MM&R - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Associate
- Attorney
- Member of the Illinois State Bar Association
Bio
Amy C. Randazzo is an associate attorney at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. focusing her practice in estate planning and administration, business law, and transactional work.
Amy obtained her J.D. from Saint Louis University School of Law in May of 2017, graduating cum laude with a concentration in entrepreneurship law. Amy also attended Saint Louis University during her time as an undergraduate, obtaining a B.A. in political science in 2010. Once a college graduate, Amy found herself wanting to gain experience in the legal field prior to making the leap to law school. Amy joined Mathis, Marifian & Richter in 2010, working her way up from file clerk to legal assistant within a matter of months. After four years at MM&R, Amy "retired" and began law school in the fall of 2014.
Amy's retirement was short-lived. She became a law clerk for MM&R in January of 2015 and continued clerking at the firm throughout law school. Additionally, Amy worked as a Rule 13 certified student in SLU Law's Entrepreneurship and Community Development Clinic and in the Mediation Clinic. Amy's background in the legal field and practical experience through the legal clinics have given her great experience in an array of legal matters including drafting estate planning documents, handling probate and trust administrations, forming new businesses and helping existing businesses review contracts, as well as assisting non-profit organizations in obtaining tax-exempt status. In her spare time, Amy enjoys spending time with family and friends, enjoying a good meal at local restaurants and finding time to read a good book.
Professional Affiliations
Amy is a proud member of the Illinois State Bar Association, The Missouri Bar, The Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis and St. Clair County Bar Association.
Anthony "Tony" Smith II is an associate at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. (MM&R), who focuses his legal practice in transactional law and estate planning. Prior to his role at MM&R, he served as an attorney advisor at Social Security Administration where he assisted administrative law judges with the development and formation of decisions in disability cases under Title II and Title XVI. Additionally, Tony brings to the table diverse experience and extensive knowledge in real estate litigation, trust and estate litigation, real estate transactions, business law, and estate planning.
In 2008, Tony earned his J.D. from Saint Louis University School of Law. While attending law school, he was a member of the American Association of Justice, Public Interest Law Group, and The Veterans Law Student Organization. He was a 2008 Presidential Management Fellows Finalist and a recipient of a Dean's scholarship. In 2003, Tony graduated cum laude from Truman State University with a degree in psychology.
Tony is a U.S. Navy veteran. While in college, he was accepted into the Baccalaureate Degree Completion Program, a highly selective Navy collegiate officer accession program. After completing his undergraduate studies, he attended Officer Candidate School (OCS) and earned his commission as an ensign. Tony left active duty in 2004. Prior to separating from the Navy, Tony assisted in the defense department of the Naval Legal Services Office in Pensacola, Florida, which reaffirmed his desire to attend law school. In November 2010, he was honorably discharged from the Navy Reserves as a lieutenant.
Professional Affiliations
Tony is licensed to practice law in Illinois and Missouri. He is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association and the Missouri Bar Association.
Job Titles:
- Associate
- Associate at Mathis
Bio
Benjamin T. Davisson is an associate at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. (MM&R), who focuses his practice in transactional matters. Prior to joining MM&R, he interned for the Clerk of the Court for the United States Bankruptcy Court - Eastern District of Missouri. In this role, he was responsible for providing advice to the Clerk of the Court on complex legal issues pertaining to administrative matters.
Benjamin obtained his J.D. from Saint Louis University School of Law in May of 2021, and was elected by the faculty into the Woolsack Honor Society. During law school, he served on the Moot Court Board, as well as Online Editor for the Saint Louis University Law Journal. In 2021, the Journal published his piece titled Exodus from the Land of Confusion: Why Hughes v. United States Supports the Overruling of the Unworkable Mark Doctrine and a Change in Court Practice.
Bio
Beth K. Flowers is a shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. (MM&R) who focuses her practice in estate planning, real estate law and business law.
