Bench & Bar Winter Program (Pima County)

Kellie L Johnson Related Seminars and Products

Judge

Pima County Superior Court

Honorable Kellie Johnson is the Civil Presiding Judge at the Pima County Superior Court. Governor Ducey appointed her to bench June of 2017. She graduated cum laude from the University of Arizona School of Law in 1996 and joined the Pima County Attorney's Office as a trial prosecutor in 1997. During her career as a prosecutor, she tried over 150 jury trials, and received awards at both the State and national level for her trial advocacy. In 2015, she was the recipient of the Arizona State Bar's Michael C. Cudahy Criminal Justice Award. She is currently the Dean of the Judicial College of Arizona. Judge Johnson also serves on numerous Arizona Supreme Court committees including the Advisory Committee on the Rules of Evidence, the Capital Case Oversight Committee, and the Commission on Victims in the Courts.

Hon. Casey F McGinley Related Seminars and Products

Honorable Casey McGinley was appointed to the Superior Court in June 2018. He has served on the juvenile, civil, and criminal benches, and currently serves as Criminal Presiding Judge. Judge McGinley previously served as a full time Judge Pro Tempore on the Superior Court’s criminal bench. Judge McGinley graduated with honors from Arizona State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in political science and a minor in economics. In his senior year, he served as a Legislative Intern for The Hon. Jane D. Hull, Governor of Arizona. He attended law school at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, and in his second year, Judge McGinley served as a legal intern for U.S. Senator Jon Kyl. After earning his J.D. in 2003, Judge McGinley clerked for The Hon. Christopher C. Browning of the Pima County Superior Court before joining the Pima County Attorney’s Office, where he prosecuted various criminal charges, including vehicular and violent offenses, and cold case homicides.

Jeffrey T Bergin Related Seminars and Products

Judge

Superior Court in Pima County

Arizona Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Bergin is an Arizona native, born in Phoenix and raised in Tucson. He earned both his undergraduate degree and his law degree (with distinction) from the University of Arizona. In September 2011, following a twenty-year career in civil litigation, he was appointed to Division 22 of the Superior Court in Pima County.

Judge Bergin has served on the civil bench (presiding judge), the family bench (presiding judge), and the criminal bench. He was the court’s associate presiding judge from 2019 until July 1 of 2021, when the Arizona Supreme Court appointed him Pima County’s Presiding Judge. Judge Bergin stepped down as Presiding Judge on July 1, 2024. He is currently assigned to the civil bench.

Judge Bergin was the chair of the Superior Court in Pima County’s Back to Operations Task Force, created to respond to the COVID-19 epidemic and the associated impacts on the court. In addition, he has served on the Committee on Superior Court, the Civil Justice Reform Committee, and the Civil Practice and Procedures Committee. He is also a past president of the Arizona Judges’ Association. Currently, he serves on the Supreme Court’s Commission on Access to Justice.

Peter Akmajian Related Seminars and Products

Attorney

Schmidt Sethi & Akmajian PC

Peter Akmajian is a 1984 graduate (with distinction) from the University of Arizona College of Law. He clerked for the Honorable Frank X. Gordon from 1984-85. He has been in private practice since 1985 with O’Connor Cavanagh in Phoenix and Tucson, the Udall Law Firm and now with Schmidt, Sethi & Akmajian, where he represents patients and their families in medical malpractice and other personal injury cases. Peter is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and a member of ABOTA.

Laura V Mac Ban Related Seminars and Products

Managing Partner/Shareholder

MacBan Law Offices

Laura V. Mac Ban is a founding and managing partner of Mac Ban Law Offices. She is rated AV “Pre-eminent” © by her peers and the judiciary, and has over 35 years of extensive experience in all facets of litigating medical malpractice, professional liability, personal injury, elder abuse, wrongful death and complex tort litigation cases, including serving as lead counsel in jury trials, arbitrations, hospital administrative due process hearings and mediations. Mac Ban Law Offices is rated Best Law Firms-Arizona as published in US News & World Report, and was selected as one of the “10 Best Law Firms” for client satisfaction in the practice area of Personal Injury Law in Arizona. Laura has been selected Arizona’s Finest Lawyers; America’s Top 100 High Stakes Litigators; America’s Top 100 Civil Defense Litigators; America’s Top 100 Personal Injury Litigators; America’s Top 100 Medical Malpractice Litigators; Lawyers of Distinction, Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Consumer Lawyers Hall of Fame; and Top 25 Medical Malpractice Trial Lawyers in the State of Arizona, among numerous other honors. She is licensed in both Arizona and Colorado. For further information, please see macbanlawoffices.com.

