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Miller, Miller & Canby Announces Eight Attorneys Named as 2025 Super Lawyers in the State of Maryland

Posted January 7, 2025 at 12:41 PM

Eminent Domain and Condemnation, Employment Law, Land Development, Litigation, MM&C Happenings, News & Events, Press, Real Estate

Miller, Miller & Canby is pleased to announce our attorneys who have been named to the list of Super Lawyers in the state of Maryland for 2025. Attorneys Donna McBride, Joseph (Joe) Suntum, Michael Campbell, Diane Feuerherd and Scott Mirsky have been selected for this honor. Additionally, Lisa Blitstein, Elizabeth Sockwell and Michelle (Shelly) Vallone have been selected to the “Rising Stars” list, recognizing attorneys who have been in practice less than ten years.

Donna McBride is a partner in Miller, Miller & Canby’s litigation department, where she focuses on complex business matters for corporate clients, as well as insurance-related litigation and trust litigation. In 2023, she was appointed by Governor Wes Moore to her third four-year term on the Judicial Nominating Commission. Also in 2023, the Maryland Supreme Court appointed her to the Attorney Grievance Commission, where she continues to serve. She is a member of, and former co-chair of, the Maryland State Bar Association’s Judicial Selections Committee and a former President, and current member, of the Montgomery County Inn of Court. In 2023, she was recognized as Litigator of the Year by the Litigation Section of the Maryland State Bar Association. She is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, a preeminent organization of trial lawyers in North America whose membership is limited to 1% of the total lawyer population of any state or province.

Joe Suntum is partner in the firm and serves as the firm’s eminent domain and condemnation practice group Leader. His decades of trial experience and his in-depth knowledge of real property valuation and the law of eminent domain allow him to protect his clients’ property rights and maximize their compensation when their properties are targeted for condemnation. He is the Owners’ Counsel of America member attorney for the State of Maryland and Chair of the Owners Counsel Board of Directors. The Owners’ Counsel of America (OCA) is a national network of experienced condemnation attorneys who represent property owners against federal, state and local governments. Membership in the OCA is selective and restricted to one member attorney per state. In addition to eminent domain cases, he accepts select commercial litigation matters requiring advanced strategic and trial skills.

Michael Campbell is the managing partner at Miller, Miller & Canby.  He focuses his practice primarily on disputes involving real estate, construction projects and commercial leases in state and federal courts in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia, and before arbitrators. Now in his third decade at the firm, he has tried more than 100 cases before judges, juries and arbitrators. He has resolved many other cases through mediation and private resolution with opposing counsel. He has also developed an expertise in property tax appeals for commercial and high-value residential properties in Maryland. He has volunteered for many civic and legal organizations over the course of his career, including the Bar Association of Montgomery County, Aspire Counseling (Board Member), the Montgomery County Inn of Court (former Treasurer and President), and the West Point Parents Club of Maryland, DC and Virginia.

Diane Feuerherd chairs the litigation practice at Miller, Miller & Canby. She is an appellate and trial attorney, focusing on business, estate, real estate and eminent domain litigation in the Maryland state and federal courts. Outside of the courtroom, she has remained dedicated to serving and improving the legal profession, at the local, state and national level, for the benefit of attorneys and the community. In 2023, Governor Wes Moore appointed her to the Appellate Courts Judicial Nominating Commission for the State of Maryland. She also holds leadership positions in the Maryland Bar Foundation, the Bar Association for Montgomery County and the Montgomery County Inns of Court. In addition, she is active in the Owners’ Counsel of America, a national network of experienced eminent domain attorneys who represent property owners. Known throughout Maryland for her appellate work, she serves as a contributing editor for the Maryland State Bar Association’s Maryland Appellate Blog and is a contributing author to the treatise Appellate Practice for the Maryland Lawyer: State and Federal.

Scott Mirsky is a principal in Miller, Miller & Canby’s employment law and employment litigation practice, focusing on advising and litigating construction, business, and employment disputes. He has more than 20 years of experience representing individuals and businesses in diverse civil matters throughout the Washington, DC region.  His experience includes handling non-compete and trade secret disagreements, employment claims, issues concerning independent contractors, complex construction issues, wage and overtime disputes under the FLSA and state law, and breach of contract claims. He is a frequent speaker on employment law matters and is often quoted in press coverage of employment-related workplace issues.

Lisa Blitstein is an associate in the litigation practice at Miller, Miller & Canby, focusing on litigation in land use, zoning, eminent domain, real estate and business. She joined the firm after completing an appellate clerkship with the Honorable Kathryn G. Graeff of the Appellate Court of Maryland, and formerly served as a federal legal extern in the Office of General Counsel for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). She joined the section council for the MSBA Environment and Energy Section, and she presented on recent developments in Environmental and Energy Law at the 2024 MSBA Legal Summit in Ocean City, Maryland.  

Elizabeth Sockwell is an associate in the firm’s litigation practice, focusing in business and commercial litigation, real estate litigation, construction litigation, and eminent domain and condemnation. Her experience includes legal externships with the Virginia Office of the Attorney General (Environmental Division), the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, and the Legal Aid Society of Eastern Virginia. She also worked as a research assistant for the Virginia Coastal Policy Center, where she conducted legal research pertaining to environmental laws and policy.

Shelly Vallone is an associate in the firm, focusing her practice on real estate litigation, eminent domain and condemnation and land use and zoning. While in law school at William & Mary, Shelly worked at several law firms as a legal intern prior to joining Miller, Miller & Canby, developing skills in a variety of land use and property matters, including land use entitlements, zonings, and rezonings, special use permits, and special exceptions. She also worked with real estate transactional teams on real estate contracts and documents, such as reciprocal easement agreements and condominium bylaws.

Each year, Super Lawyers recognizes the top lawyers in Maryland and across the country. Its selection process, patented by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, is a comprehensive multiphase process that involves independent research, as well as peer nomination and review/evaluation. The objective is to create a comprehensive listing of exceptional attorneys who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement, to be used as a resource for both referring attorneys and consumers seeking legal counsel. Attorneys are selected from more than 70 practice areas and a variety of firm sizes, but are limited to no more than 5% of attorneys practicing in any given region (2.5% for Rising Stars). The lists are published annually in leading city and regional magazines and newspapers nationwide.

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About Miller, Miller & Canby
For more than 75 years, Miller, Miller & Canby has served the legal needs of metropolitan Washington, DC. As one of the oldest law firms in Montgomery County, MD, the firm recognizes that this milestone reflects the relationships built and maintained with our clients, friends and the business community, many spanning multiple generations. The firm maintains its focus on its core areas of practice: Land Use & Zoning, Real Estate, Litigation, Eminent Domain, Business & Tax, Employment and Estates and Trusts Law. The firm’s size allows its attorneys to maintain close contact with clients and have the opportunity to develop and foster trusted, lasting relationships. In all of our practice areas, our commitment to quality work and efficiency assures clients that we strive for true value in legal representation. Miller, Miller & Canby is proud to have maintained this standard of service since the firm’s founding in 1946. For more information about our practice areas, click here.

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