Paul Hoferer and John Wood Honored As Washburn University Alumni Fellows
Washburn University School of Law alumni Paul Hoferer, Topeka, Kansas, and John B. Wood, Bronxville, New York, were honored as Washburn University Alumni Fellows on October 16, 2009. Sponsored by the Washburn University deans and the Alumni Association, the Alumni Fellows program recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their career fields. The Alumni Fellows program brings successful alumni to campus to meet with students, faculty, and other alumni and share their expertise formally and informally in the classroom and other campus settings.
Paul Hoferer, '75, Topeka, is of counsel with Lathrop & Gage, where he specializes in railroad litigation. He is the 2009 School of Law Alumni Fellow.
His legal career began in 1975 when he joined the Santa Fe Railway law department in Topeka. In 1989, he was promoted to general attorney for Kansas and then in 1994, was promoted to assistant general counsel. Hoferer was named assistant vice president-claims and litigation counsel following the merger of Burlington Northern Railroad and The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Co. in 1995. In 2000, he was promoted to general counsel and then served since 2002 as vice president and general counsel. In addition to supervising in-house counsel and the general claims department, Hoferer was responsible for nearly 3,000 lawsuits handled by more than 100 law firms throughout the United States and Canada. He retired in 2008 after 43 years of service, including 33 years in the law department.
He served 2002-2003 as president of the National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel. In 2005, he testified as railroad industry spokesperson before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee concerning asbestos legislation. A member of the Association of American Railroads, he served 2007-2008 as chairman of the Public Safety Working Group; 2006-2007 as chairman of the Punitive Damages Working Group; 1997-1998 as chairman of the AAR General Claims Conference; and he has served since 1979 as an AAR Claim Agents School Instructor.
Hoferer was honored in 2006 with the Recognition of Excellence Award from the National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel. In 2000, he received the Paul C. Garrett Award for Meritorious Service to the AAR General Claims Conference. He serves on the Washburn University School of Law board of governors and with his wife, Jeanne (Smith) Hoferer, bba '80, is a member of the Lincoln Society.
John B. Wood, bba '73 and jd '78, Bronxville, N. Y., is an attorney and partner in the law firm of Thompson & Knight, where he leads the New York City commercial real estate group. He is the School of Business Alumni Fellow.
For more than 30 years, Wood has represented owners in the design and negotiation of commercial leases covering in excess of 50 million square feet of retail, office and mixed use space projects. He has assisted large volume space users in the effective management of their facilities portfolios and in reducing costs and risk and was featured in articles on the impact of commercial leases on companies. He was referred to by The Wall Street Journal and other publications as "the father of the modem killer lease." He is a noted authority of fair market value determinations, as well as rental escalations, expenses, allocations, auditing and litigation/dispute resolution. Wood directed the legal team in a national portfolio acquisition program with a value in excess of $2 billion, and participated in the development, leasing and financing of more than 4 million square feet of regional shopping malls and retail centers nationwide.
He is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, an American Association National Neutral Arbitrator and was named to Who's Who in American Law and Who's Who in Real Estate. He serves on the Board of Legal Advisors and is chairman of the commercial leasing program of the Practicing Law Institute. He sponsors www.leasingnyc.com. , is a frequent presenter and lecturer, is author and co-author of treatises and books on commercial leasing and serves as an instructor in New York University's Schack Institute of Real Estate.
He holds a master of business administration in accounting and finance from the University of Kansas and is a Certified Public Accountant.
He served 1986-1989 on the Washburn Alumni Association board of directors and was a featured Wake Up With Washburn speaker in 2004.
Other 2009 Washburn University Alumni Fellow honorees are David Chavez (College of Arts and Sciences); Paul Etzel (College of Arts and Sciences); Cynthia Hornberger (School of Nursing); Michael Mustain (School of Applied Studies); and Marianne Webb (College of Arts and Sciences).
Posted October 22, 2009