James E Marner Related Seminars and Products

Honorable James Marner was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court bench in 2012 by Governor Brewer. He is currently the Presiding Judge of Criminal Bench. Judge Marner also served as the Presiding Judge of the Family Bench for 2 years. Before that he served on the Civil Bench where, among other things, he was the Presiding Arbitration Judge and the Elections Judge. Judge Marner taught Pretrial Civil Litigation as an adjunct professor at the University of Arizona law school. Before taking the bench, he was a trial attorney at the King County Prosecutor's Office in Seattle and then spent 15 years as a civil trial attorney in Pima County.

Laura E Udall Related Seminars and Products

Laura E. Udall PLLC

Laura Udall is a criminal defense attorney in private practice in her hometown of Tucson, Arizona. She attended the University of California at Berkeley for her undergraduate degree and received her law degree from the University of Utah. Following law school she clerked for the Honorable Alfredo Marquez for District Court in Arizona. She then went to work at the Pima County Public Defender for 4 years. In 1992 she and Dan Cooper opened their firm, Cooper and Udall PC, and practiced together until 2021 when she opened her solo firm Laura E. Udall PLLC. Laura has tried over 110 cases to jury verdict. She is qualified as learned counsel for capital work in both Federal and State jurisdictions. She has been an Adjunct Professor at the University of Arizona teaching trial advocacy since 2010. Laura was inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers in 2017.

Hon. Randi Leigh Burnett Related Seminars and Products

Pima County Superior Court

The Honorable Randi Burnett currently serves as the presiding judge of the family bench for the Pima County Superior Court. Prior to joining the bench in April 2021, Randi was a partner at Waterfall, Economidis, Caldwell, Hanshaw & Villamana, P.C. for several years and then spent her last two years of private practice at The McCarthy Law Firm. Her family law practice included a broad range of family law matters including divorce, legal separation, same-sex family law issues, multi-state jurisdictional issues, high conflict custody issues, grandparent visitation, minor child guardianships, child support, spousal maintenance, paternity, and appellate matters. Judge Burnett has presented at multiple legal seminars on numerous topics, including complex financial issues, ethical issues, high conflict custody concerns, and the unique concerns involving autistic children in custody matters. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling and spending time outdoors with her husband and two children.

Michael J Butler Related Seminars and Products

Pima County Superior Court

Honorable Michael Butler was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court in May 2013, and he has been assigned to the juvenile, criminal and civil benches. During his time on the criminal bench, Judge Butler spent three years as Pima County’s mental health judge, and he presided over all competency matters and the superior court’s Mental Health Court. Judge Butler now serves as Presiding Judge of the Pima County Juvenile Court. Before his appointment, Judge Butler practiced as a commercial litigator in Tucson for twenty years. He received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Arizona, and prior to his legal career he worked as a certified emergency paramedic.

Comm. John J Assini Related Seminars and Products

LAW OFFICES OF JOHN J. ASSINI

Honorable John J. Assini (Jack) practiced law beginning in 1994 and was in private practice, handling family law matters until he was appointed to the bench as a Commissioner for the Pima County Superior Court in March of 2015. He is currently doing a family law trial rotation. He received his BA from the University of Arizona in Elementary Education, taught 1st grade for four years, could not find a rich wife, so he returned to University of Arizona for his J.D. degree. Jack is the Past Chair of the Executive Council of Family Law Section of the State Bar of Arizona, a current board member for AZ- AFCC (Arizona- Association of Family and Conciliation Courts) and currently continues to be a member at large with the Executive Council of Family Law Section of the State Bar of Arizona. Jack was frequently appointed as a Parenting Coordinator for high conflict family law matters, and as an attorney or best interest attorney for children. Jack also practiced in the area of collaborative law and was a member of the Southern Arizona Collaborative Law Group. As a Judge Pro Tem, Jack participated in hundreds of successful settlement conferences and mediations and continues to bring that style and technique to the bench.

Lisa S Bibbens Related Seminars and Products

Pima County Juvenile Court

Honorable Lisa Bibbens is a court commissioner for the Arizona Superior Court in Pima County, serving on the family law bench commencing in July 2014, and currently serving on the juvenile court bench. She graduated in 1990 from St. Mary’s University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in international business management, summa cum laude, and received a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Arizona College of Law in 1993. Prior to serving as a court commissioner, she was a partner in Liberty & Bibbens, P.C., practicing exclusively in the area of family law following her admission to the State Bar in 1993. The State Bar of Arizona Board of Legal Specialization certified her as a family law specialist from 2005 through 2014. She was nominated to and recognized as one of Arizona's Finest Lawyers. She received the Arizona Bar Foundation “Top 50 Pro Bono Attorneys of Arizona” award in 2001, 2011, and 2013, and the Volunteer Lawyers Program Pro Bono Attorney of the Month Award in 2000 and 2011. She is a frequent presenter at continuing legal education presentations; a member of the 2017 Judicial Conference Planning Committee; a member of both the Dependency Alternative Program and the Juvenile Court Family Law Protocol Committee; a member of the LGBTQ court-involved youth committee; and participates on various court committees and workgroups addressing family law, juvenile law, and self-represented litigant issues. She enjoys spending time with her family, trail running, farmers markets, photography, travel, and cooking.

