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Elected Member

Beth
J.
Kushner

Location
Milwaukee, WI, USA
Affiliation
Von Briesen & Roper, S.C.
Education
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, B.A.
University of Virginia School of Law, J.D.

Beth Kushner is a Shareholder in the Litigation and Risk Management Practice Group and chair of the Appellate Section of vonBriesen & Roper, S.C.She specializes in complex litigation and has successfully handled a broad range of business and commercial disputes, shareholder disputes, construction matters, antitrust disputes, class actions of all sorts, fraud and RICO cases, employment cases and product liability claims. She has a particular expertise in cases that involve high exposure and difficult facts, and her clients appreciate her creative, pragmatic, and cost-effective approach to litigation. She has a demonstrated ability to devise and implement winning strategies and to do so without losing sight of cost, business disruption, or public relations. In addition, Beth regularly represents clients in mediations and arbitrations, as well as acts as a neutral, and is a member of the Wisconsin Association of Mediators. She enjoys the respect of lawyers and judges in Wisconsin and around the country.

Beth is a Senior Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, an invitation-only society of trial lawyers comprised of less than 1/2 of 1% of American lawyers. Selection for membership is based upon effectiveness and accomplishment in litigation and trial work, along with ethical reputation. She is a Fellow of both the Wisconsin Law Foundation and the American Bar Foundation.

Beth has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America® since 2007, in Wisconsin Super Lawyers® since 2005 and has been repeatedly selected as one of their Top 25 Women Lawyers. She is one of only two Wisconsin attorneys in Benchmark Litigation’s “Top 250 Women in Litigation” and is AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell®. In 2007, she was profiled as one of the Wisconsin Law Journal’s “Women in the Law.” In 2014, Wisconsin’s two United States senators nominated Beth to President Barack Obama as a federal district court judge.

Beth has maintained an active pro bono practice and is committed to providing legal services to indigent and other underserved clients. In 1997, she received the Gene and Ruth Posner Pro Bono award for assisting Russian and Eastern European immigrants. In 2002, she received the Association of Women Lawyers’ Mentoring Award. She is the firm’s pro bono liaison for the Eastern and Western Districts of Wisconsin.

Beth also has volunteered extensively with brain trauma, dementia, and hospice patients. Between 2006 and 2009, she served on the Board of Directors of Meta House, an organization that assists women with substance abuse issues and their children.

Areas of Expertise
General Practice
Antitrust Law
Appellate Practice & Procedure (Litigation)
Commercial Law
Class Actions (Complex Litigation)
Employment Law
Products Liability (Tort Law)

Member News

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Traynor on Liberty, Law, and Democracy

In his essay "Liberty, Law, and Democracy: Are There Grounds for Realistic Optimism?" Michael Traynor, former President of The American Law Institute, reflects on the challenges facing American democracy amid political polarization and institutional strain. He examines threats to the balance between liberty and law, citing dysfunction across the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, while drawing on historical context and recent scholarship to frame these concerns.

Despite his sober assessment, Traynor maintains a guarded optimism rooted in America’s resilience, civic traditions, and individual potential to effect change. He highlights positive actions within the legal community, nonprofit organizations, and among engaged citizens, while outlining five practical steps Americans can take to strengthen democracy: improving civic education, demanding accountability, fostering open debate, participating in elections and local governance, and resisting simplistic solutions.

Traynor concludes that democracy is “stubborn work,” incremental, imperfect, and ongoing, but expresses confidence that Americans have the resolve to preserve it.

Read the full article The New Nationalist. 

Michael Traynor is senior counsel at Cobalt LLP in Berkeley California. He served as ALI President from 2000 to 2008, and as Chair of the Council from 2008 to 2011. He is also a recipient of ALI's Distinguished Service Award. Mr. Traynor is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, the California Academy of Appellate Lawyers, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.   He received the John P. Frank Outstanding Lawyer Award from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He is an honorary life trustee of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and of Earthjustice and a past President (1973) of the Bar Association of San Francisco. 

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