Celebrating EFC’s 2026 Summer Program

As the summer comes to an end, Egan, Flanagan and Cohen, P.C. would like to recognize and thank all eleven members of this year’s summer class — our largest ever — for their hard work and contributions over the past several months. This year, EFC was strengthened by the addition of six law student Summer Associates, three undergraduate student Law Clerks, and two participants of the Hampden County Bar Association’s “Leap Into Law” program. With the conclusion of our summer program in August, we wish all eleven of our summer teammates every success as they continue their studies and careers.

EFC’s Six 2026 Summer Associates

We are proud to recognize six promising law students who spent the 2026 summer working with us as Summer Associates and gaining hands-on experience across the firm’s practice areas:

Elizabeth L. Gonet — 2026 EFC Summer Associate

Elizabeth is a rising 2L at the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law and a graduate of the UMass Amherst Isenberg School of Management. This summer she worked closely with Kevin Giordano, Esq., including on the successful defense of a medical malpractice claim before a Hampden County jury. Elizabeth is no stranger to the firm, having previously served as an Administrative Assistant here before starting law school, and we were glad to welcome her back this summer.

Camren Huntley — 2026 EFC Summer Associate

Camren is a rising 2L at Roger Williams School of Law and a Cum Laude graduate of Roger Williams University’s 3+3 Legal Studies program, where he also studied Chinese. Over the summer he worked with our bankruptcy team, including Jonathan Goldsmith, Esq. He also assisted our estate planning, corporate, and real estate attorneys, and he volunteered to assist Kevin Withers, Esq. and the litigation group with discovery and subpoena responses to broaden his experience. Camren previously worked at another law firm in Springfield, Massachusetts, and is fluent in English and proficient in Mandarin.

Angelica Merino Monge – 2026 EFC Summer Associate

Angelica is a rising 2L at Western New England University School of Law and a graduate of Bard College. Angela brought years of immigration law experience with her to the firm this summer, including prior work at another law firm in Northampton, Massachusetts and the Harvard Immigration & Refugee Clinic. Drawing on that background, she worked closely with Katherine A. Day, Esq., in helping overseas clergy obtain R-1 visas, allowing them to come to the United States to serve religious groups and communities here. This is an area of real importance to many religious non-profits, and Angelica added meaningful value to that work over the summer.

Joseph T. Ryan — 2026 EFC Summer Associate

Joseph is on pace to graduate from the University of Connecticut School of Law this December and sit for the February bar exam. He earned a Certificate in Insurance Law during his studies, and he put that training to work this summer on high-stakes matters involving reservations of rights, challenged insurance denials, and cases with significant business damages. Joseph attends law school at night and for over a decade has been has been a public school high school teacher for English Language Arts. He previously clerked at another law firm in Cromwell, Connecticut. Joseph is the son of EFC partner Timothy J. Ryan and the grandson of the late Charles V. Ryan, former Mayor of Springfield and himself a former attorney at the firm, making this summer a continuation of a family legacy at EFC.

Lindsey A. Schnopp — 2026 EFC Summer Associate

Lindsey is a rising 2L at Western New England University School of Law and a summa cum laude graduate of UMass Amherst. She came to the firm with real estate experience already under her belt from her time as a Real Estate Paralegal at another law firm in Andover, Massachusetts, and was contributing to our real estate team from day one working alongside EFC Attorneys Tom Argenio, Tim Ryan, and Sara Cafaro. Lindsey also expanded her experience by working closely with attorneys in our Corporate Department, including Matti C. Tacy, Esq. Lindsey assisted on significant eight-figure transactions involving the sale of businesses and commercial real estate.

Alexa Urmaza — 2026 EFC Summer Associate

Alexa is a rising 2L at the University of Connecticut School of Law and a summa cum laude graduate of Colby College. She spent the summer in our Litigation Department working on complicated business litigation matters as well as sensitive investigations the firm was engaged to oversee. She drafted correspondence and pleadings in active litigation matters, and she worked closely with Thomas Day, Esq., in the area of construction litigation. Alexa came to the firm with litigation experience already in hand from her time as a paralegal at another law firm in Meriden, Connecticut, and she showed this summer that she is a natural for the practice and ready to begin litigating.