Hon. Danielle J K Constant Related Seminars and Products

Superior Court Judge

Pima County Superior Court

Judge Danielle J.K. Constant Danielle J.K. Constant received her undergraduate degree in History with a minor in English from Dordt University in Iowa in 1999. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Arizona College of Law in 2002. She practiced law in Tucson, Arizona, beginning in 2002 at the Pima County Attorney’s Office as a criminal prosecutor for vehicular, violent, property, narcotics, and misdemeanor crimes. In 2014, she changed to private practice at two different Arizona firms. She practiced primarily in civil defense including eminent domain, government defense, personal injury, medical malpractice, employment, and appellate practice. She has been a member of organizations including the Pima County Bar Association, the Tucson Defense Bar, the Arizona Association of Defense Counsel, and the Arizona Women Lawyer’s Association. She was formerly the co-chair of the Arizona Condemnation Summit for eminent domain practitioners.

Judge Constant was appointed by Governor Doug Ducey to the Pima County Bench in October of 2022, Division 12, and is currently serving on the Family Bench.

She is married and has four (sometimes) wonderful children (ages 7 to 13) and a very lazy dog.

Kymberley A Moffett Related Seminars and Products

Kymberley Moffett earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Arizona in 1992 and her J.D. from California Western School of Law in 1995. She has been a member of the Arizona State Bar since 1996. Ms. Moffett was with the Apache County Attorney’s office from 1996-1999 handling child abuse and sex offense cases. Ms. Moffett began as a solo practitioner in Tucson in August 1999. From 1999 to the present day, Ms. Moffett has practiced in both Pima County Superior Court and Pima County Juvenile Court representing children, parents, grandparents, kinship, and foster parents in family law, dependency, termination and adoption actions. She has also acted as a Court Appointed Advisor and Best Interests Attorney in the domestic arena. Ms. Moffett is currently a Partner at Aguilar Moffett P.L.L.C. and continues to practice in both the family law and juvenile arenas.

Hon. Kenneth Lee Related Seminars and Products

Judge

Pima County Superior Court

Honorable Kenneth Lee was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court on April 17, 1997. He is currently assigned to the Probate Bench and currently serves as Presiding Judge of the Probate Bench. His prior bench assignments have been a civil assignment from 1997 to 2002, a criminal assignment from 2002 to 2006, a family law assignment from 2006 to 2008, a civil assignment from 2008 to 2013, and a criminal assignment from 2013 to 2018. He previously served two terms as the Civil Presiding Judge from 1999 to 2000 and 2008 to 2010. In addition, he served four terms as the Associate Presiding Judge from 2001 to 2002, 2004 to 2005, 2011 to 2014 and 2015 to 2018. Judge Lee is currently a member of the Arizona Supreme Court Steering Committee on Data-Based Court Performance and Data Standards and was previously on the Committee for Superior Courts. In the past, he has been a member of the Arizona State Bar Committees on Civil Jury Instructions and Civil Practice and Procedure. From 2000 to 2002 he served as secretary of the Arizona Judges Association. Prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Lee was trial attorney in Tucson for 16 years. He practiced at the firms of Davis and Eppstein, P. C. from 1981 to 1986 and Haralson, Kinerk & Morley from 1986 to 1997. The major areas of practice were plaintiffs’ medical malpractice and other complex, personal injury cases.

Hon. Danelle B Liwski Related Seminars and Products

Judge

Pima County Superior Court

Honorable Danelle Liwksi was appointed to Division 6 of the Pima County Superior Court bench on April 8, 2011. She has served on the family, criminal and probate benches. She has also served as the Presiding Criminal Judge, Associate Presiding Judge and is currently the Presiding Judge for Pima County Superior Court.

Prior to the serving on the Pima County Superior Court bench Judge Liwski presided as a hearing officer over juvenile matters. She also served as an Assistant United States Attorney and Deputy Pima County Attorney.

Judge Liwski received her bachelor’s degree in business from New Mexico State University in 1987 and her law degree from the University of Arizona in 1990.

