HOUSTON – (October 9, 2020) – Chris Lemons recently joined the Houston office of the national law firm, Chamberlain Hrdlicka, as an associate in the Commercial Litigation practice.

Lemons brings more than 5 years of commercial litigation experience, representing a wide variety of clients and companies in numerous practice areas of litigation, including insurance law, medical malpractice, and personal injury defense. At Chamberlain Hrdlicka, his practice will focus on complex commercial litigation, business litigation, energy litigation, securities litigation, professional malpractice claims, complex tort litigation, and insurance coverage involving errors and omissions, directors and officers, commercial general liability, commercial property, and commercial auto and garage.

Lemons graduated with summa cum laude honors from Texas State University, where he was inducted into the Beta Gamma Sigma International Honors Society and the Alpha Chi Honors Society. He received his JD degree from South Texas College of Law, where he graduated magna cum laude as sixth in his class and was inducted into the Order of the Lytae and the Phi Delta Phi International Legal Honor Society. He also earned eight CALI Excellence for the Future Awards and served as an assistant articles editor for the South Texas Law Review while in law school.

Lemons is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Texas Association of Defense Counsel, Houston Bar Association, Houston Young Lawyers Association, Defense Research Institute, and the Greater Houston Society for Healthcare Risk Management. He’s been named “Top Lawyer” by the Houstonia Magazine in 2017 and 2018.

Raed “Ray” Abilmouna recently joined the Houston office of national law firm, Chamberlain Hrdlicka, as an associate on the Labor & Employment team.

With close to ten years of legal experience, Abilmouna will focus on the defense of matters involving class, collective and hybrid wage-and-hour actions brought under the Fair Labor Standards Act and/or state-law equivalents, discrimination, harassment, and pregnancy and medical leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act in federal and state courts, arbitrations, and administrative proceedings.

Prior to joining Chamberlain Hrdlicka, Abilmouna represented national providers of healthcare services and physician staffing on employment matters and the defense of upstream liability claims with a special emphasis on intercorporate liability and corporate structure issues in lawsuits that arose from alleged medical malpractice. Moreover, he has successfully handled matters involving breach of contract, tortious interference, and vicarious liability claims involving employee status and joint employment issues, as well as represented healthcare providers on HIPAA compliance matters.

Abilmouna graduated summa cum laude from the University of Houston with bachelor’s degrees in management information systems and marketing and received his J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas, including its Appellate and Litigation Sections, and the Houston Bar Association, including the Appellate Practice, Health Law, and Litigation Sections. Abilmouna is active and currently involved with a non-profit organization, Network 1017, to promote higher education, leadership development, career successes and professional networking.

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP is pleased to announce that nine of the firm’s partners have been named by Who’s Who Legal as among the world’s leading construction lawyers. The Bradley attorneys listed in the 2020 edition of Who’s Who Legal: Construction are Jim Archibald, Axel Bolvig, Ian P. Faria, Jon Paul Hoelscher, Douglas L. Patin, J. David Pugh, William R. Purdy, E. Mabry Rogers and Robert J. Symon. In addition, Mr. Rogers is listed in the 2020 edition of Who’s Who Legal: Thought Leaders – Construction, which shines a light on the lawyers and experts who are the apogee of the construction world.

WWL: Construction provides in-depth analysis to the world’s elite construction lawyers and experts as well as future leaders in the field. Lawyers are selected for their outstanding experience and expertise in resolving complex multi-jurisdictional construction disputes through litigation, mediation and arbitration while the experts gain recognition for their impressive work on disputes and claims arising from both quantum and delay issues on major projects.

Bradley was named the nation’s “Law Firm of the Year” for Construction Law in the 2020 and 2018 editions of U.S. News & World Report – Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms.” The award is particularly significant since only one law firm in the United States per legal practice area receives this recognition each year. Attorneys in the firm’s Construction Practice Group counsel clients on projects in the United States, Canada and Mexico, as well as more than 35 countries across Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, the Middle East, the Caribbean, and South America. Many of the firm’s construction attorneys have degrees in engineering, building science or architecture and have previous practical experience working in the construction industry.

About Bradley
Bradley combines skilled legal counsel with exceptional client service and unwavering integrity to assist a diverse range of corporate and individual clients in achieving their business goals. With offices in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and the District of Columbia, the firm’s nearly 550 lawyers represent regional, national and international clients in various industries, including banking and financial services, construction, energy, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, real estate, and technology, among many others.

