Board of Governors

The Board of Governors is the governing body of the association. Established by the association's bylaws, it meets four times per year and approves AAJ's policies and budget.

AAJ’s Next Committees and Board Meeting

will occur during the Winter Convention in Miami, February 15-18, 2025.

Board of Governors

Each affiliated state trial lawyer organization is represented on the Board by two or more Governors; and Governors are also chosen by international jurisdictions and by various caucuses, organizations and groups within the Association. The elected AAJ national officers, plus the Immediate Past President, also serve on the Board.

Future Board Meeting Dates and Location

2025

WINTER                                                                         
February 15-18, 2025
Miami, FL
The Fontainebleau

SPRING                                                                         
April 30th - May 1st, 2025
VIRTUAL

ANNUAL                                                                                                                      
July 18-22
San Francisco, CA
Moscone Convention Center, San Francisco Marriott Marquis

 

2026

WINTER                                                                         
February 20-24
San Diego, CA
Hotel Del Coronado



ANNUAL                                                                                                                      
July 24-28
Chicago, IL
Hyatt Regency Chicago

Current Board of Governors Members (ordered by the jurisdiction each governor represents)

National Officers

  • AAJ President: Lori E. Andrus
  • AAJ President-Elect: Bruce M. Plaxen
  • AAJ Vice President: N. John Bey
  • AAJ Secretary: Marion K. Munley
  • AAJ Treasurer: Christopher T. Nace
  • AAJ Parliamentarian: Derrick L. Walker
  • AAJ Immediate Past President: Sean C. Domnick

United States

Alabama

  • Emily Hawk Mills
  • Tempe Smith

Alaska

  • Lisa Rosano
  • Vacant

Arizona

  • Jonathan Van O'Steen
  • Frank Verderame

Arkansas

  • Paul Byrd
  • Bob Edwards

California

  • Mike  Arias
  • Ingrid M. Evans
  • Laurel Halbany
  • Srinivas Hanumadass
  • Casey R. Johnson
  • Elinor Leary
  • Micha Star Liberty
  • Jessica Klarer Pride
  • Frederick Schenk
  • Brett Justin Schreiber
  • Ibiere Seck
  • Vacant

Colorado

  • Molly L. Greenblatt
  • Daniel Lipman

Connecticut

  • Preston Tisdale
  • Angelo A. Ziotas

Delaware

  • Patrick C. Gallagher
  • Timothy E. Lengkeek

District of Columbia

  • Patrick M. Regan
  • Allan M. Siegel

Florida

  • Michael A. Haggard
  • John (Jack) H. Hickey
  • James R. Holland
  • Jennifer M. Lipinski
  • Ricardo M. Martinez-Cid
  • Curry G. Pajcic
  • Troy A. Rafferty
  • Jeanmarie Whalen
  • Laura V. Yaeger
  • Edward H. Zebersky

Georgia

  • Robert M. Hammers, Jr.
  • Michael A. Prieto
  • Brian Devoe Rogers
  • Laura Lynne Voght

Hawaii

  • Michael R. Cruise
  • Matthew Caulfield Winter

Idaho

  • Taylor L. Mossman-Fletcher
  • Jarom A. Whitehead

Illinois

  • Devon C. Bruce
  • Randy Scott Cohn
  • Keith A. Hebeisen
  • Brian LaCien
  • Kenneth H. Levinson
  • Mark D. Prince
  • Antonio M. Romanucci

Indiana

  • Kathleen A. Farinas
  • Betsy K. Greene

Iowa

  • Brian P. Galligan
  • Marc S. Harding

Kansas

  • Bradley J. Prochaska
  • Ryan A. Prochaska

Kentucky

  • William D. Nefzger
  • Joseph D. Satterley

Louisiana

  • Scott R. Bickford
  • Gary N. Boutwell, II
  • Blake R. David
  • Stephen Herman

Maine

  • Michael T. Bigos
  • Susan A. Faunce

Maryland

  • Gwen-Marie Davis
  • Ellen B. Flynn
  • George S. Tolley, III

Massachusetts

  • Marianne C. LeBlanc
  • Douglas K. Sheff

Michigan

  • Brian J. McKeen
  • Jesse M. Reiter

Minnesota

  • Yvonne M. Flaherty
  • Kate E. Jaycox

Mississippi

  • John W. Kitchens
  • Chuck R. McRae

Missouri

  • Anne-Marie Brockland
  • Brett A. Emison
  • Brian S. Franciskato
  • David Todd Mathews