Beth works with clients in establishing wills and trusts, estate and gift tax planning, trust administration, real estate transactions and corporate and business law. She practices principally in the areas of death and disability planning (wills, trusts, estate and gift taxes, and powers of attorney), probate administration, real estate matters and business entity formation. Beth spends a great deal of her time helping executors and trustees administer estates and trusts during the difficult time after the passing of a loved one in an effort to make the administration process as smooth and uneventful as possible. Beth joined MM&R in 2011 following its merger with Coffey & McCracken Law Firm, where she previously served as an associate.
Professional Affiliations
Beth is licensed to practice law in Illinois and Missouri. She is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association, The Missouri Bar, Madison County Bar Association and the Estate Planning Council of St. Louis. Since 2007, Beth has presented a lecture each year on "Legal Issues and the Elderly" to the students at SIU School of Dental Medicine. Flowers has also been awarded the title of Leading Lawyer, which is only awarded to the top 5% of lawyers in each state.
Bio
Chad J. Richter is a shareholder at Mathis, Marifian and Richter, Ltd. who concentrates his practice in the areas of business law, trusts and estates, probate litigation, real estate law, commercial law, and civil litigation. Chad serves a variety of different individual and corporate clients and devotes his time equally between litigation and transactional work. As the ex-oficio chair and member of the Illinois State Bar Association Business and Securities Law Section Council, Chad stays current in new developments of Illinois business law and has published several articles concerning these developments.
Prior to joining Mathis, Marifian and Richter, Chad worked for four years at a nationally recognized litigation firm in the commercial transactional group where he developed his litigation and transactional practice. He's also practiced with boutique law firms concentrating in commercial transactions, trusts and estates, taxation, and elder law.
In 2019, Chad was named to the list of Top Estate Planning Attorneys in St. Louis by St. Louis Small Business Monthly. While in law school, Chad received the two CALI awards for the highest class grades in Corporate Taxation and Current Developments in Law and Accounting.
Professional Affiliations
Chad serves on the Board of Directors of the Madison County Bar Association and is also a member and former Chair of the Illinois State Bar Association Business and Securities Law Section Council. He is also a member of the St. Clair County Bar, Illinois Institute of Business Law, East St. Louis Bar Association, and Missouri Bar Association.
Bio
Charles (Charlie) M. Lock is an of counsel attorney with Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd., who focuses his practice exclusively on civil and criminal tax litigation and controversies pending before the Audit, Appeals, Collection, and Criminal Enforcement divisions of the IRS.
Prior to working with MM&R, Charlie was an adjunct professor at Washington University for 20 years, teaching classes in the Master's tax program. He has lectured extensively before lawyers and accountants on tax laws and procedures.
Charlie was also a solo practitioner in Clayton, Missouri, for over 30 years representing individuals, partnerships, and major corporations with their tax issues. Prior to starting his own practice, he was a trial attorney in the Office of Chief Counsel for the Internal Revenue Service in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1967 to 1978.
After graduating from Creighton University School of Law in Omaha, Nebraska, Charlie received his LL.M. degree in Taxation from Washington University in St. Louis. He is admitted to practice in the United States Tax Court, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, the Missouri Supreme Court, and the United States Supreme Court. He has also been an active member in The Missouri Bar, local Bar Associations, and numerous charitable organizations.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Illinois State Bar Association
Bio
Clyde L. Kuehn serves clients in the areas of white collar criminal defense law, civil litigation and appellate work from the Belleville, Illinois, Mathis, Marifian & Richter office.
Clyde has had a remarkable impact on the law community, and his honors reflect just that. Specifically in criminal defense law, his career highlights include receiving the 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Illinois Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and his appointment as chairman of the Complex Litigation Committee in Chicago. Clyde became St. Clair County's youngest State's Attorney when he was elected in 1976 at age 27. As the State's Attorney, he served as a charter board member of the Appellate Service Commission.
