Cooperative Law Conference 2024 "Building A Cooperative Economy Together"

Terry Lewis is special projects advisor to the Center for Community-Based Enterprise (C2BE) and Principal of LIA Advisors, LLC, a private consulting firm providing advisory services in community economic development. Formerly, she was Vice President of Cooperative Development for the National Cooperative Bank (NCB), where she advised internal NCB teams and NCB customers in multiple lines of business on the structuring and development of cooperative and other community ownership entities. She also served as President and CEO of NCB Community Works, LLC, an affiliated for-profit affordable multifamily housing development organization. In 2011 President Barack Obama appointed Terry to the Board of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. government’s development finance institution, where she served until the agency sunset to be replaced by the U.S. Development Finance Corporation. in 2019. At OPIC, she served as a member of the organization’s Audit and Risk Committees. From 1991 to 2014, she was a Director of the Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF), where she served as Treasurer, and 8 years as Chair, managing governance, strategy, and the oversight functions of multiple grant and loan funds. She was inducted into the Cooperative Hall of Fame in 2008. Her early career was spent as a private attorney in Michigan, specializing in multifamily housing, structuring business entities, and negotiating business transactions.

Author of Collective Courage: A History of African American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice (2014), and 2016 inductee into the U.S. Cooperative Hall of Fame, Jessica Gordon-Nembhard, Ph.D., is Professor of Community Justice and Social Economic Development, in the Department of Africana Studies, John Jay College, City University of NY. Dr. Gordon-Nembhard is an internationally recognized and widely published political economist specializing in cooperative economics, community economic development and community-based asset building, racial wealth inequality, solidarity economics, Black Political Economy, and community-based approaches to justice. She is co-editor, for example, with Ngina Chiteji of Wealth Accumulation and Communities of Color (University of Michigan Press 2006). Recipient of numerous awards in social economics and cooperative studies, she is a member of the Cooperative Economics Council of NCBA/CLUSA; the International Co-operative Alliance Committee on Co-operative Research; a Faculty Fellow and Mentor with the Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing at Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations; an affiliate scholar with the Centre for the Study of Co-operatives (University of Saskatchewan, Canada); and guest lecturer with the International Centre for Co-operative Management, Sobey School of Business, St. Mary’s University (Halifax, NS, Canada). Gordon-Nembhard is also a past board member of the Association of Cooperative Educators; a past fellow with the Center on Race and Wealth at Howard University; and a member and past president of the National Economic Association. She is the proud mother of Stephen and Susan, and the grandmother of Stephon, Hugo, Ismaél and Gisèle Nembhard.

Dave Antoni serves as a National Tax Managing Director, Moss Adams, providing technical expertise in taxation of Cooperatives and ASC 740, Accounting for Income Taxes. Serving in the Food, Beverage, and Agribusiness Practice, Dave provides tax consulting, compliance, and audit tax provision services for our cooperative and non-cooperative enterprises clients on a national basis. Dave has significant experience in the application of ASC 740 to Cooperatives and non-cooperative private and public company enterprises. Dave works with management and boards on tax cooperative considerations for capital planning and bylaws provisions, private letter rulings, and advises cooperatives on tax issues such as IRC §199A(g), §163(j), application of new tax legislation including the Pillar 2 global minimum tax and tax accounting methods. Dave’s professional accounting experience with Moss Adams and previously with a Big Four firm spans over 37 years and 33 years serving cooperatives as a focus area. Dave holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration (cum laude) from La Salle University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and has completed several graduate level tax courses in Villanova University School of Law’s Master of Science in Taxation program. Dave is currently Immediate Past National President of the National Society of Accountants for Cooperatives (NSAC), NSAC Executive Committee Member, Past National Board Member and current Board Member of NSAC’s Atlantic Chapter and serves as Immediate Past Chair and Member of its National Tax Committee. He is also a Member of the Legal, Tax & Accounting (LTA) Committee of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives (NCFC), has served as Past Chair and Member of LTA’s Executive Committee. He is a member of the American Institutes of Certified Public Accountants.

Todd empowers clients to approach change and growth with confidence by helping them build effective business infrastructures. Whether representing clients from agriculture, food processing, security services and other industries in corporate governance or strategic and operational issues, Todd delivers the right legal resources. Rather than create adversarial environments, Todd works to align interests for mutually successful results by integrating practical legal analysis with successful business strategies. Todd is a trusted advisor to businesses, especially purchasing and marketing cooperatives, in transactional and securities-related matters that range from mergers and acquisitions to financings and day-to-day operations. While clients often initially consult Todd on a single matter, they frequently end up establishing long-term relationships by returning for other business and legal advice. Todd has been active for more than 35 years with the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives and the National Society of Accountants for Cooperatives, serving in many leadership positions. Todd is an active presenter at cooperative conferences and is the Reporter and a major contributor for NCFC’s Sample Bylaws Project, a two-volume publication of sample Bylaws text with related commentary.

