Donovan & O'Connor Adding Dodig to its Name
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Berkshire County's oldest and largest law firm, Donovan & O'Connor is changing its name to Donovan O'Connor & Dodig as of July 15.
The addition of Chris S. Dodig's name marks the first name change for the well-known law firm since 1954, when J. Norman O'Connor Sr. joined Walter Donovan in the general practice of law. Donovan, an Adams native, had been practicing law in Berkshire County since 1913.
Dodig joined the firm in 1990, at age 24, after receiving his juris doctorate from Albany Law School. Dodig focuses his practice on litigation, including serious injury cases, and broke new ground for the firm by securing numerous million and multi-million dollar settlements, judgments and verdicts. His most notable cases include a $5.9 million settlement in a Vermont double fatality case, an $8 million settlement in a Massachusetts medical malpractice case, a $9.5 million judgment in a domestic battery case and $7.9 million jury verdict on behalf of a Bennington family in a medical malpractice matter. He also represented the family of Richard O'Bert in the civil rights claims surrounding his shooting death by Vermont State police in April 2000.
In addition to practicing law, Dodig is active throughout the Berkshire County community. He has been a Big Brother and has served on the board of directors of the Family Life Support Center (Louison House), tThe Brien Center for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, the North County Development Corporation and the Northern Berkshire United Way and he has been elected to Mt. Greylock Regional School Committee. He has served as a coach in the Williamstown/Lanesborough Youth basketball and softball leagues and participates regularly in the Community Reading Day at Lanesborough Elementary School. He also has served as president of the Berkshire County Bar Association and is a member of the Board of Governors for the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys.
Dodig has also been active in the management at Donovan & O'Connor, serving as the firm's first managing partner and the firm's director of marketing for the past 20 years.
"Chris is not only the leading litigator in the firm, he is also one of the best trial attorneys in Massachusetts," current managing partner Stephen Pagnotta said. "He epitomizes what the firm stands for: providing the highest and finest quality legal service to clients while also serving our communities.
"Chris is a wonderful leader and one of the finest examples of what an attorney can and should be. Walter Donovan and J. Norman O'Connor Sr. would be proud of Chris and honored to see his name added to theirs on our letterhead."
Dodig said he was honored to have his name added to the firm.
"We've changed considerably over the last 20 years, but all of the attorneys working here today are extremely proud of the firm's long and storied history," he said. "We work very hard to honor that history through a commitment to excellence and integrity in serving our clients. I owe a great deal to those who went before me and taught me how to be both a good lawyer and a good person."
Dodig resides in Lanesborough with his wife Michelle and daughters Erin and Grace.
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