Administrative Law

Michael P. Cardaropoli is a Partner at the law firm. His practice is concentrated in the areas of workers' compensation, personal Injury, and Social Security Administration law. Attorney Cardaropoli is Licensed in state and federal courts in MA and before the Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents and the Social Security Administration. Mike served as the Vice-Chair of the MA Bar Association Workers Compensation subcommittee where he routinely worked with attorneys, judges, and court administrators throughout the Commonwealth, dealing with complex legal and administrative issues.

Representing clients in complex immigration cases, advising clients on their immigration options, preparing and filing legal documents, and representing clients in court or administrative hearings.

William DeVito is a Partner at Harwood Lloyd. Prior to joining Harwood LLoyd, he was a Staff Counsel Attorney for AIG from 2000 to July of 2024, including serving as co-attorney of record in New York and attorney of record in Connecticut from 2017 through July of 2024. Mr. Devito worked at another prominent defense firm briefly at the end of 2024, handling high exposure cases for Liberty Mutual and Progressive Insurance before joining Harwood Lloyd. Shortly, after joining AIG Staff Counsel in 2000 he was promoted to Senior Trial Attorney and became the dedicated handling attorney for a major municipal contractor and several City agencies. From 2006 to 2008 he managed bad-faith litigation throughout the country for AIG’s personal lines unit. He has handled automobile, premises, construction UM/UIM and general liability cases. He was also dedicated to training Claims Professionals and his staff counsel lawyers as well as, presenting programs for the NY Defense Association and National Business Institute. He has presented courses on defending Traumatic Brain Injury claims, Legal Ethics, Premises and Liability, Lifecare plans and the NY Administrative Code as it applies to trip and fall cases. Prior to working at AIG, he served as a Law clerk for the Superior Court of Connecticut for one year and then began his litigation experience working for a prominent plaintiff firm in NYC for two years. In 1996, he joined Geico’s Staff Counsel team in New York where he led and affirmative motion unit and then was promoted to trial attorney and exclusively handled trials in Kings County from 1998 to 2000.

Dustin is an experienced IP practitioner with a vast array of technical experience. Dustin Zak is a registered patent attorney who focuses his practice on patent litigation and prosecution. Dustin possesses a vast range of technical experience ranging from chemical and material arts to software applications and artificial intelligence. Dustin has technical knowledge related to cyber security and computer technologies. During his studies, he has immersed himself in many technical topics including C++, Java, and visual basic programming, networking, open source networking, end-user computing, ethical hacking and offensive security, cyber intelligence, Linux security administration, information security, risk-vulnerability analysis, and digital forensics. Prior to joining Brooks Kushman, Dustin spent more than 5 years gaining technical experience as a Research and Development Chemist at an automotive OEM supplier and in the automotive after-market refinish industry. In these roles he formulated, developed, and launched various products globally. He also participated in the creation and development of technology for measuring visual emissions for compliance with EPA method 9, and validated and generated performance criteria for raw materials including solvents, polymers, resins, pigments, additives, and final products. Dustin holds a Juris Doctor from Wayne State University graduating at the top of his class where he received the Governor’s Scholarship. He was also the Senior Articles Editor for the Wayne Law Review and a Mock Trial member. Dustin also participated in the patent procurement clinic preparing patent applications for Detroit entrepreneurs and inventors. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Polymers and Coatings Technology from Eastern Michigan University, where he received the Recognition of Excellence Scholarship, the College of technology Coating Scholarship, and the Charles Parker Scholarship.

