About Trevor Kupfer
Trevor Kupfer is a senior editor on Super Lawyers’ staff. He is editor of the Illinois, South Carolina, Michigan, and Wisconsin magazines, in addition to being a writer and fact-checker of Super Lawyers’ other projects. He has a degree in journalism from an accredited program (University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire) and has written for such newspapers and magazines as Eau Claire Leader-Telegram, Volume One, Wisconsin State Journal, The Capital Times, Global Food Forums, and various publications under the groups Tribune Media Services, Capital Newspapers, and Conley Media. He has served on crime and courts beats and, in college, he aided an investigation through the Wisconsin Innocence Project.
Articles written by Trevor Kupfer
Navigating the Maze of Workers' Comp
Imagine you’re in a maze with another person. You don’t know the way, but they do. The maze is constantly changing and there are traps along the way. And the goal is to get through it first. “That’s the work comp system,” says Michael Kaplan, an attorney at Kaplan Morrell in Denver. “You’re against the adjuster, and I’ll give you one guess who wins that race if you don’t have assistance.” The process can be confusing, attorneys say, but they have some helpful tips if you are …
’Round About 6 p.m. on Sunday
Outside the courtroom, you can catch Luther J. Battiste III spinning jazz on the radioLuther J. Battiste III thinks back to his days growing up in Orangeburg. He remembers his mom and dad coming home from working at the South Carolina State University (her, a librarian; him, a facilities director). He remembers his uncle, who lived with them for a time while he went to college. He also remembers Miles Davis, Nancy Wilson, and the music that filled their home. “I grew up with jazz, and developed a love for music at an early age,” Battiste recalls, then laughs. “I think …
What To Do When an Insurance Company Denies Medical Treatment
You file a claim for medical care, assuming your insurance company will pay. Then a denial letter shows up in the mail. What should you do? First, call your doctor. Your doctor is your first option to make sure the health care insurance plan covers your medical treatment. If your insurance company still won't pay, you can go through the appeals process. The appeals process is confusing and frustrating. A healthcare lawyer can file an appeal on your behalf and deal with the insurance company to …
What Airlines Can and Can’t Do When They Overbook
Recent incidents involving airline passengers have caused some serious turbulence—videos have gone viral, stocks have dropped, and many airlines are changing their policies. But one aspect has remained largely the same: passengers’ rights. “It’s become fairly evident that airlines have broad discretion to refuse to let passengers board and take them off the plane. As fare-paying paid passengers, we like to think we have a lot of rights, but the airlines are in charge here,” says …
Shattering the ‘Two-Seater Mentality’
Pat Gillette wants firms to put more women and minorities in the board room“Don’t fix the women. Fix the structure.” Pat Gillette is passionate about diversity. She speaks on the topic at about 40 events per year; and in 2006, she founded the Opt-In Project, bringing leaders from various industries to discuss how they were retaining and promoting women, so their strategies could be applied to law firms. She was also on the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession and co-chair of the San Francisco Bar Association’s No Glass Ceiling Initiative. The Opt-In …
Pat Gillette on Diversity in the Board Room
The mediator has been speaking about diversity for 40+ years, and has reasons for optimismWhen she’s not mediating cases with JAMS in San Francisco, Pat Gillette is probably speaking about diversity—she does so at about 40 events per year. She worked as an employment lawyer for more than 40 years, watching as corporations made more progress than law firms, which still have a long way to go in her view. She has reasons for hope, however, as she explains here. https://www.youtube.com/embed/b6g0oygByhk Gillette’s story was also featured in the 2017 issue of Northern California …
Sometimes When You Lose, You Still Win
A tough case turned into a pro bono passion for Kate DeVries SmithKate DeVries Smith’s first pro bono housing trial was technically a loss. The partner and patent attorney at Pauly, DeVries Smith & Deffner in downtown Minneapolis got her start with Merchant & Gould. It was there, roughly 18 years ago, that she approached colleague Jeffer Ali about pro bono work. “I really buy into that notion that if you have a law license, you have an obligation to provide direct services,” Smith says. “That’s just always spoke to me. But I was struggling …
I Was Discriminated Against. How Do I Prove It?
You can prove workplace discrimination with documentation, circumstantial evidence, and witness testimony to file an EEOC charge and get a right-to-sue letter. Employees filing a hostile work environment claim have the burden of proof to show direct evidence between the protected class and the adverse employment action. Employees can use HR complaints and performance reviews to show a prima facie case of disparate treatment or pretextual reasons for employer retaliation. Contact a lawyer to …
Putting the Cards on the Table
Brent Cromley: Litigator. Mediator. Politician. MagicianChances are, Brent Cromley’s got a deck of cards on him right now. He likes the occasional game, sure, but more importantly, practice makes perfect, and you never know when there’ll be an audience. “If I’m at a bar or something, somebody might want to see a trick,” says Cromley, who is not only a distinguished litigator and mediator at Moulton Bellingham, but also a magician. He is, in fact, the only attorney in Montana who is a member of the International Brotherhood of …
A Code of Confidence
Jennifer Compton is helping fight the gender gap in technologyThere’s no telling how different Jennifer Compton’s life would be had she not taken a job as a lifeguard 30 years ago. The kids she watched were in Girls Incorporated of Sarasota County, part of a national nonprofit that empowers more than 140,000 girls each year. At 16, Compton had never been exposed to the part of her community that didn’t have the advantages her family enjoyed. “I thought I was going to a summer job, which it was, but it also became very evident that amazing things …
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