New partners who were previously counsel are:

David I. Ashmore (London/Labor & Employment), Paul Didomenico (Pittsburgh/Real Estate), Thomas Fischl (Munich/Entertainment & Media Industry Group), Jason E. Garcia (Silicon Valley/IP Tech & Data), Jason W. Gordon (Chicago/Entertainment & Media Industry Group), Christopher P. Hoffman (New York/Complex Litigation), Kenneth R. Levine (Philadelphia/State Tax), Travis P. Nelson (Princeton/Financial Industry Group), James M. Neudecker (San Francisco/Complex Litigation), Antonia B. Panayides (London/Shipping), Jane M. Sarma (New York/Shipping), Ashley L. Shively (San Francisco/Financial Industry Group), Jennifer A. Smokelin (Pittsburgh/Energy & Natural Resources Industry Group), Christina T. Tellado (Los Angeles/ Labor & Employment), Philip H. Thomas (London/IP Tech & Data), Robert E. Weyman (Philadelphia/State Tax)

New partners who were previously associates are:

Stefanie L. Burt (Pittsburgh/Energy & Natural Resources), Joanna M. Carter (London/Real Estate), Michelle L. Cheng (Life Sciences Health Industry Group), Elizabeth M. Farrell (London/ Energy & Natural Resources), Matthew S. Gibson (Houston/IP Tech & Data), Jennifer Purnell Knox (Philadelphia/Financial Industry Group), Brian A. Sutherland (San Francisco/Appellate)

By office location, all new partners are:

Chicago

Jason W. Gordon – Entertainment & Media. Jason is a graduate of Chicago Kent College of Law, who joined the firm in 2016. He represents Fortune 100 brands, airlines, media companies, quick service restaurants, consumer packaged goods companies, independent advertising agencies, and other advertisers in all aspects of advertising, marketing, new media, branding, privacy, behavioral advertising, right of publicity and traditional trademark and copyright prosecution and counseling. When the Trump administration banned travelers from seven majority-Muslim countries in 2017, Jason joined 300 other Chicago-area attorneys to volunteer his time to assist with legal issues facing incoming passengers. Jason is also an adjunct professor at Chicago Kent College of Law, where he teaches Advertising and Marketing Law. 

Houston  

Matthew S. Gibson – IP, Tech & Data. Matt is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma who joined the firm in 2013. Matt primarily serves the life science and health industry where his practice focuses on patent prosecution, technology licensing and related transactions, and post-grant proceedings before the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Matt is a registered patent attorney with a Ph.D. in cellular biology. Matt has experience with a broad range of technologies including antibodies, CRISPR, next generation sequencing, nucleic acid probes, tissue engineering, pharmaceutical formulations, epigenetics, viral-based delivery systems for gene therapy, targeted drug delivery systems, and immunotherapies. 

London

David I. Ashmore – Labor & Employment. A graduate from the University of Kent, David joined the firm as an associate in 2007. David advises on all aspects of employment law delivering strategic advice and guidance on all workplace issues. He has considerable experience conducting complex litigation in employment tribunals and regularly advises on domestic and international disputes concerning bonuses, discrimination and whistleblowing. He has extensive experience in both domestic and cross-border employee investigations. David takes the lead in high-profile TUPE transactions, share sales and outsourcing/offshoring arrangements for key clients, often in a multi-jurisdictional context. He has a strong reputation for his knowledge of regulatory/employment cross-over issues and the regulation of compensation within financial services.

Joanna M. Carter – Real Estate. Joanna has been with Reed Smith for 17 years, having joined the firm in 2001. She is a graduate of St. John’s College, University of Cambridge. Her work is investment-focused (acquisitions and disposals), but also covers development, leasing and finance. Joanna has significant experience in alternative energy power stations resulting in her becoming the lead real estate lawyer on a refinancing for a major firm client.

Elizabeth M. Farrell – Energy & Natural Resources. Elizabeth is a “home grown” lawyer, having joined Reed Smith in 2007. She is a graduate of the London School of Economics, and she was promoted to senior associate in 2013. Elizabeth is a physical commodities lawyer with extensive experience in both transactional and contentious matters relating to the sale, purchase and transportation of a wide range of commodities. A significant part of Elizabeth’s practice relates to international arbitration and English Court work in relation to commodities disputes.

Antonia B. Panayides – Shipping. Antonia joined the Firm in 2007 and qualified as a solicitor in 2008. She has extensive knowledge in a wide range of "dry" shipping and offshore matters. Her experience includes handling charterparty, shipmanagement, bill of lading, sale and purchase and contract of affeightment disputes, whether subject to High Court or arbitration jurisdiction. Antonia acts for owners, charterers, ship managers and brokers, as well as P&I clubs. Her knowledge extends to the offshore sector where she assists in disputes arising from drilling, FPSO and supply vessel contracts and represents owners, contractors and operators in the offshore field.

