People on the Move

Jeffrey Fialky, shareholder of the Springfield-based law firm of Bacon Wilson, P.C., was recently named Chairman of the Springfield Chamber of Commerce. Fialky is a member of the firm’s corporate, commercial, banking, and municipal departments, where he specializes in sophisticated business, financing, and commercial real-estate transactions, representing the interests of business owners and lending institutions, as well as municipalities and landowners. Fialky is the former President of the Young Professional Society of Greater Springfield, and is also currently Chair of the Springfield Museums membership and development committee, and serves as a director on the boards of the United Way of Pioneer Valley, the Scibelli Enterprise Center at STCC, Alden Credit Union, and the Jewish Federation of Western Mass. Fialky earned his BA from the University of New Hampshire and his JD from Western New England University School of Law.
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Bulkley Richardson recently announced that several of the Springfield-based firm’s lawyers were selected by their peers for legal-industry accolades. The following lawyers were named to The Best Lawyers in America 2014:
• Francis Dibble Jr. was named the Best Lawyers 2014 Springfield Litigation – Labor and Employment Lawyer of the Year. Dibble was also recognized in the areas of bet-the-company, commercial, antitrust, and securities litigation;
• David Parke was named the Best Lawyers 2014 Springfield Corporate Law Lawyer of the Year; and
• John Pucci was named the Best Lawyers 2014 Springfield Criminal Defense: Non-white-collar Lawyer of the Year. Pucci was also recognized in the area of criminal defense (white collar);
• In addition, the following Bulkley Richardson lawyers were also selected for the 2014 edition of Best Lawyers in specific practice fields:
• Peter Barry, construction law;
• Michael Burke, medical-malpractice law (defendants) and personal-injury litigation (defendants);
• Mark Cress, bankruptcy and creditor-debtor rights, insolvency and reorganization law, and corporate law;
• Daniel Finnegan, administrative/regulatory law and litigation (construction);
• Robert Gelinas, personal-injury litigation (defendants);
• William Hart, trusts and estate;
• Kevin Maynard, commercial litigation and litigation (banking and finance, construction);
• Melinda Phelps, medical-malpractice law (defendants) and personal-injury litigation (defendants);
• Donn Randall, commercial litigation;
• Ellen Randle, family law; and
• Ronald Weiss, corporate law, mergers-and-acquisitions law, and tax law.
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United Bank recently announced the promotions of seven staff members at the bank’s corporate offices in West Springfield:
• Nira Flatley was promoted to Assistant Vice President, Collections Manager. A graduate of Bay Path College with nearly 25 years of banking experience, she is responsible for managing residential delinquencies within the bank’s loan portfolio;
• Kristyn Samere, who joined the bank in 2010, is now Assistant Vice President of Training and Development. She is an active member of the Society for Human Resources Management and the American Society for Training and Development. A business administration graduate of Roberts Wesleyan College, she is currently pursuing an MBA at Northeastern University;
• Amy Ganci was appointed Assistant Vice President, Commercial Lending Administration. With more than 21 years of experience in the commercial-lending field, Ganci joined the bank in 2011. She holds a degree in business/financial management from Westfield State University and an associate’s degree from Greenfield Community College;
• Jennifer DeBarge was promoted to Marketing Officer. A graduate of Westfield State University, she joined the bank in 1998 as a teller and transferred to the marketing department in 2003 as marketing assistant;
• Ana Ricardo, who joined the bank in 2008 and has more than 15 years of residential lending experience, was promoted to Underwriting Officer;
• Ann Vallance was promoted to Business Banking Officer. She began her banking career in 2004 and joined the bank in 2012 in the areas of commercial lending and credit analysis; and
• Patricia Pasterczyk was promoted to Business Banking Officer. She joined the credit department in 2011 with more than 30 years of financial-services experience. She graduated magna cum laude from Elms College with a bachelor’s degree in business management. She also attended the School for Financial Studies at Babson College and holds a certificate in advanced paralegal studies from Elms College.
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Shatz, Schwartz, and Fentin, P.C. announced that eight of the Springfield-based firm’s attorneys were recently selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014:
Stephen Shatz was named the Best Lawyers 2014 Springfield Real Estate Law Lawyer of the Year. Shatz, first listed in the publication in 1993, was selected for his work in the specialty areas of banking and finance law and real-estate law. A shareholder since 1969, he concentrates his practice in the areas of real-estate development, real-estate finance, and commercial leasing;
• Steven Schwartz was selected for the areas of corporate law, business organizations and closely held companies, and family-business law. He concentrates his practice in the areas of family-business planning, mergers and acquisitions, corporate law, and estate planning;
• Gary Fentin was selected for his work in the areas of commercial transactions and banking and finance law. His practice areas include commercial and real-estate finance and development, industrial revenue bonds, affordable housing, estate planning, business law, and business foreclosures and workouts. Fentin manages the firm’s tax-exempt bond practice and is the only counsel west of Worcester approved as bond counsel to the Mass. Development Finance Agency;
• Michele Feinstein was selected in the areas of elder law and trusts and estates. She concentrates her practice in the areas of estate planning and administration, elder law, probate litigation, health law, and corporate and business planning;
• Carol Klyman, first listed in the publication in 2007, was selected for her work in the area of elder law. Her practice areas include elder law, estate planning and administration, special-needs trust planning, estate settlement, guardianships, and probate litigation;
• Timothy Mulhern, first listed in the publication in 2008, was selected for his work in the areas of tax law and corporate law. He concentrates his practice in family-business planning, taxation, corporate law, and estate planning;
• Ann (Ami) Weber, first listed in the publication in 2007, was selected for her work in the area of elder law. She practices in the areas of estate-tax planning, estate administration, probate, and elder law; and
• Steven Weiss, first listed in the publication in 2008, was selected for his work in the areas of bankruptcy and creditor-debtor rights as well as insolvency and reorganization law. His practice areas include commercial and consumer bankruptcy, reorganization, and litigation. Weiss manages the firm’s bankruptcy, reorganization, and workout practice, and has been a member of the private panel of Chapter 7 trustees for the District of Massachusetts since 1987, and also serves as a Chapter 11 trustee.