DTCI: Meet the 2018 Board of Directors

At the November annual meeting of the Defense Trial Counsel of Indiana, the following officers and directors were elected. They assumed office January 1, 2018.

Officers

Robert B. Thornburg

Rob Thornburg, the new president of DTCI, is a member of Frost Brown Todd, LLC, who concentrates his practice in the areas of products liability, commercial and business litigation, breach of warranty, and tort litigation. He routinely represents manufacturers against products liability and breach of warranty claims in suits throughout Indiana and the Midwest. He has experience in Indiana’s state and federal courts and has defended clients in states throughout the Midwest, Mid-south, South, and Southwest.

Mr. Thornburg is a member of DRI and the Indianapolis Bar Association. He received his BS degree, cum laude, from Ball State University and his JD from Indiana University-Bloomington.

Renee Mortimer

Renee Mortimer, the newly named president-elect and Indiana Representative to DRI, is the partner-in-charge of the Indiana office of Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLP, in Schererville. She is a leader of the firm’s personal injury and property damage practice group and is a member of the firm’s executive committee.

In October 2012, Ms. Mortimer received the Indiana State Bar Association’s Defense Lawyer Civility Award for 2012. Ms. Mortimer was selected for the honor by the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association, which recognizes one Indiana defense attorney each year for outstanding civility and professionalism in dealings with fellow judges, attorneys, parties, witnesses, and the public.

In 2011, Ms. Mortimer was one of only eleven women to receive the Influential Women of Northwest Indiana Award. She was honored for her influence in the legal industry category. In 2015, she was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America in the areas of Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions — Defendants, Medical Malpractice Law — Defendants, and Product Liability Litigation.

Ms. Mortimer is a Fellow in the Litigation Counsel of America (LCA), a member of the Council on Litigation Management, DRI, and International Association of Defense Trial Counsel.

Donald S. Smith

Don Smith, the 2018 vice-president of the association, is a partner in the Indianapolis law firm of Riley Bennett Egloff, LLP. He limits his practice to representing employers in employment matters. Mr. Smith graduated with honors from DePauw University in 1978 and Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law in 1981. Since then, he has defended employers before state and federal courts, the National Labor Relations Board, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Indiana Civil Rights Commission, U.S. Department of Labor, Indiana Worker’s Compensation Board, various arbitrators, and at the collective bargaining table, in addition to advising them concerning day-to-day employment issues.

Mr. Smith was the chairman of the DTCI Worker’s Compensation Section in 2012.

Kori L. Chambers

Kori Chambers is the new secretary of DTCI. She is associate general counsel (litigation) with Indiana University Health, Inc. She received her BA in international studies from Miami University in 1998 and received her JD in 2001 from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law. She manages medical professional and general liability claims for IU Health Risk Retention Group, Inc., which insures IU Health facilities and healthcare providers, as well as other practitioners throughout Indiana.

Ms. Chambers was named Young Lawyer of the Year by the Indianapolis Bar Association in 2008, and in 2009, DTCI named her Young Lawyer of the Year for her leadership qualities in service to the Indiana defense bar, the national defense bar, and the community. Ms. Chambers has been appointed by both Governor Mitch Daniels and Governor Mike Pence to the board of the Indiana Commission for Women.

James Strenski

Jim Strenski, the new treasurer of the association, is a partner at the Indianapolis firm of Cantrell Strenski & Mehringer, LLP. He concentrates his practice in the areas of insurance bad faith, insurance coverage, and third-party defense of insureds. He received his BS, cum laude, from Georgetown University in 1990 and his JD, magna cum laude, from Indiana University School of Law–Bloomington in 1994.

Mr. Strenski is a member of the Indiana State Bar Association, Indianapolis Bar Association, DRI, and served as the 2013 chair of DTCI’s Insurance Section. He has been repeatedly recognized as a Super Lawyer in the area of insurance coverage.

Mr. Strenski serves on the board of the Broad Ripple Little League and the board of the Hoosier Burn Camp. He is a member of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Indiana.

Michele S. Bryant

Michele Bryant, the immediate past president of DTCI, is a graduate of DePauw University and Indiana University Maurer School of Law. She is a partner with Wooden McLaughlin, LLP, in its Evansville office. Ms. Bryant’s practice is focused on the defense and trial of medical negligence claims, representing both individual healthcare providers and hospitals. Her practice also includes healthcare and hospital law, employment litigation, and commercial litigation.

