MBF Board & Staff

Bio coming soon.

Hon. Megan H. Christopher is an Associate Justice of the Suffolk Probate and Family Court, on which she has served since 2012. Prior to joining the bench, Judge Christopher practiced law for 22 years at MetroWest Legal Services, representing low-income and elder clients in administrative and court proceedings, with a focus on family law. 

Judge Christopher is a graduate of Wellesley College and Northeastern University School of Law.  She is an Oliver Wendell Holmes Life Fellow of the MBF.

Frank J. Ciano is an experienced General Practice Lawyer, assisting clients in personal injury claims, criminal matters, will preparation, real estate, business transactions, and divorce cases.

Ciano served as president of the Middlesex County Bar Association and of the Cambridge, Arlington, Belmont Bar Association, and he also served as a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association House of Delegates.  Ciano is Chairman Emeritus of the Dante Alighieri of Massachusetts and recipient of the I Migliori award, which honors Americans of Italian Ancestry who have excelled in their chosen field and made a significant contribution to society.  In 2009, 2014, 2015, and 2017, Ciano received the Martindale-Hubbell Peer Reviewing Rating Plaque for his high ethics and legal ability.

Ciano is a graduate of Boston College and Suffolk Law School.  He is a Louis D. Brandeis Life Fellow of the MBF and a member of the MBF Justice Circle.

Hon. Elspeth B. Cypher was appointed to the Supreme Judicial Court by Governor Charlie Baker in 2017. She was first appointed to the bench by Governor Paul Cellucci in 2000, when she joined the Appeals Court. Prior to her appointment, Justice Cypher was an attorney at Boston law firm Grayer, Brown and Dilday until she became an Assistant District Attorney in Bristol County, where she served as chief of the Appellate Division from 1993-2000.

Justice Cypher has been an adjunct professor at Southern New England School of Law (now UMass Law) and Suffolk University Law School. She has also participated on numerous educational programs for lawyers and judges and has been active in the Massachusetts Bar Association, where she served as co-chair of the Criminal Law Section Council. In 2012, she co-authored a fourth edition of Justice Kent B. Smith’s Massachusetts Practice Series, Criminal Practice and Procedure.

Justice Cypher is a graduate of Emerson College and Suffolk University Law School. She is a Life Fellow of the MBF.

Bio coming soon.

Tara D. Dunn concentrates her practice on complex civil litigation matters, including commercial and employment law, as well as criminal defense. Prior to joining Todd & Weld, Dunn was an Assistant Attorney General in the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, where she worked on a variety of enforcement matters, including civil rights, employment, environmental protection, and fair housing.

Dunn currently serves in the Air Force Reserve Command at Westover Air Reserve Base in Massachusetts. She previously served on active duty in the Space Command of the United States Air Force. 

In addition to her Air Force service, Dunn is also Vice President of Massachusetts Black Women Attorneys and a member of the Board of Directors of the Civil Rights Restorative Justice Project and Prisoners’ Legal Services.

Dunn is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and Northeastern University School of Law. She is a Foundation Fellow of the MBF.

Bio coming soon.

Hon. Marguerite T. Grant was appointed to the Massachusetts Appeals Court by Governor Charle Baker in 2020. Prior to her appointment, she was the General Counsel & Director of Training in the Norfolk District Attorney's Office. She advised Norfolk District Attorney Michael W. Morrissey on legal and personnel matters and conducted training programs for prosecutors, victim-witness advocates, and police.  She also represented the Commonwealth on appeal, particularly in homicide and sexual assault cases.

Grant serves on the Board of Editors of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.  She served on the Board of Bar Overseers from 2005-2008 and as its Chair from 2007-2008; she was a BBO hearing committee member from 1997-2003.  She was previously an Assistant District Attorney in the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and an associate at Hill & Barlow, P.C.

Grant is a graduate of Wellesley College and Stanford Law School, where she was managing editor of the Stanford Law Review. She is a Life Fellow of the MBF.

Margaret J. Hurley serves as the Chief of the Attorney General’s Central Massachusetts Division, located in Worcester. She is also the Director of the Attorney General’s Municipal Law Unit, which is charged with review and approval of all town bylaws and municipal charters.

Before joining the Attorney General’s Office, Hurley worked in private practice at Morrison, Mahoney & Miller (now Morrison Mahoney) in Boston and at Mirick, O’Connell, DeMallie & Lougee in Worcester. While in private practice, she represented various cities and towns as Special Litigation Counsel and Acting Town Counsel, and defended numerous medical malpractice and other civil cases through trial.

Attorney Hurley previously served on the Executive Committee of the City Solicitor and Town Counsel Association and as a Hearing Committee Member of the Board of Bar Overseers. She is a Past President of the Worcester County Bar Association and a former co-chair of the Public Law Section Council of the Massachusetts Bar Association. Hurley has served on both the Planning Board and Town Administrator Screening Committee for the town of Grafton.

Hurley is a graduate of Boston College and Boston College Law School. She is a President's Circle – Bronze Fellow of the MBF.

Bio coming soon.

Michael J. Leard is a partner in Nutter’s Litigation Department, where he represents individuals and companies in the areas of business litigation and product liability, including pharmaceutical and medical device litigation. He also has an active pro bono practice, which has centered around immigration, veterans’ advocacy, and relief for Covid-19 frontline workers.

For over a decade, Leard has been actively involved in the MBF and the Massachusetts Bar Association. He also dedicates time to the New England Center and Home for Veterans and the Defense Research Institute’s Drug and Medical Device section. Leard has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America; Massachusetts Super Lawyers; and Boston Magazine.