In 1980, he embarked upon a successful private practice of law. His seven defendants in federal criminal jury trials were all acquitted of every count. On the state level, though he has not earned a perfect record defending criminal cases, his number of defeats can be counted on one hand. During Kuehn's 10 years as the St. Clair County Public Defender and his 11 years as a Circuit Judge and an Appellate Justice, he was known for handling exceptionally difficult cases all the while keeping his commitment to justice.
Professional Affiliations
Clyde is a proud member of the Illinois State Bar Association. He has been a member of the State's Attorney's Association where he previously served as Vice President.
Job Titles:
- Associate
- Associate at Mathis
Bio
Dan is an associate at Mathis, Marifian, and Richter, Ltd. (MM&R), and focuses his practice on transactional matters, including business law and estate planning. Dan began his career defending doctors, nurses, hospitals, and nursing homes in litigation matters, and has appeared in state courts across Illinois and Missouri, from Carbondale to Chicago and Kansas City to Cape Girardeau.
Dan has always been intrigued by the intersection of personal finance, business, and the law. He earned his undergraduate degree in business administration with a concentration in finance from the University of Kentucky in 2013. Thereafter, he attended Southern Illinois University, where he earned his law degree (J.D.) and Master's Degree in Business Administration (M.B.A.) in 2016.
Job Titles:
- Shareholder
- Vice President
- Board Chair for the Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois
Deanna L. Litzenburg is a Vice President and shareholder with Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. who focuses her practice in civil litigation, commercial litigation, premises liability, medical malpractice, employment law, creditors' rights, workers' compensation and alternative dispute resolution.
Deanna is a member of bar associations across Illinois and Missouri. In Illinois, she is a member of the Women's Bar Association of Illinois, Illinois State Bar Association, St. Clair County Bar Association, and Madison County Bar Association. In Missouri, she is a member of The Missouri Bar and the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis. Deanna has been named to Who's Who in American Law and Illinois' Leading Lawyers for several consecutive years, which is only awarded to the top 5% of lawyers in each state. Additionally, she is chair of the ISBA Civil Practice and Procedure Section Council and is a member of the ISBA AI Committee. Deanna also is a member of the Bankruptcy Association of Southern Illinois.
Bio
Kevin J. Richter is a founding shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. (MM&R) who focuses his practice in business law, employment law, estate planning, elder law, probate, employee benefits law, taxation law and real estate law.
Since 1984, Kevin has been representing business owners, corporations and individuals in matters involving business sales and acquisitions, retirement plan benefits, disability, ERISA litigation, contract law, tax representation and all phases of estate planning. Kevin has been involved in numerous probate matters, covering an array of complex issues. He has provided legal counsel to clients in a wide range of personal and business transactions, including employment contracts, covenants-not-to-compete, distribution agreements, operating agreements, franchise agreements, buy-sell agreements and shareholder agreements. He works with businesses concerning entity selection and in all phases of business operations, and he has also been involved with substantial business sales and purchases involving both asset and stock transactions.
Kevin has worked with a variety of clients, including manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, physician groups, clinics, physician specialty practices, service entities, law firms, school districts and governmental entities. He has also represented international, national, regional and local businesses.
Kevin's Certified Public Accountant (CPA) background is helpful in understanding complex financial issues. He has represented clients in front of the Internal Revenue Service, the United States Department of Labor, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Illinois Department of Revenue and the Illinois Department of Human Rights. Kevin has been a contributor to law publications and has been asked to lecture throughout the area.
Professional Affiliations
Kevin is a member of the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, the St. Clair County Bar Association and the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA), where he previously served as secretary, vice-chair and chair for the Employee Benefits section. He is a member of The Missouri Bar and the American Bar Association, where he is currently a member of the Federal Taxation and Corporate Law Sections.