Philip H. Thomas – IP, Tech & Data. Philip joined Reed Smith in 2013. Prior to that, he was in private practice and also held in-house positions at NTL Incorporated (now Virgin Media) and Nortel Networks. He is a graduate of the University of Reading and College of Law, London. His practice encompasses intellectual property, technology/outsourcing and data protection. Over the past year, Philip has developed his knowledge of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which is the most significant change in the EU data protection landscape in more than 20 years. 

Los Angeles

Michelle Lyu Cheng – Life Sciences & Health Industry. Michelle has spent her entire career at Reed Smith after graduating from the University of California, Berkeley (School of Law). Her healthcare-focused practice includes defending managed care companies in large multi-million dollar contract disputes and arbitrations, and defending medical device and pharmaceutical clients facing complex product liability and multi-district/mass tort litigation. Michelle also has extensive experience with issues that regularly recur in medical device and pharmaceutical product liability litigation.

Christina T. Tellado – Labor & Employment. Tina is a graduate of Georgetown University Law School who joined Reed Smith in 2014. Tina’s practice focuses on representing employers in both state and federal court. She has extensive experience representing management in nationwide class and collective actions and complex employment litigation from receipt of the complaint through discovery, class certification and trial. Tina regularly defends management in complex wage and hour litigation involving overtime, minimum wage, off-the-clock, misclassification, and meal and rest break claims. Tina is a “big case” strategic thinker and an excellent case manager of large-scale data intensive nationwide wage and hour matters.

Munich

Thomas Fischl – Entertainment & Media. Thomas is a graduate of the University of Trieste who joined Reed Smith in 2010. Thomas’ focus is in information technology law. He provides comprehensive legal advice to mid-sized and major IT providers and companies in both the domestic and international markets. His particular experience includes the drafting and negotiating of contracts covering software, digital media, IT projects, e-commerce and distribution, as well as outsourcing and cloud projects. In addition, Thomas counsels clients in data protection matters and in intellectual property protection.

New York  

Christopher P. Hoffman – Complex Litigation. Chris is a graduate of St. John’s University School of Law, and he has been a member of the Commercial Litigation/Complex Litigation Group since joining the firm in 2008. Chris has broad-based complex litigation experience across a variety of subject matters. His practice primarily focuses on two areas: financial services litigation, with an emphasis on hedge fund representation, frequently in the context of off-shore liquidations and secondary market investments; and sports and entertainment litigation, with an emphasis on talent-side and management representation. Some of the unique litigation matters that Chris has worked on during his tenure include cutting-edge issues in the hedge fund space, international recovery efforts relating to a multi-billion dollar loan portfolio, and the representation of high-profile athletes and musicians in league disciplinary proceedings and private dispute resolution.

Jane M. Sarma – Shipping. Jane is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and Columbia Law School. She was recruited to the firm in 2015 to fill a specific need in New York for partner-level skills across litigation, transactional and regulatory Shipping matters. Jane came to the firm with 23 years of experience in the New York office of a global shipping boutique law firm. She has substantial experience as a maritime litigator, having been involved in nearly every one of the major shipping chapter 11 cases in New York. She also has developed a sub-specialty in sanctions and other US shipping regulatory work.

Philadelphia

Jennifer P. Knox – Financial Industry Group. A graduate of Rutgers Law School, Jennifer has spent her entire career at Reed Smith, where she focuses on Commercial Restructuring and Bankruptcy cases. Jennifer represents institutional lenders, secured creditors and unsecured creditors in foreclosures, bankruptcies, workouts, restructurings and reorganizations of distressed companies. She also frequently litigates complex disputes and issues related to bankruptcy cases and proceedings, as well as claims and disputes involving distressed debt facilities. Jennifer also has significant trial experience in state and federal courts, including bankruptcy courts.

Kenneth R. Levine – State Tax. A graduate of Temple University Beasley School of Law, Kenny joined the firm in 2007. Kenny ‘s practice focuses primarily on multi-state corporate tax and sales and use tax issues, and he represents clients in a wide-range of industries in connection with state tax return positions, audits, administrative appeals and litigation in various jurisdictions. A go-to lawyer for Pennsylvania and New Jersey corporate tax issues, Kenny handles complex tax matters in other jurisdictions as well.

Robert E. Weyman – State Tax. A graduate of Notre Dame Law School, Rob has spent his entire career at Reed Smith, having joined in 2007. Rob assists clients with income, sales, and gross receipts tax issues around the country. His practice includes state tax return position evaluation, audit defense, administrative appeals, and litigation. Rob co-leads Reed Smith’s growing Massachusetts state tax practice and is a member of the Associated Industries of Massachusetts Tax Committee.

