José de Jesus Rivera

Mr. Rivera joined the firm in 2001 as the resident partner in charge of our Phoenix office. Mr. Rivera served as United States Attorney, District of Arizona, for three years before joining the firm. As such, he was the chief federal law enforcement officer for the state and took a particular interest in civil rights, voting rights, and community outreach.

Admitted to the practice of law in 1976, he had broad experience as a federal prosecutor and in private practice before becoming United States Attorney. He was a member of the Board of Governors of the State Bar of Arizona from 1995 to 1998 and the Chair of the State Bar’s Appointments Committee from 1997 to 1998. A member of numerous civic and professional organizations, he has received a number of awards and commendations. He currently serves as counsel to the Independent Redistricting Commission.

Mr. Rivera’s practice areas are personal injury litigation, civil rights, redistricting and election law, and criminal defense. He is rated “AV” by Martindale-Hubbell. He is fluent in Spanish.

Patrick E. Broom

Mr. Broom received a business degree from Western Illinois University in 1979. From 1979 to 1984, he was a marketing representative in Illinois, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East for Caterpillar Tractor Company. He received a Law Degree and a Masters in Business Administration with Honors from Drake University in 1987. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Broom was a partner with the largest law firm in Arizona, where he defended large corporations in tort and commercial litigation. He has also worked in the area of medical malpractice litigation. Mr. Broom’s practice areas are personal injury, medical malpractice, commercial, and insurance bad faith litigation.

Mr. Broom has served as chairperson of the Automobile Law Committee, Co-Chair of National Continuing Legal Education programs, and has served on numerous other committees of the American Bar Association’s Trial, Tort and Insurance Practice Section. Mr. Broom was the 1990 Pro Bono Attorney of the year in Pima County. He is licensed in Arizona and Texas. He is rated “AV” by Martindale-Hubbell.

Kathryn B. Nelson

Ms. Nelson earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1988 from the University of Arizona and her law degree in 1991 from the University of Arizona College of Law. While in law school, Ms. Nelson was a member of the Arizona Law Review and served as an Executive Note Editor of the law review in 1990-1991.

Ms. Nelson was admitted to the Arizona Bar in 1991, and practiced real estate and commercial finance law at the Tucson office of Snell & Wilmer, L.L.P, from 1991-2002; and at Slutes, Sakrison & Hill, P.C., from 2002-2004. Ms. Nelson joined the firm in 2004. Her practice areas include real estate, commercial finance, and business transactions.

Ms. Nelson presently serves as a Board Member of the Arizona Community Legal Assistance Program. In 2001, she received the Top 50 Pro Bono Attorneys of Arizona Award from the Arizona Bar Foundation.

Peter T. Limperis

A native of Tucson, Mr. Limperis attended Rice University in Houston, Texas, for an undergraduate degree in psychology and a coherent minor in space physics and astronomy. In May of 1998, he graduated cum laude from the University of Arizona College of Law and was admitted to the Arizona Bar the same year. He served as Judicial Law Clerk to the Civil Presiding Judge of the Superior Court, Pima County, the Honorable Kenneth Lee, for two years before joining the firm.

Mr. Limperis’ areas of practice include personal injury, medical malpractice, products liability, and commercial law.

Karl R. Lautz

Mr. Lautz graduated from Northeastern University in 1988 magna cum laude and from the University of Arizona College of Law. He was admitted to the Arizona Bar in 1992. Mr. Lautz joined the firm in 2003. Before joining the firm, Mr. Lautz was with a plaintiff’s law firm in Tucson, where his practice emphasized medical malpractice, wrongful death, and other complex civil cases. Mr. Lautz has been the principal attorney in multiple jury trials. He is affiliated with the Association of Trial Lawyers of America and the Arizona Trial Lawyers Association. Mr. Lautz’ practice areas are medical malpractice, wrongful death, and complex civil cases.

Traci L. Riccitello

Ms. Riccitello was admitted to the Arizona Bar in 1996 after graduating cum laude from the University of Arizona College of Law where she was honored by the Order of the Coif and was an Ares Fellow. She joined the firm in 1999 after serving as law clerk to Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas A. Zlaket from 1997 to 1998 and to Arizona Supreme Court Justice Stanley G. Feldman from 1998 to 1999. She is presently a member of the Morris K. Udall Inn of Court, the Arizona Women Lawyers Association, and the Real Property section of the State Bar. Ms. Riccitello's practice areas are real estate and commercial transactions.

A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Ms. Riccitello attended Bowling Green State University where she received her bachelor's degree in marketing. She moved to Tucson in 1989 to obtain a masters degree in exercise physiology. Ms. Riccitello worked as an exercise physiologist at Canyon Ranch Fitness Resort before she entered law school. An avid runner, she competes in marathons and triathlons.

Rebecca Reed

Ms. Reed earned her undergraduate degree in Biology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; her M. Phil. in Biological Sciences from the University of Cambridge, UK; her Ph.D. in Botany from the University of Wyoming; and her law degree from the University of Arizona. During her years as an ecologist, Ms. Reed researched natural ecosystems through undergraduate and post-doctoral fellowships and published several scientific papers. While in law school, Ms. Reed was a staff writer and editor of the Arizona Law Review and served as legal counsel for dependent children as a participant in the Child Advocacy Clinic. A rural Arizona resident, Ms. Reed is active in the Sulphur Springs Valley community.

Ms. Reed successfully completed the Arizona bar examination and was admitted to the State Bar of Arizona in 2004. Her anticipated practice areas include personal injury, commercial litigation, and constitutional law.

Melissa L. English

Melissa English graduated magna cum laude in 2004 from the University of Arizona Rogers School of Law, where she was honored with the William T. Birmingham Trial Advocacy Award and the F. Britton Burns Moot Court Award for outstanding oral advocacy. Ms. English earned a Masters Degree in Political Science from the University of Georgia and comes to the law firm from a career as a market research consultant for Fortune 500 consumer packaged good companies. Ms. English's practice areas include personal injury, insurance, and commercial litigation.

Robert E. Pastor

A native Arizonan, Mr. Pastor earned his undergraduate degree in psychology from Boston College in 1997. Before law school he joined the Americorp Volunteer Program where he served indigent clients at a nonprofit civil rights advocacy center. Mr. Pastor graduated from the College of Law at Arizona State University in 2002 and was admitted to practice law that same year. Before joining the firm Mr. Pastor served as a Deputy Maricopa County Attorney where he prosecuted child abuse and domestic violence crimes.

Mr. Pastor is an associate in the Phoenix office where his practice areas include wrongful death, personal injury, medical malpractice, insurance bad faith, and civil rights. Mr. Pastor is fluent in Spanish.