Anton Levchik has joined Seward & Kissel LLP as Chief Financial Officer.
Mr. Levchik is an experienced leader with an extensive track record of financial operations and advisory capabilities within legal and professional services firms.
Before joining Seward & Kissel LLP, Mr. Levchik was the CFO at Foley Hoag LLP in New York, New York. Mr. Levchik received a Master of Business Administration from New York University Stern School of Business and a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Fordham University.
This search was conducted and completed by Managing Director Jean Lenzner and Director Bill Lepiesza.
Seward & Kissel LLP, founded in 1890, is a leading US law firm with an international reputation for excellence. With approximately 170 attorneys across offices in New York City and Washington DC, the firm’s practice primarily focuses on corporate and litigation work for clients seeking legal expertise in the financial services, corporate finance, and capital markets.
The firm is well known for its representation of central commercial banks, investment banking firms; investment advisors and related investment funds (including mutual, hedge, and private equity funds); broker-dealers; institutional investors; and maritime and transportation companies. The firm’s award-winning attorneys are highly regarded in their respective practice areas, and many have been with the firm for most, if not all, of their legal careers.
The firm’s focus and expertise, combined with its stability, have enabled it to create a work culture that is dedicated to professional excellence and sound judgment and that is committed to providing its clients with effective, high-quality, hands-on legal service.
Susan van Vollenhoven has joined Pierce Atwood LLP as Director of Human Resources. Ms. Van Vollenhoven has an extensive leadership background in human resources including employee relations, performance management and compensation and benefits. Before joining Pierce Atwood, Ms. Van Vollenhoven was Director of Human Resources & Operations at Sullivan & Worcester LLP. Ms. Van Vollenhoven earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and an MBA from Questrom School of Business, Boston University.
Before joining Pierce Atwood, Ms. Van Vollenhoven was Director of Human Resources & Operations at Sullivan & Worcester LLP. Ms. Van Vollenhoven earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and an MBA from Questrom School of Business, Boston University.
This search was conducted and completed by Managing Director John Mann and Senior Associate Mike Doering.
Pierce Atwood LLP is a leading New England full-service law firm with 150 attorneys. This nationally and internationally recognized firm is known for its expertise in complex and class action litigation, energy production and distribution, midmarket mergers and acquisitions, information security and technology, commercial real estate development, and complex construction projects. Established in 1891, Pierce Atwood’s clients range from regional and local enterprises, utilities, financiers, middle-market companies, entrepreneurs and individuals to Fortune 500 companies, multinational corporations, and foreign governments.
Jennifer Porto has been named Chief Operating Officer at Stokes Lawrence.
Ms. Porto is a proven senior leader in law firm management, strategic operations, and business development with a successful track record in increasing revenue, improving processes, developing business, and bringing practice group and firm strategic goals to fruition.
“Jen is a seasoned legal professional with expertise in law firm management, known for her ability to optimize business operations, drive strategic initiatives, and drive revenue growth,” said John Mann, Managing Director ofThe Alexander Group.
Founded in 1981, Stokes Lawrence is a leading full-service law firm with 52 attorneys in Seattle and Yakima, Washington offices. The firm provides tailored legal services to individuals, entrepreneurs, small businesses, and Fortune 100 companies in commercial litigation, business transactions, American Indian law, aviation, employment, trust and estates, financial services, intellectual property, nonprofits, agriculture, and real estate law.
The firm’s respect for people—clients and employees alike—and its lasting relationships distinguish Stokes Lawrence from other law firms. The firm has fostered long-lasting relationships with many of its clients, including many businesses it has represented for decades.
Martina Owens has joined Milbank LLP as Chief Administrative Officer.
Ms. Owens is an innovative administrative and operations executive with strong facilities, real estate, and staff management experience.
Brian Sakala has joined Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP as Chief Financial Officer.
Mr. Sakala is a highly regarded accounting and finance executive with a proven track record of delivering client value by leveraging key technologies, providing financial analyses and creating efficiencies.
Wendela von Munching has joined Clifford Chance as Chief People Officer.
Ms. von Munching has more than 25 years of strategic and operational human resources leadership experience with major multinational firms. Previously, she served as the worldwide Chief People Officer for Freshfields.
White & Case LLP — one of the world’s leading international law firms — partners with The Alexander Group, a global executive search firm, to recruit a Chief Marketing Officer. As the firm continues its global expansion, it seeks a marketing leader capable of strengthening its brand and driving firmwide growth through client engagement, data, and creativity.
Key Leadership Need
White & Case seeks a Chief Marketing Officer to oversee global marketing strategy, brand positioning, client development, communications, and marketing operations. The role requires a dynamic leader who can unify complex marketing functions across international offices while elevating the firm’s market presence and client experience.
The Alexander Group’s Approach
The search team — led by John Lamar, William Lepiesza, and Pam DeLuca — focuses on senior marketing executives with extensive experience building and scaling integrated marketing organizations across global professional services or financial institutions.
