The Massachusetts Bar Association
announces the formation of the Task Force on Peremptory Challenges
to study the history of such challenges and the implications of
their use in the courts. Peremptory challenges can be made by
either side in a criminal or civil case to help choose a jury
without stating a reason, except where an impermissible bias (such
as racial or gender bias) may be inferred. The task force will
issue a report of its findings next spring.
The MBA consulted key affiliated groups in the formation of the
task force, including the American Board of Trial Advocates, the
American College of Trial Lawyers, the Committee for Public Counsel
Services, the Boston Bar Association, the Massachusetts Defense
Lawyers Association, the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys
and the Worcester County Bar Association.Task force members
include:
Richard P. Campbell (chair) is an
MBA vice president and the founder and chairman of Campbell,
Campbell, Edwards & Conroy PC, which specializes in trial
practice with offices in Boston and Philadelphia. He represents
individuals and corporations in personal injury matters, commercial
disputes, multi-district litigation, class actions, aviation
disasters, toxic tort and products liability disputes. In addition,
he organizes and leads his firm's pro bono project, educating
parents, students and school administrators about civil and
criminal social host liability laws. Campbell is a past chair of
the American Bar Association's Tort Trial & Insurance Practice
Section and was awarded the Andrew C. Hecker Memorial Award by the
section in 2009.
The Hon. Peter W. Agnes Jr. is a
justice with the Massachusetts Superior Court. Agnes was appointed
to the Superior Court in 2000 following a nine-year judgeship with
the Charlestown Division of the District Court. Prior to joining
the bench, he served as chief of operations for Gov. Michael S.
Dukakis (1989-91), assistant secretary of Public Safety (1986-89)
and as an assistant district attorney from 1976 to 1986. He began
his legal career as a law clerk to the Supreme Court of New
Hampshire in 1975. Agnes served as chairman of the District Court
Professional Development Group on Impaired Driving Cases and as
chairman of the Supreme Judicial Court/Trial Court Committee on
Dispute Resolution. Agnes is a past president of the Justinian Law
Society and a member of the New England Society of Professionals in
Dispute Resolution. He is also active in the American,
Massachusetts and Boston Bar Associations.
Philip J. Callan Jr. practices at
Doherty, Wallace, Pillsbury & Murphy in Springfield. Callan
served as the state chair of the American College of Trial Lawyers
from 2001 to 2003. He is the primary outside counsel in Western
Massachusetts for a number of major insurance companies and
specializes in the defense of professional malpractice, product
liability and personal injury suits and insurance coverage
interpretation. He is a past president of the Hampden County Bar
Association and is an adjunct professor at Western New England
College School of Law.
Beverly J. Cannone began as a
Committee for Public Counsel Services staff attorney in 1985. Since
2006, she has served as the attorney-in-charge for the CPCS Dedham
office. In addition to being a frequent lecturer and faculty member
at Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education and CPCS training
programs, Cannone is a member of the Harvard Law School Trail
Advocacy Workshop teaching team and a panelist and committee member
for the Norfolk County Bench Bar. She served on the MBA Criminal
Justice Section Council and received the MBA Access to Justice
Defender Award in 2002. Cannone was also the recipient of the 2008
CPCS Edward J. Duggan Award.
Edward V. Colbert III is a partner
with Looney & Grossman LLP in Boston. He has extensive
experience in civil and criminal litigation and his practice often
involves business disputes and government enforcement actions. He
represents individuals and businesses in contractual, employment,
personal injury and professional liability cases. Colbert was an
assistant attorney general for Massachusetts before joining Looney
& Grossman. Since joining the firm, he has continued to serve
as a special assistant attorney general for the commonwealth.
Colbert is admitted to the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts
and U.S. District Court of Massachusetts, and practices in both
state and federal court.
Frank C. Corso is a principal at
Sarrouf Corso LLP in Boston. A past chairman of the Journal of
Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys, Corso is a member of the
MBA's Civil Litigation Section and a member of the MBA's Tort
Reform and Lawyers Public Service Responsibility committees. Corso
is also a governor for the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys
and participates in the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.
