Detroit’s Howard & Howard Names Four New Shareholders

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Top - Richard Cantor, Dane Lepole; Bottom - Dennis Merkley, Marcus Smetka // Courtesy of Howard & Howard
Top – Richard Cantor, Dane Lepola; Bottom – Dennis Merkley, Marcus Smetka // Courtesy of Howard & Howard

Howard & Howard, a full-service law firm with a national reach in Royal Oak, has named four new shareholders: Richard Cantor, Dane Lepola, Dennis Merkley, and Marcus Smetka.

“We have great corporate, commercial litigation, and intellectual property practices here,” says Jon Kreucher, president and CEO of the firm. “These attorneys represent some of our great up-and-coming talent in these practice areas.”

Cantor is a member of the firm’s intellectual property group, practicing out of the Royal Oak office. His practice focuses on assisting clients to protect, develop, and capitalize on their technology and other intellectual property assets. He has extensive experience preparing and prosecuting U.S. and international patent applications in the electrical, computer, and software arts. He has a deep understanding of technologies in an array of industries including medical devices, automotive, and telecommunications.

Lepola practices with the firm’s litigation group out of the Royal Oak Office. He represents clients in state and federal courts in a variety of business disputes and insurance coverage matters. His client base primarily focuses in the automotive, travel, and construction and development industries.

Merkley is a member of the firm’s business and corporate group, practicing out of the Peoria, Ill. office. He focuses his practice on advising banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions on regulatory and corporate governance matters. In addition, he advises businesses as outside general counsel as well as on mergers and acquisitions and commercial real estate transactions.

Smetka is a member of the firm’s intellectual property group, practicing out of the Royal Oak office. His practice focuses on advising individuals and/or businesses in intellectual property matters primarily in the mechanical and electromechanical technology spaces. He has extensive experience preparing and prosecuting U.S. and International patent applications in the technology areas of automotive, agriculture implements, home appliances, and medical devices.