Attorney and Staff Profiles
Email: rdavids@davids-cohen.com
Ronald M. Davids is a founding partner of the firm. He received his undergraduate degree from Colby College in 1978 and his law degree from Boston University in 1981. He is admitted to the bar in the states of Massachusetts, Maine and Florida. He is also certified as a Mediator in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts having successfully completed an intensive training program sponsored by JAMS/Endispute. Prior to founding the firm, Mr. Davids was a shareholder in a larger Boston firm, Campbell, Campbell and Edwards, representing parties in civil matters from 1983 until 1998.
In 1986, Mr. Davids argued the first social host liability case in Massachusetts to the Supreme Judicial Court. He has also argued cases in both the First Circuit Court of Appeals and the Massachusetts Appeals Court. Mr. Davids has tried several cases in the state and federal courts of Massachusetts and elsewhere. He co-authored a chapter on "The Intoxicated Driver" in the Matthew Bender treatise on Automobile Accident Law and Practice, an article regarding exclusivity provisions in commercial leases for the Retail Law Strategist and assisted in preparing the City of Boston's "Drug Prevention Manual." Mr. Davids twice served on the faculty of the Cambridge Institute teaching a seminar entitled "The Rules of Evidence Under Massachusetts Law" and has lectured extensively on the issue of liquor liability. He also served on a national panel in New York sponsored by the Practicing Law Institute regarding "Case Handling Techniques" and led a roundtable session at the International Conference of Shopping Centers annual convention. He has lectured on case handling and trial techniques for the Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education board and has been on the faculty for its Depositions Workshop. He served for several years as an appointed member of the Ethics Committee of the Boston Bar Association and as a Sustaining Member of the Product Liability Advisory Counsel, a national group of manufacturers, academics and appointed counsel. He was awarded Martindale-Hubbell's highest AV rating based on its peer review process several years ago and has maintained that distinction ever since. Since 2005, Mr. Davids has been named annually by Boston Magazine as a "Super Lawyer" in Massachusetts, a distinction afforded the top 5% of attorneys in the state based on a survey of Massachusetts attorneys.
Mr. Davids is an elected member of both the American Board of Trial Advocates ("ABOTA"), a national society of attorneys that have tried at least twenty jury trials to verdict, as well as the Council on Litigation Management ("CLM"), an alliance of insurers, service providers and attorneys. Mr. Davids sits on the Board of Directors of Greater Boston Legal Services and served as a member of its Executive Committee for three years. He is a member of the Boston Bar Association, where he is a former Co-Chair of its Business Litigation Section and member of the Steering Committee; the American Bar Association; the Florida Bar Association; and the Maine Bar Association. Mr. Davids is also a member of the Risk and Insurance Management Society ("RIMS"), an association of risk management professionals.
Mr. Davids has represented a wide variety of individuals and companies throughout the country including major commercial real estate developers, product manufacturers, internet startups and insurance companies. Mr. Davids concentrates his litigation practice on business and tort matters such as corporate and partnership disputes, trade secret protection, products and premises liability suits, construction and employment disputes, commercial contract claims, insurance coverage issues and general negligence matters. He has also represented numerous individuals and companies in negotiating contracts and providing counsel on general business matters. Mr. Davids is also frequently asked to serve as a Mediator to assist parties in resolving business, commercial, employment, real estate and personal injury disputes.
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Email: acohen@davids-cohen.com
Adam G. Cohen is a partner at the firm. He received his undergraduate degree from Clark University (B.A., Business Management, cum laude, 1988) and earned his law degree from Suffolk University Law School (J.D. 1991). His practice focuses in the areas of property and casualty insurance claims, insurance coverage issues, business and commercial disputes, premises liability, products liability and surety/construction matters. He represents commercial entities, insurers and their insureds, and self-insureds. Mr. Cohen has extensive trial, arbitration, and appellate experience with an emphasis on first- and third-party insurance defense matters. Prior to joining Davids & Cohen, Mr. Cohen was a partner at Cetrulo & Capone LLP, where he had practiced since 1996.
Mr. Cohen is admitted to the state and federal bars of both Massachusetts and New Hampshire. He has lectured at a Boston Bar Association Symposium on reinsurance issues, an MCLE seminar entitled the Mold Muddle, and at a trucking industry seminar on safety issues. He recently authored a chapter on all facets of statutory interest for an MCLE book entitled Damages in Massachusetts Litigation, as well as a chapter pertaining to preparation of a case from the defendant’s perspective for an upcoming MCLE publication. He co-authored an article entitled Subrogation Actions Against Other Financial Institutions for a Defense Research Institute Monograph. He was also named a Rising Star in both the May 2005 and May 2006 Super Lawyers editions of Boston Magazine, which recognizes the top 2.5% of all lawyers in Massachusetts under the age of 40. Mr. Cohen is a member of the Boston Association of Claims Executives and sits on the Advisory Board of Pitching In For Kids, a Boston-based charitable organization.
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Email: avesely@davids-cohen.com
Amy J. Vesely has been with the firm since its inception. Before joining the firm, Ms. Vesely was an associate at Campbell, Campbell & Edwards in Charlestown, Massachusetts where she worked since her graduation from New England School of Law in 1986. She received her bachelor's degree at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York. During most of her 12 years at Campbell, Campbell & Edwards, Ms. Vesely's main area of practice was civil litigation, focusing on products liability, personal injury, commercial contract litigation and landlord-tenant law. She also represented a national insurer in all of their ERISA litigation filed in Massachusetts.
