MORGANTOWN — Two West Virginia attorneys for Dinsmore & Shohl have been elected to serve national positions with the nation's largest civil defense attorney organization.
Jill Crnaston Rice of Dinsmore's Morgantown office has been a part of DRI for more than 22 years since early on in her career. She recently completed her three-year term on DRI’s Board of Directors as a regional director representing West Virginia, Ohio and Michigan. She now has been elected to serve as second vice president on the DRI Board of Directors and will move into the officers’ rotation, becoming president in 2026.
Danielle Waltz of the firm's Charleston office has been a member of DRI for 17 years since she first began practicing. She recently elected to the DRI Board of Directors and will serve a three-year term.
Rice said DRI has been institutional in their practices.
“It’s an organization that really commits to training lawyers by offering top-notch continuing legal education and really training us to be better lawyers,” Rice said in an interview with The West Virginia Record.
Waltz said being elected to the board is a great opportunity.
“This is a really special opportunity when we have 15,000 attorneys in the country, and Jill is going to lead the organization and I’m going to be a member of the board," Waltz said. "And it’s wonderful that we’re from the same law firm, but I think it should go without saying that West Virginians are very supportive of both of our candidacies."
Rice said West Virginians have had an integral part in DRI since the beginning.
“Stanley Morris was the first DRI president, and he was from West Virginia,” Rice said. “That was sometime in the '60s. Marc Williams (from Nelson Mullins' Huntington office) was the second president (from West Virginia). I’ll be the third, and I’ll be the first woman when I become president in 2026. That is pretty cool.”
Rice and Waltz both said there have been many great West Virginians in the organization.
“We have so many outstanding West Virginians who are really involved in this organization,” Rice said. “We have really made a mark as a state, and I think it’s because we have the support of each other and we’ve always supported each other. I think it’s a testament to how collegial our bar is.”
Rice said when she takes over as president in 2026, she wants to continue collaborative work.
“I think moving through the officer's rotation encourages us to work with other members and the board,” Rice said. “So, Danielle will serve a three-year term on the board and it's going to be imperative that we leverage her skills and her broad experience on the board along with other board members to work really collaboratively and bring together everyone's ideas.”
Waltz said Dinsmore & Shohl has been great at allowing them the time to participate in the national organization.
“Our firm is extremely supportive and that's a really special thing to allow us to go serve in these roles because it takes time and certainly has recognized the importance in its attorney's investment back into the lawyer community,” Waltz said. “I think that's something you can't take for granted.”
Rice said they were looking forward to taking on their new roles.
“This is a service opportunity, and we couldn't do this without the support of other people and we are so excited about this,” Rice said.