Ryan C. Bueche is the rare combination of a lead trial attorney and a lead appellate attorney. Prior to entering private practice, Ryan worked for four different federal judges in the United States Western District of Texas. While in law school, Ryan completed a nine-month federal internship with United States District Judge Walter Smith in Waco. After graduating from law school in 2008, Ryan worked as a Federal Law Clerk for United States District Judge Orlando Garcia in San Antonio, and from 2008 until 2011, Ryan served as a Federal Briefing Attorney to United States District Judge James R. Nowlin in Austin. Upon completing those three federal clerkships in 2011, Ryan joined Germer’s Austin office, and he was elected to be a Principal in 2015. Since joining Germer, Ryan has focused his private practice on trial litigation and appellate litigation, and he specializes in defending companies and individuals in lawsuits involving product liability, intellectual property, personal injury, insurance coverage, complex business disputes, and employment disputes. In his role as a trial attorney, Ryan is licensed to practice in all State and federal trial courts in Texas, and he is also licensed to practice before the United States District Courts in Michigan and Indiana. Ryan has successfully tried multiple cases to verdict as lead trial counsel. In all of those cases, the plaintiff was seeking to recover seven-figure damages from Ryan’s clients, and all of the juries in those cases returned favorable verdicts for his clients. Ryan has also worked on larger litigation teams in “bet-the-company” lawsuits, including a case that resulted in a defense verdict for Ryan’s client in which the plaintiff asked the jury to award the plaintiff more than $1 Billion. Ryan also regularly serves as lead counsel in administrative proceedings, including contested hearings before the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. As an appellate attorney, Ryan has successfully briefed and argued numerous appeals as lead appellate counsel in State and Federal appellate courts. Within several months of entering private practice in 2011, Ryan served as lead appellate counsel before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the Fifth Circuit issued an opinion in favor of Ryan’s client. Since 2012, Ryan has continued to regularly serve as lead appellate counsel for purposes of briefing and oral argument in numerous State and federal courts of appeals, including appeals to the following courts: • The United States Fourth Court of Appeals • The United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals • The United States Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals • The Texas Third Court of Appeals • The Texas Fourth Court of Appeals • The Texas Fifth Court of Appeals • The Texas Eighth Court of Appeals • The Texas Tenth Court of Appeals • The Texas Supreme Court Most recently, at the end of 2023, Ryan was lead appellate counsel in an appeal in which the Texas Supreme Court granted a Petition for Review and issued a ruling in favor of Ryan’s client, which is something that occurs is less than 6% of cases. Ryan’s broad appellate experience includes handling appeals involving product liability, commercial disputes, employment disputes, spoliation disputes, jurisdictional disputes, Anti-SLAPP disputes, and insurance disputes. Ryan also regularly serves as appellate support counsel for trials in State and federal court. For all of that work before trial and appellate courts, Ryan was given the honor of the Texas Super Lawyer Rising Star in 2017, 2018, and 2019, which is an award that is limited to 3% of attorneys under the age of 40.

John Rondini is a multi-faceted attorney with extensive knowledge in litigation, negotiating settlements, and licensing agreements. John’s practice includes representing clients in patent prosecution, litigation, and cyber security and data privacy matters. In recognizing the pending threat of cyber-incidents his clients may face, John has worked to help develop Brook Kushman’s Cybersecurity and Data Privacy group. John’s experience includes assessing a client’s current cybersecurity and data privacy protocols and developing a comprehensive incident response plan to ensure compliance with applicable laws. John also assists his client’s in determining the potential root cause of a breach and what type of notification may be necessary. John also has experience in addressing information and data security requirements for his clients during both vendor contractual or M&A transactions. John has also represented client’s litigation matters at the district court and appellate level, as well as, before the International Trade Commission. John has actively managed each stage of litigation from pre-suit pleadings through trial, and through appeal. John has also represented his client’s needs in negotiating settlements and licensing agreements. While representing one client’s litigation needs, John became involved in developing and growing Brooks Kushman’s Post-Grant Proceedings team. As a result, John was part of a team that handled 25 inter partes review proceedings that invalidated hundreds of patent claims being asserted against that client. John has also managed the patent prosecution docket for clients that range from Fortune 500 companies to individual inventors. John’s prosecution experience includes handling a patent application from an initial draft through allowance. Relying on his litigation and prosecution experience, John’s has also handled numerous patentability and clearance opinions on behalf of his clients. Prior to joining Brooks Kushman, John worked for nearly ten years as a hardware design and software engineer in the automotive and semi-conductor industries. This work provided John with invaluable experience that helps him further counsel his client’s intellectual property needs.

