Dentons, the world’s largest law firm, today announces that Law360 named three lawyers to its 2020 list of Rising Stars. Partners Rachel Milazzo and Jeffrey Zachman and senior managing associate Joanne Caceres were selected as top legal talent under the age of 40. The winners are comprised of litigators and dealmakers practicing at a level usually seen from veteran lawyers.

Milazzo, a member of the Litigation practice in the St. Louis office, was recognized as a Rising Star in the Construction category. She focuses on complex construction, real estate and commercial litigation. Milazzo has worked on billion-dollar infrastructure projects and litigated multi-million dollar cases in federal and states courts across the United States. Among her achievements, in March 2019, she successfully represented an NFL franchise in a high-profile arbitration against a governmental entity regarding ownership rights of the team’s former 90,000 square foot practice and training facility, an asset worth more than $14 million. Described by her peers as “fearless,” Milazzo actively volunteers for significant pro bono matters, is a founding board member of Gateway to Change (an organization that raises funds for underrepresented nonprofits), serves on the board of trustees for the MS Society and is an adjunct professor at Saint Louis University School of Law.

Zachman, who was recognized in the Fintech category, is a member of the Litigation and Dispute Resolution team in the Atlanta office. He focuses his practice on technology, real estate and general commercial litigation. He represents several leading financial technology companies, navigating novel and precedent-setting issues. He obtained a complete victory for one of those companies in a week-long arbitration that threatened the client’s business model and future operations. He is a member of the Georgia Law School Advisory Counsel. He also manages Dentons’ pro bono unemployment benefits program as a liaison with Atlanta Legal Aid, and he volunteers extensively with the Georgia Justice Project, a nonprofit dedicated to criminal justice throughout the state.

Caceres, recognized in the Cannabis category, is a member of the Health Care practice in the Chicago office. She has served clients in the burgeoning cannabis industry since 2014, when the first round of medical cultivation and dispensary applications were filed in Illinois. Since then, her practice shifted from health care litigation to focus exclusively on clients in, or impacted by, the cannabis and hemp industries. She led the regulatory review of Curaleaf’s state and local licenses, audits and other documents in the largest US cannabis transaction to date, in which Dentons served as lead counsel for Cura Partners (the largest cannabis company on the West Coast) in the sale of its cannabis business to Curaleaf (the largest on the East Coast). Caceres is also deeply invested in social equity issues in the cannabis industry, advising clients on diversity initiatives and speaking at conferences about the Illinois social equity application process.