Kevin is also a member of the Illinois CPA Society. Kevin has written a chapter for the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education. The chapter was focused on the "Valuation and Division of Retirement Benefits in Dissolution of Marriage." Kevin was responsible for writing an article, entitled "Amending Fraudulent Returns and Their Affect on the Statute of Limitations," for a previous ISBA Federal Taxation Section Newsletter.
Bio
Laura E. Schrick is a shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. (MM&R), who focuses her practice in commercial litigation, trust & estate litigation, employment law, and construction law.
Laura values the trust that her clients place in her and works hard to provide them with personal attention and practical legal advice. She has achieved significant results for individuals and businesses in a variety of federal and state court matters at both the trial court and appellate court levels. Laura's practice also includes arbitration and mediation.
Prior to joining MM&R, Laura worked for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustee and as an intern with the United States Attorneys' Office. Laura is AV peer-review rated by Martindale-Hubbell. Since 2013, she has been named as an Illinois Super Lawyer (or Rising Star) in business litigation.
Professional Affiliations
Laura is a member of the American Bar Association Litigation Section, Illinois State Bar Association, The Missouri Bar, St. Clair County Bar Association and the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL). She is currently serving as Secretary of the Illinois State Bar Association's Labor & Employment Law Section Council, a member of the Illinois State Bar Association's Commercial Banking, Collections & Bankruptcy Law Section Council and as a member of the Illinois Supreme Court's Committee on Character and Fitness, which evaluates applicants' character and fitness to practice law. For the past ten years, Laura has been an arbitrator for the St. Clair County Circuit Court. She also served on the Court's e-Discovery Committee.
Bio
Mark J. Stegman is a shareholder with Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. who concentrates his practice in business law, taxation, real estate law, and estate planning. Mark has more than 40 years' experience providing general counsel to closely-held businesses and their owners. His work is focused on a variety of corporate transactions, including corporate reorganizations, mergers and acquisitions, stock redemptions, succession planning and buy-sell arrangements. He also has substantial experience handling federal and state tax audits and appeals, as well as commercial loan transactions.
Mark represents a wide range of clients, including retailers, wholesalers, automobile dealerships, bankers, manufacturers, distributors and other business clientele. Before joining MM&R in 1996, Mark spent 13 years with two large law firms located in the St. Louis area. As a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), he also spent three years with a large accounting firm in St. Louis. Mark's experience, along with his background as a CPA, has provided him with an unusual depth and breadth of experience in solving strategic and operational problems for clients.
Professional Affiliations
Mark is currently a member of the Illinois State Bar Association and The Missouri Bar. In 2018, Mark was Peer Rated for Highest Level of Professional Excellence by Martindale-Hubbell for his high ethical standing.
Mark S. Schuver is a shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. with over 30 years of experience practicing in the areas of personal injury and employment litigation, product liability, will & trust disputes and commercial litigation.
Melissa C. Meirink is a shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. who focuses her practice in civil litigation, employment law, and commercial litigation. Prior to joining MM&R in 2016, she worked for a St. Louis law firm in the area of civil litigation and family law.
Bio
Montana Sinn is an associate attorney at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. (MM&R), who focuses her practice in litigation. Prior to joining MM&R, she was a legal intern for the United States Attorney's Office of the Southern District of Illinois, as well as a judicial extern at the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois. During law school, Montana worked as a Rule 13 certified student in SLU Law's Entrepreneurship and Community Development Clinic.
Montana obtained her J.D. from Saint Louis University School of Law in May of 2021. She obtained her B.A. at The University of Alabama.
Bio
Ms. Allyson T. Schwab is a shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. focusing her practice on Business Law, Estate Planning/Administration and Real Estate Law. Ally spent her first few years of practice at a large law firm where she exclusively focused on litigation. However, after arriving at MM&R, she discovered two new passions - estate planning/administration and transactional law. Ally enjoys the diversity of her practice as it allows her to work with all types of clients. Whether it is guiding new parents in creating an estate plan to provide for their family's future or assisting in the sale of a client's business, Ally takes the time to get to know her clients and their specific needs.
