RKW - Key Persons
Anthony Herman has practiced law since 2014, concentrating in the practice of labor and employment law. He received his B.A. from University of Maryland and a J.D. from University of Baltimore.
Anthony understands that for small businesses especially, compliance with the law and avoiding any lawsuits is the name of the game to keep costs down. His practice frequently involves general advice, consultation and counseling on myriad labor and employment matters, including handbook and policy manual drafting, wage and hour compliance, hiring and onboarding issues, harassment complaints and investigation, ADA and FMLA issues, and disciplinary and termination issues. He has represented employers in judicial and administrative proceedings in federal and state court.
Anthony lives in Abingdon, Maryland with his family. Any time not in the office is spent watching the Ravens or chasing his two boys around his house.
Dave McRae is a real estate, business and banking lawyer who has been advising and assisting parties in commercial transactions for more than 20 years. Dave prepares, reviews, and negotiates purchase and sale contracts, deeds, leases, loan documents, business agreements, and many other types of agreements, and provides sure, steady, seasoned counsel to help his clients attain their transactional goals.
Dave offers the knowledge, skill, and experience, both legal and practical, to structure, negotiate, document, and consummate each real estate, lending and/or business transaction, large or small, in a way that achieves the client's core objectives while also being right on the details. A talented business communicator, Dave gets to the heart of the issues and works to secure clear, firm, fair and reasonable contractual terms for his clients, in a professional and trustworthy manner.
In the early years of his legal career, Dave was a public interest attorney for a national consumer safety advocacy organization in Washington, DC. Before entering law school, he worked for over 7 years in the field of business-to-business marketing, technical, and corporate communications, first for an international manufacturing corporation headquartered in Colorado, and then for an international biotech corporation headquartered in Maryland.
Diane Kotkin, a partner in the firm's Trusts & Estates practice group, is a trusted legal advisor to her clients and their families. For over 20 years, Diane has developed and implemented creative and customized solutions to achieve the tax and personal objectives of her clients. Her representation of fiduciaries also includes advising both individual and corporate fiduciaries on risk mitigation and their duties and responsibilities in the course of the administration of trusts and estates.
Diane's wide range of experience has enabled her to serve as a general counsel or a legal back office for families, managing the multitude of issues that arise. As a trusts and estates attorney who often helps clients through personal issues during very sensitive periods in their lives, she has developed a reputation as a compassionate advisor with the experience, insight and sophistication to help navigate complex issues both from a legal and business perspective.
In addition to counseling clients on the planning and transactional side, Diane expertly guides clients through the probate and estate administration process. She understands the difficult emotional issues involved in the loss of a loved one and routinely administers large estates, assists families with post-mortem planning, prepares federal and local estate tax returns, and represents clients before the IRS and local tax authorities in estate tax audits.
Beyond her legal practice, Diane is highly involved in the community. She is a past Chair of Frederick Community College's Foundation Board and a current Board Member of the Maryland School for the Deaf Foundation Board. She is also an active Board Member and President of Frederick Volleyball Club, a 501(c)(3), and coaches women's volleyball at Tuscarora High School in Frederick, Maryland. Diane has been married to her husband, Andy, for over 20 years and they have 3 children: Hannah, Michael and Evan.
Jacob (Jack) Bloomberg is a goal-focused transactional attorney with experience in business law and estates work. He has a general practice and works with a variety of clients in the areas of corporate business transactions, preparation of wills and trusts, as well as employment law. Much of Jack's work focuses on assisting dentists and oral surgeons in matters related to business formation, lease agreements, the purchase and sale of medical practices and more.
Jack graduated from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law in May of 2018. He was a recipient of The Litigation and Advocacy Award and the William P. Cunningham Award, as well as a Semi-Finalist Mediator at the Jeffrey Abrams Mediation Competition. Jack is admitted to practice law in the State of Maryland. He previously worked as an associate at his father's law firm, Paul Bloomberg, P.A. in Columbia, Maryland.
Having grown up in Maryland, Jack is a lifelong Ravens and O's fan. He loves to travel around the country, discover new music and write in his free time. When he is not at the office, Jack can be found enjoying a trivia or game night with his friends or relaxing at home with his many pets. As an Associate Attorney at RKW Law Group, Jack is eager to connect with new clients and help people all over Maryland to achieve their goals both personally and in business.
Laura L. Rubenstein heads up the firm's Labor and Employment Practice Group. Her practice concentrates in advising clients in many different areas of workplace law. She represents businesses and nonprofit organizations in a wide range of matters, including providing guidance on sensitive and confidential employment issues and defending FLSA wage disputes, harassment, discrimination and retaliation claims. Ms. Rubenstein drafts critical documents specific to her client's industries and needs, which include employment contracts, restrictive covenants, and severance/separation agreements. An advocate for her clients before federal, state and local administrative agencies and courts, she is also a certified mediator who represents clients in mediations, arbitrations and other types of alternative dispute resolution proceedings.