Montana

  • Mark M. Kovacich
  • Jory C. Ruggiero

Nebraska

  • Robert R. Moodie
  • Christopher P. Welsh

Nevada

  • Christian M. Morris
  • Matthew L. Sharp

New Hampshire

  • Leslie C. Nixon
  • Christopher Seufert

New Jersey

  • Michael G. Donahue
  • Lynne M. Kizis
  • Francisco J. Rodriguez

New Mexico

  • Lisa K. Curtis
  • Kathleen J. Love

New York

  • Shoshana T. Bookson
  • Ingrid H. Heide
  • Stephan H. Peskin
  • Halina Radchenko
  • Nicholas I. Timko
  • Vacant

North Carolina

  • Douglas B. Abrams
  • Lauren O. Newton

North Dakota

  • Mark V. Larson
  • Tim O'Keeffe

Ohio

  • Mark Kitrick
  • John A. Lancione
  • Richard W. Schulte

Oklahoma

  • Frank Frasier
  • Rachel E. Gusman

Oregon

  • Thomas D'Amore
  • Shenoa L. Payne

Pennsylvania

  • Larry Bendesky
  • Robert F. Daley
  • Melanie J. Garner
  • Paul A. Lagnese
  • Neil T. O'Donnell
  • Matthew Rosenberg

Puerto Rico

  • David Efron
  • Hunter J. Shkolnik

Rhode Island

  • Jennifer Gehringer Puerini
  • Zachary Mandell

South Carolina

  • Mark D. Chappell
  • Mark C. Joye
  • Pamela R. Mullis

South Dakota

  • Michael Steven Beardsley
  • Vacant

Tennessee

  • Ronald J. Berke
  • Troy B. Jones

Texas

  • Erin K. Copeland
  • Michael G. Guajardo
  • Christopher Lester Johnson
  • Peter A. Kraus
  • James L. Mitchell
  • Bryan D. Pope
  • Nelson J. Roach
  • Michael L. Slack
  • Larry F. Taylor, Jr.

Utah

  • Robert M. Henriksen
  • Alyson Carter McAllister

Vermont

  • Andrew Bryan Delaney
  • Vacant

Virgin Islands

  • Trudy Fenster
  • Lee J. Rohn

Virginia

  • Michael G. Phelan
  • Vacant

Washington

  • Maria S. Diamond
  • Michael T. Pfau
  • Leah S. Snyder

West Virginia

  • Timothy C. Bailey
  • Anthony J. Majestro

Wisconsin

  • Noah D. Domnitz
  • Jay A. Urban

Wyoming

  • Mel C. Orchard, III
  • Bryan Ulmer, III

 

Canada

Alberta

  • Vacant
  • Vacant

Atlantic Provinces

  • Michael Dull
  • Raymond F. Wagner

British Columbia

  • Edward L. Montague
  • A.C. Richard Parsons

Manitoba & Saskatchewan

  • Vacant
  • Vacant

Ontario

  • Jordan Assaraf
  • Gary R. Will

Quebec

  • Jeff Orenstein
  • Vacant

International

Australia

  • Nooraini Blumer
  • Simon Morrison

Balance of the World

  • John M. Beer
  • Carlos Villacorta

United Kingdom & Republic of Ireland

  • Katherine Allen
  • Liam S. Moloney

Revitalization Board Members

  • AlabamaChristin R. French
  • ArizonaNicholas Verderame
  • ArkansasJoseph Dean Gates
  • CaliforniaTamarah Prevost
  • ColoradoAmanda Francis Owen
  • ConnecticutErica Pilicy-Ryan
  • DelawareRachel Diane Allen
  • District of ColumbiaKelley B. Simoneaux
  • FloridaSara T. Papantonio
  • GeorgiaAlyssa Baskam
  • HawaiiAlyssa Segawa
  • IdahoBrooke Victoria Kenney
  • IllinoisEirene-Gin Nakamura Salvi
  • IndianaRobert A. Langer
  • IowaAmber Haberl
  • KansasMichael William Weber
  • KentuckyJohn E. Abaray
  • LouisianaMary Watson Smith
  • Maine: Taylor A. Asen
  • MarylandMegan L. Whiteside
  • MassachusettsIngrid Alexandra Halstrom
  • MinnesotaGrace I. Chanin
  • MississippiBrandi Denton Gatewood
  • MissouriBrittany Sanders Robb
  • MontanaCaitlin Boland Aarab
  • NevadaJamie McInelly
  • New HampshireNicholas G. Kline
  • New JerseyBhaveen R. Jani
  • New MexicoLarissa Lozano
  • North CarolinaMelissa N. Abrams
  • North DakotaLindsay M. Wilz
  • OhioSean L. Walton, Jr.
  • OklahomaTravis Mendoza
  • OregonNadia Dahab
  • PennsylvaniaAndrea M. Sasso
  • Rhode Island: Colleen P. Giles
  • South CarolinaMark D. Chappell, Jr.
  • TennesseeAudrey Collins Dolmovich
  • TexasKatherine Cornell
  • Virgin IslandsRhea R. Lawrence
  • VirginiaKevin Biniazan
  • WashingtonCarson Phillips-Spotts
  • West VirginiaTaylor B. Downs
  • WisconsinCristina Wirth
  • WyomingSarah A. Kellogg
  • British ColumbiaJohn-Andrew Pankiw-Petty
  • OntarioValerie Catherine Lord
  • QuebecAndrea Erin Grass
  • AustraliaPhilip A. Schubert
  • Balance of the WorldKathleen Doyeux
  • United Kingdom & Republic of IrelandCheryl Palmer-Hughes
 

