Hinman Straub Announces Addition of Six Professionals

Albany, NY – Hinman Straub is pleased to welcome six professionals to its team of attorneys and policy experts. Matthew Leonardo, David Morgen, Jana Lee Pruitt, Wendy Saunders, Kerri Tily and Benjamin Wilkinson have joined the firm.

Mr. Leonardo is a member of the firm’s Government Relations and Health departments.

Prior to joining the firm, he worked at the Department of Health, where he was Counsel for Health Care Financing.

Prior to joining the Department of Health, Mr. Leonardo worked as an Assistant Counsel in the Legislative Bill Drafting Commission. He is a native of Albany, NY and graduated from Union College and Albany Law School.

Mr. Morgen is a member of the firm’s Litigation and Employment and Labor teams.

Prior to joining the firm, David Morgen was a Senior Court Attorney at the New York State Court of Appeals, where he assisted the Hon. Michael J. Garcia in his transition to the bench.

Before clerking at the Court of Appeals, Mr. Morgen worked for several years at the Charlotte, N.C., office of a large international law firm where he focused primarily on commercial litigation. He previously served as the Managing Editor of the Wake Forest Law Review.

Ms. Pruitt serves as Of Counsel to the firm’s Insurance Department. Prior to joining Hinman Straub, she was Executive Vice President of the Life Insurance Council of New York, Inc. She also has worked for the American Council of Life Insurers, ULLICO, Inc. and Transamerica Occidental Life Insurance Company.

Ms. Pruitt is a past member of the Board of Governors of the Association of Life Insurance Counsel and chairs the ALIC Distinguished Service Award Committee. She also holds the Chartered Life Underwriter and Chartered Financial Consultant designations from The American College in Bryn Mawr, Pa.

Ms. Saunders is a member of the firm’s Public Policy and Government Relations Department, specializing in health care policy and advocacy. Previously she worked for the City of New York’s public health care system, New York City Health + Hospitals (HHC), where she was responsible for the agency’s activities in Albany.

Ms. Saunders also served as Acting Director of the New York City Mayor’s Office of Legislative Affairs. She joins the firm with more than 20 years of experience working with state government, serving in both legislative and executive branches.

Ms. Tily is a member of the firm’s Health Law Department, focusing on representing long term care providers. She has developed an extensive knowledge in the area of assisted living licensure and compliance.

Ms. Tily is a 2015 graduate of Albany Law School. She has a BA in English from the University at Albany. While in law school, she served as a teaching assistant for a number of courses and as a Dean Sponsler Honors Teaching Fellow and was a member of the law school’s Tax and Transactions Clinic and the Albany Law Review.

Prior to attending law school, Ms. Tily was employed as a paralegal in the firm’s Health Law Department.

Mr. Wilkinson is a member of the firm’s litigation and employment department represents clients in addressing issues that arise in and out of the workplace and in litigation matters.

Mr. Wilkinson was previously employed at a downstate law firm as a litigation associate concentrating his practice in employment law, creditors’ rights and collection, and general civil litigation in state and federal courts.

He has represented clients in administrative matters before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and NYS Division of Human Rights (NYSDHR) and Federal and state courts regarding claims of alleged unlawful employment actions or decisions based on an individual’s protected classification such as age, sex, race, religion, national origin, disability, or the need to obtain sick or family leave time.