Four partners in Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP — Leigh Anne Hodge, Lela M. Hollabaugh, Angela Holt, and Kimberly B. Martin — have been named to Benchmark Litigation’s Top 250 Women in Litigation 2019.

Ina release, the firm said Hodge, a member of Bradley’s Healthcare Practice Group and assistant leader of the firm’s Litigation Practice Group, represents clients in the healthcare industry in regional and national engagements. She represents and counsels clients in the healthcare industry in product liability litigation, medical malpractice litigation, peer review and staff privileges matters, administrative hearings before licensure board, ERISA litigation, Medicare Advantage plan litigation, managed care litigation, insurance disputes, and insurance fraud cases. Hodge is based in Bradley’s Birmingham office.

Managing partner of Bradley’s Nashville, Tenn., office, Hollabaugh has served as the lead trial lawyer in more than a dozen jury trials, as well as more than two dozen bench trials, arbitrations and administrative hearings. She advises leading natural gas pipeline companies and other infrastructure clients on issues involving location, land acquisition, construction, and operations. She also represents leading pharmaceutical, medical device and other manufacturers in matters ranging from individual lawsuits to mass tort cases around the country.

Based in Bradley’s Huntsville, Ala., office, Holt is a registered patent agent and a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Group. She focuses her practice on litigation involving intellectual property, commercial and business issues, and high‐technology issues. Her cases have involved patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, government contracting disputes (including bid protests), domain‐name disputes, breach of contract, employee disputes, and restrictive covenants. She has experience prosecuting patent, copyright, and trademark applications before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the U.S. Copyright Office. She also has litigated many inter partes trademark opposition proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.

Based in Bradley’s Huntsville office, Martin focuses her practice on general litigation with an emphasis on medical device and pharmaceutical products liability litigation, as well as white collar matters and False Claims Act litigation. She has tried cases in state and federal court. Most recently, she served as trial counsel successfully defending a nationwide hospice provider in a three-month False Claim Act trial brought by the U.S. Department of Justice. Martin serves as chair of Bradley’s Litigation Practice Group and has represented multi-national pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers in litigation across the country.

Now in its eighth edition, the Top 250 Women in Litigation determines honorees through research of litigators’ professional activities as well as client feedback from surveys and individual interviews. According to Benchmark Litigation, “These women have earned their place amongst the leading female litigators by participating in some of the most impactful litigation matters in recent history as well as by earning the hard-won respect of their peers and clients.”

Edward S. Sledge IV, a partner in Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP’s Birmingham office, has been appointed director-elect of the annual Trial Academy of the International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC). He also has been appointed to the board of the National Foundation for Judicial Excellence (NFJE).

With the Trial Academy, Sledge will serve as director-elect in 2020 and as director, overseeing implementation of the program, in 2021. He was appointed to a three-year term on the NFJE board, beginning this month.

A member of Bradley’s Litigation Practice Group, Sledge is a litigator and trial lawyer, with experience in high-stakes, bet-the-company disputes for a variety of corporate clients and private equity groups, the firm said in a release. He has tried cases to verdict in multiple state and federal courts and serves as national trial counsel to a unit of a Fortune 50 corporation. Sledge represents financial services clients in connection with finance-related litigation, including the defense of class actions, lender liability, securities, and RICO claims. In addition, to commercial disputes, Sledge litigates product liability matters, consumer finance disputes, intellectual property disputes, and insurance coverage matters, , as well as personal injury and wrongful death matters, the firm said.

Sledge is a frequent lecturer and author on civil litigation and trial issues. He serves on the Foundation Board of the IADC, is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America, Benchmark Litigation, Mid-South Super Lawyers and Alabama Super Lawyers (Top 50), among other publications. As a former Army officer, Sledge remains active in serving veterans’ issues for which he has been recognized by the Alabama State Bar with its President’s Award three times. He is a graduate of the United States Military Academy and the University of Alabama School of Law.

Held in the summer at Stanford Law School in Palo Alto, Calif., the IADC’s Trial Academy is a seven-day, intensive training event and one of the oldest and most respected programs in the country for enhancing trial advocacy skills of less experienced lawyers. The program emphasizes the learning-by-doing method of instruction, blending faculty instruction and demonstration with individual student participation. The program’s faculty consists of IADC members who are leading defense trial lawyers, representing different geographic areas and diverse practices, styles and personalities.

The IADC is the preeminent invitation-only global legal organization for attorneys who represent corporate and insurance interests. In addition to its core purpose involving professional development for its members, the IADC takes a leadership role in many areas of legal reform. Founded in 1920, the IADC’s 2,500 members hail from six continents, more than 50 countries and territories, and all 50 U.S. states.