Caucus Representatives

Minority Caucus Board Representatives

  • Petra L. Aaron
  • Tyler D. Bailey
  • Ava Marie M. Cavaco
  • Courtney Leigh Winston

New Lawyers Board Representatives

  • Elyse Lauren McKenna
  • Jacob M. Morse
  • Chinsu Shajan
  • Jared J. Smith

Republican Caucus Board Representatives

  • Elizabeth Middleton Burke
  • Peter C. Bowman

Women's Caucus Board Representatives

  • Deborah S. Dunn
  • Erin E. Jewell
  • Rachel Louise Sykes
  • Sharon J. Zinns

Section Leaders Council Representatives

  • Lydia Marie Floyd
  • Donald H. Slavik

Litigation Group Leaders Council Representatives

  • Jeffrey E. Marion
  • O. Mark Zamora

LGBT Caucus Board Representative

  • Stephen G. Skinner

 

Emeritus Members

  • Robert E. Cartwright, Jr.
  • Sidney W. Gilreath
  • C. Richard Henriksen, Jr.
  • T. Carroll McCarthy, Jr.
  • William A. Rossbach
  • Herman J. Russomanno
  • Phillip Weidner

Governors-At-Large

  • Jennie Lee Anderson
  • Howard Hamilton Ankin
  • Lauren Guth Barnes
  • Rick Barrera, Jr.
  • Seth Leventhal Cardeli
  • Priscilla Elsie Jimenez
  • Florence A. Murray
  • Ervin B. Nevitt
  • Jackalyn A. Olinger Rochelle
  • Patrick A. Salvi, II
  • Domenic B. Sanginiti, Jr.
  • Frederick William Schultz

Award Recipients

  • Elizabeth J. Cabraser
  • Robert A. Clifford
  • Jayne Conroy
  • Gregory S. Cusimano
  • Brenda S. Fulmer
  • O. Fayrell Furr, Jr.
  • Wayne Hogan
  • W. Mark Lanier
  • Sheldon L. Miller
  • Linda Miller Atkinson
  • Howard L. Nations
  • Mary Beth Ramey
  • Mark P. Robinson, Jr.
  • Sandra H. Robinson
  • Christine Spagnoli
  • Gerry L. Spence
  • John Eddie Williams, Jr.

AAJ Past Presidents

  • Mary E. Alexander
  • Lisa Blue
  • Leo V. Boyle
  • David S. Casey, Jr.
  • Roxanne Barton Conlin
  • Lewis S. "Mike" Eidson
  • Kathleen Flynn Peterson
  • Robert L. Habush
  • Richard D. Hailey
  • Russ M. Herman
  • Julie Braman Kane
  • J. Burton LeBlanc
  • Pamela Anagnos Liapakis
  • Michael C. Maher
  • Mark S. Mandell
  • Mary Alice McLarty
  • Tobias L. Millrood
  • Kathleen L. Nastri
  • Gary M. Paul
  • Peter Perlman
  • Elise R. Sanguinetti
  • Todd A. Smith
  • Howard A. Specter
  • Bruce H. Stern
  • Larry S. Stewart
  • Kenneth M. Suggs
  • Anthony Tarricone
  • Larry A. Tawwater
  • Tad Thomas
  • C. Gibson Vance
  • Frederick William Wagner
  • Navan Ward, Jr.
  • Les Weisbrod

Chair, State Delegates

  • Tatum O'Brien