People on the Move is a rundown of recent hirings, promotions, appointments and other notable movements by professionals in the state. If you’re interested in submitting an entry, please contact news@delawarebusinesstimes.com.
Richards, Layton & Finger announced Mark Collins and Bernie Kelley have been named to leadership positions within the firm. Collins is chair of Richards Layton’s Bankruptcy & Corporate Restructuring Department, and Kelley chairs the firm’s Business Department.
Recognized as a leading bankruptcy lawyer both in Delaware and throughout the U.S., Collins has decades of experience and has been involved in hundreds of significant bankruptcy cases in Delaware. He has served as counsel to many large troubled companies, secured creditors, debtor-in-possession lenders, creditors’ committees, boards of directors, special committees, and acquirers of businesses and assets in large corporate chapter 11 cases, pre-packaged chapter 11 cases, chapter 15 cases, and out-of-court restructurings. Collins previously served as chair of the firm’s Bankruptcy & Corporate Restructuring Department from 2000 to 2018. He is a frequent lecturer at national corporate restructuring and bankruptcy seminars.
Kelley leads the firm’s Limited Liability Company and Partnership Advisory Group. He is actively involved in a wide variety of transactional matters involving Delaware limited liability companies, general partnerships, limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, and statutory trusts. Kelley serves as chair of Alternative Entity Subcommittee of Corporate Council of the Delaware State Bar Association.
“We are very proud to name Mark and Bernie as department chairs,” Lisa Schmidt, president of Richards Layton said. “I know they will bring their extraordinary expertise and energy to delivering excellent counsel and the outstanding results our clients count on.”
Ashland appointed Omar Irani as vice president of strategy, mergers & acquisitions, and portfolio management.
Irani is an experienced business leader with a strong track record in strategy, profit improvement, and commercial excellence including organization design and product management, demand management and customer service. He has robust experience in regulatory negotiations, lobbying and crisis management.
Previously, he held leadership positions with the SI Group, National Refrigerants, Honeywell and ILC Dover in the rubber additives, life sciences and industrial chemicals markets.
Irani holds a Master of Business Administration in Finance and a Bachelor of Arts in Biological Sciences, both from Rutgers University.
Morris Nichols announced Elise Wolpert and James Mansfield have joined the firm’s Corporate & Commercial Litigation practice.
“We are delighted to welcome these two associate attorneys to our team,” Bill Lafferty, chair of Morris Nichols’ executive committee, said. “Their prior experience in complex commercial cases will be an asset to our corporate litigation group.”
Wolpert is an experienced trial attorney and appellate advocate. She started her legal career in Delaware focused on criminal defense cases. Having gained valuable courtroom experience, her work on complex commercial civil disputes has covered both jury and bench trials. He has substantial familiarity with the Delaware Superior Court’s Complex Commercial Litigation Division (CCLD), the Delaware Chancery Court, the Delaware Supreme Court, and other Delaware courts.
Before joining Morris Nichols, Elise worked in the corporate and commercial litigation department at another prominent Delaware law firm. While in law school, she clerked in the Delaware Office of Defense Services Appellate Division. He earned her JD from Widener University Delaware Law School in 2015, and her BA in Law and Society from the University of Delaware in 2012.
Mansfield focuses on complex commercial litigation matters. He started his legal career working at two prominent New York City law firms, where he concentrated on securities litigation and other commercial disputes. He graduated summa cum laude from Washington University School of Law in 2018. He earned his BA magna cum laude in political science from York College of Pennsylvania in 2014.
The Delaware Department of Agriculture named Mark Short the new Delaware Standardbred Breeders’ Fund (DESBF) administrator.
“Mark has been shadowing me for over 20 years,” DESBF Administrator Judy Davis-Wilson said. “He is the perfect person to serve as my replacement. He is knowledgeable about the industry and looks forward to helping everyone advance their Delaware breeding options.”
Short began working in the racing offices and Photo Finish at Dover Downs and Harrington Raceway in September 1996. He moved up to the assistant race secretary position before becoming the race secretary for Harrington Raceway in 2019 and Bally’s Dover for the 2023-2024 season. Short was the first person to cover both tracks in this role since 1996.
“I look forward to continuing the success that Judy Davis-Wilson has created since the Delaware Standardbred Breeders Fund was founded in 2001,” Short said.
Short grew up in harness racing, beginning with feeding, watering, and mucking stalls before moving on to jogging horses. Beginning in 1980, his family ran Short’s Produce and Stable, with five to six horses in their string at a time, which they raced in Delaware and Maryland.
Along with his role at the track, Short has served as the Rabies Coordinator for the Delaware Department of Agriculture.
Beebe Healthcare announced Victoria Savage, RN, has earned a prestigious DAISY Award and Teri Wilkinson, MSN, BSN, RN, CEN, has received the DAISY Nurse Leader Award.
Savage was honored after caring for a specific patient in the intensive care unit (ICU) who was very ill and had a lot of fears about the severity of her medical condition. The patient later wrote a note of gratitude, expressing that she felt blessed to have met Savage, and that her gentle touch, kind words, and bright smile brought comfort throughout her stay in the hospital.
“We shared a few personal stories which added that ‘human’ touch to my care,” the patient noted. “Having been in different hospitals over the past several years, I can honestly say that Victoria is a shining example for hospital nurses. I nominated her for the DAISY award because she truly goes above and beyond when working with her patients.”
Wilkinson, director for emergency services, was nominated by a fellow nurse who shared how Wilkinson inspires the team at Beebe.
“Having a leader that exhibits gratitude, kindness, compassion, authenticity, empathy, and inspiration keeps those employees coming back day after day, striving to make a difference in what we do,” the nominator wrote.
Wilkinson received the award in front of her peers during the annual nursing banquet celebration.
The Food Bank of Delaware announced two new board members: Mark Feinour, executive director of support services, Bank of America, and Dj Silicato, executive director of food and beverage services, Harrington Raceway and Casino.
The Food Bank of Delaware’s Board of Directors is composed of leaders from the business, community and nonprofit sectors. They are responsible for developing policies, procedures and regulations for the operation of the Food Bank of Delaware, generating finances/resources for the organization and monitoring its programs and performance.