Search priorities included:
Strategic leadership in global brand development and campaign execution
Expertise in marketing transformation, team building, and digital enablement
Deep understanding of client-centric marketing in complex, B2B environments
Jason Hill emerges as the ideal candidate, bringing over 20 years of leadership in brand marketing and global media strategy at Goldman Sachs, GE, and BlackRock. His experience in unifying marketing functions across international markets and designing award-winning brand programs positions him as a transformative addition to White & Case’s leadership team.
Successful Placement and Impact
Jason Hill joins White & Case as Chief Marketing Officer. He leads the firm’s global marketing efforts, aligning brand, creative, communications, and business development teams under a unified growth strategy.
Immediate Impact:
Oversees global brand positioning and firm reputation strategy
Leads data-informed client development programs and marketing innovation
Builds a unified global marketing infrastructure across geographies and disciplines
Strengthens White & Case’s competitive positioning across global legal markets
Insights from the Recruiters
“Jason has been a key senior executive, driving revenue, market growth, and functional innovation with [the] leading multinational financial services and professional services firms.”
– John Lamar, Managing Director, The Alexander Group
About White & Case LLP
White & Case LLP is a global law firm with lawyers in 30 countries. Recognized for its strength in cross-border legal work, the firm serves clients across various sectors, including finance, technology, energy, and infrastructure. With a reputation for innovation, client service, and strategic advisory, White & Case is a leader in global legal services.
About The Alexander Group
The Alexander Group is a global executive search firm headquartered in Houston. With a reputation for precision and discretion, the firm helps law firms, financial institutions, and multinational organizations recruit senior leaders who drive brand growth and market expansion.
Brand matters — especially in global law. The Alexander Group helps firms find marketing leaders who bring clarity, creativity, and commercial growth.
Frost Brown Todd LLP appoints Truda Chow to lead strategic operations across its national platform.
Frost Brown Todd LLP, a full-service law firm with offices across the United States, partnered with The Alexander Group, a global executive search firm, to recruit a Chief Operating Officer. As the firm continued its strategic growth across key markets, it sought a proven operational leader to unify systems, elevate performance, and guide it through the next phase of scale.
Key Leadership Need
Frost Brown Todd sought a candidate with a global mindset and deep law firm operational experience. Their role required a leader able to manage firmwide strategy, optimize cross-office performance, and serve as a key advisor to executive leadership on infrastructure, client service delivery, and growth planning.
The Alexander Group’s Approach
Led by John C. Lamar and William V. Lepiesza, the search targeted operational leaders with experience across law firm management, consulting, and professional services. The focus was on candidates with cross-functional expertise and the ability to lead in complex, distributed organizations.
Search priorities included:
Proven success leading national or global operations at law or professional services firms.
Experience in legal process improvement, operational alignment, and firm scalability.
Strategic insight into business growth, M&A, and systems modernization.
Truda Chow emerged as the standout candidate, having served in COO roles at Clyde & Co and Michael Best and senior consulting roles at LawVision and Hildebrandt International. Her cross-industry background—from legal to global consulting to high-tech—gives her a unique lens on optimizing firm operations across borders and functions.
Successful Placement and Impact
Truda Chow will lead operational performance, firm integration, and strategic execution across a 14-office footprint. She will partner with firm leadership to drive scalable solutions in service delivery, infrastructure, and internal operations.
Immediate Impact:
Aligns firmwide operational strategy with business and client priorities.
Modernizes administrative systems and workflows for performance and efficiency.
Strengthens internal leadership collaboration across practice and business units.
Supports scalable infrastructure as the firm continues national expansion.
Insights from the Recruiters
“Truda is a highly accomplished, senior executive who has led significant growth, innovation, and business transformation for major law firms throughout her career.”
– William Lepiesza, Director, The Alexander Group.
About Frost Brown Todd LLP
Frost Brown Todd LLP is a full-service law firm with more than 575 attorneys across 14 offices nationwide. The firm serves clients in key industries including financial services, energy, technology, health care, and manufacturing. Known for a strong commitment to collaboration, client service, and forward-thinking legal solutions, the firm is consistently recognized as one of the top firms in the U.S.
About The Alexander Group
The Alexander Group is a global executive search firm based in Houston. With a strong track record of placing operational and strategic leaders across Am Law 200 firms and professional services organizations, the firm specializes in helping clients build the leadership infrastructure needed to grow and compete.
Operational clarity starts with executive alignment. The Alexander Group helps law firms find the leadership that powers performance.
The Alexander Group, a leading financial executive search firm, recently completed a successful placement for Lisinski Law. This effort highlights our expertise in sourcing top legal talent and matching it with leadership needs within law firms.
Key Points:
The Alexander Group demonstrates expertise as a top financial executive search firm.
Successful executive recruitment for a financial role at Lisinski Law by The Alexander Group.
Introduction of Jill Yutzy Coen at Lisinski Law as Vice President of Legal Operations.
