As the home of Maryland’s legal profession, the Maryland State Bar Association celebrates the accomplishments of all of its members. MSBA is proud to highlight the recent achievements, career moves, and impact members are making within the legal profession. Please join us in congratulating the following members on their recent moves.
ANTHONY BALSAMO has been named Partner at Pinder Plotkin. Balsamo joined the firm in October 2021 as a senior litigation associate. He now leads the firm’s litigation practice. Balsamo has a diverse legal background and practices in the areas of personal injury, litigation, auto accidents, premises liability, dog bites, and workers’ compensation claims
As a former Commissioner, District Court of Maryland, Balsamo has a great demeanor to walk clients through challenging personal injury cases. He is a Certified Veterans Affairs Claim Agent/Attorney dedicated to helping those in need. During law school, Tony worked with both the Honorable Judge Angela Eaves and Judge Stephen Waldron, Harford County Circuit Court, as well as with the Maryland State Ethics Commission. Prior to law school, Balsamo worked in the Construction field as a Laborer and in the Information Technology (IT) field as a Network Administrator.
JOSHUA COLEMAN has joined Kramon & Graham as an associate in the firm’s Real Estate and Transactional practices. Coleman has more than ten years of real estate law experience, which includes advising real estate developers, builders and investors in matters involving large-scale economic development projects and acquisitions regarding common-interest communities.
Coleman assists developers and home builders with formation and governance matters involving homeowner, condominium, neighborhood, and community associations, including HOA documents, covenants, easements, and maintenance agreements as well as retail sales disclosures for residential and mixed-use developments. In addition, he represents private utility companies on matters involving deferred water and sewer charges and front foot benefits.
ELISABETH K. HALL has been elected Principal at the Baltimore office of Miles & Stockbridge, where she advises and represents businesses in all aspects of labor and employment law. Hall litigates labor and employment disputes in state and federal courts and administrative forums throughout the country, including cases involving wage and hour issues, alleged discrimination and harassment and claims related to family medical leave and failure to provide reasonable accommodation. She counsels employers locally and nationally on a variety of day-to-day employment law matters such as avoidance and investigation of claims of harassment, discrimination and retaliation, Family Medical Leave and Americans with Disabilities Act issues, Fair Labor Standards Act and other wage payment claims, non-competition and severance agreements and issues related to the hiring and firing of employees.
Hall is a graduate of the University of Baltimore School of Law (J.D., cum laude, 2012) and the University of Notre Dame (B.A., 2009).
ELENA D. MARCUSS has been appointed office Managing Partner of McGuireWoods in Baltimore, where she is a member of the labor and employment group, focusing on class and collective actions and investigations. Marcuss defends employers in federal and state courts against individual and collective claims of workplace discrimination and rights violations, as well as tort claims. She has experience assisting clients in such traditional labor matters as unfair labor practice charges and trials, appeals to the National Labor Relations Board and federal Circuit Courts, and campaigns and elections. She also counsels employers regarding employment agreements, policies and handbooks, employee discipline and terminations, and compliance with state and federal employment laws.
CHRISTIAN J. MIELE has been named Partner at Pinder Plotkin, where he leads the firm’s estates and trusts practice. A leader in both state and local government and former legislator, Miele was elected in 2014 to the Maryland House of Delegates, where he sat on the House Health and Government Operations Committee and Maryland General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Behavioral Health and Opioid Use Disorders. He then served as deputy secretary of the Maryland Department of Disabilities from 2019–2023. Miele also briefly served in the Maryland Senate, having been appointed by Governor Larry Hogan to fill a short-term vacancy. He is currently the Public Information Officer for Cecil County Government.
Christian’s legislative achievements include passing the Hire Our Veterans Act, a jobs bill to help unemployed military veterans re-enter the workforce; the Animal Shelter Standards Act, a measure that improves animal welfare in Maryland by creating standards of care for animals being sheltered in publicly-funded facilities; and Janet’s Law, which empowers Marylanders to make more informed decisions when choosing their doctors by requiring physicians practicing without medical malpractice insurance to disclose their lack of coverage to prospective patients.