Ms. Bryant served for many years on the Indiana Judges and Lawyers Assistance Committee, which is a committee of the Indiana Supreme Court providing assistance to judges, lawyers, and law students suffering from impairments affecting their ability to practice law. She continues to chair the Evansville Bar Association’s Lawyers Assistance Committee. Ms. Bryant is also a member of DRI and the American Health Lawyers Association. She has been included on the Indiana Super Lawyers list since 2011 in the area of medical malpractice defense and has achieved an AV rating in Martindale-Hubbell. In 2010, she received the ISBA Women in the Law Committee Recognition Award.

Ms. Bryant is an active member of her church, Aldersgate United Methodist, where she serves on the board of trustees. She is also a board member for Meals on Wheels and for the Kiwanis Club of North Side Evansville Foundation, serving as president for many years. She and her husband, John, live in Newburgh with their two teenage children.

Directors

BJ Brinkerhoff

Mr. Brinkerhoff focuses his practice on business disputes, including employment matters, shareholder claims, director and officer liability, and day-to-day business disputes. He litigates products liability cases, restaurant and retail liability, civil rights matters, contract disputes, insurance matters, personal injury, and appeals. He also represents clients at all phases of litigation, such as initial post-loss investigation (including immediate response examinations and inspections), alternative dispute resolution, bench and jury trials and appeals.

Mr. Brinkerhoff represents clients in many jurisdictions, including the Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana, Eastern District of Michigan, Eastern District of Tennessee, Northern District of Illinois and the Southern District of New York, and throughout Indiana. In addition to his litigation experience, BJ also has handled appeals of various matters.

He graduated with a BA from Vanderbilt University, and remains a die-hard Commodores fan. He received his JD from the Indiana University Maurer School of Law. While in law school, BJ was a finalist and later served as chief justice for the Sherman Minton Moot Court Competition.

When he is not representing Katz Korin Cunningham’s clients, you will often find him playing golf, tennis, basketball, cooking, enjoying Indy’s growing restaurant scene, or traveling to visit his family.

Marian Drenth

Marian Drenth is a partner with O’Neill McFadden & Willett, LLP, in Schererville. She concentrates her practice in civil litigation with an emphasis in professional liability, including healthcare law, medical malpractice defense, and legal malpractice defense. In addition to representing physicians, hospitals, and other healthcare providers in medical negligence claims, her practice areas include general liability, employment law, professional liability, and insurance defense. She has successfully defended clients in numerous jury trials in matters involving general negligence and medical malpractice claims.

Ms. Drenth received her BA from Loyola University, cum laude, in 1992 and her JD from Valparaiso University School of Law in 1995. She has served as vice-chair of the Health Law Section of DTCI. She is currently a member of the Indiana State Bar Association, the Porter County Inns of Court, and she is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation. Ms. Drenth previously served as a board member for the Porter County Inn of Court from 2006 to 2010, serving as president from June 2009 to June 2010. She holds an AV Peer Review Rating from Martindale-Hubbell.

Greg J. Freyberger

Greg Freyberger is a native of Jasper, Indiana, and is a litigation partner with Wooden McLaughlin, LLP, in Evansville. He is a veteran trial attorney whose practice is concentrated on business disputes, employment law, commercial litigation, insurance litigation, personal injury defense, and municipal law. He has handled cases from trial through appeal for individuals, businesses, and municipalities.

Mr. Freyberger has served as chairman and co-chair of DTCI’s Trial Tactics Section in 2009 and 2010 respectively, was named a Rising Star for Indiana Super Lawyers in 2010 and from 2012 to 2016, and maintains a Martindale-Hubbell AV rating. He was also named one of Evansville’s 20 rising leaders under 40 years old in 2011. He has served as the president of Leadership Evansville and is the president of Brooks American Inns of Court in Evansville. He is a member of the Evansville and Indiana State Bar Associations, as well as DRI.

J. Curtis Greene

Curt Greene is a partner in the litigation department of Barnes & Thornburg, LLP’s Indianapolis office. Mr. Greene represents private and publicly traded companies regionally and nationally in a variety of civil litigation matters, including defending numerous market leaders and serving on multiple regional and national litigation teams. His practice focuses on business and commercial disputes, construction, and products liability defense. In addition to his litigation experience, Mr. Greene has nearly 10 years’ experience in both the public and private sectors serving in various operational and executive business management roles. This experience serves as a foundation for his legal practice.