The NFJE addresses important legal policy issues affecting the law and civil justice system by providing meaningful support and education to the judiciary, including by publishing scholarly works and by engaging in other efforts to continually enhance and ensure judicial excellence and fairness for all engaged in the judicial process.

The National Law Journal has honored The Law Offices of Frank L. Branson as a top law firm in the nation for product liability litigation based on the firm’s large jury verdicts and track record of excellence going back more than three decades.

The firm founded by Frank L. Branson was chosen for the prestigious Elite Trial Lawyers award based on exceptional product liability litigation work. The award was presented at a reception in New York on July 18. The firm was honored as part of a three-way tie in the product liability category.

The NLJ recognition follows a string of high-profile legal victories for Branson and his team, including:

A $242 million product liability jury verdict against Toyota in August 2018. Jurors agreed Toyota was grossly negligent for failing to correct or warn consumers about seatback design flaws in the Lexus ES 300. The award included $144 million in punitive damages awarded a Dallas family whose two young children suffered serious injuries in a collision. The verdict was recognized as the No. 1 product liability verdict in Texas in 2018.

A $10.9 million jury verdict resulting from the crash of a charter bus en route to the Choctaw Casino & Resort in Oklahoma. The 2016 verdict was affirmed on appeal and settled recently. The firm represented the estate and children of an 83-year-old woman who was killed in the accident. The verdict was awarded to Mr. Branson’s client and a second victim who was represented by separate counsel and who joined the case as an intervenor.

Branson also has won multimillion-dollar verdicts and settlements in all types of transportation crashes. He has been recognized for top verdicts multiple times by VerdictSearch and the NLJ – four alone in the last six years.

“I feel honored every day to have the opportunity to put our clients on a level playing field with corporate America,” said Mr. Branson. “The results we’ve been able to secure reflect decades of hard work and our team of great lawyers.”

Neal Gerber Eisenberg partner Steven F. Pflaum has received the Chicago Bar Foundation (CBF) and Chicago Bar Association (CBA)’s 2019 Edward J. Lewis II Pro Bono Service Award. The award recognizes attorneys who “display a deep commitment to the fundamental principles of equal protection and equal justice in the community through outstanding pro bono service.”

Through its Pro Bono & Public Service Awards, the CBF and CBA honor lawyers who have used their talents and resources to improve access to justice for the less fortunate in our community.

Since joining the firm in February 2010, Pflaum has dedicated more than 3600 hours of pro bono work to improve access to justice for all. In addition to being co-chair of the firm’s Litigation Practice Group and Chair of the firm’s Pro Bono Committee, Pflaum is a founding member and current chair of the Illinois Judicial Ethics Committee. He is also a former member and two-term chair of the Illinois Supreme Court Committee on Professional Responsibility, a former general counsel of the CBA, and an appointee of the Illinois Supreme Court to, and chair of, the legislatively created Illinois Supreme Court’s Statutory Court Fee Task Force.

Pflaum has chaired the firm’s Pro Bono Committee since 2010. In that capacity, he collaborates with the members of the Committee and lawyers throughout the firm to implement the firm’s innovative and ambitious pro bono policy. Under Pflaum’s leadership, the firm has maintained a gold-level membership in the CBF Law Firm Leadership Circle, which represents a commitment to support pro bono, legal aid and related access to justice initiatives.

Pflaum will be honored at the CBA and CBF Pro Bono & Public Service Awards Luncheon on Tuesday July 23, 2019 at the Hilton Chicago.

Amy Sherry Fischer

At its 2019 annual meeting, held in July at The Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, N.C., the International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) elected new IADC board of directors members for 2019-20, including new board leaders.

The IADC board oversees activities that benefit the organization’s members and their clients, as well as the civil justice system, the legal profession, and society in general. In addition to its core purpose involving professional development for members, the IADC takes a leadership role in many areas of legal reform. In a release, the association said IADC members are among the world’s leading corporate and insurance lawyers at large and small law firms and senior counsel in corporate law departments, as well as corporate and insurance executives. Members represent the largest corporations around the world, including the majority of companies listed in the FORTUNE 500.

The new IADC board leaders and members, along with their law firm or company affiliations, are:

President
Amy Sherry Fischer
Foliart, Huff, Ottaway & Bottom
Oklahoma City, Okla.

President-Elect
Andrew S. Chamberlin
Ellis & Winters LLP
Greensboro, N.C.

