Member Headlines: October 20, 2023
Congratulations to these IndyBar members on their accomplishments! Have something to share? Email Robert Adams to be featured.

Laura Conyers has joined Christie Farrell Lee & Bell. Her legal career is focused on medical malpractice law. She has spent the great majority of that time representing plaintiffs in cases involving birth injuries, surgical errors, and other medical mistakes.

Rudy Longman has joined McCready Law as a Trial Attorney. He is committed to serving Indiana individuals who have been injured through no fault of their own.


John W. Mervilde has joined Schultz & Pogue as a Partner. He brings his experience to the firm's General Litigation Law Practice. 

The Hon. Loretta H. Rush has been awarded the 2023 NAWJ Lady Justice Award.


Charley Smith has joined Paganelli Law Group as an Attorney at Law. He represents clients in real estate and commercial litigation. During his 22-year career, he has represented individuals, governmental entities and corporations in a wide variety of cases. 

Dave Temple has joined Van Winkle Baten Dispute Resolution as a Certified Civil Mediator. His practice focus involves dispute resolution, construction law, environmental law, coverage law, and personal injury. 


Jerimi J. Ullom has joined Barnes & Thornburg as a Healthcare and Public Finance Partner. He serves as bond counsel for healthcare, government and nonprofit clients nationally. 


The Hon. Heather A. Welch has been awarded the Norma Wikler Excellence in Service Award.

Member Headlines: October 6, 2023
Congratulations to these IndyBar members on their accomplishments! Have something to share? Email Robert Adams to be featured.

Melissa Hathaway has joined Banks & Brower, LLC as a plaintiffs' personal injury paralegal. Her expertise is analysis and investigation of damages in personal injury cases, including preparation of comprehensive medical chronologies, medical expense summaries, damages analysis reports, etc.


Jeselskis Brinkerhoff and Joseph, LLC recently celebrated their fourth anniversary! Congratulations to the JBJ Legal team!


Emily Storm-Smith has joined Wabash National Corporation. She focuses her practice on supporting company products, services, investments and finance teams with their goals and advising her business partners and executives on the strategic value of complex transactions.

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN A JUDGE?  I have been a judge for nearly 15 years.  Prior to being elected I did not serve in a judicial capacity. I have served in Marion Civil Court 6for nearly 5 years.  Prior to that, I served in Criminal Court 1 for 10 years. 

OTHER PROJECTS, COMMITTEES, OR SERVICE ROLES OFF THE BENCH?  

• Since February I have served as the civil term chair over the 9 civil courts in Marion County.  One focus of effort has been bringing proceedings supplemental back in-person rather than by video. I appreciate the frustration of many in the collection bar, but it was a necessary shift
• I am the Welcome leader for an upcoming retreat at my church
• I serve on the Indiana War Memorial Foundation Board.  The Board is responsible for the Bricks of Honor on Monument Circle and for assisting the director of the war memorials in Indianapolis with funding needs he may have. Only Washington D.C. has more memorials honoring those who have served in our armed forces than Indianapolis.

BEST TIPS FOR LAWYERS?  Litigation is not easy. Hearings and trials can bring a lot of anxiety for many.  Every attorney has their own style and approach.  I respect that and always attempt to reduce tensions.  To that end, candor with one another and with the court are really appreciated.  

WHO IS YOUR MENTOR, AND WHAT INSIGHT HAVE YOU GAINED?  My father, Richard J. Eisgruber who has honored my mother, Anni, for sixty years of marital bliss.  They are quite a pair and have set quite a standard.  My siblings, Mark and Kerri, and I recognize how fortunate we are.

WHAT IS A COMMON MISPERCEPTIONS ABOUT BEING A JUDGE? That we think we’re the smartest one in the room, when we are clearly not.  Counsel are the subject matter experts in any case before us, and I owe it to them to be prepared for hearing so I can best utilize my opportunity to listen, question and gain clarity on their perspective.

IF I WEREN’T A JUDGE:  As attorneys we are all historians grounded in case law, and statutes. So, I would teach history at a place where I could best impact kids.  Unfortunately, much of our past has been swept into the dustbin of history. . . . 

Member Headlines: September 8, 2023
Congratulations to these IndyBar members on their accomplishments! Have something to share? Email Robert Adams to be featured.

Dan Cyr has joined Paganelli Law Group. Dan represent clients in the areas of commercial and residential real estate, title and closing services, business law & consulting, transactions, employment, and contract matters, as well as litigation and alternative dispute resolution.


Best Lawyers recently released its 2024 Best Lawyers in America list and named Don Densborn the “Lawyer of the Year” in Business Organization law in the Indianapolis region. His practice is focused on transactional work, particularly acquisition, disposition, and combination transactions. 