The recipient of the Amos L. Taylor Award for excellence in
scholarship, Corso served as an adjunct professor for New England
School of Law.
Emily G. Coughlin is a founding
partner of the firm of Coughlin Betke LLP (formerly Ryan, Coughlin
& Betke LLP) and is president of the Massachusetts Defense
Lawyers Association, having served on its board of directors and
held various officer positions since 2002. She tries cases and
handles appeals in all state and federal courts in Massachusetts.
Her practice concentration includes more than 20 years of
broad-ranging civil litigation experience representing businesses
and insurers in construction-related litigation, premises
litigation, products liability litigation and professional
liability litigation, while establishing an extensive expertise in
risk allocation and avoidance in construction matters. Coughlin is
also active in the International Association of Defense Counsel,
the Defense Research Institute and the American and Massachusetts
Bar Associations.
Robert A. Curley Jr. is president of
Curley & Curley PC in Boston. He is a fellow of the American
College of Trial Lawyers. His practice involves the defense of
product liability, catastrophic personal injury cases, general
civil litigation and insurance coverage matters. In 2004, the
Massachusetts Defense Lawyers Association recognized him as the
Defense Attorney of the Year for his service to clients and to the
bar. Curley has frequently participated as a faculty member in
continuing legal education programs and authored several articles
that have appeared in both regional and national publications.
Michael S. Hussey has been an
attorney with the Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS)
Public Defender Division since 1985, and the attorney-in-charge of
the Worcester office since 1994. The 2003 recipient of the MBA's
Access to Justice Award, Hussey has been on the "Murder List" since
1992. In 2004, Hussey was inducted into the American College of
Trial Lawyers, of which he is currently a fellow. In addition,
Hussey is the 2006 recipient of the Edward Duggan Award given by
CPCS, and has been a frequent lecturer and faculty member at MCLE
and CPCS training programs. Hussey was also a contributing author
to MCLE's Trying Murder and Homicide Cases and is a longtime
member of the board of directors of the Massachusetts Citizens
Against the Death Penalty and the Massachusetts Association of
Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Marianne C. LeBlanc is a principal
with Sugarman and Sugarman PC in Boston, where she concentrates in
all aspects of serious personal injury litigation, with an emphasis
on medical negligence and product liability. Committed to making a
difference for both her clients and the community at large, LeBlanc
has provided leadership to a wide variety of legal, civic and
community organizations. LeBlanc currently serves as the
chair-elect of the Women's Trial Lawyers Caucus of the American
Association of Justice and serves on the boards of the
Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys, Women's Bar Foundation
and Women's Bar Association. A past president of the WBF and WBA of
Massachusetts, LeBlanc chaired the MBA's Civil Litigation Section
from 2001 to 2002. LeBlanc has also published numerous articles and
presents frequently at MCLE and the MBA programs, among other
venues. LeBlanc is a 2006 recipient of the AAJ's Wiedemann Wysocki
Citation of Excellence.
Eric Neyman is a partner with
McCarter and English in Boston. His experience encompasses civil,
criminal and complex commercial litigation. The focus of his
practice is on fraud, class action, securities and contract
disputes. He also advises businesses and individuals on
strategically addressing government investigations at the civil,
criminal and administrative levels. Prior to joining McCarter and
English, Neyman was deputy legal counsel to Governors A. Paul
Cellucci and Jane M. Swift, and deputy general counsel to the
Executive Office of Public Safety. Neyman also spent several years
as a trial and appellate prosecutor at the Suffolk County and
Berkshire County District Attorney's offices.
The Hon. David Ricciardone is an
associate justice in the Worcester Division of the District Court.
Prior to being appointed to the bench in 2004, he served as an
assistant district attorney in Worcester County from 1986 to 1989
and was a sole practitioner from 1989 to 2004. Ricciardone is a
past president of the Bar Advocates of Worcester County Inc. and
serves on the Worcester County Bar Association's Committee for
Professional Responsibility. ¢