“Under new guidance from the Small Business Administration (SBA) issued through a Procedural Notice (Notice) on Oct. 2, 2020, certain PPP borrowers may be required to seek prior consent from the SBA for a change in ownership of equity or sale of assets. Notably, the Notice addresses a change in ownership interest of the PPP borrower itself, but does not specifically address changes in ownership at the level of the borrower’s affiliates. Absent additional guidance, presumably no SBA or lender approval would be required for a change in ownership at a borrower’s affiliate if the transaction did not have a bearing on the PPP borrower, its direct assets, or equity interests. The Notice establishes different categories of transactions, some of which may require prior approval of the SBA, and is effective for all transactions that close on or after Oct. 2, 2020,” writes Bryan X. Grimaldi, Barbara A. Jones, Carl A. Fornaris and Lee Ann Anderson in The National Law Review.

“Prior to the closing of any change of ownership transaction, a PPP borrower must notify its PPP lender in writing of the contemplated transaction and provide the PPP lender a copy of the proposed agreements or other documents that would effect the proposed transaction. The original loan documentation itself may contain covenants triggering lender consent to the transaction as well and should be reviewed accordingly, although compliance with the Notice requirements will still be required. The Notice states that, where SBA approval is required, the SBA will review and provide its decision within 60 days of receipt of a completed request. This up-to-60-day waiting period could result in a significant delay of the closing of the transaction. Accordingly, a determination of whether prior approval is required should be made early in the transaction process.”

Read the article.

“BBAM Limited Partnership (“BBAM”) announced … the appointment of Vincent Cannon to the role of General Counsel and Chief Operating Officer,” reported by BBAM Limited Partnership via Cision’s PR Newswire.

“Mr. Cannon is currently Senior Vice President, Corporate Legal, a position he has held since joining BBAM in 2014. Prior to joining BBAM, Mr. Cannon practiced law at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP.”

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“The 45th Investigating Statewide Grand Jury announced charges against a Chester County magisterial district judge for using $4,000 in campaign contributions for personal benefit, which included gambling at various casinos in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, and violating campaign reporting requirements,” reported via a press release on Josh Shapiro Attorney General’s website.

“In 2016, Cabry established the ‘Citizens for Cabry’ political action committee (PAC) in order to collect and spend campaign donations in compliance with Pennsylvania campaign finance law. Cabry submitted several campaign finance reports related to this PAC, all of which were filed, sworn to, signed, and filed by Cabry in his capacity as a magisterial district judge.”

“Cabry failed to file campaign finance reports during the fall of 2017, despite dozens of purchases being made on the PAC’s debit card for groceries, laundry services, hotel stays, and more cash withdrawals at casinos. The Grand Jury’s review of Cabry’s campaign finance records also revealed that, in 2017 alone, Cabry visited the Delaware Park Casino at least once per week, and withdrew campaign funds on several of those visits. Many reports failed to include cash withdrawals used by Cabry to gamble at various casinos.”

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“A $56 million settlement between Massachusetts and the natural gas utility found responsible for a series of explosions and fires in the state in 2018 was approved by the state Department of Public Utilities,” reported by Associated Press in The Washington Post’s Climate & Environment.

“The settlement with Columbia Gas of Massachusetts and its parent, NiSource, was agreed to in July and approved Wednesday, the state Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs announced in a statement.”

“The explosions in Lawrence, Andover and North Andover in September 2018 killed one person, injured almost two dozen and damaged more than 100 buildings. Federal investigators blamed the explosions on overpressurized gas lines.”

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“Two Broward attorneys were arrested this week for their involvement in a nearly $750,000 fraud scheme to rip off unsuspecting victims of foreclosure surplus checks, according to the Broward Sheriff’s Office,” report Brooke Baitinger Eileen Kelley in South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Crime News.

“The attorneys, Rashisa Overby and Ria Sankar-Balram, worked with Illya and Patricia Tinker, a married couple nicknamed ‘tomb raiders’ for another multimillion-dollar scheme in which they stole properties across South Florida, some of which belonged to the dead.”

“The Broward Sheriff’s Office arrested Overby and Sankar-Balram Monday. Balram was released from jail after posting a $57,000 bond. Overby who faces significantly more charges — 29 counts of fraud, money laundering and grand theft among other charges, had bond set at $140,000.”

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Jonathan L. Lewis has joined Lowenstein Sandler as a partner in the firm’s Antitrust & Trade Regulation practice group. He will be based in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office.