Pittsburgh

Stefanie L. Burt – Energy & Natural Resources. Stefanie is a graduate of George Washington University Law School who joined Reed Smith in 2012. Her practice is primarily commercial litigation with a focus on oil & gas law, energy and environmental litigation and regulatory work. Stefanie has a broad environmental law background with experience representing clients in federal and state enforcement actions and administrative proceedings, including responding to the EPA and other governmental agencies and negotiating consent agreements with regulatory bodies. Stefanie also has extensive federal court experience. 

Paul Didomenico – Real Estate. Paul joined the firm in 2010 and is a graduate of Duquesne University School of Law. Paul concentrates on real estate development, acquisition and disposition, leasing, landlord tenant issues, commercial financing, tax assessment appeals land-use and zoning, financing workouts, and obtaining economic incentives for development projects. His practice includes representing national REITS and developers throughout the country. Paul is also an intellectual property attorney, and he has experience drafting and filing patent and trademark applications. Paul is the past Chairman of the Allegheny County Bar Association - Real Property Section.

Jennifer A. Smokelin – Energy & Natural Resources. Jennifer is a home-grown Reed Smith lawyer and a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. She is a thought leader on environmental and emerging energy issues, greenhouse gas legislation, and related environmental issues in the RGGI states, California, the European Union, and the international arena. Her practice focuses on all aspects of regulatory and litigation counseling in the fields of environmental, natural resource and energy law, with a particular emphasis on emerging air issues. Jennifer has deep, substantive understanding of the most complex environmental issues across all media (air, water, and waste), spanning regulatory, transactional and litigation. 

Princeton

Travis P. Nelson – Financial Industry Group. Travis is a graduate of the Catholic University School of Law. He joined Reed Smith in 2010 as an associate and was promoted to counsel in 2013. Travis is one of the firm’s leading lawyers on financial institutions, including banks, mortgage lenders and servicers, credit card issuers, money transmitters and others. Prior to joining Reed Smith, Travis served in the Enforcement Division at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which is the federal prudential regulator that oversees several key Reed Smith bank clients and the agency that administers the “FinTech Charter.” Travis has in-depth knowledge in the areas of bank corporate and M&A regulatory compliance, examinations and enforcement, and Bank Secrecy Act and Anti-Money Laundering compliance. Travis is also on the faculty at Villanova Law School and Temple Law School, where he teaches courses on bank regulation, and is Chair of the Banking Law Section of the New Jersey State Bar Association.

San Francisco  

James M. Neudecker – Complex Litigation. James is another home-grown lawyer, having joined Reed Smith legacy firm Crosby Heafey after graduating from UC Hastings College of the Law. James’ practice focuses on commercial litigation and arbitrations for companies in a variety of business sectors, including financial services, transportation, pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturing, hospitality, and, most recently, the on-demand gig economy. He is experienced at all phases of litigation, from initial case assessment and strategy development, to writing dispositive motions, to conducting all forms of discovery, to trying cases to verdict.

Ashley L. Shively – Financial Industry Group. Ashley is another home-grown Reed Smith lawyer. A graduate of UC Davis, Ashley was a summer associate before joining the firm in 2010. Ashley represents financial institutions and businesses in consumer class and individual actions, including fair lending, privacy, credit reporting, debt collection, false advertising and unfair business practices. She also counsels FinTech and other clients on compliance matters related to privacy issues and consumer protection. Ashley has also briefed appeals in the California Courts of Appeal and United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Brian A. Sutherland – Appellate. Brian is a graduate of New York University School of Law who joined the firm in 2014. Brian has extensive experience in briefing and arguing appeals and class action matters in federal and state courts. He has argued more than 30 appeals in cases involving a wide range of constitutional and statutory issues, including in cases arising under the First Amendment, anti-fraud statutes, the bankruptcy code, and environmental laws. Before joining Reed Smith, Brian was an assistant solicitor general in the Office of the New York State Office of the Attorney General. His experience also includes several years at a major law firm in New York, where he focused on securities and class action litigation. 

Silicon Valley  

Jason E. Garcia – IP, Tech & Data. A graduate of American University, Jason joined Reed Smith in 2015 after a career that included stints at the USPTO, in private practice at international law firms, and as in-house counsel at Fortune 500 companies. His practice is focused on trademark counseling, clearance, prosecution, portfolio management and enforcement, both in the United States and worldwide. Jason has extensive experience advising clients on selection, use and protection of trademarks and brands, which also extends to copyrights, licensing, domain name disputes, advertising, unfair business practices, compliance programs and negotiating various agreements involving intellectual property. His experience encompasses a wide variety of industries, including consumer electronics, retail and online marketplaces, automotive parts, food and beverages, wine and spirits, clothing, financial services and internet-based services.

About Reed Smith

Reed Smith is a dynamic international law firm, dedicated to helping clients move their businesses forward.  Its long-standing relationships, international outlook and collaborative structure make it a go-to partner for speedy resolution of complex disputes, transactions, and regulatory matters.

For further information, please visit reedsmith.com.