EFC’s Three 2026 Summer Law Clerks

In addition, Egan, Flanagan and Cohen was proud to work with three talented undergraduate students as 2026 Summer Law Clerks:

Isabella V. Balise — 2026 EFC Summer Law Clerk
Isabella is an undergraduate at Rice University, pursuing a B.A. in Political Science and a B.S. in Business. She first joined the firm as a Litigation Intern in 2025, and she returned this summer in an expanded role working with Attorneys Lauren Olanoff and Michael McDonough. Isabella conducted legal research, analyzed Supreme Judicial Court rulings, and drafted pleadings. She co-authored a legal blog article with Attorney McDonough, assisted clients with HR and employment law decisions, and contributed to significant transactional matters by participating in negotiations and drafting closing documents.

William DeBassio — 2026 EFC Summer Law Clerk
William is an undergraduate at the College of the Holy Cross, where he holds a 4.0 GPA and was named to the Dean’s List this past fall. This summer he assisted on a important pro bono project providing legal services to combat-wounded veterans. He worked in all of the firm’s legal departments. A senior captain of his high school’s varsity hockey team and a recent participant in Holy Cross’s Finance and Banking Bootcamp in New York City, William brought the same work ethic, drive, and discipline to his work at the firm this summer.

Andrey Drogin — 2026 EFC Summer Law Clerk
Andrey is an undergraduate at Babson College, concentrating in Business Law & Strategy, with prior experience in compliance and cross-border regulatory research in Dubai and Estonia. This summer he drew on his financial training to review, organize, and present complicated financial damages in multiple business litigation matters within our Litigation Department. Consistent with his interest in business, he also assisted firm management on internal projects aligned with the firm’s plans for future growth.

EFC’s Commitment to the HCBA Leap Into Law Program

EFC is a dedicated supporter of “Leap Into Law,” a work development program run by the Hampden County Bar Association in partnership with Springfield WORKS. EFC alumna Katie M. McDonough, Esq. and EFC’s Chief of Staff, Faith Hoynoski, were instrumental in founding Leap Into Law, which was inspired by EFC’s success in identify, hiring, training and developing employees from other industries and providing them with an opportunity to work in the legal market. This year, Egan, Flanagan and Cohen was proud to welcome two participants from the program, Myrlande Philistin and Luz Ydania Lopez, giving them the opportunity to gain real experience in a working law firm. Philistin and Lopez were each valuable teammates at the Firm over the summer, enhancing their trajectory and training as professionals in the legal and greater business community.

EFC’s 2026 summer class at “The Landing” in Downtown Springfield.
 (Joseph T. Ryan not pictured)

EFC’s Summer Program Lead and Commitment to Success

This year’s program was overseen by Faith A. Hoynoski, EFC’s Chief of Staff, who has been with Egan, Flanagan and Cohen since 2023. Hoynoski oversaw EFC’s efforts to recruit, interview, train, and support our summer class during the 10-week program.

Faith A. Hoynoski of Egan, Flanagan and Cohen, P.C.

Under Hoynoski’s leadership, this year’s summer program began with a firm outing at a Hartford Yard Goats game in late May. The program featured educational luncheons, social events, assigned mentorships, and hands-on training, culminating with a firm-wide farewell event in the firm’s “James F. Egan Event Space” on August 7, 2026.

Hoynoski’s guidance of the program has become an annual hallmark of EFC’s commitment to growth and providing experience to the next generation of attorneys in Western Massachusetts. These are essential objectives within EFC’s mission to provide the best legal advice and representation possible to businesses, non-profits, families, and individuals in Western Massachusetts. While the firm is proud of its 100+ years of history, all at EFC remain focused on continued success for EFC clients during “the next 100 years!”