Job Titles:
- Member of the American Bar Association
- Member of the Illinois State Bar Association
Bio
Patrick B. Mathis is a founding shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. (MM&R) who focuses his practice in business law, banking, estate planning, and taxation.
With over 30 years of experience, Pat has an extensive background in providing legal counsel related to business mergers, sales and acquisitions, shareholder litigation, trusts and wills, probate, federal and state tax audits and appeals, Tax Court litigation, and criminal tax defense. He has written several definitive articles on various aspects of each area.
Over the past 34 years at MM&R, Pat has provided a full range of legal services to clients in the Southern Illinois and St. Louis Metropolitan areas. His mission is to deliver superior personalized service to every client, no matter how large or how small. He has the knowledge to identify the issues and find creative solutions, whether it's analyzing complex tax or estate planning issues or advising business clients.
Professional Affiliations
Pat is a member of the American Bar Association, and he has been a member of the organization's Taxation Section since 1980. He has also served on the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis' Taxation Committee.
Pat is currently a member of the Illinois State Bar Association, where he has served as chairman of the federal Taxation Section Council, the St. Clair County Bar Association, The Missouri Bar, Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (IICLE), where he has served as a member and chairman of the board of directors, the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and the Illinois Supreme Court Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Commission. He has conducted numerous seminars and educational programs for IICLE and the American, Illinois State and Metropolitan St. Louis Bar Associations. Pat has been named to Illinois' Leading Lawyers and Illinois Super Lawyers for several consecutive years, as well as to Who's Who in American Law.
Pat has been a member trustee of Illinois College in Jacksonville, Illinois since 2006 and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Belleville High School CEO Program. He has served on the Board of Directors for the March of Dimes, Southern Illinois District; as a board member for the Southwestern Illinois College Foundation and for Camp Ondessonk of the Catholic Diocese of Belleville; and as a Southern Illinois University Foundation Planned Giving Council Member. He previously served on the Board of Directors for St. Clair County Greenspace Foundation and Signal Hill Neighborhood Association, and he was also a board member for the Signal Hill Education Foundation and Signal Hill School District. Pat also previously served on Special Children, Inc.'s Finance Committee for Mamie O. Stookey School and as Chairman of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of St. Clair County's Annual Fund Drive. He is involved in Blessed Sacrament Parish, having been a member of the Finance and Parish Councils and serving as president and as a Parish School of Religion teacher. Pat is also a member of the Missouri Athletic Club, St. Clair Country Club, Alpha Sigma Nu, and Eta Sigma Phi.
Job Titles:
- Shareholder
- Member of the American Bar Association
Bio
Philip D. Speicher is a shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. Phil provides legal counsel to a broad range of clients, from brand new startups to Fortune 100 companies. In addition to his primary focus of defending businesses and individuals in IRS audits and in the U.S. Tax Court, Philip also provides services to his clients in the areas of business law, mergers & acquisitions, and estate planning.
Since beginning his career in 2004, Phil has become an established authority in the litigation of tax disputes before the U.S. Tax Court and in representing both businesses and individuals in IRS audits. With his experience in matters of Federal tax and business law, Phil has been sought out as a commentator on matters of federal tax administration and policy by national publications such as Bloomberg BNA. In 2017, Philip received the Leading Lawyers "Emerging Lawyer" award, recognizing the top 2% of lawyers in the U.S. under the age of 40. In 2018, Phil was named a Leading Lawyer, an award that only 5% of all attorneys in each state achieve.
Professional Affiliations
Philip is a member of the American Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, The Missouri Bar, the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, and the St. Clair County Bar Association. Philip is a former Chairman of the Illinois State Bar Association Federal Taxation Section Council and serves as a liaison to Congress on behalf of the Illinois State Bar Association regarding matters of national tax policy. Philip has also authored educational publications for the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education. He is a frequent speaker for the Illinois State Bar Association as well as other associations.
