Dykema Elects 11 New Members

Dykema, a leading national law firm, announced today that its Executive Board elected 11 new members to the firm effective January 1, 2024. Dykema’s new members, their resident office, and practice descriptions are listed below.

Danielle Rushing Behrends – Bankruptcy; San Antonio

Clients rely on Behrends for her resourceful, creative, and effective in and out of court restructuring advice. She looks for practical solutions and works to build a strategic plan that aligns with her client’s needs. In her practice, Behrends has represented several multi-million dollar businesses, particularly in the oil and gas/energy, retail, national fitness chain, healthcare, and transportation industries, Chapter 11 Trustees, and a federal court-appointed receiver. Behrends has received numerous accolades and other professional recognition in regard to her practice, leadership, community involvement, and pro bono efforts. Early on, she learned from the Honorable Craig A. Gargotta, (now Chief) United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Western District of Texas,

She earned a J.D. from St. Mary’s University School of Law and a B.S. from Louisiana State University.

Catherine S. Bowe – Corporate Finance; Dallas

With more than 17 years’ experience as in-house legal counsel for an investment advisor, Bowe counsels clients to achieve a balance between their business objectives and managed risks. She specializes in structuring and negotiating complex acquisitions, joint venture arrangements and equity and debt financings. Bowe also has broad experience in corporate governance and complex contractual arrangements.

Bowe earned a J.D. from the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law and a B.A. from Stanford University.

Neyma E. Figueroa – Commercial Litigation; San Antonio

Figueroa’s practice focuses on complex first-party insurance and coverage matters, class action litigation, and business tort and contract disputes. She is often called upon to draft and argue complex, high-stakes motions that can alter the course of the case and serves as second-chair at trial to one of Dykema’s go-to trial lawyers. Figueroa also has extensive experience representing mortgage lenders and servicers. Before joining Dykema, she held an internship with the Honorable Judge Bobby Baldock of the U.S. Tenth Court of Appeals.

Figueroa earned a J.D., cum laude, from the Baylor University School of Law and a B.A. in political science, philosophy, and Spanish from New Mexico State University.

John W. Fraser – Government Policy; Lansing

Fraser serves as the Michigan Team Leader of Dykema’s Cannabis Practice. In his practice, he often serves as the legal “quarterback” for a cannabis business’s myriad of issues as part of a multidisciplinary legal team. Fraser also previously served as the Chairperson of the Cannabis Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan. In addition to his cannabis experience, he has litigated cases in state and federal trial courts throughout Michigan and has argued cases before the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Michigan Supreme Court.

Fraser earned a J.D., summa cum laude, from the Michigan State University College of Law and a B.S. in Philosophy and Political Science, cum laude, from Central Michigan University.

Nina Gavrilovic – Product Liability and Class Action Litigation; Bloomfield Hills

Gavrilovic represents domestic and international clients across a broad range of industries, including automotive, manufacturing, technology, consumer products, and professional services. Her diverse practice focuses on complex litigation involving recall and warranty cost-recovery matters, automotive supplier disputes, product liability cases, premise liability actions, and medical malpractice matters. Gavrilovic possesses substantial trial experience, allowing her to adeptly defend clients throughout the entire litigation process.

She received a J.D., cum laude, from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law and a B.A. from the University of Michigan.

Brett M. Gelbord – Labor and Employment; Detroit

Gelbord focuses his practice on providing practical and efficient guidance to employers on all manner of workforce-related issues. He provides day-to-day employment counseling and also represents employers in administrative proceedings and lawsuits at both the state and federal levels on issues ranging from claims of employment discrimination and wrongful termination to the enforcement of non-competition agreements and the protection of trade secrets. Gelbord has represented clients in a variety of industries, with a particular focus on the cannabis, automotive, and technology sectors. Additionally, Gelbord is spearheading Dykema’s work in the emerging psychedelics industry, advising clients on the risks and legality of doing business in the space and advocating for legislative and policy changes.

He earned a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School and B.A.s in English, with high honors, and Anthropology, with honors, from Queens College, City University of New York.

Matthew T. Hays – Business Litigation; Chicago

Hays advises in matters relating to data-sensitive projects, agreements, services, and investigations with an emphasis on privacy and cybersecurity regulatory compliance. He is also a registered patent attorney and has worked on a broad range of intellectual property matters including helping clients obtain and manage patent and trademark assets across a broad range of software technologies. Hays has also worked extensively with clients as they wrangle with the explosion of innovative and complicated AI-driven technologies, including the deployment of generative AI tools through internal development or sourced from a technology provider.

He earned a J.D., magna cum laude, from the Chicago-Kent College of Law at the Illinois Institute of Technology and a B.S. in chemical engineering from the University of Cincinnati.

Lindsay S. Henry – Corporate Finance; Chicago

Lindsay Henry advises financial institutions on the legal, operational, and regulatory challenges they face in a competitive and ever-changing financial services industry. She is a trusted advisor to her clients on a wide variety of issues, including consumer credit transactions, deposit products, treasury management and payments, outsourcing and vendor-related issues, strategic partnerships, technology contracting, fair lending and privacy matters, mortgage lending and servicing, interest and usury, and regulatory policies and procedures. As a former examiner at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Henry brings an inside perspective on regulatory compliance issues and strives to provide pragmatic, business-minded advice to her clients. 

Henry earned a J.D. from the St. Louis University School of Law and a B.A., cum laude, from the University of Richmond.

Rebekah L. Hudgins – Product Liability and Class Action Litigation; Dallas

Hudgins’ practice primarily focuses on complex product liability cases, catastrophic personal injury, class action litigation, and business disputes. She works regularly with automotive and equipment manufacturers, roadside assistance providers, retailers, and a wide array of other commercial clients. While studying at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, Hudgins excelled in her business law course and this newfound passion for the law led her to law school and ultimately a career as a legal advocate.

She earned a J.D., cum laude, from the Texas Tech University School of Law, as well as a B.S. in Advertisting and Marketing Communications, summa cum laude, from the Fashion Institute of Technology.

Dmitriy Kopelevich – Product Liability and Class Action Litigation; Los Angeles

Kopelevich manages a voluminous caseload of product liability claims and lawsuits, from inceptions to resolution, on behalf of manufacturers, distributors, and designers of automobiles and other products. He has significant experience with automotive product liability cases involving airbags, seat belts, seats, structure, advanced driver asssistance systems, vehicle data recording, data privacy, driver distraction, and “lack of” safety systems matters. His diverse practice also involves pre-litigation disputes and litigation involving product suppliers, premise liability, real estate, and contract disputes.

Kopelevich earned a J.D. from the Southwestern Law School and a B.A. from California State University.

Jason C. Reichlyn – Commercial Litigation; Washington, D.C.

Reichlyn counsels domestic and foreign insurers in complex coverage and reinsurance matters. His practice focuses on general, professional, and management liability coverage matters involving government investigations and claims faced by architects and engineers, directors and officers, lawyers, financial institutions, insurance companies, investment advisers, and other individuals and public and private entities. In addition to providing strategic coverage counseling and serving as monitoring counsel, Reichlyn litigates related disputes in state and federal courts nationwide at the trial and appellate levels.

He received a J.D. from Tulane University Law School and a B.A., magna cum laude, from The George Washington University.