Because of Sarah’s interest in worker-owned and stakeholder-owned economies, Sarah has built an area of expertise in democratic business ownership. Sarah has served a wide variety of cooperatives, worker-ownership transactions, and community wealth-building vehicles. Sarah also regularly serves benefit corporations and other businesses seeking to make a difference, as well as nonprofits. In order to help these enterprises start, grow, and thrive, Sarah’s work includes legal entity structuring, and the strategy, compliance, and documentation needed to raise investment capital. Sarah is a Sustainable Economies Law Center Fellow, and a long-time active member of the Sociocratic governance of the Cooperative Professionals Guild. Sarah has a J.D. Magna Cum Laude from Chicago-Kent College of Law, and a bachelor’s degree in Biology from Princeton University. 

As senior legal policy analyst for USDA Rural Development Cooperative Programs, Meegan Moriarty tracks and advises on cooperative legal policy developments in state and federal tax, antitrust, securities, and agricultural law areas. She leads a congressionally mandated interagency working group on cooperative development that was created to assist with coordination among federal agencies and private sector cooperative stakeholders on cooperative policy. She leads a nationwide project researching and comparing state cooperative statutes. She is also a national point of contact for Rural Development grant, loan, and guarantee programs that apply to cooperatives. Meegan advocates for cooperative development through speeches, webinars, and written publications. Previously she worked in the National Tax office of Ernst and Young analyzing federal tax legislation and regulations and consulting with clients on business opportunities presented by tax law changes. She has a JD from Georgetown University Law Center and a BA from the University of Notre Dame.

Linda Phillips is currently Senior of Counsel at Jason Wiener PC, a public benefit corporation, based in Denver, Colorado. She obtained a J.D. from the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law in 2003 and is licensed in Colorado. Linda represents small to medium-sized businesses, with a strong emphasis on all types of cooperatives, including marketing, purchasing, consumer and worker coops. Her work includes cooperative formations, business structural analysis, and general counsel for the cooperative community related to their business enterprises. Linda advises clients about cooperative entities and tax issues involved with starting a company or converting to an employee-owned entity. Linda was one of the three founders of the Cooperative Professionals Guild, along with Thomas Beckett and Jason Wiener. She also helped form and was on the Board of Directors of the Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center, a nonprofit that promotes employee-owned business models in Colorado. She aided the organization grow and focus its efforts on employee ownership as a viable alternative to today's corporate culture. Linda has given presentations on cooperatives in person and online all around the country and can be seen with her colleague Jason Wiener on the Northwest Cooperative Development Center’s YouTube channel with a seven-part series on converting businesses to worker-owned entities, called the Legacy Tour. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDB1UVBsNhQ Linda is retiring from direct client services but will continue to participate in the cooperative community with writing and speaking engagements and will continue her association with Jason Wiener PC for the foreseeable future.  

With more than 15 years in the legal sector, Jacqueline has practiced law in Brazil, France, and in the United States, developing expertise in a broad range of for-profit (small up to Global Fortune 500) and non-profit transactional legal needs. From representing under-represented and under-served groups, to partnering with funders and investors, Jacqueline collaborates with business developers and coop incubators, and instigates conversations about community land trusts, cooperatives, DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organization), and other shared equity ownership models, to support community development strategies that seek lasting, transformational benefits to the local communities. Passionate about education, she founded in 2018 the Biennial Cooperative Law Conference, in Ohio, where, with the support of the Center for Cooperative Development of the CFAES OSU, she gathers sector experts and practitioners to learn from each other’s experiences. Since joining the firm, Jacqueline has spearheaded the firm’s Web3 practice group, notably supporting DAOs to design their entity structure and governance and adopting the cooperative legal model. She represents the first ever DAO cooperative in collaboration with Yev Muchnik, and presents many more, along with a number of startup disruptors. Outside of the office, Jacqueline is a pickleball aficionado, is engaged in a variety of community projects, and plans most of her vacations around hikes with friends and family.

Michael S. Russell works as a lawyer for the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland (LASC) where he represents community groups, nonprofits, and cooperatives as part of Legal Aid’s Community Engagement Practice Group. He strives to use community lawyering principles to support people with low incomes who are organizing to build collective power, wealth, and community in the solidarity economy. And he is very excited about similar work happening throughout Ohio. Mike has worked for legal aid organizations most of his career. He started at Alaska Legal Services in Anchorage, AK before joining Texas RioGrande Legal Aid in El Paso, TX, where he worked for six years. He moved to Northeast Ohio with his partner and their two kids in 2015. Mike is a graduate of UC Hastings College of the Law and the Gallatin School at New York University. He likes records and misses the Chihuahuan desert.

Bill is a Principal in the Ag, Food and Beverage (AFB) industry group specializing in tax planning and compliance. With over 13 years of experience at CLA, he serves as the Western Ohio office AFB industry group leader. Industry practice areas include cooperatives, producers, and manufacturing and distribution. Bill is a leader on CLA's national cooperative tax team and leads monthly team calls to discuss cooperative related tax topics. Bill is a frequent speaker on tax reform and other tax related topics, including industry-specific conference breakout sessions and seminars. Bill holds a Master of Science in Accounting from University of Toledo and is active with Ohio Agribusiness Association, Michigan Agribusiness Association, National Society of Accountants for Cooperatives (NSAC), Ohio Cattlemen's Association, and Ohio Pork Council.  

