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July Member News

Effective June 1, 2018, Jan L. Proctor is the new Opinions Counsel at the Office of the Attorney General. Jan recently retired as City Attorney for Chesapeake after more than 29 years of public service. She served as president of the LGA in 2007-2008 and was the recipient of both the Robert E. Cherin Award for Outstanding Deputy or Assistant Local Government and the Edward J. Finnegan Award for Distinguished Service. Jan can be reached at jproctor@oag.state.va.us

The Chesapeake City Council recently announced the appointment of Jacob P. Stroman IV as the new City Attorney. Jay replaces Jan Proctor who retired from the position earlier this year. Jay comes to Chesapeake from the Virginia Attorney General’s Office where he served as Senior Assistant Attorney General and Chief of the Construction Section. He has also served as Chief Staff Attorney for the Supreme Court of Virginia and County Attorney for Spotsylvania, among other positions, and is a former president of the LGA. 

In May 2018, Gregory L. Haynes joined Taxing Authority Consulting Services (TACS) as an associate attorney. Greg earned his B.A. from the College of William and Mary and his J.D. from Emory University School of Law. Greg joins TACS with a diverse legal background, having counseled many types of business entities while working with mulitple national law firms. Moreover, Greg previously served as in-house counsel for a start-up software development firm and as corporate counsel to a Fortune 50 International financial services company. Greg can be reached at ghaynes@taxva.com

Ray Warren, former Counsel and Deputy Commissioner of the Revenue for Arlington County, had joined Taxing Authority Consulting Services PC (TACS) as of counsel. Ray is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and the UNC-Chapel Hill School of law. He practiced law for over 25 years in his native North Carolina and also served two terms in the state legislature and seven years as a Superior Court Judge. Ray spent more than 10 years advising the Commissioner of the Revenue on legal issues involving the assessment of personal property, business license taxes, and custodial taxes. In his role with TACS, Ray will assist clients with tax assessment issues, including administrative appeals, court appeals, confidentiality and FOIA requirements, tax privacy issues, and assessment policies and procedures. Ray can be reached at rwarren@taxva.com.  

In May 2018, Megan Lisa Watkins began work as Assistant County Attorney and Counsel to the Henrico County School Board. A 2016 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law, where she received the Claire Corocan Award for Public Service, Megan previously worked at the Legal Aid Justice Center as the Lewis F. Powell Fellow from August 2016 to May 2018. Prior to law school, and after earning her B.A. from Davidson College, Megan taught high school Spanish in a high-needs school in Charlotte, North Carolina. Megan can be reached at megan.watkins@henrico.k12.va.us.  

In April 2018, Alexandra M. Griffin began work as an Assistant City Attorney in Richmond. After graduating from the University of Richmond School of Law in 2014, Alexandra began working as a defense attorney in the Richmond City Public Defender’s Office. In her current position, Alexandra primarily works with the City’s Department of Social Services, but she also handles matters for other municipal departments as needed. Alexandra can be reached at alexandra.griffin@richmondgov.com.  

William J. Burgess is the new Deputy Commissioner of Revenue & Legal Counsel in Arlington. Prior to joining the Arlington Commissioner of Revenue’s Office, Bill worked for several years as a civil rights litigator for a nonprofit organization and, before that, worked in municipal finance in the D.C. office of Hawkins, Delafield & Wood from 2001 to 2010. Bill can be reached at wburgess@arlingtonva.us.  

In June 2018, Kelsey K. Swieringa began serving as Assistant City Attorney in Portsmouth. A 2015 graduate of William and Mary Law School, Kelsey spent the past two years at a trust and estates law firm and, during law school, externed at the NASA Langley Office of Chief Counsel. Kelsey can be reached at swieringak@portsmouthva.gov

In June 2018, Brendette M. Walker began serving as Assistant City Attorney in Portsmouth. Prior to joining the City Attorney’s office, and after earning her J.D. at Western Michigan University, Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Brendette worked for the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission as an Assistant Public Defender in Danville. In the Fall of 2016, Brendette served as a full-time intern with the Office of the City Attorney in Suffolk, during which time she received the LGA 2016 Fall Conference Law Fellow Scholarship. Prior to law school, Brendette attended the Robertson School of Government at Regent University where she earned an M.A. in Government and Norfolk State University where she earned a B.A. in Political Science. Brendette can be reached at brendette.walker@  portsmouthva.gov

Ryan C. Samuel, previously with the City of Chesapeake, is now an Assistant County Attorney in Arlington. Ryan can be reached at rsamuel@arlingtonva.us

William E. Moore is a new Senior Assistant City Attorney in Hampton. Bill can be reached at william.moore@hampton.gov.

Event Date: 
Tuesday, July 10, 2018