Administrative Law

Ben Hand is the founding partner of Hand Law Firm, LLC. as well as a partner in Hand & Hand Mediation, LLC. Ben was admitted to the Bar in Alabama in 1990 after earning his Juris Doctor from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University. Ben completed his undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Auburn University in 1987b and has remained an avid Auburn fan. Ben was born in Valley, Alabama and traveled as a child to Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Mexico with his parents who worked as missionaries and teachers. It was during his childhood travels that he learned to love the Central American culture and learned to speak fluent Spanish. After high school, Ben returned to Auburn and has remained a citizen of Lee County for the past thirty-five years. In 1990, Ben founded Hand Law Firm, LLC. He has been practicing for over twenty-five years. Ben focuses his practice on criminal defense, civil litigation, social security, family law, and probate law. In addition to his duties at Hand Law Firm, Ben is also a state registered mediator and has served as a Municipal Judge for over twenty years. Ben has served the cities of Roanoake, Wedowee, Camp Hill and Opelika during his tenure as Municipal Judge and Prosecutor and thus has a unique perspective in criminal defense. Ben lives in Opelika with his wife, Elizabeth Hand and together they are raising their ten children.

Todd Gardner began his professional life as a middle school teacher but opted to go to law school in his mid-twenties. During his time in law school, he clerked in the contracts department at Wells Fargo during the merger with Norwest Bank, clerked for five judges in the Minnesota Office of Administrative Hearings Workers' Compensation Division, and interned with a Hennepin County District Court judge. Following law school, he began working in a Minneapolis small firm representing injured workers and injured persons and later experienced representing insurance companies with a medium-sized law firm in St. Paul. In 2002, he left defending insurance companies and opened Gardner Law Office, LLC, focusing on serving the needs of the injured. With over 20 years of legal experience, Todd is personable and easy to talk to, but will always fight aggressively and ethically for his clients. At Gardner Law Office, we don't get paid unless our clients get paid.

Alan Sack is a Registered Patent Attorney and an experienced intellectual property attorney. A graduate of MIT and the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Alan helps his clients protect their patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets in disputes before district courts across the United States, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (US PTO), as well as before the United States International Trade Commission (US ITC). He has served as lead and associate counsel in numerous patent, trademark, unfair competition, and copyright litigations and has also mediated intellectual property disputes. In the realm of patent law, Alan handles patent and design patent litigation matters before U.S. district courts, and inter partes matters before the US PTO, including patent appeals, reissues, reexaminations, and post-issue review proceedings. He also counsels clients on patent preparation and infringement matters and has extensive experience in the preparation, prosecution, and appeals of patent applications before the US PTO in a broad spectrum of technologies and designs. He is experienced in patent and copyright protection of technologies relating to computer sciences and business methods, as well as nanotechnology, biotechnology, medical devices, imaging, LED lighting, mechanical devices, energy storage, radiation detection, superconductors, computer sciences, signal processing, iontophoresis and chemical technologies, waste treatment, polymer molding and processing, chemical engineering, petroleum processing, films, fluid handling, and business methods. Alan also has successfully overseen opposition proceedings before the European and Japanese Patent Offices, and handles licensing negotiations and preparation of license agreements. Alan is experienced in trademark, unfair competition, and trade secret litigation in the U.S. district courts, and opposition and cancellation proceedings before the US PTO. He routinely counsels clients in adoption and clearance of trademarks and service marks and the protection of trade secrets, as well as U.S. and foreign trademark filing, prosecution, opposition, and appeals. His practice also encompasses counseling and negotiation of branding and advertising transactions. He advises clients regarding protection and use of trademarks in advertising and product packaging, advertising claims, and the use of appropriate marking of patents and registered trademarks on product packaging and brochures. Alan has extensive Trademark, Copyright, Trade Secret & UC protection, Counseling, Licensing, and Litigation experience in the Apparel, Banking, Entertainment, Fabrics, Food, Footwear, Gaming, Music, & Restaurant industries. Alan has been a longtime member of the International Trademark Association (INTA) and an active member of the Trade Name Subcommittee of the Trademark Enforcement Committee of INTA. Alan has also handled a variety of copyright and entertainment related litigation, registration and counseling matters, and has litigated software and television copyright infringement actions in U.S. district courts and before the US ITC. In a recent US ITC investigation, Alan and his team prevailed on summary determination in an investigation involving a children’s television show. The ITC’s Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) found lack of substantial similarity between the accused television show and the copyrights asserted in the investigation. Alan has also handled matters related to copyright infringement actions in the music industry and been successful in taking down infringing content for music posted on various Internet websites under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. (DMCA). He has also successfully conducted arbitrations under ICANN’s Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution (UDRP) arbitration procedures. Alan is a member of the Federal Bar Association and is part of a team of three senior patent litigators that has taken on an initiative to provide the district courts designated to participate in the Patent Cases Pilot Program (PCPP) with a series of in-depth and interactive multi-session presentations on the relevant substantive and procedural aspects of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act. The sessions look at the how the new patent act affects the conduct of patent litigations before the U.S. district courts and the interplay between district court litigation and the new post-registration proceedings before the USPTO. Alan and his colleagues have presented before the judges, magistrate-judges and law clerks of the Southern District of New York, and the Eastern District of New York and have contributed to the drafting of the local patent rules that are shared by these courts.