Hannah Scott is the program director of the CFAES Center for Cooperatives based at Ohio State University South Centers where she leads the creation and implementation of programs and assistance to foster cooperative and rural business in Ohio, West Virginia, and beyond. Hannah is passionate about cooperative opportunities in agriculture and rural communities having worked with a variety of agricultural producers who have explored or established co-op enterprises, provided training for cooperative employees and leaders, and led initiatives to educate and build awareness around the cooperative business model and rural business development. Hannah earned her bachelor’s degree from Duke University, master’s degree from The Ohio State University, and law degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Law. She holds a Certified Business Advisor Certificate through Kent State University/Ohio Small Business Development Centers. Hannah's family operates a diversified farm in southern Ohio where she helps as she is able.

Cathy Statz (she/her) is a cooperative educator with over 30 years of experience educating young people and emerging leaders about the cooperative business model. In addition to serving on the board of the Ralph K. Morris Foundation, Cathy provides communications and special projects support for the scholarships, sponsorships, and symposia which honor the legacy of this notable Midwestern attorney. Cathy has, as well, a part-time role as outreach specialist for the International Centre for Co-operative Management at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Canada, and also supports the Cooperative Development Foundation and NCBA CLUSA International on projects including the Cooperative Leaders and Scholars (CLS) program. An advocate for the cooperative education of youth, she spent over twenty-five years as education director and camp director for Wisconsin Farmers Union and continues to co-coordinate the National Farmers Union College Conference on Cooperatives (CCOC). Cathy also serves on the board of the InSPIREation Foundation, is a member of CooperationWorks! and the Cooperative Communicators Association (CCA), and is a member and past president of the Association of Cooperative Educators (ACE). A lifelong singer and enthusiastic traveler, Cathy holds a double degree from Lawrence University with a BA in English and BMus in voice performance. She is a member and volunteer at the club and district level with Rotary International.

Erika leads the Business Start-Up Clinic at Roger Williams University School of Law, where she trains students in transactional legal skills and provides direct legal services to democratic community enterprises in Rhode Island. Erika earned her law degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Law and a Masters of Law in Agricultural and Food Law from the University of Arkansas School of Law. Erika has worked at Vermont Law and Graduate School's Center for Agriculture and Food Systems and Jason Wiener | p.c., a public benefit corporation where she provided small business legal services to food system businesses and social enterprises in other industries.

shantae j. edwards uses she/they pronouns and is a social entrepreneur, speaker, professor, coach, trainer, and consultant, who for the past 16 years has holistically focused on diversity, inclusion, belonging, leadership development, organizational culture, building relationships, and life fulfillment. Her dedication toward education, accessing equity, philanthropy, storytelling, advocacy, sustainability, well-being, and promoting thriving, social, and economic justice from an intergenerational lens guides her lifework toward leaving the world better than she found it. shantae j. is the Director of Community and Training at Start.coop where she is responsible for and oversees the day-to-day management of the Start.coop Grad/Alumni Community, facilitates the education initiatives, including incubators, peer circles, and accelerator programs. In addition to her role at Start.coop, shantae j. is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Public Service at New York University where she teaches Social Entrepreneurship. Based in Chicago, shantae j. enjoys spending time with her family, reading, traveling, and discovering her next favorite coffee roaster.

Brad is a Certified Business Advisor with the Business Development Network at The Ohio State University South Centers.  Brad has been an employee of the Ohio State University since 1995.  His career began at the South Centers working with the Soil and Water Resources program and served as the Pike County Extension Educator in 4-H Youth Development.   In 2005, he joined the South Centers’ Business Development program serving as Program Director/Business Counselor for the Manufacturing and Technology Small Business Development Center.  He currently serves as Director of the Ohio Small Business Development Center located at the South Centers.   He has a B.S. Degree from Shawnee State University in Plastics Engineering Technologies.
 
A lifelong resident of Pike County, Brad is very much interested in assisting new and existing business owners in the region with needs that they may not be able to address themselves.  In addition to his work with the University, Brad has a strong interest in agriculture.  He and his wife Amy, along with their sons Clay and Clint own and operate a plasticulture strawberry farming operation. Brad also serves as President of the Eastern Local School District Board of Education where he has been a member for 23 years.

Tom taught for over 32 years in a wide variety of organizational and transactional law topics. His primary research interests were limited liability companies, agency and employment law, complex adaptive systems, and limited cooperative association law. He was Dean for seven years. Before becoming a teacher, Tom clerked for judges on the United States Tax Court (based in D.C.) and the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (based in Chicago). He practiced law for five years in Lincoln, Nebraska, and grew up and worked on his family’s farm and ranch in the high plains of Western Nebraska. He majored in Finance and Economics as a undergraduate. Tom was Reporter for the Uniform Cooperative Association Act; a project that took seven years to complete (2000-2007).