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Supreme Judicial Court
Appoints Pittsfield Attorney to
Clients’ Security Board; New Chair and Vice Chair
Also Appointed by Court
Boston,
MA--The Justices of
the Supreme Judicial Court today announced the appointment
of Attorney John R. Gobel of Pittsfield to the Clients’ Security
Board for a five-year term, effective immediately. The Justices
also appointed Attorney Mary Schmidt as Chair and Attorney
Mark N. Berman as Vice-Chair of the Clients’ Security Board.
Both attorneys reside in Newton.
Mr. Gobel fills the position previously held by Thomas G.
Sitzman, the former chair, whose term recently expired. Mr.
Gobel’s term will expire on October 1, 2006. Ms. Schmidt
and Mr. Berman were appointed to the Clients’ Security Board
in December 1997.
Established by the SJC in 1974, the Clients’ Security Board
is comprised of seven attorneys who oversee the disbursement
of funds to clients who have been victimized by attorney defalcation.
Through a portion of the annual registration fees paid by
attorneys to the Board of Bar Overseers, Massachusetts fully
reimburses clients who have been victimized by instances of
attorney misappropriations.
Mr. Gobel is a partner in the Pittsfield law firm of Gobel
& Hollister. Prior to that, he was a solo practitioner
in Pittsfield from 1980 to 1982. He began his legal career
in 1978 as an associate in the Law Office of Joel S. Greenberg
in Pittsfield.
Mr. Gobel graduated from St. Louis University with a B.A.
degree, and he received a J.D. degree from the University
of Connecticut School of Law. A resident of Pittsfield, he
is a member of the Berkshire Bar Association, the Massachusetts
Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. He is
also an active member of the Estate Planning Council of Berkshire
County and the Western Massachusetts Pro Bono Referral System.
Ms. Schmidt is a partner at the Boston law firm of Packenham,
Schmidt & Frederico, P.C., where she has worked since
1994. A Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate
Counsel, she concentrates her practice on trusts and estates
and domestic relations. She received a B.A. degree from Cornell
University, and holds a J.D. degree from the University of
Chicago Law School and a Masters of Law in Taxation from Boston
University.
Mr. Berman is a stockholder in the Boston firm of Hutchins,
Wheeler & Ditmar, which he joined in 1988. While a partner
in the firm, he chaired the firm’s Business Department and
Bankruptcy Practice Group. From 1976 to 1988, he was a partner
in the firm of Widett, Slater & Golman, P.C. in Boston.
He is a graduate of Northwestern University and Boston College
Law School.
The other members of the Clients’ Security Board are attorneys
Edward W. McIntrye, Joseph D. Steinfield, Peter Sutton, and
Evelynne Swagerty.
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