Immediate Past President
Craig A. Thompson
Venable LLP
Baltimore

Vice President of Corporate
Aldos Vance
Altec, Inc.
Birmingham, Ala.

Treasurer-Elect
Donna Lamontagne
Lamontagne, Spaulding & Hayes, LLP
Cranston, R.I.

Board Member
Bonnie Mayfield
Dykema Gossett PLLC
Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

Board Member
Michele Smith
MehaffyWeber, P.C.
Beaumont, Texas

Board Member
Thomas W. “Trea” Southerland, III
Federal Express Corporation
Memphis, Tenn.

The IADC is the preeminent invitation-only global legal organization for attorneys who represent corporate and insurance interests. Founded in 1920, the IADC’s 2,500 members hail from six continents, more than 50 countries and territories, and all 50 U.S. states. The core purposes of the IADC are to enhance the development of skills, promote professionalism, and facilitate camaraderie among its members, their clients, as well as the broader civil justice community.

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP announced that Samuel D. Lipshie, a partner in the firm’s Nashville office, has again been named by Who’s Who Legal as among the world’s leading sports and entertainment law practitioners. He is listed in the Who’s Who Legal: Sports & Entertainment 2019 directory.

As the leader of Bradley’s Media and Entertainment Practice Group and also a member of the firm’s Litigation and Intellectual Property practice groups, Lipshie practices in the areas of entertainment, music, intellectual property and commercial litigation and dispute resolution. He has extensive experience in connection with the acquisition and disposition of media, broadcast and other intellectual property. In a release, the firm said he has handled high-profile copyright, royalty (publishers, producers and talent), sports, entertainment, media and intellectual property litigation, as well as a multitude of cases involving trade secrets, trademarks, covenants not to compete, interference with contractual relations, and other business and commercial issues.

Scheduled to be published in October 2019 by London-based Law Business Research Limited, the Who’s Who Legal: Sports & Entertainment 2019 seeks to identify the leading sports and entertainment lawyers in the international marketplace. The attorneys listed were highly recommended by peers and clients for their counsel to individuals, corporations, and industry associations. Only lawyers who receive the highest number of recommendations as determined through independent research for Who’s Who are listed in the publication. The Who’s Who Legal guides are intended to serve as reference sources for companies seeking to corroborate the reputations of lawyers recommended by another party.

Eliot B. Peace, an attorney in Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP’s Tampa office, has been appointed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to the Judicial Nominating Commission for the Second District Court of Appeal.

Florida’s Judicial Nominating Commissions (JNCs) select nominees to fill judicial vacancies within the state court system. The state’s 27 separate JNCs include one for the Florida Supreme Court, five for each of the district courts of appeal, 20 for each circuit court and the county courts contained in that circuit, and one Statewide Commission for Judges of Compensation Claims. JNC members serve four-year terms, except when an appointment is made to fill a vacant, unexpired term.

The firm said that Peace, as a member of Bradley’s Litigation Practice Group, represents business and commercial clients in complex litigation across a variety of industries and in state and federal courts across the country

Peace previously served as a federal prosecutor and in-house counsel in the U.S. Air Force JAG Corps.

The International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) – the invitation-only global legal organization for attorneys who represent corporate and insurance interests –announced that it has launched the IADC Diversity and Inclusion Award and has presented its first award to the Diverse Attorney Pipeline Program (DAPP).

DAPP, a non-profit organization founded to advance opportunities for women of color and the creator of DAPP Direct, the first and only national job placement fair for women of color law students, will be formally recognized as the award’s recipient at the IADC’s 2019 Annual Meeting in July in Asheville, N.C.

In a release, the firm said he IADC Diversity and Inclusion Award recognizes an individual, group, organization, company or country that has championed diversity and inclusion within the legal profession. The recipient also has taken purposeful, tangible actions that have yielded positive outcomes in helping to achieve diversity and inclusion in the legal profession and/or has significantly advanced understanding of the need for diversity and inclusion in the profession.

“The IADC recognizes that diversity and inclusion is a core tenet and central to our organization,” said Bonnie Mayfield, Chair of the IADC’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee and Chair of the organization’s Employment Law Committee. “This award is designed to identify and honor those persons or entities who have championed diversity and inclusion in the legal profession through meaningful and tangible actions. We believe what gets recognized gets repeated.”

Mayfield, who is a product liability and labor and employment defense lawyer at Dykema Gossett PLLC, stressed that the legal profession is not where it needs to be in terms of increasing diversity and inclusion, and that recent studies on diversity in the profession confirm that that African American/Black equity partners are rare and may even be declining.

