PERSONNEL FILE: Bordas & Bordas lawyer appointed to Child Advocacy Network board

WHEELING - Bordas & Bordas has announced an attorney’s recent appointment to the Board of Directors of the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network.

John Artimez, who recently joined the firm to assist with complex personal injury, insurance bad faith and medical negligence litigation, will serve alongside twelve fellow Board members.

The West Virginia Child Advocacy Network was founded in the belief that children dealing with traumatic experiences like abuse or neglect should be well taken care of and handled as children should in all phases of the legal process. The WVCAN is currently composed of twenty Child Advocacy Centers throughout the Mountain State, a number that has risen dramatically since its inception in 2006.

Artimez demonstrates a longstanding and fervent interest in the protection of children. Since previously serving as guardian ad litem for victimized kids in Marshall County, he has always had a passion for helping them.

“My time as guardian ad litem gave rise to a real passion and devotion for taking care of neglected or abused children,” Artimez said. “As far as I am concerned, helping to protect children is the highest calling a person can undertake.”

Eager to do just that, Artimez expressed interest in a position on the Board of Directors to Leslie Vassilaros, Executive Director of Wheeling’s Harmony House Child Advocacy Center. Confident in not only Artimez’s love of children but also his professionalism and legal expertise, Vassilaros forwarded her recommendation on to Emily Chittenden-Laird, Executive Director of the WVNAC.

After a period of interviews and deliberation, Artimez was appointed to fill the 13th spot on the Board.

As a member of the Board, Artimez will regularly attend meetings in Charleston to coordinate investigations, oversee child victims’ interviews to ensure they are conducted properly and as infrequently as possible, as well as organize medical and mental health services for child victims.

Jamie Bordas, managing partner of the firm, said he is thrilled about Artimez’s opportunity.

“John will be a significant asset for the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network,” Bordas said. “His past experiences and present dedication to the well-being of child victims will be beneficial to the association’s goal and message.”

Artimez feels extremely fortunate to have received the chance to help victimized children again. A quote by our sixteenth president encompasses his feelings of past, present, and future endeavors.

“Abraham Lincoln’s quote stating ‘No man stands so tall as when he stoops to help a child’ has always resonated with me,” Artimez continued. “It deeply inspires me to continue my work with children.”

Bordas & Bordas is a plaintiff’s litigation firm of 14 attorneys based in Wheeling that also has offices in Ohio and practices throughout the region in diverse areas of law. For more information, contact Carrie Scanlon, Director of Communications and Philanthropy at 304.242.8410, visit at bordaslaw.com, or connect with us via social media.