The Hon. Paul Felix is the newest member to join the Indiana Court of Appeals. The longtime central Indiana resident is a former deputy prosecutor and city judge who has spent the last 14 years on the Hamilton County bench.


The Hon. Jane Magnus-Stinson announced she will assume senior status on July 1, 2024. Magnus-Stinson currently serves on the Defender Services Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States Courts, the Seventh Circuit Criminal Pattern Jury Instructions Committee, the Seventh Circuit Advisory Committee on Rules and the Seventh Circuit Committee on Supervised Release, according to the Southern District.


David McNamar has recently retired from the practice of law. He has been an attorney since 1968. His previous employment has been Lowe Gray Steele & Darko; McNamar Fearnow & McSharar; Steers Sullivan McNamar & Rogers; and most recently McNamar & Associates, PC.


Congratulations to Greg Silver for being named a 2023 Indiana Jewish Legend by the Indiana Jewish Historical Society. This Hall of Fame celebrates Jewish and non-Jewish Hoosiers who have created a significant and lasting impact to their profession, faith-based and/or secular community, and the legacy of the role of the Jewish community in Indiana’s continuing story.  


White and Champagne is celebrating its 15th anniversary. The firm handles personal injury and family law matters for clients in Indianapolis and throughout surrounding communities. 


Nabeela Virjee is now with Plews Shadley Racher & Braun. She represents people who have been hurt via car accidents, slip and falls, under and uninsured motorist claims, sexual assault/negligent hiring, wrongful death and medical malpractice. 

IndyBar has hundreds of member services. One of the most under-utilized is its document library of sample forms.  An IndyBar member service for more than 50 years, the document library features a selection of legal templates. Easily accessible online and free for use by members, there are more than 300 documents to act as a starting point in assisting you in nearly every aspect of practice — best of all, you can download and edit these forms instantly in Word format.

Member Headlines: August 25, 2023
Congratulations to these IndyBar members on their accomplishments! Have something to share? Email Robert Adams to be featured.

Frank Sullivan, Jr., Professor of Practice at the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law and Indiana University Bicentennial Professor, was honored by the Uniform Law Commission at its annual meeting in July, for his work in support of enacting a new set of amendments to the Uniform Commercial Code, called the 2022 UCC Amendments. 

Jay Cunningham has joined FORVIS as a managing director with the firm’s forensics and valuation practice. His experience encompasses the entire litigation process including discovery, damage analysis, preparation of expert reports, and preparation for deposition and trial testimony. He has provided financial expert testimony in arbitration, state, and federal court settings.

Bryan D. Stoffel recently joined Kids' Voice of Indiana as a Staff Attorney on the Custody Team. Bryan is very active in the Indianapolis Bar Association and currently serves on the Pro Bono Committee. Bryan's practice primarily focuses on family law, estate planning, adoption, and guardian ad litem services. 

The Hoosier Environmental Council (HEC) has named David Van Gilder as the new Senior Policy and Legal Director. David will represent the HEC’s legislative interests: building a sustainable economy, “greening” Indiana’s transportation, energy, and agriculture, protecting wildlife, forests, and wetlands, and advancing environmental justice. HEC is known as a resource to policymakers on public health, conservation, transit, and more. 

Member Headlines: August 11, 2023
Congratulations to these IndyBar members on their accomplishments! Have something to share? Email Robert Adams to be featured.

Congratulations to IndyBar Board Member, the Hon. Charnette Garner, for receiving the National Bar Association’s Women Lawyers Division’s award for Outstanding Lawyer in Public Service!


Professor Michael J. Pitts has been named the Cleon H. Foust Professor of Law at IU McKinney. This endowed professorship will be a three-year appointment. Professor Pitts’ scholarly work focuses on the law of democracy, particularly voting rights and election administration.


Esther Earbin Sandlin has recently joined Ice Miller. Esther’s practice primarily focuses on intellectual property, as well as privacy and data protection. She also advises clients on compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and emerging international regulations. 

IndyBar Review is now APEX, powered by IndyBar - the official Uniform Bar Exam (UBE) review course of the Indianapolis Bar Association. A proven tool for success for those seeking to pass Indiana’s bar exam with more than 50 years’ experience in the market and a 100% pass rate among live first-time exam takers for Winter 2023 UBE, APEX is the only Indiana bar exam prep course taught in a live, in-person setting. 

Most lawyers are busier than they’ve ever been. Even so, lurking with the Indianapolis Bar Association should be part of an Indy-area legal professional’s day.

Don’t know what lurking is?  Lurking on social media is being a consumer rather than a content creator.  This includes social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube/Vimeo, Facebook, NextDoor, Twitter, and blogs. What you may not fully appreciate is that lurking, particularly with an organization like IndyBar is a professional enhancement tool, and you’ll find IndyBar in all these channels.