Bench & Bar January/February 2025

WHO, WHAT, WHEN & WHERE

McBrayer PLLC welcomes five new attorneys to their law firm. Colin Buckner joins as an associate attorney in the firm’s Lexington office. Buckner’s primary practice area is insurance defense, and he has additional practice expe rience in commercial and business litigation. He has two bachelor’s degrees from Lincoln Memorial University and received his law degree from Lincoln Memorial University School of Law. Ameena Per joins McBrayer PLLC as an associate attorney in the firm’s Louisville office. Per's primary practice area is in data privacy and cybersecurity, as well as intellectual property law. She has a bachelor’s degree from the Uni versity of Kentucky and obtained her law degree from the University of Kentucky College of Law. Emily D. Penn joins McBrayer PLLC as an asso ciate attorney in the firm’s Lexington office. Penn’s primary practice is in commercial and business litigation. Penn received her bachelor's degree from Centre College and her J.D. from the University of Kentucky College of Law. After graduating, she clerked for Magistrate Federal Judge H. Brent Brennenstuhl in Bowling Green. Kara N. Legg joins as an associate attorney in their Lexington office, focusing her practice on regulatory law with an emphasis on economic development in Kentucky. Legg obtained her bachelor's degree from Marshall University and her J.D. from the University of Kentucky Col lege of Law. Notably, while in law school, she served as a summer associate at McBrayer and concurrently clerked throughout the academic year. R. Miles Lee III joins McBrayer PLLC as an associate attorney in their Louisville office, where he is a part of the estate planning group. He obtained his bachelor's degree from the University of Kentucky and his J.D. from the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law. Before joining McBrayer, Lee was an estate plan ning attorney for Clayton R. Hume, PLLC.

on immigration and nationality law, representing the firm’s broad multi-national clientele.

Managing Intellectual Property (Managing IP) magazine has named Stites & Harbison, PLLC , attorney James Hayne to its 2024 “Rising Stars” list. This is Hayne’s third time being honored. Managing IP recognizes the most highly regarded intellectual property attorneys in the U.S. and abroad in its annual “IP Stars” list. The “Rising Stars” list, based upon IP Stars submis sions and research, is a separate publication that

originated in 2018. Hayne is counsel to Stites & Harbison and a registered patent attorney based in the Louisville office. His practice focuses on patent preparation and prosecution, both foreign and domestic. Hayne has extensive experience prosecuting utility patent applications covering a wide range of subject matter including elec tronic hardware and software, consumer goods and manufacturing equipment. He also has experience prosecuting design patent appli cations for ornamental products such as home goods, children’s toys and soft goods such as bags and blankets.

Embry Merritt Womack Nance, PLLC , is proud to announce the addition of members Michael D. Kalinyak , Matthew R. Malone , and Aaron D. Reedy , formerly members of Hurt, Deck ard & May, PLLC. Kalinyak represents clients with state and federal tax issues before the Ken tucky Department of Revenue and the Internal Revenue Service, including audit defense and administrative protest and appeals for disputes involving: income tax, payroll and employment tax disputes, trust fund recovery assessments, sales and use tax, property tax, public service company tax and penalty abatement requests. He received his B.S. in accounting from the University of Kentucky, College of Business and Economics, his J.D. from the University of Louisville’s Louis D. Brandeis School of Law, and his L.L.M. in Taxation from Boston Univer sity. Before entering private practice, Kalinyak served as the executive director of the Finance and Administration Cabinet’s Office of General Counsel. Malone , with over 20 years of expe rience, represents clients in state and federal litigation, including trial and appellate matters. Recognized as a Super Lawyer, Malone is admit

O’Brien Law Group is pleased to announce that Sean C. Marcum has become a partner, and Jose S. Herrera has joined the firm as an asso ciate attorney. Marcum is a graduate of Brigham Young University (B.A.) and the University of Kentucky (J.D.). He has over 15 years’ experience practicing primarily in the areas of immigration and criminal defense. Herrera earned his law degree from the University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law, after earning a bach elor’s degree from Berea College. Both Marcum and Herrera are fluent Spanish speakers and will continue to concentrate their focus primarily

ted to practice before the Kentucky Supreme Court, the 6 th Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. Malone’s extensive experience spans personal injury, class action matters, adminis trative law, criminal defense, and domestic relations, including significant judgments and settlements in many high-profile cases. Reedy received his B.B.A., summa cum laude , in both finance and management from the University of Kentucky, Gatton School of Business and Management, and received his J.D. from the Univer sity of Kentucky, College of Law in 2004, where he served on the Kentucky Law Journal. Reedy is active in the firm’s litigation, busi ness, and real estate practices. In his 20 years of practice, he has

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