Mr. Greene served on DTCI’s Long-Range Planning Committee for 2014, serves on DTCI’s Business Litigation Section Executive Committee, where he served as chair for four years, and is a frequent speaker on litigation strategy and procedure, using experts in litigation, and other trial issues.

Philip E. Kalamaros

Phil Kalamaros is a partner with Hunt Suedhoff Kalamaros, LLP. He works mostly out of his car, as he is licensed in Indiana and Michigan, and divides his practice between the two states, at the local, federal, and appellate levels. He has a broad litigation practice, including all types of professional malpractice, D&O, E&O, EPL coverage, premises, products, trucking, dram shop, general tort defense, worker’s compensation, and business planning. He also mediates and arbitrates in Michigan and Indiana, particularly on troublesome and multiparty cases. He is a two-time graduate of the University of Notre Dame. Mr. Kalamaros is a former Amicus Committee chairman and director of DTCI, and past director of ICLEF, and a Life Fellow of the Indiana Bar Foundation. He also serves on the Amicus Committee and is an editor of the Indiana Civil Litigation Review. In addition to DCTI, he is a member of DRI, Claims & Litigation Management Alliance, Michigan Defense Trial Counsel, National Council of Self Insurers, Notre Dame Law Association, the Seventh Circuit, St. Joseph County, Berrien County, Indiana State, and Michigan State bar associations.

He has been included among the Indiana Super Lawyers and Michigan Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers in America, and is Martindale-Hubbell rated AV.

Most important, he is the husband of Lynn, and father of Hunter, Anna, and Rachel.

Matthew R. King

Matt King is a member in Frost Brown Todd’s Indianapolis office, where he concentrates his practice in product liability litigation. He has defended manufacturers of automobiles, seat belts, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, personal watercraft, medical devices, and other products in state and federal courts across the country. He also has extensive experience in premises liability, insurance defense, and general tort litigation.

He has been an active member of DTCI and DRI since his admission to the bar in 2003. Matt is a past chair of DTCI’s Product Liability Section and Young Lawyers Committee, a past recipient of DTCI’s Outstanding Young Lawyer Award, and he has presented at many DTCI seminars. Matt is currently Indiana’s State Membership Chair for DRI.

Christopher D. Lee

Chris Lee is a partner in the Evansville office of Wooden McLaughlin, LLP. Mr. Lee is a trial attorney and has been recognized by his peers for his representation in insurance defense and commercial litigation matters. He manages complex litigation cases and is a frequent speaker on trial practice and trial advocacy. He is also an active member in DRI.

Beverly J. Mack

Beverly Mack is a partner in the LaPorte firm of Huelat Mack & Kreppein, where she has practiced insurance defense litigation for twenty-one years, focusing on product liability, trucking cases, construction defect cases, industrial accidents/occurrences, premises liability, and commercial disputes.

She obtained her BA from Eastern Illinois University and her JD from the University of Illinois College of Law in 1989. She is a member of the Indiana State Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, the La Porte County Bar Association, DRI, and is immediate past treasurer for the Women Lawyers Association of Indiana.

Anna Mallon

Anna Mallon is a partner in the Indianapolis firm of Cantrell Strenski & Mehringer, LLP, where she concentrates her practice in the areas of insurance bad faith, insurance coverage, and third-party defense of insureds. She received her BA in political science and BS in secondary education from Miami University in 1997. She received her JD from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law in 2002.

Ms. Mallon is the former chair of DTCI’s Insurance Coverage Section and has presented at DTCI seminars.

Jason M. Massaro

Jason M. Massaro is the owner of The Massaro Legal Group in Indianapolis, where he focuses his practice primarily in complex business, commercial, contract, and real estate litigation. His experience ranges from counseling individuals as well as businesses of all sizes — from small to Fortune 500 companies in a variety of matters including litigation, contract issues, real estate matters, closely held and minority shareholder disputes; limited liability company and partnership disputes; negotiations, corporate and partnership structuring, and corporate compliance.

Mr. Massaro has been in practice for more than 20 years and is consistently recognized for both his legal ability and ethics. He has earned an AV Distinguished Peer Review Rating from Martindale-Hubbell, is a Super Lawyer Top Rated Business Litigation Lawyer, is a Fellow in the Litigation Counsel of America, and is also listed as one of Indiana’s Top Rated Lawyers.

Mr. Massaro received his BS, with distinction, in economics from the Krannert School of Management at Purdue University and his JD, magna cum laude, from Valparaiso University School of Law.