Lewis is a seasoned antitrust and competition lawyer serving clients in diverse sectors, including manufacturing, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, health care, and technology. He advises clients regarding the management of their day-to-day business risks, counsels on corporate transactions, and provides litigation defense.

Known for providing substantive antitrust analysis of proposed transactions, Lewis provides counsel on a range of issues, including merger review and pre-merger integration planning, distribution and franchising, and other business practices. He also represents clients before federal and state antitrust enforcement authorities in the course of investigations concerning distribution practices and pre- and post-merger review.

Lewis received his J.D., cum laude, from University of Michigan Law School, and he holds both an M.P.M. (Master of Public Management) and a B.A. from the University of Maryland.

“The Ohio Supreme Court today suspended a Lucas County attorney for two years, with six months stayed, for levying false and inflammatory accusations against opposing attorneys, a magistrate, parties in two of his cases, and disciplinary officials hearing the complaints against him,” reports Dan Trevas in Court News Ohio’s Cases.

“In a unanimous per curiam opinion, the Supreme Court suspended Thomas A. Yoder of Holland for violating several of the rules governing the professional conduct of Ohio lawyers. The offenses included calling a magistrate’s decision ‘insane,’ and not what ‘a normal, competent magistrate would have done.'”

“The Toledo Bar Association filed a complaint against Yoder with the Ohio Board of Professional Conduct in 2019 based on allegedly false statements by Yoder and for threatening letters he sent to two witnesses he intended to call during his disciplinary hearings.”

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“Argo Group International Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: ARGO) (“Argo” or “the company”), an underwriter of specialty insurance and reinsurance products, today announced the appointment of Allison Kiene to serve as the company’s general counsel. In this role, Kiene will be responsible for the company’s legal and compliance teams and will report directly to Chief Executive Officer Kevin Rehnberg,” released Argo Group in its News Releases.

“Kiene joins Argo from Sompo International Holdings Ltd., where she served as assistant general counsel and chief compliance officer, data protection officer. She held similar roles with increasing responsibility at Montpelier Re Holdings Ltd., Blue Capital Management Ltd. and Familymeds Group Inc. Kiene has a Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmacy and a Juris Doctor in law from the University of Connecticut.”

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“Mayo Clinic Jacksonville and a proposed class of 371 patients it treated for motor vehicle accident injuries received preliminary approval of a settlement involving claims the health-care provider overcharged them, a federal court in Florida said,” reports Mary Anne Pazanowski in Bloomberg Law’s The United States Law Week.

“The class was reasonably defined and met all the prerequisites for class certification, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida said Tuesday.”

“Additionally, the total settlement amount of just over $1 million appeared to be adequate, except for the amounts allocated to an incentive fee for the named plaintiff and for class counsel’s attorneys’ fees, the court said.”

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“After a routine compliance review by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), Locke Lord LLP – a federal contractor formerly known as Edwards Wildman – voluntarily entered into a conciliation agreement to resolve allegations of pay discrimination at its Providence, Rhode Island, office,” released the U.S. Department of Labor’s News Releases.

“In January 2015, Locke Lord LLP acquired Edwards Wildman. In fiscal years 2016 through 2020, Locke Lord LLP received payments totaling $4,915,638 due to federal contracts.”

“After a routine compliance evaluation, OFCCP alleged that Locke Lord LLP discriminated in its practice of issuing bonuses to 22 female associates. While not admitting the allegations, Locke Lord LLP agreed to provide relief for the affected associates totaling $150,000 in lost bonuses and interest, as well as assuring that all employees are afforded equal employment opportunities.”

Read the article.

The largest virtual e-discovery event of the year is less than two months away.

Due to COVID, this year’s event will look a little different, but there will be no shortage of e-discovery innovation and fun! We are planning virtual celebration events (think yoga and happy hour), educational webcasts, a virtual expo hall, and loads of other online resources to help you broaden your e-discovery knowledge.
We are excited for this year’s celebration and look forward to having you join us!

Why Attend
All too often, e-discovery professionals operate in the background. Hot-shot litigators argue cases in court. Judges command attention from the bench. Even IT security pros and hackers get occasional headlines when there’s a data breach.

In 2015, we decided that enough was enough. E-Discovery plays a critical—and growing—role in the legal process. After all, the e-discovery industry is expected to reach almost $19 billion per year by 2023, up from more than $10 billion in 2018. To get e-discovery, and the hard-working professionals who make it happen, the attention they deserve, we established E-Discovery Day.