Robert B Fleming Related Seminars and Products

Robert Fleming is a Fellow of both the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. He has been certified as a Specialist in Estate and Trust Law by the State Bar of Arizona‘s Board of Legal Specialization, and he is also a Certified Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation. Robert has a long history of involvement in local, state and national organizations. He is most proud of his instrumental involvement in the Special Needs Alliance, the premier national organization for lawyers dealing with special needs trusts and planning.

Robert has two adult children, two young grandchildren and a wife of over fifty years. He is devoted to all of them. He is also very fond of Rosalind Franklin (his office companion corgi), and his homebound cat Muninn. He just likes people, their pets and their stories.

For more information about Fleming & Curti, PLC find us online: https://elder-law.com/

Elizabeth Noble Rollings Friman Related Seminars and Products

Attorney

Fleming & Curti PLC

Elizabeth Noble Rollings Friman is a principal and licensed fiduciary at Fleming & Curti, PLC. She is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. Elizabeth enjoys estate planning and helping families navigate trust and probate administrations. She is passionate about the fiduciary work that she performs as a trustee, personal representative, guardian, and conservator. Elizabeth works with CPAs, financial professionals, case managers, and medical providers to tailor solutions to complex family challenges. Elizabeth is often called upon to serve as a neutral party so that families can avoid protracted legal conflict. Elizabeth relies on the expertise of her team at Fleming & Curti, and as the Firm approaches its third decade, she is proud of the culture of care and consideration that the Firm embodies. Finding workable solutions to sensitive and complex family challenges is something that Elizabeth and the Fleming & Curti team do well.

A third generation Tucsonan, Elizabeth attended Green Fields Country Day School and earned her law degree from the University of Arizona College of Law. Before starting her legal career, she earned her bachelor’s degree from Connecticut College. Elizabeth was first exposed to the practice of law during her years of work as a legal assistant in the capital markets group of Davis Polk & Wardwell, LLP. Elizabeth volunteers her time to a diverse array of community and professional organizations. She is currently serving on the board of TMC Hospital and is the acting chair of the Finance Committee for the Primavera Foundation. She also serves as a board member of the Special Needs Alliance and the Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona. Elizabeth received the Tucson Hispanic Chamber of Commerce “40 Under 40 Award” at the age of 32.

Outside of work, Elizabeth treasures her time with husband (and law school classmate) Doug and their goldendoodle, Duncan. She enjoys gardening, spicy food, cold drinks, and paddle boarding along the shores of Lake Tahoe.

For more information about Fleming & Curti, PLC find us online: https://elder-law.com/

Ted A Schmidt Related Seminars and Products

Schmidt Sethi & Akmajian

Ted Schmidt is immediate past President of the State Bar of Arizona, a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers and the International Society of Barristers as well as an Associate of the American Board of Trial Lawyers.

Hon. Daniel Gregory Sakall Related Seminars and Products

Judge

Pima County Superior Court

Honorable Greg Sakall is a Pima County Superior Court Judge. He is currently that court’s Associate Presiding Judge and on the Civil bench. Previously, he was assigned to the family bench and served as that bench’s presiding judge. He also serves as the Chair of the Committee on Family Court, and chaired the Spousal Maintenance Guideline Review Subcommittee. In 2023, he was selected as Judge of the Year by the Arizona Supreme Court. After law school, Judge Sakall clerked for U.S. District Judges William D. Browning and Cindy K. Jorgenson, and afterwards was in private practice. He has also been an adjunct associate professor and is a guest lecturer at the James E. Rogers College of Law.
Education: Hillsdale College (B.A., summa cum laude, double major in Spanish & History); University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (J.D., summa cum laude).

Hon. Cynthia T Kuhn Related Seminars and Products

Superior Court Judge

Pima County Superior Court

Honorable Cynthia T. Kuhn was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court in 2016. Judge Kuhn began her judicial career, first on the civil bench in 2016, rotated in 2018 to a hybrid civil-probate assignment, and then presided over family law cases from 2020 - 2022. Judge Kuhn now serves on the civil bench. Before her judicial appointment, Judge Kuhn maintained a civil litigation practice, including environmental, commercial, employment, and personal injury matters. Judge Kuhn also served as an Assistant Attorney General in the liability management section, defending state agencies and their employees in civil litigation. Judge Kuhn served on the “Committee on Mental Health and the Justice System” and “State Bar Civil Practice and Procedure Committee.” Judge Kuhn currently co-chairs the new judge orientation program for all Arizona general jurisdiction judicial officers. Judge Kuhn absolutely enjoys every day serving the community as a judicial officer and, despite her prior experience in civil litigation, she finds she learns something new every day through her Superior Court civil caseload.

Teresa Ann Miller Related Seminars and Products

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