Ms. Vesely handles commercial litigation matters for the firm on behalf of real estate management companies, developers and landlords. These matters involve collections, evictions and other aspects of Summary Process actions. Ms. Vesely has developed a strong expertise in this area, having handled over one hundred commercial matters. She has considerable experience in all aspects of commercial landlord-tenant litigation, from pre and post-suit settlement negotiations to Summary Process Trials and post-judgment collections. She is knowledgeable with all aspects of practice and procedure in both the state and federal courts of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the State of New Hampshire.
Ms. Vesely is licensed to practice before the Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Federal bars. She is a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association and the Commercial Law League of America.
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Email: talessandro@davids-cohen.com
Todd C. Alessandro is an associate at the firm. He received his undergraduate degree from Rhode Island College (B.A., Philosophy, cum laude, 1997) and earned his law degree from the Pennsylvania State University, Dickinson School of Law (J.D. 2000). Mr. Alessandro is admitted to the state and federal bars of Massachusetts His practice focuses in the areas of property and casualty insurance claims, insurance coverage issues, business law and personal injury law. He represents commercial entities, insurers and their insureds, and self-insureds. He has also represented plaintiffs in pharmaceutical products liability actions.
Immediately after graduating from law school, Mr. Alessandro was selected as a law clerk for the Rhode Island Supreme Court where he worked for approximately two years. Prior to joining Davids & Cohen, P.C., Mr. Alessandro was an associate for five years with Fuller, Rosenberg, Palmer & Beliveau, LLP in Worcester, Massachusetts.
Mr. Alessandro has extensive trial, arbitration and mediation experience. Mr. Alessandro was recognized by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly as having been one of a two member legal team representing a plaintiff in one of the top ten plaintiff's verdict in 2003.
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Email: lsullivan@davids-cohen.com
Lana Sullivan began working at the firm in 2010. Ms. Sullivan graduated from Brown University with honors in 1996 and received her law degree, with honors, from the University of Connecticut in 1999. She is licensed to practice in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York.
She is an experienced litigator who came to the firm after several years at a larger firm in New Haven, Connecticut. She presently concentrates her practice on employment and labor matters as well as commercial, business and tort disputes.
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Email:hhershman@davids-cohen.com
Hilary Hershman graduated from Brown University in 1980 and received her law degree in 1986 from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she was an Editor of the Law Review and won the P. Pemberton Morris Prize for the highest grades in evidence, pleading and practice. After law school, she clerked for the late Hon. John J. McNaught in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. She is licensed to practice in Massachusetts and has appeared in both the federal and state courts.
Hilary joined Davids & Cohen in 2011 after many years in both the private sector, primarily at Esdaile, Barrett & Esdaile, and in the public sector, where she served as an Assistant Attorney General in the Insurance & Financial Services Division of the Public Protection Bureau. Hilary has extensive experience in civil litigation, including a variety of claims involving catastrophic injury. wrongful death, automotive negligence, premises liability, medical malpractice, and products liability. She has also handled many matters concerning insurance law and regulation, including insurance coverage issues, and business disputes. While at the Attorney General's Office, she investigated violations of Massachusetts insurance laws, represented the Office in the private passenger automobile insurance rate-setting proceedings, drafted legislation and regulations, and testified at agency hearings. She co-authored the Attorney General's amicus briefs in two important Supreme Judicial Court cases regarding ex parte contact with employees of an organization represented by counsel and has written and presented on a number of legal topics, including the warranty of habitability and landlord liability, social host liability, and the use of requests for admissions as an effective litigation tool.
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Email:tfrawley@davids-cohen.com
Timothy P. Frawley joined the firm in 2011. Tim is seasoned litigator who represents a variety of companies and insurers in matters involving professional liability, general liability and construction law. His practice includes advising and representing clients on commercial and business disputes, as well as various employment matters. He has represented clients at all phases of litigation, including arbitrations, mediations, trials and appeals, with his practice taking him to state and federal courts throughout the country.
Tim earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Siena College in 1995 and received his law degree from Roger Williams University in 1999. During law school, Tim served a judicial clerk for the Honorable Jacob Hagopian, Magistrate Judge for the United States District Court of Rhode Island. He was also a member of the Roger Williams Moot Court Honor Society and selected as a member its national team. Prior to joining Davids & Cohen, Tim was a partner with Melick, Porter & Shea and an associate with Adler, Pollock & Sheehan. He is admitted to the state and federal courts of both Massachusetts and Connecticut, the United States Bankruptcy Court for Massachusetts, the First Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. He was named a Rising Star in the Super Lawyers Edition of Boston Magazine in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008. Tim was also selected as an Outstanding Young Lawyer for New England Super Lawyers and recognized as one of the State's Outstanding Young Lawyers in Boston Magazine for 2009. Tim is a member of DRI and the Massachusetts Bar Association.
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Email: tkrechevsky@davids-cohen.com
Tracy joined the firm in 2006 and after several years as a legal secretary/receptionist now provides legal support for the firm's attorneys as a paralegal. Tracy is a graduate of the University of Richmond.
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Email: psantangelo@davids-cohen.com
Paula is the firm's office administrator. She has been at the firm since its inception. Paula handles many of the firm's business issues and is responsible for all accounting, personnel and administrative matters.
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Email: koreilly@davids-cohen.com
Kenna manages the legal support needs of the firm. She has been at Davids & Cohen since 1999. Kenna offers frontline support for the firm's clients as a receptionist and backend support for the attorneys as a legal secretary.
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Email: dherbert@davids-cohen.com
Deb supports the firm as a legal secretary. She has a degree in Legal Secretary Studies. Deb joined the firm in 2011 after several years at other law firms and brings to the firm a wealth of experience in not only secretarial skills but also in administrative and computer proficiency as well.
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