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Insurance 2025: SCHMUDE, MONICA

Schmude was tapped to lead Anthem in Virginia in 2023. Before that, she spent almost 13 years at Cigna in different leadership positions, including serving as president of its mid-Atlantic market, which covered Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C.

Schmude, who has a degree in industrial and organizational psychology with a concentration in women’s studies from the University of Wisconsin- Oshkosh, began her career as a claims examiner for Guardian Insurance Company.

In addition to her regular gig, Schmude traveled around the state this year for her role as co-chair of Blueprint Virginia 2035, the Virginia Chamber’s strategic plan aimed at strengthening and securing the state’s position as the best state for business.

Schmude is the 2025 chair of the Virginia Association of Health Plans. Additionally, she sits on the board of the Choral Arts Society of Washington, D.C., and was a 2020 graduate of Leadership Greater Washington. She calls enrolling in that program “one of the best decisions of my career.”

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LAW 2025: LAVOIE, JOHN ‘JACK’

Having joined Cooley in 2008, Lavoie leads the global firm’s real estate practice group and manages its Reston office.

His practice centers on commercial real estate transactions, including buying, selling, developing and leasing office, industrial and retail properties. Lavoie represents landlords, tenants, lenders and borrowers in the Washington, D.C., area and the mid-Atlantic region. He’s been involved in data center leasing and development, as well as corporate headquarters projects.

Cooley has nearly 1,400 lawyers across 19 offices in the United States, Asia and Europe, and a total workforce of more than 3,000, including 58 in Virginia.

For more than a decade, Lavoie worked at Watt, Tieder, Hoffar & Fitzgerald, a McLean-based firm serving construction, surety and bankruptcy clients. He also worked as a senior associate handling site identification and lease negotiation for global real estate advisory firm Staubach, now part of Jones Lang LaSalle.

A graduate of the Catholic University of America and Georgetown University Center, Lavoie served on the transition team for former Gov. Terry McAuliffe.

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Insurance 2025: LUCIA, FRANK

Since 2017, Lucia has led Delta Dental of Virginia, one of the state’s largest dental benefits providers, and its holding company, Corvesta. Established in 1964, Delta Dental of Virginia provides dental plans to more than 2 million members.

The Delta Dental of Virginia Foundation, a public charity created by the company in 2012, works to improve the oral health of all Virginians and has invested more than $14 million to support education, program development and community partnerships. The foundation is currently working with other state organizations to boost Virginia’s oral health workforce. Efforts include developing and funding a loan repayment program for dentists and creating a summer program for high school students at Old Dominion University’s School of Dental Hygiene.

Previously, Lucia was president and CEO of Dean Health Plan in Madison, Wisconsin, and worked in finance for Cigna and W.R. Grace, a Maryland global supplier of specialty chemicals and solutions.

Lucia received his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Binghamton University and his MBA from the University of Miami.

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LAW 2025: KENDRICK, LESLIE

Kendrick became the 13th dean of the University of Virginia School of in 2024, replacing Risa Goluboff, who stepped down after eight years in the role.

A native of eastern Kentucky, Kendrick graduated from U.Va.’s law school in 2006 and became a member of the faculty two years later after clerking for former U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice David Souter and for Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

In 2017, Kendrick, whose scholarship focuses on freedom of speech and torts, won U.Va.’s All-University Teaching Award. She was previously director of the school’s Center for the First Amendment and a special adviser on free expression and inquiry to U.Va.’s former provost.

Kendrick was the law school’s vice dean from 2017 to 2021. In the early days of the pandemic, she oversaw the effort to move 139 courses online over eight days. She received her master’s degree and doctorate in English literature as a Rhodes scholar at the University of Oxford.

U.Va.’s law school was ranked No. 4 in the nation in the 2025 U.S. News & World Report rankings.

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Insurance 2025: BROWN, TOM

In 1916, Thomas Rutherfoord launched an agency in Roanoke. Fast-forward to 1979, and Rutherfoord’s grandson, Brown, started his own insurance career at the family business.

In 1983, Brown moved from the Star City to Richmond to open a Rutherfoord office. He became president of the company in 1998 and CEO in 2004. In 2010, Brown helped to guide the company’s acquisition by Marsh McLennan.

Brown became chairman of Marsh’s mid-Atlantic operations six years later.

Marsh McLennan, which provides business insurance, employee health and benefits, retirement and private client insurance solutions, has more than 300 offices across the United States and Canada and in 2024 reported $24.46 billion in revenue, about an 8% increase over the previous year. The company has about 340 employees in Virginia.

With his sons Tucker and Thomas, Brown purchased Richmond specialty grocer Yellow Umbrella Provisions in 2020. In 2024, they added a location in the Libbie Mill shopping center. This year, the trio opened Ballast, a Scott’s Addition complex that includes a Yellow Umbrella market, a restaurant, Slack Tide Fish Co., and a Cirrus Vodka tasting room.

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Law 2025: INGLIMA, THOMAS C.