Joshua M Feagans is a founding partner of Feagans Law Group and heads the firm’s litigation and business practice. Josh concentrates in complex civil litigation involving injury and business disputes and acts as outside general counsel to national and regional companies in an array of industries that include building supplies, construction, commercial real estate, healthcare, automotive and manufacturing, among others. As a trial attorney, Josh has litigated thousands of cases throughout the United States in federal and state courts, in arbitrations with AAA, JAMS and BBB and in administrative hearings before a variety of agencies, including the EEOC, NLRB, IHRC, IDFPR and IDOL. Adept at understanding the bigger picture in any dispute, Josh guides his clients through lawsuits by utilizing a keen understanding of business practices and personal motivations to achieve targeted results, Business disputes are another area where Joshua M Feagans is known to be a fierce litigator and to get results for his clients. These involve contracts, shareholders/members/partners of closely held entities, unfair competition (i.e. trademark, trade secret), and real estate. As outside general counsel, Josh takes his experience from the courtroom into the boardroom. With a unique understanding of how disputes arise, Josh guides his clients through the daily pitfalls of operating a business by obtaining a global understanding of his clients’ operations and making himself available 24/7 to resolve issues as they arise (and before they become larger problems). Josh advises clients on best practices, corporate governance, acquisitions, employment, transactions, contracts, real estate, leasing, risk management and litigation. Josh’s counseling practice focuses on providing creative solutions and pragmatic guidance to help senior leadership achieve success. Josh is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association, the Kane County Bar Association and the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association. Josh serves as the Vice Chair of the Board of Directors for the St. Charles Chamber of Commerce, and as the Secretary/Treasurer of the Kane County Bar Association. Having grown up in central Illinois in a family that claims seven generations that have called Illinois home, Josh prides himself on his family and his work ethic. He graduated Western Illinois University with a B.A. in History along with an admission into the Phi Alpha Theta National Honorary Society and later graduated cum laude from the University of Illinois at Chicago John Marshall Law School. After working for a Chicago law firm, Josh became a partner at a regional law firm in the Tri-Cities, where he helped grow the firm to a regional power. Since its founding and with Josh and his wife - Feagans co-founder Katie - at the helm - Feagans Law Group has grown into a regional power with national reach. The firm recovered $19M on behalf of clients throughout Chicagoland, Illinois, and the Midwest in 2022 alone. Josh's representative case results include a $12M wrong death judgment, an $8.5M construction injury settlement, a $1.75M automobile injury settlement, a $1.3M workers compensation settlement, and many more. When Josh is not Guiding Your Path to Justice, he enjoys spending time with his family (including coaching his son's Little League team!), golfing, watching reruns of Seinfeld and the occasional cocktail!

Johanna Kelley, founder of J Kelley Law Group, obtained her law degree in Colombia in 2001, where she practiced Labor, Constitutional, Administrative, Human Rights, International Law and International Business Law. She advised private companies, local and international human rights organizations, governmental agencies, the Colombian Army and grassroots community organizations, with a broad portfolio that included innovative initiatives and the improvement of Colombia’s image abroad. She prepared and accompanied cases of Colombian citizens before the Organization of American States (OAS). After immigrating to the United States, she found that the policy and Immigration Law of this country were a perfect fit for her professional development project and after graduating with Master’s degrees in Law (Duke University) and International Development Policy (Sanford School of Public Policy), she founded in 2013 a non-profit organization aimed at protecting and promoting immigrant rights and social justice. In July 2015, she left the nonprofit sector to serve in government. She began working for the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) as a supervisor, a wonderful experience professionally and personally, which allowed her to participate in ensuring the integrity of the US immigration system, provide immigration benefits and support the country’s Homeland Security. In November 2017, Johanna Kelley said goodbye to USCIS to kick off the biggest of her work projects: building her own law firm. The founder of our firm believes in legal development and empowerment, therefore, she has been involved in public discussions at mass events and through the media. She hosted the television program ‘Batalla Política’ for the international news channel NTN24 and is a frequent analyst on radio stations and Hispanic channels such as Telemundo, Caracol Televisión, Univisión and RCN News. Mrs. Kelley leads a team committed to the cases of clients and investors, and we are grateful every day for the opportunity to serve our community with professionalism, ethics, and positive results generated through teamwork.