Ms. Rubenstein advises corporate clients and nonprofit organizations in the drafting, review and effective implementation of employment manuals and policies. She also works with boards of directors and c-level executives to provide guidance on governance, both policy and execution. She works with companies to provide on-site training for managers, supervisors and executives to help reduce exposure to liability and promote a more harmonious and productive workplace. She has frequently handled and successfully guided companies through workplace investigations related to claims and charges filed against company executives.
Ms. Rubenstein regularly advises clients undergoing investigations by state and federal departments of labor, OFCCP, DLLR, EEOC, and other federal and state agencies on matters related to wages, classification and other statutory requirements.
Ms. Rubenstein represents private employers in traditional labor law matters involving collective bargaining, arbitrations, strikes and unionization attempts. She has successfully defended and filed numerous unfair labor practice charges before the NLRB.
Marie Ignozzi joined RKW in 2022 bringing her litigation expertise and dispute resolution skills where she focuses her practice in business litigation and insurance defense and coverage. Marie manages a diverse caseload consisting of employment, contract, and professional disciplinary disputes, business owner and shareholder fights, and complex insurance claims involving automobile accidents, premises liability, property damage, and products liability. Because of the breadth of her experience and the industries she serves, Marie's efforts regularly take her from the conference room to the courtroom to the "back room," navigating difficult negotiations and trial strategies to achieve favorable results for her clients.
Mark is a Baltimore native, a civil litigator, a cyclist, a scholar, a former federal appellate law clerk, an organizer, a father, and a tea drinker, to name but a few facets of his life. Mark graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Duke University, was Order of the Coif at the University of Michigan Law School where he received the school's highest honor, the Henry M. Bates Memorial Scholarship Award, was a Contributing Editor at the Michigan Law Review, and clerked for the Honorable Francis D. Murnaghan, Jr., of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. That was a lot of accomplishment even before he began private practice.
As a practicing attorney over these thirty plus years, Mark has represented businesses and people in all sorts of civil litigation matters, inmates in state and federal post-conviction actions, and he has spent time litigating Maryland's campaign finance laws-but this doesn't even scratch the surface of his experience.
Mark's generosity with his time on behalf of legal causes was recognized by the United States District Court for the District of Maryland which named him the first recipient of its Pro Bono Service Award, and by the Maryland Bar Foundation which awarded him its Legal Excellence Award. He is also an elected member of the American Law Institute, an honor limited to just 3,000 lawyers, judges and law professors. It is for good reason Mark is well known by Baltimore's lawyers and jurists.
Mark's commitment to public service has been strong and consistent. In addition to his pro bono services, he is an adjunct professor at the University of Baltimore School of Law; has served as President of the Library Company of the Baltimore Bar from 1992 to 2006; and has been Chair of the Baltimore City Sitting Judges Committee for more years than anyone of us can remember. Rumor has it Mark first became involved with a Sitting Judges campaign when he was seven years old. He is a permanent member of the Fourth Circuit Judicial Conference, and is a member of the Wranglers Law Club where he served as Pooh Bah.
Max. S. Stadfeld focuses his practice primarily on Construction Law. He represents contractors, subcontractor and professional services providers to the industry in all matters involving commercial collection claims, mechanic's liens and bond claims. In addition, he has served as a mediator and an arbitrator and he assists clients in all types of alternative dispute resolution.
One of Max's extracurricular accomplishments was being the Champion for the New England Intercollegiate Pancake Eating Contest. One Christmas Eve he was mistaken for Santa Claus by some children in a restaurant. He is an avid James Madison University football fan.
We are in the business of solving problems. Whether we are negotiating the purchase of a dental practice, updating your employee manual, assisting your business bid on a government contract or preparing estate planning documents to protect your family, we are focused on meeting your needs while managing your bottom line.
Stacey graduated with a B.A. from Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey, and later attended Seton Hall University School of Law in Newark, New Jersey. During her law school tenure, Stacey participated in multiple organizations, including the Black Law Students Association (BLSA) and Latino-American Law Students Association (LALSA), where her efforts and leadership paved the way for the school's mock trial team to compete in the Thurgood Marshall Mock Trial Competition held at the annual National Black Law Students Association Convention. Stacey also participated in the Seton Hall School of Law Social Justice Clinic where she worked on emergent immigration applications and detainee cases.
Immediately after graduating in 2019, Stacey completed a one-year judicial clerkship in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Bergen Vicinage for the Presiding Judge of the Family Division, Honorable Peter J. Melchionne, P.J.F.P. (Ret.). Following her clerkship, Stacey entered private practice in New Jersey as an associate concentrating on family law, focusing primarily on divorce, child custody, and child support modification cases. Prior to joining RKW Law Group, Stacey practiced commercial and civil litigation, representing clients in personal injury matters, landlord-tenant court, real estate transactions, wills and estates, and municipal violations.
Stacey's interdisciplinary experience makes her an effective litigator and an asset to RKW's litigation department. Throughout her practice in New Jersey, Stacey has proven to be a zealous advocate for her clients, whether in mediations, settlement negotiations, motion practice, or bench trials. Pending bar admission in Maryland, Stacey will focus her practice on litigation, particularly business disputes, labor and employment cases, insurance defense cases, and estate disputes.
Washington Smart CEO 2010 Elite - December 2010 (Readers poll)