The 6th annual celebration of e-discovery is bigger and better than ever. In 2019, 23 supporting organizations collaborated to host 19 webcasts and 16 live events from California to London and New York to Johannesburg. Participation in E-Discovery Day continues to grow with over 3,000 participants in 2019.

E-Discovery professionals deserve the recognition and opportunities to learn, network, and celebrate all that E-Discovery Day brings. We truly appreciate your participation in this year’s celebration and look forward to connecting with you again next year.

Check out the new e-discovery website

Barnes & Thornburg has added Marcantonio W. Barnes as a partner in its Washington, D.C. office, where he will lead the development of the D.C. Corporate practice group, while advising clients on mergers and acquisitions, technology transactions, and federal contracts.

Barnes primarily focuses on helping clients execute their business strategies. His transactional work commonly involves the acquisition and sale of things – whether it is a company, product or service. In addition to his corporate and legal experience, Barnes has also held public service positions with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Chief Counsel’s Office of the U.S. House Oversight Committee, and the Fairfax County Small Business Commission.

He brings significant client relationships that span a variety of industries, including energy, financial services, information technology, manufacturing and retail sectors. The diversity and success of those relationships also reflect his passion for working with clients to ensure that shared values with respect to diversity and inclusion are reflected throughout the course of the representation.

Marco has also been a leader in diversity and inclusion initiatives within the practice of law, and was a finalist for the 2019 Chambers Minority Lawyer of the Year Award.

Barnes earned his LL.M. from Georgetown Law Center, his J.D. from George Mason University School of Law and his B.A. from George Mason University.

With more than 700 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from offices in Atlanta, California, Chicago, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minneapolis, New York, Ohio, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, Texas and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit us online at www.btlaw.com or on Twitter @BTLawNews

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP is pleased to announce that 53 of the firm’s partners have been recognized in the 2021 edition of Benchmark Litigation, which also listed Bradley as a “highly recommended” firm. In addition, the firm was ranked Tier 1 nationally for Product Liability and Recall, and five attorneys where recognized as National Practice Area Stars.

A leading guide to litigation firms and attorneys in the United States and Canada, Benchmark Litigation “highly recommended” Bradley in Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee, and “recommended” the firm in North Carolina.

Benchmark Litigation determines rankings through peer reviews and case examinations. Among the firm’s partners listed in the guide, 34 are recognized as “Local Litigation Stars,” who were consistently recommended by clients as being reputable and effective litigators. The guide names 19 Bradley partners as “Future Stars,” who were consistently referenced by peers and clients as litigators who are likely to be become “Local Litigation Stars” in coming editions of the guide. Benchmark Litigation is the only publication that focuses exclusively on U.S. litigation.

Following are Bradley partners recognized as “Local Litigation Stars,” organized by office:

Birmingham
• Paul P. Bolus
• Phil Butler
• William S. “Buddy” Cox III
• James W. Gewin
• Tripp Haston (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star)
• Leigh Anne Hodge (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star and in the Top 250 Women in Litigation)
• David G. Hymer
• Matthew H. Lembke
• Robert Maddox
• Joseph B. Mays Jr.
• Michael D. McKibben
• T. Matthew Miller
• Michael R. Pennington
• Anne Marie Seibel
• R. Thomas Warburton

Charlotte, N.C.
• Corby Cochran Anderson

Dallas
· Richard A. Sayles

Huntsville, Ala.
• Kimberly Martin (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star and in the Top 250 Women in Litigation)

Jackson, Miss.
• Jeffrey R. Blackwood
• Roy D. Campbell III
• Margaret Oertling Cupples
• W. Wayne Drinkwater
• J. William Manuel
• Stephen L. Thomas

Montgomery, Ala.
• Charles Stewart

Nashville, Tenn.
• George H. Cate III
• Lela Hollabaugh (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star and in the Top 250 Women in Litigation)
• Samuel D. Lipshie
• Robert S. Patterson
• Todd Presnell
• Thor Y. Urness

Tampa, Fla.
· R. Craig Mayfield (also ranked as a National Practice Area Star)

Washington, D.C.
• Stephen R. Spivack
• John Parker Sweeney

Following are Bradley partners recognized as “Future Stars,” organized by office:

Birmingham
• F. Wendell Allen
• Lindsey Boney
• Jason R. Bushby
• Tiffany J. deGruy (also named to the 2020 Benchmark 40 & Under Hot List)
• Jeffrey D. Dyess
• John Mark Goodman
• Jennifer J. McGahey
• D. Brian O’Dell
• J. Thomas Richie (also named to the 2020 Benchmark 40 & Under Hot List)
• Edward S. Sledge IV
• Whitt Steineker (also named to the 2020 Benchmark 40 & Under Hot List)