Chris Pence is a native of South Charleston, West Virginia and a graduate of Marshall University and the West Virginia University College of Law. In his practice, Mr. Pence focuses on litigation, where he has represented individuals and companies throughout the United States. He has significant experience defending coal operators and other mining companies in civil litigation and administrative proceedings pending before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission and the West Virginia Board of Appeals. In this capacity, he defends citations issued by the Mine, Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) and West Virginia Office of Miners’ Health, Safety & Training (WVOMHST). He also responds to accidents and represents clients in connection with investigations conducted by the various enforcement agencies. In addition to his work for the mining industry, Mr. Pence has also represented clients in cases alleging professional negligence, insurance coverage disputes, commercial contract disputes, auto accidents, premises liability and other personal injury actions. Mr. Pence has also represented victims of industrial accidents and their families, including the estate of a man who received fatal injuries as a result of an explosion at a natural gas liquids storage site. He has also represented individuals in actions against medical providers under the West Virginia Medical Professional Liability Act, as well as employees in claims against their employers for wrongful discharge, sexual harassment, violation of the West Virginia Human Rights Act, among other things. Finally, he regularly represents victims of automobile accidents. The Firm regularly accepts these engagements on a contingency basis. In addition to his civil practice, Mr. Pence’s Firm represents individuals in high asset divorce cases and, when called upon to do so, represents these individuals in child support, custody issues, and other family law matters. Mr. Pence has been designated as a West Virginia Rising Star in general litigation by the Super Lawyers publication for several years. He has served as a speaker at the Pennsylvania Coal Alliance/Pennsylvania Coal Mining Institute of America Conference, the West Virginia Coal Association, and various legal seminars. Mr. Pence received the Order of the Coif, Patrick Duffy Koontz Leadership Award, Paul L. Selby Law Scholarship and the Steptoe & Johnson Law Scholarship at the College of Law.

The attorneys for MAY BROCK LAW GROUP have been working with Las Vegas businesses and individuals to provide them with the very best up to date legal advice since 2004. With the combined experience of our attorneys, our firm has real-world and/or legal experience in many different industries, such as accounting, business, construction, engineering, insurance and real estate. With these backgrounds, our attorneys are specially poised to provide its clients with assistance for their legal matters. We firmly believe that in order to promote the very best interests of our clients, as well as obtain the best possible legal outcome for them, it is imperative that we educate each and every individual client thoroughly about their legal issues they are facing. So that when we share information with our clients, in turn, they can provide us with the necessary and pertinent information needed to help them with their situation.

Dan Christensen has been practicing law since 1994. He started his career working in military courts, notorious for their strict adherence to rules and procedures. For the last several years, Dan has focused his practice exclusively on representing injury victims. He has been involved in almost 200 trials during his career in numerous federal and state courts against the largest defendants, including the U.S. Government. Dan will utilize his experience and proven results while fighting for you. Regardless of the size of the opponent, Dan has the experience and legal knowledge to aggressively advocate for his clients. And, just as important, he will give you and your case the personal attention it deserves from the initial free consultation through trial. Dan received a bachelor’s degree with Honors in 1991 and his J.D. with distinction from the University of Iowa in 1994. After graduating from law school, he served in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps (JAG) in Fort Hood, Texas. He served as a prosecutor and defense counsel in numerous administrative hearings and courts-martial ranging from minor offenses to kidnapping, rape, and capital murder. After being honorably discharged from the U.S. Army JAG Corps, Dan joined a Texas personal injury law firm. Dan worked as the Chief of its Litigation Department and was the firm’s principle trial lawyer for years, trying numerous cases each year. Also, as the head of the firm’s personal injury division, Dan supervised and mentored between 15 and 20 trial lawyers at a time as they prosecuted thousands of cases. Dan is Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, as well as Board Certified in Civil Trial Law by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He is an Associate Member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and a Graduate of Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyer College. He has been recognized by Texas Monthly as a “SuperLawyer.” Dan is listed in Best Lawyers in America and as National Trial Lawyers Association’s Top 100 Trial Lawyers. Besides representing injured Texans, Dan has contributed substantial time to writing articles for local and national publications, speaking to groups on various legal tops, and serving as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Texas School of Law.