Libby Valos Moss

Libby Valos Moss is a partner with Kightlinger & Gray, LLP. She is a trial attorney who concentrates her practice in the areas of employment law and defense of employers before the Indiana Worker’s Compensation Board. She is a frequent speaker on the issues that employers face when confronted with workers’ compensation claims. She is admitted to practice in Indiana and before the U.S. District Court, Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana.

Ms. Moss has served as the chair of the DTCI Worker’s Compensation Section and is a former chair of the Worker’s Compensation Committee of DRI. In addition to being an active member of DTCI and DRI, she is a member of the Indianapolis Bar Association, Indiana State Bar Association, and Litigation Counsel of America. Ms. Moss was recognized as a Rising Star by the Indiana Super Lawyers for 2010, 2011, and 2012. She was has more recently been named to the Super Lawyers List for 2014, 2015, and 2016.

Elliott I. Pinkie

Elliott Pinkie is a partner of Cline Law Group, LLC, in Indianapolis. He specializes in civil litigation for the defense with a concentration in medical malpractice, licensing litigation, peer review, healthcare litigation, and products and premises liability defense. After graduating from Munster High School in 1991, he earned a BS in criminal justice and criminology from Ball State University (1995), and a JD from The Claude W. Pettit College of Law, Ohio Northern University (2000).

Mr. Pinkie is a frequent speaker on topics germane to the Indiana Medical Malpractice Act, healthcare provider liability issues in Indiana, and medical professional licensing issues. He is admitted to practice before all state and federal courts in Indiana. He is a member of DRI and previously served DTCI as chair of the Trial Tactics Section. He is also a member of the Indianapolis Bar Association and Indiana State Bar Association. In addition, he is an active member in the Indiana Society for Healthcare Risk Management (ISHRM) and serves on its board of directors. Elliott was also selected for inclusion in the listing of Indiana Rising Stars for the years 2009, 2012, and 2013, and was selected as an Indiana Super Lawyer in 2016 and 2017. He has been an active supporter of the Social Health Association of Indiana, Inc., a United Way of Central Indiana agency, where he previously served as president on the executive committee and remains on its board of directors.

Stacy F. Thompson

Stacy Thompson, a partner at Pitcher Thompson, PC, graduated with high distinction from Indiana University in 1999 with a BA in public health. In 2002, she graduated from the Indiana University Maurer School of Law. Stacy concentrates her practice in the representation of healthcare professionals, including individual physicians and nurses, hospitals, physicians’ practice groups, and healthcare-related organizations, in a variety of healthcare law matters.

In 2010, DTCI named Ms. Thompson the Young Lawyer of the Year for her leadership qualities in service to the Indiana defense bar, the national defense bar, and the community. In 2010, 2011, and 2012, she was named a Rising Star by Indiana Super Lawyers, and in 2017 she was named a Super Lawyer. Ms. Thompson also served DTCI as the chair of its Health Law Section. She is a member of DRI and the Association of Defense Trial Attorneys.

Elizabeth Trachtman Villa

Elizabeth Trachtman Villa practices in the Litigation & Dispute Resolution Practice Group at Quarles & Brady, LLP. Her practice focuses on commercial litigation, including the enforcement of employment agreements and litigating disputes regarding restrictive covenants. She is also heavily involved in Quarles & Brady’s pro bono program. Elizabeth was recently named the 2017 Outstanding Young Lawyer by the Defense Trial Counsel of Indiana and has been listed as a Rising Star in Indiana Super Lawyers. Elizabeth previously served as the chair of the Trial Tactics Section of DTCI.

Louis Voelker

Lou Voelker, now of La Porte, Indiana, was born in Gary and grew up in Columbus. He attended Purdue University, graduating in 1991. He attended law school at Indiana University Bloomington, graduating cum laude in 1995. He started as an associate with Eichhorn & Eichhorn, LLP, in 1995 and today is a general partner with the firm, working in the firm’s Hammond and Mishawaka offices. Mr. Voelker was selected Defense Lawyer of the Year for 2012 and is a member of the Indiana chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates. His practice is focused upon civil litigation generally and professional liability defense primarily, including medical malpractice defense. He has successfully represented clients at the trial and appellate levels. He has been recognized as a Super Lawyer in the area of medical malpractice defense each year from 2013 through the present. He has been active in his community in his church and as a 4-H leader.•