Dallas
· Robert L. Sayles

Huntsville
• Stephen H. Hall

Jackson
• Michael J. Bentley
• Mary Clay W. Morgan
• Alex Purvis

Nashville
• Ty E. Howard
• Edmund S. Sauer
• Heather Howell Wright

The Litigation Practice Group is Bradley’s largest practice and includes almost half of the firm’s nearly 550 attorneys who represent clients in litigation and arbitration in every U.S. state and federal district court across the country, as well as internationally. Attorneys handle matters in nearly every substantive area of business law and in a wide range of industries, including high-stakes and complex cases.

About Bradley
Bradley combines skilled legal counsel with exceptional client service and unwavering integrity to assist a diverse range of corporate and individual clients in achieving their business goals. With offices in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and the District of Columbia, the firm’s nearly 550 lawyers represent regional, national and international clients in various industries, including banking and financial services, construction, energy, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, real estate, and technology, among many others.

“Johnson & Johnson will pay out over $100 million to settle more than 1000 lawsuits that claim the pharmaceutical giant’s baby powder caused cancer,” reports Daniel Cassady in Forbes’ Breaking News.

“The settlement is the first in four years of litigation and nearly 20,000 lawsuits that allege Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder and talc products caused cancer due to asbestos contamination, according to the report.”

“In 2018, a New York Times investigation found Johnson & Johnson had for at least 50 years been aware of possible asbestos contamination in its talc products without telling consumers. Test results detected no greater than 0.00002% of “chrysotile asbestos” in the talc products that were recalled in October. Thousands of lawsuits have been filed against the company by people who claim to have developed mesothelioma and ovarian cancer, both of which are linked to asbestos exposure, after using the company’s talc products.”

Read the article.

“A federal grand jury has indicted Stephen L. Snyder, age 72, of Miami Beach, Florida, on the federal charges of attempted extortion and interstate travel and use of an interstate facility to carry on unlawful activity, also known as the Travel Act. Snyder was the senior partner at a Baltimore-based law firm specializing in plaintiff-side medical malpractice litigation,” released in the The United States Attorney’s Office District of Maryland.

According to the indictment “between January and October 2018, Snyder attempted to obtain $25 million from the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) for himself, separate and apart from any claim by one of his clients, by using threats of economic and reputational harm to UMMS and its organ transplant program. Specifically, the indictment alleges that Snyder threatened that if UMMS did not pay him $25 million, Snyder would launch a public relations campaign against UMMS that alleged, among other things, that UMMS transplanted diseased organs into unsophisticated patients without informing them of the quality of the organs they were receiving in order to generate revenue. According to the indictment, Snyder told UMMS officials that the campaign would include: a front-page article in the Baltimore Sun; other national news stories; a press conference; advertisements on the Internet, including one that would run every time someone accessed the UMMS transplant site; and at least two videos Snyder produced and would air if his demand for a $25 million payment were not met.”

Read the release.

Richmond-based commercial construction and development firm Hourigan has hired David Ryan as chief financial officer and Kelley Holland as general counsel, announced Hourigan.

“Kelley Holland, General Counsel, joins Hourigan from the law firm Williams Mullen. As an attorney and partner in the Litigation Section, her practice was focused on general commercial, environmental and construction litigation in both state and federal courts. Prior to her practice at Williams Mullen, Kelley served as a law clerk for The Honorable D. Arthur Kelsey who was then with of the Court of Appeals of Virginia. She also served as a summer law clerk for the Virginia Beach Circuit Court, 2^nd Judicial Circuit of Virginia and worked with the law firm Marcus, Santoro & Kozak while attending law school. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in Spanish from the University of Virginia and a Juris Doctor degree from Regent University School of Law.”

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A $411.7 million verdict was returned for a veteran paralyzed in a 45-vehicle interstate pileup in 2018, reports a staff reporter in Tallahassee Democrat’s News.

“It’s a record verdict in what appears to be the area’s first ever trial conducted by video-conferencing.”

“Duane Washington, a former career Army sergeant and Gadsden County resident, was traveling home on his motorcycle via I-10 near Tallahassee in July 2018” when “He came upon a pileup of more than 45 vehicles, caused by a wreck. ”

Read the article.