BUFFALO, N.Y. — Hodgson Russ LLP partner Jeffrey F. Swiatek, Esq., has been accepted to Leadership Buffalo's Class of 2005. Kevin K. Gluc, Esq., also a partner at the Firm, will graduate from Leadership Buffalo's Rising Leaders program on April 1.

Leadership Buffalo is an organization whose mission is to unite existing and emerging leaders from diverse backgrounds and perspectives in order to increase their knowledge of community issues, broaden their vision, and enhance their ability to lead.

Mr. Swiatek will join others currently involved in leadership and community work in the organization's Leadership Buffalo Class Experience of 2005. Through a year-long series of sessions and retreats, participants will explore key issues in leadership such as economic development, criminal justice, health care, regionalism, human services, education, race relations and diversity, transportation, the environment, agriculture, community logic, and the arts.

Mr. Gluc is a member of the Leadership Buffalo Rising Leaders program. In this program, intended for the area's up-and-coming leaders age 22-32, participants learn about the issues that affect their community to help them grow into strong and responsible leaders. They also examine different leadership principles to help them develop a leadership style that will help them succeed.

A partner in the Firm's Labor & Employment Practice Group, Mr. Swiatek regularly counsels private and public sector clients on a wide range of issues, including personnel policies and procedures, COBRA and related issues, budget and related financial issues, and representation in actions and proceedings before the courts and administrative agencies. Mr. Swiatek previously served as special assistant to Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan in Washington, D.C., and is currently a Councilman for the Town of Cheektowaga.

Mr. Gluc is a partner in the Firm's Estates & Trusts and Tax Dispute Resolution Practice Groups. He concentrates his practice in the areas of estate planning and estate administration, with an emphasis on drafting wills and trusts to accommodate various client needs including estate tax planning, business succession planning, Canada-U.S. cross-border planning, and charitable planning.

With approximately 200 attorneys practicing in all major areas of law, Hodgson Russ is the 205th largest law firm headquartered in the United States, as reported by the National Law Journal. It is one of approximately 100 firms in the country listed in America's Greatest Places to Work With a Law Degree. In addition, Hodgson Russ was recently named one of the country's most admired employers by American Employer Digest. The Firm, which was established in 1817 and is among the oldest law firms in the U.S., is the only law firm that can count two former U.S. presidents, Millard Fillmore and Grover Cleveland, among its alumni. The six offices of Hodgson Russ are located in Albany, Buffalo, Johnstown, and New York City, New York; Boca Raton, Florida; and Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

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