions and cross-border issues. He is the co-editor of the American Bar Association’s desk treatise on Chapter 11 Reorganizing Failing Businesses. He represents clients in all aspects of bankruptcy and restructuring, including representation of creditors’ committees and individual creditors, and has extensive experience in international commercial law issues, including cross-border insolvency, asset recovery, federal bankruptcy court matters, and assignments for the benefits of creditors and receiverships.
Herman, who was recognized in the Criminal Defense White Collar division, assists clients in navigating all aspects of complex commercial litigation, financial services litigation, regulatory compliance and government investigations. He has successfully litigated numerous consumer arbitrations and advises clients on best practices relating to contractual arbitration clauses in consumer agreements. In addition, David regularly handles appeals in state and federal court for clients across the country.
Ladd focuses primarily on complex commercial litigation, white collar criminal defense and internal investigations, and was recognized by Super Lawyers® for Criminal Defense White Collar. She has represented both large corporations and senior-level executives in federal and state court proceedings, as well as handled international criminal and regulatory matters. She has extensive experience representing pharmaceutical companies and medical device manufacturers in matters involving potential violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute and False Claims Act.
Shapiro is a strong advocate and trial lawyer, and has experience at both the federal and state levels across many jurisdictions, including Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York. Recognized for the Criminal Defense White Collar division, she has more than a decade of experience defending clients in criminal litigation, internal investigations and corporate compliance matters. She has deep knowledge of criminal law and strategically guides her clients before federal courts and regulatory bodies. Her representations also extend to the energy, health care and life sciences, and higher education sectors.
Witsch, who was recognized for the Criminal Defense White Collar division, has particular experience in post-trial litigation and has briefed or argued often complex matters in all of Pennsylvania’s appellate courts and in federal appeals courts nationwide. He also regularly represents clients in responding to government investigations and high-stakes, complex business, class action and product liability litigation. His experience includes significant representations in the pharmaceutical, financial services, construction, defense contracting and manufacturing industries, and has involved litigating disputes in courts across the country.
Valcarce, who was recognized for the Criminal Defense White Collar division, focuses her practice on white-collar criminal defense, government and internal investigations, and complex commercial disputes. She has experience representing pharmaceutical companies, financial services companies and government contractors.
Original source can be found here.