Job Titles:
- Shareholder
- Member of the Belleville Marathon Executive Committee
Bio
Rebecca K. Wohltman is a shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. She focuses her practice at MM&R in business law, tax matters and estate planning. Becky has assisted clients of all sizes in forming, buying and selling businesses. She enjoys learning about her clients' businesses and the unique services and products each client offers. Her background in accounting brings a unique perspective to handling tax issues for her clients. She has successfully resolved federal and state criminal tax cases, guided clients through federal and state tax audits, obtained dozens of favorable decisions from IRS Appeals, and represented several clients in a variety of Tax Court cases. She enjoys learning about her clients' businesses and the unique services and products each client offers.
Becky is a member of the Belleville Marathon executive committee and previously served on the Zion Lutheran School - Belleville school board as Vice Chair and Chair. Becky enjoys running with the Belleville Running Club and is a long-time supporter of Unity Lutheran Christian Elementary School, a mission school in East St. Louis with over 170 students.
Bio
William "Bill" D. Stiehl, Jr. is an of counsel attorney with Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd., who serves clients in the areas of personal injury, workers' compensation, commercial litigation, education law, and white collar criminal defense.
In 2018, Bill was appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court to serve as Circuit Judge for the 20th Judicial Circuit Court of Illinois in St. Clair County, completing the term of the late Judge Robert LeChien. He was then appointed as an at-large circuit judge for the 20th Judicial Court of Illinois in St. Clair County from 2020 to 2022 by the Illinois Supreme Court.
He began his legal career as a St. Clair County assistant public defender, where he handled major felony cases. Later, he became a partner at several Belleville law firms, where he tried civil and criminal cases in both federal and state courts. Bill also served as Special Assistant Attorney General for the state of Illinois, where he handled eminent domain cases. In 2011, he established his private practice, the Law Offices of William Stiehl Jr.
Professional Affiliations
Bill is licensed to practice law in Illinois. He is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association, St. Clair County Bar Association, National Council of School Attorneys, and Illinois Council of School Attorneys.
Bio
William J. (Bill) Niehoff is Vice President and Shareholder at Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. who focuses his practice in commercial and civil litigation, personal injury litigation, and construction and contract disputes.
Bill has practiced for more than 30 years representing a wide range of local and international clients in significant matters involving class actions, product liability, personal injury, employment agreements, contract disputes and construction litigation. Since joining MM&R in June 2000, Bill has worked cases that have returned commercial settlements, civil settlements and judgments for his clients in excess of $50 million. He has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal courts in a wide range of jurisdictions, including Illinois, Missouri, Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Wisconsin and West Virginia. He has also represented clients before the Missouri Public Service Commission, the Illinois Commerce Commission, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the United States Tax Court. Bill has represented automobile manufacturers, national and international manufacturers, hospitals, physicians, railroads, utilities, large and small business owners, and individuals.
Over the course of his career, he has also assisted in the reorganization and formation of holding companies for several of the largest Midwestern energy companies as well as developing and implementing regulatory compliance programs for energy companies. Bill has acted as outside general counsel for growing companies assisting in all facets of legal services. Bill is also the author of Chapter 7 on product defect in Illinois Products Liability published by Lawyers Cooperative Publishing.
Professional Affiliations
Bill is licensed in Illinois and Missouri and is admitted to practice before the United States District Courts for the Southern District of Illinois, the Eastern District of Missouri and the Central District of Illinois, Appellate Courts of Illinois and Missouri, the Illinois and Missouri Supreme Courts and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Bill is a member of the American Bar Association, Illinois Bar Association, The Missouri Bar, the St. Clair County Bar Association, and the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis. He is an accomplished author and speaker, and has testified before the Missouri General Assembly on electric deregulation issues.
Bill is recognized as a Leading Lawyer, a distinction held by less than 5% of attorneys, in his practice areas of personal injury, commercial law and litigation.