Strategic Financial Executive Placement for Leadership Excellence
Jill Yutzy Coen has joined Lisinski Law as the newly created Vice President of Legal Operations. Ms. Coen is an experienced operational leader with a core skill set that includes regulatory expertise, compliance, risk management, litigation, and reporting. Before joining Lisinski, Ms. Coen was the Executive Director of Regulatory Operations at JPMorgan Chase & Co.
The Alexander Group’s expertise as a financial executive search firm has allowed us to understand the complexities of placing top-tier financial talent in leading roles. The Alexander Group worked closely with Lisinski Law to identify key competencies required for executive recruitment for a financial role. This ensured that Jill Yutzy Coen was an ideal fit for their firm’s strategic needs.
“Jill’s experience as a practicing attorney and an operations leader made her an ideal candidate for this role. As the assignment progressed, it became clear that there was a strong alignment in philosophy between Jill and the team at Lisinski, and we look forward to seeing the impact that Jill can have now that she has joined Angel and her team at Lisinski Law,” said Jonathan Verlander, Managing Director, The Alexander Group.
Established in the fall of 2020, Lisinski Law is a swiftly expanding immigration law firm that has already served over 15,000 clients and built a strong record of success in handling complex immigration cases. The firm’s dedicated attorneys bring extensive trial and immigration expertise and impeccable reputations to clients nationwide—often representing those turned away by other firms.
With a team of 700 professionals, Lisinski Law primarily assists clients in securing legal status through humanitarian-focused immigration cases, such as T-Visas for victims of human trafficking, U-Visas for crime victims, and VAWA relief under the Violence Against Women Act for survivors of abuse or extreme cruelty.
Financial Executive Search Firm Specializing in Legal Sector Leadership Placements
As a top financial executive recruiter, The Alexander Group takes pride in delivering outstanding recruitment services that meet the specific needs of the legal industry. Our track record with Lisinski Law is a testament to our commitment to excellence in executive placement for law firms.
We are dedicated to cultivating enduring partnerships with our law firm clients. This relationship affords us a profound understanding of each firm’s distinct culture and requirements, enabling us to employ innovative strategies that transcend conventional legal boundaries in order to secure the most suitable candidates.
This search was conducted and completed by Managing Directors John Mann and Jonathan Verlander. Read more about our expertise as a financial executive search firm.
Leading Midwest law firm, Ice Miller LLP, appoints Leslie Diorio to drive legal recruitment strategy and talent growth.
Client: Ice Miller LLP | Role: Director of Legal Recruitment | Candidate: Leslie Diorio
Ice Miller LLP, a full-service law firm with offices across the Midwest and East Coast, partnered with The Alexander Group, a global executive search firm, to recruit a Director of Legal Recruitment. As the firm continues to expand its national footprint and strengthen its practice groups, it needed a strategic leader to modernize lateral recruiting efforts, enhance attorney onboarding, and align talent acquisition with long-term business goals.
Key Leadership Need
Ice Miller sought a Director of Legal Recruitment with deep expertise in lateral hiring, attorney development, and market intelligence. The ideal candidate would bring leadership in full-cycle legal recruitment, the ability to drive DEI-focused hiring initiatives, and a strong understanding of aligning recruiting strategies with firm growth objectives.
The Alexander Group’s Approach
Managing Director John M. Mann and Associate Jonathan Daniels led a national search for legal recruiting leaders with experience in building scalable hiring programs and leading teams in law firm environments.
Search priorities included:
Expertise in lateral partner and associate recruitment
Ability to leverage market trends, competitive insights, and strategic sourcing methods
Strong leadership skills to oversee recruiting teams and align hiring with practice needs
Leslie Diorio emerged as the top candidate due to her extensive experience leading legal recruitment efforts at Axiom and Fish & Richardson, as well as her track record of aligning hiring initiatives with the firm’s strategic priorities.
Successful Placement and Impact
Leslie Diorio joined Ice Miller LLP as Director of Legal Recruitment. She brings over 15 years of experience overseeing attorney and lateral recruitment, developing scalable recruiting strategies, and building collaborative talent acquisition teams.
Immediate Impact:
Implemented enhanced recruiting processes to attract top-tier lateral partners and associates
Strengthened the integration of market intelligence into hiring strategies
Streamlined recruiting team operations and summer associate program management
Aligned hiring initiatives with Ice Miller’s strategic practice group expansion goals
About Ice Miller LLP
Ice Miller LLP is a full-service law firm founded in 1910, with offices across Chicago, Columbus, Indianapolis, Philadelphia, and other U.S. cities. The firm provides legal services to corporations, government entities, and nonprofits, and is recognized for its focus on innovation, collaboration, and client partnerships.
About The Alexander Group
The Alexander Group is an executive search firm in Houston. The firm serves industries including legal services, life sciences, healthcare, financial services, energy, technology, consumer goods, and nonprofit organizations, delivering strategic, results-driven leadership placements tailored to each client’s needs.