Mr. Feeley has litigation experience in the Superior Court of New Jersey, the Office of Administrative Law, the Court of Workers’ Compensation and the Appellate Division. He has also argued before the New Jersey, State Supreme Court in Russo v. Police and Fire Pension System A-20-10. A case that he won a unanimous decision. Mr. Feeley formerly served as a police officer in the City of Orange, until 1984, when he left the Orange Police Department to become a firefighter also in the City of Orange. He remained in the fire department until 2008, when he retired as a Deputy Chief. During his career with the Fire Department Mr. Feeley served as the President of FMBA, Local 10 and Local 210, for a combined total of seventeen years. As Union President Mr. Feeley successfully negotiated numerous contracts and handle multiple disciplinary issues and grievances. This experience has provided him with the unique ability to understand the issues of public employees and the established practices of public employers. Mr. Feeley was also a certified instructor in the Essex County Police Academy, where he taught self defense for approximately ten years.

After graduating from Southeastern Louisiana University, Jeff obtained his law degree from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 2001. He has been with Markow Walker, P.A., for more than fifteen years, and he is the managing shareholder in the firm’s Gulf Coast office. An experienced litigator, Jeff has taken cases to verdict or award in state court, federal court, administrative proceedings and arbitration. He also handles the appellate work associated with these claims and has acted as mediator for other parties in both civil litigation and workers’ compensation matters. His clients include small businesses, corporations, and insurance carriers. His primary practice areas are insurance coverage issues, workers’ compensation, motor vehicle and truck accidents, construction defect, and premises liability. Jeff and his wife, Jennifer, live in Ocean Springs with their children, Noah and Ella. He is a member of St. John’s Episcopal Church.

Amy completed her undergraduate work at Mississippi University for Women, graduating in 1995 with a B.A. in English, with honors. While at the “W”, Amy was named the University’s first Eudora Welty Scholar. She received her juris doctor degree from Mississippi College School of Law in 1998 and was admitted to practice in the state of Mississippi. Her practice focuses mainly on workers’ compensation defense, representing employers and carriers in matters before the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission and pursuing subrogation recovery before circuit courts throughout the state, as well as estate matters. Amy was named one of the Mississippi Business Journal’s Top 40 under 40 in 2005 and the T. George Kelly volunteer of the year for her work with the Lawyers and Judges Assistance Program of the Bar in 2016. For many years, Amy and her husband Derek have dedicated themselves to their non-profit youth baseball league, the Jackson Ninety-Sixer Baseball Club, assisting and providing access to athletics to disadvantaged youth. She was named NABF’s Woman of Year in 2004 for her dedication to youth baseball. She also currently serves on the St. Joseph Catholic School Advisory Council and is the Director of Youth Music at St. Paul Catholic Church, where she and her family have been parishioners for many years. Amy is the current chair of the Workers’ Compensation Section of the Mississippi Bar and was recently selected by Thomas Reuters to author their Practical Law Guide to Mississippi Workers’ Compensation. She resides in Brandon with her husband, Derek, son, John, and daughter, Mary Lee.

of experience, Frank has successfully tried patent, trademark, trade secret and copyright cases in Federal Courts nationwide, the Courts of Appeals for the Sixth and Federal Circuits, and the International Trade Commission. As a registered patent attorney , Frank is authorized to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Frank has been lead counsel for a wide variety of clients, from individuals to major corporations, in intellectual property and commercial litigation matters. His litigation experience spans across various technologies and industries including, automotive, consumer electronics, industrial technologies, food and beverage, and home appliances. Frank’s practice also includes post-grant proceedings. He works with clients to challenge or defend patents through administrative trial procedures created under the America Invents Act (AIA). In addition to counseling clients, he has been a vital component in developing Brooks Kushman’s Post-Grant Proceedings practice by mentoring and training other attorneys. Early on in his career, Frank served as a law clerk to the Hon. Glenn L. Archer, Jr., former Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. This experience led to involvement in almost 100 appeals over the course of his career and Frank currently leads Brooks’ Appellate Litigation Group. Frank also serves on the Board of Directors for Challenge Detroit, a revitalization effort designed to attract and retain new talent in the City of Detroit.