Leard is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross and Tulane Law School. He is a Foundation Fellow of the MBF.

James F. Martin is a partner at Robinson Donovan, practicing Corporate & Business Counseling, Litigation, and Commercial Real Estate. He analyzes transactions and litigation from a business perspective, creating innovative and efficient solutions. Martin is recognized as a leading automotive franchise attorney throughout New England and has successfully handled the purchase and sale of numerous car dealerships and related real estate, franchise negotiations, floor plan and real estate financing and all types of litigation arising from the operation of a dealership. He has been named one of Massachusetts Super Lawyers in 2004, 2006-2007, and 2009-Present, and a Best Lawyer in America since 2001.

Martin is a member of the American, Massachusetts, and Hampden County Bar Associations and is a Life Fellow of the American Bar Foundation. Martin is a former Chairman for the Baystate Medical Center Board of Trustees, as well as a former Chairman of Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament and Peach Basket Festival. He is a member of the National Association of Dealer Counsel and the Massachusetts Automobile Dealer Association. Previously, Martin was a member of the Springfield Riverfront Development Commission and the Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) Foundation. 

Martin is a graduate of Georgetown University, where he received both his BA and JD. He is a Louis D. Brandeis Life Fellow of the MBF.

Hon. Mark D Mason has been a Massachusetts judge for 14 years and has served in the District Court and the Superior Court. Prior to joining the bench, he worked in private practice in Springfield for over two decades and was a Partner at Cooley Shrair, specializing in business litigation and family law.

Judge Mason has served on a number of Superior Court committees since his appointment and currently acts as Chair of the Trial Court’s Public Outreach Committee. He was a member of the Supreme Judicial Court’s Committee on the Code of Judicial Conduct and served as Chair of both the Superior Court’s Civil Committee and the Trial Court’s Standing Committee on Dispute Resolution.

A Vice President of the Massachusetts Judges Conference and Past President of the Massachusetts Bar Association, Judge Mason is a frequent lecturer and has taught law and ADR at several colleges and universities in Massachusetts. In addition to serving on numerous community boards, he is also a violinist with the Pioneer Valley Symphony Orchestra in Greenfield.

A graduate of Columbia University and the Boston University School of Law, he is a Life Fellow of the MBF.

Mary Jeanne Stone focuses her practice on Family Law, Bankruptcy and Alternative Dispute Resolution. Prior to starting her own firm in 2010, she was a Partner at Belford & Stone in Fall River, MA. She is an Associate Attorney with Lider, Fogarty & Ribeiro, P.C. and is Of Counsel to the Law Office of Nancy C. Stanton.

Stone is an MLAC Board Member, and serves on the IOLTA Committee. She regularly serves as a Guardian Ad Litem in disputed custody cases and is a volunteer ARC Attorney. Stone is a Past President of the Bristol County Bar Association and a Past member of the Joint Bar Committee on Judicial Appointments.

A graduate of Fairleigh Dickinson University and New England School of Law, Stone is a Life Fellow of the MBF.

Christopher P. Sullivan is a partner at Robins Kaplan LLP in Boston, where he represents clients in civil trials involving complex litigation matters, including financial and securities cases and intellectual property disputes. He is an accomplished trial lawyer who has been named a Massachusetts or New England Super Lawyer by Super Lawyers every year since 2004. Sullivan was listed in The Best Lawyers in America in 2020, he was named a Top Rated Lawyer for 2019 by New York Magazine and the New York Law Journal and was named one of the Top 100 Irish American Lawyers, among other accolades.

In the fall of 2018, immediately following his Massachusetts Bar Association presidency, Sullivan spearheaded a “Hamilton” fundraiser, which raised $57,000 to establish a Hamilton Hurricane Relief fund for Puerto Rican residents impacted by Hurricane Maria in 2017. The fundraiser was a joint effort between the MBF, the MBA, and the Massachusetts Association of Hispanic Attorneys. In 2014, Sullivan worked with the MBA and the Federal Bar Association to launch the Massachusetts chapter of SOLACE (Support of Lawyer/Legal Personnel – All Concern Encouraged), an email-based network of Massachusetts legal professionals who provide critical aid to members of the legal profession in times of need.

Sullivan is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross and Fordham University School of Law. He is a Life Fellow of the MBF.

Kimberly E. Winter has been a member of the firm  of McLaughlin, Richards, Biller, Schindel & Winter, LLP since 2018. Prior to that she was a partner in the law firm of White, Freeman & Winter, LLP in Weston after coming to that firm from Sugarman & Sugarman, PC in Boston. Winter concentrates her practice in health care law and civil litigation- primarily medical malpractice and other   types of serious injuries caused by negligence. Winter is also a Registered Nurse with a current specialty certification is Neonatal Intensive Care. 

Winter is Past President of the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys and a current member of their Board of Governors. Winter is also on the Emeritus Board of Directors of the Women’s Bar Association and is an active member of the Massachusetts Bar Association (former chair of the Health Law Section Council and a member and past chair of the Lawyer Referral Service Committee). Winter presently serves as a Hearing Officer for the Board of Bar Overseers. She lectures frequently on liability issues affecting health care professionals and has lectured and authored material for numerous educational programs and publications related to civil practice in her area of concentration.

Winter is a graduate of Wheaton College (Illinois), Northwestern University and Suffolk University Law School. She is a Brandeis Fellow of the MBF.