JORDAN SAVITZ, a corporate attorney with extensive experience working with businesses of all sizes, has joined Baker Donelson as a shareholder. Savitz focuses his practice on business law and mergers and acquisitions, and provides legal support to businesses throughout Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia in all matters throughout the business life cycle. He acts as outside general counsel for many clients, providing strategic advice and drafting services on various matters including, but not limited to, fiduciary duties, restrictive covenants, contract negotiation, operating and stockholder agreements, intellectual property rights, and license agreements. Savitz also advises buyers and sellers of middle-market companies in stock, asset, and merger transactions, from pre-transaction planning – including non-disclosure agreements and letters of intent – through closing, including preparing and negotiating stock purchase agreements, asset purchase agreements, and ancillary documents.
Savitz received his J.D. from the University of Baltimore School of Law and his M.B.A. from the University of Baltimore – Towson University. He is listed in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America™ for Mergers and Acquisitions (2021 – 2023) and was selected to Maryland Rising Stars (2020 – 2023) and Washington, D.C. Rising Stars (2019 – 2023).
ANISHA QUEEN has been made Partner at Brown, Goldstein & Levy (BGL). Queen first joined BGL as an associate in 2019 and has since developed a diverse practice, including employment law, disability rights, civil rights, and housing discrimination. She has been an integral part of the legal teams at BGL on several high profile, high impact cases during her time at BGL, including obtaining an $8 million settlement for the family of a man who was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for nearly 18 years for a murder he did not commit.
Queen has been recognized in regional and national publications for her fierce work on behalf of her clients. She has been recognized as one of Maryland’s Rising Stars by Super Lawyers and was recently named to the 2023 edition of The Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch for Litigation (Labor and Employment). Prior to joining the firm, she clerked for the Honorable Tanya S. Chutkan on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Queen earned her J.D. from Harvard Law School and her B.A., summa cum laude, from the University of Maryland, College Park.
KIMBERLY L. WEHLE has joined boutique D.C. law firm Levy Firestone Muse as Counsel. Wehle, an expert on civil procedure, constitutional law, and democracy, is a tenured law professor at the University of Baltimore School of Law and a legal contributor for ABC News. Professor Wehle speaks widely on American law, with particular emphasis on presidential power, voting, the U.S. Supreme Court, and the Constitution.
A graduate of the University of Michigan Law School, Professor Wehle was an assistant United States Attorney in Washington, D.C., and associate independent counsel in the Whitewater investigation under Kenneth W. Starr. She is also an advisor to Protect Democracy and The Rendell Center for Civics and Civic Engagement in the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. She is the author of three books on civic literacy: How to Read the Constitution—and Why, What You Need to Know About Voting—and Why, and How to Think Like a Lawyer—and Why, all published with Harper Collins. Her forthcoming book with Woodhall Press is entitled, How the Pardon Power Works and Why.
VERONICA YU WELSH has been named a Partner at the Baltimore-based employment and labor law firm Shawe Rosenthal LLP. Welsh represents employers in a wide range of labor and employment-related matters in federal and state court, as well as before administrative agencies. She recently was recognized by Super Lawyers Magazine as a Maryland Rising Star in the Civil Litigation – Defense and Employment and Labor practice areas for the sixth year in a row. Welsh has defended against claims involving discrimination, harassment, wrongful discharge, wage and hour violations, and enforceability of contract provisions, and has represented clients from different industries in matters such as defending against personal injury, products liability and toxic exposure, and commercial disputes. Beyond her litigation experience, Welsh conducts workplace investigations, prepares and revises employee handbooks and other internal policies, and drafts employment related agreements, while providing business advice to clients on navigating the employment relationship with employees to reduce potential liabilities and risk.
Welsh graduated from Boston College and the American University Washington College of Law. She is also certified by the D.C. Office of Human Rights to provide sexual harassment training, as required by the D.C. Tipped Wage Workers Fairness Amendment Act of 2018. She is a member of the Maryland State Bar Association, the District of Columbia Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. She has also previously served on the Board of Trustees for the Ballet Theatre of Maryland, and most recently, as the Secretary of the Board of Directors of LIGHT Health & Wellness.