Inglima has been at Willcox & Savage for more than a quarter century. In 2021, he was tapped to lead the firm.

Inglima’s practice centers on mergers and acquisitions, venture capital and securities transactions, intellectual property, licensing and technology transfers and general corporate work, including advising executives about corporate governance.

He was lead counsel to Landmark Communications in several major sales, including Landmark’s sale of The Weather Channel to a consortium consisting of

NBCUniversal, Blackstone Group and Bain Capital. He also was lead counsel to Dominion Enterprises in the sale of ForRent to CoStar Group, which was announced in 2017.

In November 2024, the firm announced it was launching a Richmond-based government relations subsidiary, Willcox Savage Consulting, which will be focused on the state legislature.

A graduate of Duke University and Georgetown University Center, Inglima sits on the advisory council of Horizons Hampton Roads, a nonprofit for disadvantaged youth.

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Insurance 2025: McINERNEY, THOMAS J.

Genworth dropped off the Fortune 500 in 2025, slipping to No. 507. The insurer posted 2024 revenue of about $7.3 billion, down about 2.58% from 2023. Even so, McInerney, who has led Genworth since 2013, says he’s “very proud of the progress we’ve made and the momentum we’re building.”

In 2023, the company launched the CareScout Quality Network, a network of 500 long-term care providers. This year, Genworth plans to invest up to $50 million to grow the venture.

McInerney previously held executive roles with the ING Group, a Dutch financial services company. He earned an economics degree from Colgate University and an MBA from Dartmouth College. He sits on several boards, including United Way Worldwide and Virginia Learns.

BOOK I’D RECOMMEND: “The Life Cycle of a CEO: The Myths and Truths of How Leaders Succeed,” by Claudius Hildebrand and Robert Stark

ADVICE FOR NEW COLLEGE GRADS: Your best next career move may not be upward in the organization. Be open to lateral opportunities or even taking a step back to build the broader business acumen that will make you a more adaptable teammate in the short term and a more effective leader in the long term.

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Law 2025: HARMON, JONATHAN P.

In 2017, McGuireWoods’ board of partners elected Harmon to be the first Black chairman of the state’s largest firm. In the role, Harmon is the faCEOf the firm, responsible for its big-picture strategy and vision.

In addition to leading McGuireWoods, Harmon continues to work as a trial lawyer known for communicating complex information to juries.

He has represented major companies including Yahoo, DuPont, CSX Transportation and UPS Ground Freight.

Before becoming chairman, Harmon led the firm’s business securities litigation department.

A West Point graduate, Harmon served as a first lieutenant in the Army’s 1st Cavalry Division during Operation Desert Storm. He earned his law degree from the University of Texas School of Law and joined McGuireWoods in 1995.

With more than 920 , McGuireWoods was the nation’s 62nd largest law firm by number of lawyers last year. It ranked 54th for revenue on the Am Law 200, bringing in $1.11 billion in gross revenue for 2024.

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Law 2025: HAYNES, RUDENE MERCER

In April, Hunton Andrews Kurth named Haynes managing partner of its Richmond office.

Co-leader of the servicer advance financing practice, Haynes has worked at Hunton since 1999, following her graduation from the University of Texas School of . Also a University of Virginia graduate, she has represented Ginnie Mae, the federal government’s mortgage corporation, in its multiclass and mortgage-backed securities programs.

Haynes is also deeply involved in her community, having served on boards for YWCA Richmond and the VCU Massey Cancer Center. She also was a founding member of the Richmond & Henrico Public Health Foundation board. Over the past decade, she has won professional and civic accolades, including YWCA Richmond’s Outstanding Women Award and the Valentine museum’s Richmond History Maker Award.

WHAT PEOPLE WOULD BE SURPRISED TO LEARN ABOUT ME: That I didn’t get a real driver’s license until two weeks before starting my first job as an associate at Hunton

PERSONAL MOTTO: Those who know me well know one of my favorite quotes is that of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which is, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

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Law 2025: DAVIS, JASON R.

Davis, who joined Kaufman & Canoles in 1997, became president and CEO of the Hampton Roads firm in 2024, succeeding William R. Van Buren III, who led the firm for 16 years and is now chairman.

In his practice, Davis represents and advises hospitals, long-term care facilities, physicians and other health care providers on a range of matters, including potential breaches of the Health Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

After earning a bachelor’s degree in commerce from the University of Virginia, Davis received his law degree from William & Mary.

The Virginia Law Foundation inducted Davis, along with 25 other lawyers, into the 2025 Fellows Class. Away from work, Davis is a board member for the Elizabeth River Trail Foundation and the Greenwood School.

STREAMING SHOW I’D RECOMMEND: “Drops of God” — unexpectedly brilliant

HOW I DEFINE SUCCESS: Arriving at a plaCEOf equilibrium — working hard but enjoying what you do and taking time for fun, spending time with others but also alone, staying active while building in time to relax, doing things for others while paying attention to yourself.

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