Amber is an attorney at Nishad Khan P.L. who focuses on civil litigation and probate administration. Amber attended the University of Central Florida where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration: Economics. She then attended law school at Stetson University College of Law receiving a Juris Doctor, Cum Laude. She also received an M.B.A. from Stetson University in 2011. Since becoming an attorney, Amber has worked in the Orlando area focusing on estate planning, probate and trust administration and litigation, civil litigation, and family law. Since 2016, she has been recognized as a Rising Star by Super Lawyer for her practice in Estate and Trust Litigation. Amber is licensed to practice law in Florida, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, and the District of Columbia. In addition to her law practice, Amber has been providing pro bono services to the community through the Orange County Bar Association, while serving as a Committee Member and Chair of numerous Orange County Bar Association committees since 2014. In her role as Committee Chair of the Community Service Committee, she was a founding member of the Wills for Heroes Estate Planning Clinic in Orlando. In 2019, that program received the Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice’s Voluntary Bar Association Pro Bono Service Award. She was selected to receive the award on behalf of the OCBA Young Lawyers Section. When Amber is not working, you will find her spending time with her family and her two little boys. On Saturdays in the Fall, she will be sporting her black and gold while tailgating and attending UCF Football Games in Orlando. Go Knights!

Honorable Menelaos W. Toskos, P.J. Ch. (Ret.) brings 50 years of legal experience to the firm’s Alternate Dispute Resolution and Mediation Group. Appointed to the N.J. Superior Court in2005, Judge Toskos sat in the Law and Chancery Divisions. During his years on the bench, Judge Toskos authored hundreds of opinions, several of which were approved for publication. While serving in the Chancery Division, Judge Toskos was responsible for general equity, contract, real estate, business and probate cases. Several required appointment of receivers, special fiscal agents, special medical guardians, temporary executors and trustees. Judge Toskos aggressively case-managed all these matters, leading to resolution through settlement or trial. In the Law Division, Judge Toskos presided over hundreds of jury and bench trials concerning personal injury claims, employment (including LAD and CEPA) disputes, condemnation, construction and environmental cases. As a designated prerogative writs judge, he tried cases challenging enactments by county government, municipalities, land use boards and administrative agencies. In 2015, the New Jersey Supreme Court designated Judge Toskos as the Mount Laurel judge for Bergen County, tasking him with evaluating whether municipal zoning ordinances met the constitutional requirement to provide an opportunity for construction of low and moderate income housing. Judge Toskos was initially responsible for 59 lawsuits filed by municipalities seeking court approval of zoning ordinances. He was instrumental in negotiating amicable resolution of more than 30 cases prior to retiring. Judge Toskos was a faculty member of the Morris Pashman Inns of Court for 10 years, He was responsible for developing student sessions and lectured on civil litigation. A former teacher, Judge Toskos developed a Lunch and Learn Program arranging monthly lectures for the Bergen County Vicinage. This “CLE” approved program provided each law clerk an opportunity to understand the workings of the Civil, Family and Criminal divisions of the Superior Court. An avid fan of history, Judge Toskos was recently appointed to the New Jersey Supreme Court Historical Advisory Board. The Board created a Supreme Court Virtual Museum which educates the public on the rich history of the New Jersey Supreme Court. A former trustee of the Bergen County Bar Association, Judge Toskos has been a frequent lecturer on real estate, land use and municipal law. He made presentations for the N.J. State Bar Association, Bergen County Bar Association, the New Jersey Judicial College and various Inns of Court as a lecturer and panelist. During his years in the Chancery Division, Judge Toskos assisted in training newly appointed chancellors and incoming law clerks. Before being appointed to the bench, Judge Toskos was an equity member in the Hackensack law firm of Herten, Burstein, Sheridan, Cevasco, Bottinelli, Litt, Toskos and Harz. In his practice, Judge Toskos represented public and private clients in real estate and commercial transactions, government matters and general litigation, as well as acting as counsel for county utility authorities, zoning and planning boards and several municipal governments. Judge Toskos handled litigation in the N.J. Superior Court Law and Appellate Divisions, United States District Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He chaired the Bergen County Bar Association Land Use Committee. which presented an annual seminar for all Bergen County municipal and land use members. In 2001, he completed NJICLE training receiving mediator certification and then served as a New Jersey Superior Court Civil Case Mediation Panelist. With the enactment of the Uniform Construction Code, Judge Toskos taught construction code officials on the procedures for code enforcement. Appointed by the County Executive, he served several years as a member of the Bergen County Solid Waste Advisory Committee. Judge Toskos is a former chair of the New Jersey Supreme Court District IIB Fee Arbitration committee. He also served as the Bergen County High School Mock Trial coordinator organizing a competition for over 30 high schools. Judge Toskos is a graduate of Columbia University and Fordham Law School. In 2015, he was honored by the N.J. Fordham Law Alumni as its Distinguished Alumnus. For over 40 years Judge Toskos has been a member of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Wyckoff. As an attorney, he served as counsel to the Church and is President of the Parish Council. As an Adjunct professor at Montclair State University, Judge Toskos teaches graduate courses on ethics and U.S. Legal System. As Counsel to the firm, Judge Toskos will bring his extensive experience as a lawyer and judge to provide mediation and arbitration services. Judge Toskos will also be available to manage complex litigation and to act as a Special Discovery Master.