Legal Briefs: News From Around NH

Charla Stevens

Longtime attorney Charla Stevens, who retired from McLane Middleton last year and is now owner of Charla Stevens Consulting, will be the keynote speaker at the second annual Mental Health, Wellness & Recovery in the Workplace Summit, which will take place form 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 8, at the McConnell Center Cafeteria in Dover.

Stevens, currently chair of the Granite United Way Board of Directors and a commissioner of the New Hampshire Lawyers’ Assistance Program, serves on the American Bar Association’s Task Force on Mental Health and Wellness. She will be joined by panelists Brad Paige, Kennebunk Savings president and CEO; Kate Skouteris, vice president of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care in New Hampshire; Peter Fifield, manager of Integrated Behavioral Health and Substance Use Disorder Services at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital; Kaitlyn Jones, social worker with the Dover Police Department; and Katie Soule, associate director of Childcare and Day Camp Services, Granite YMCA.

The summit is presented by the Seacoast Chamber Alliance, the Dover Mental Health Alliance, and the Recovery Friendly Workplace Initiative. Registration is $10 for chamber members and $15 for nonmembers. To register, visit dovernh.org.

10 McLane attorneys among Boston’s top lawyers

Ten McLane Middleton attorneys were among those included in Boston magazine’s list of the Top Lawyers of 2022. The annual list of 1,211 best lawyers in the region were chosen by peer-selection process. McLane Middleton attorneys on the list are: John D. Colucci; Shiva Karimi; Kimberly Kramer; David K. Moynihan; Susan E. Schorr; Joel B. Sherman; Jon E. Steffensen; Ryan J. Swartz; Bradford N. Vezina; and John Weaver.

Andrea Chatfield

Chatfield recognized with 2022 HR Hero Award

Sheehan Phinney attorney Andrea G. Chatfield has been recognized with the Ry Perry HR Hero Award at the 2022 Granite State Human Resources Conference. The award, given each year, is awarded to an individual who takes pride in advancing the HR profession, devoting valuable time to volunteering in their community.

Chatfield is a member of Sheehan Phinney’s Labor and Employment Group and provides advice and guidance to employers on risk management issues in the workplace.

Merrimack man faces felony charge for alleged meddling in 2021 special election

Michael Drouin, 30, of Merrimack is facing a felony charge for allegedly interfering with the communications of Republican state Rep. Bill Boyd during a special election in April 2021.

Drouin is accused of knowingly blocking access to Boyd’s communication equipment “with the intent of interfering with campaign activity.”

Boyd, who is also a Merrimack town councilor, was at the time a candidate vying to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Rep. Dick Hinch, who died from Covid-19 just days after winning election as Speaker of the New Hampshire House of Representatives in late 2020.

Prosecutors say Drouin placed a false ad on Craigslist, promising a free trailer and listing Boyd’s cell phone number.

According to prosecutors, Boyd turned off his phone after receiving “more than 37 phone calls or text messages in 45 minutes” on the morning of the 2021 special election. Boyd later won that election over Democrat Wendy Thomas, a former state representative, by almost 400 votes.

Drouin denied the ad was connected to Boyd’s special election, and called the Election Day posting “bad timing.”

Boyd also told an investigator that Drouin later wrote to him about “a prank” that had “terrible timing with the election.”

If convicted, Drouin could face up to seven years in prison and a $4,000 fine.