“DAPP is precisely the type of organization that the IADC wants to recognize and celebrate through this award for its tangible contributions to helping diverse individuals succeed in the legal profession,” Mayfield added.

Founded in 2014, DAPP is a non-profit corporation that addresses the continued and systemic decline of women of color lawyers in law firms and across other coveted positions in the legal profession. Through its scholars program and national job placement program, DAPP Direct, DAPP works to expand opportunities for women of color law students to succeed in law school and secure paid summer positions at law firms and corporations following their first year of law school. DAPP Direct pairs law firms with women of color in-house counsel who interview on their behalves and place talented, first-year women of color law students in paid law firm internships across the nation. The DAPP Scholars Program provides scholars with placement assistance, academic support, coaching, counseling, book stipends, tutoring, seminars and workshops, tailored professional development, mentorship, and more.

DAPP was started by two African-American female attorneys who graduated from law school during the height of the recession, and through their leadership positions in minority bar associations and diversity organizations, witnessed the barricades to, and rapid decline of, women of color in big law.

The Arizona Capitol Times is reporting that an applicant for the Arizona Court of Appeals plagiarized multiple memorable passages from confirmation hearings for two U.S. Supreme Court justices.

Kristina Reeves, an attorney in private practice and former assistant attorney general, is one of 11 applicants hoping to fill a vacancy on the Court of Appeals, reports the Capitol Times‘ Dillon Rosenblatt.

The alleged plagiarism involved copied-and-pasted passages from speeches by U.S. Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch and Samuel Alito, including multiple passages of Gorsuch’s confirmation speech to the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2017, altering it minimally to suit her gender, according to Rosenblatt.

Read the Capitol Times article.

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP partner Charles A. Roberts Jr. is among the recipients of the M&A Advisor’s 10th Annual Emerging Leaders Awards recognizing the achievements of young M&A, financing and turnaround professionals under the age of 40.

The awards recognize the achievements of young M&A, financing and turnaround professionals who have reached a significant level of success while still under the age of 40.

The M&A Advisor’s Emerging Leaders began as the 40 Under 40 Awards in the United States in 2010 and later became the Emerging Leader Awards upon expansion to the United Kingdom and Europe. An independent judging panel of prominent leaders in the M&A, finance and turnaround community determined the winners, who will be formally recognized at a black tie awards gala Sept. 17 in New York City as part of the 2019 Emerging Leaders Summit.

A member of Bradley’s Corporate and Securities Practice Group and chair of Bradley’s Public Companies team, Roberts practices in the corporate and securities area, with a focus on public company representation, advising private equity companies in leveraged buyouts and portfolio company acquisitions, and advising real estate developers and sponsors on joint ventures and capital raises. In addition to representing public companies with 34’ Act reporting compliance, public debt and equity offerings, and corporate governance matters, Roberts has experience in public and private mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and joint ventures. He represents both public and private companies in a broad range of industries, including private equity, financial services, automotive, manufacturing, and real estate development. Roberts also is a member of Bradley’s Finance Committee.

The Aldous\Walker LLP law firm in Dallas has been named a finalist for the National Law Journal’s 2019 Elite Trial Lawyers awards based on the firm’s “cutting-edge work on behalf of plaintiffs.”

Editors and reporters at the NLJ and ALM Media announced the finalists chosen from more than 300 submissions. The selection is made after a review of all nominated firms’ work over the past 18 months. Winners will be announced at a July reception in New York.

Aldous\Walker was named a finalist in two separate categories, “Product Liability” and “Other,” based on the firm’s recent string of three courtroom wins in less than three months. The firm represented:

• Stacey Jackson, mother of Jerry Brown, who was killed in a vehicle driven by former Dallas Cowboys player Josh Brent. In December 2018, firm co-founder Charla Aldous and her law partner Brent Walker secured a $25 million verdict against the club that over-served alcohol to Mr. Brent before the deadly crash.
• Sarah Milburn, who was left quadriplegic in a collision involving a Honda Odyssey van in which she was a passenger. In February 2019, Ms. Aldous and Mr. Walker won a $37.6 million verdict on her behalf after a jury found Honda’s design of a third-row seat belt defective.
• Isabella Fletcher, who was sexually assaulted by former Hebron High School football players when she was only 14. A Denton County jury awarded her $32 million in February, just weeks after the Milburn verdict.

“Being a finalist for this is a tremendous honor, but no more so than representing the people who come to us for help,” said Brent Walker.

“The other finalists are among the best,” said Charla Aldous. “It’s nice to be named along with them.”

Duane Morris trial partner and chief diversity and inclusion officer Joseph K. West will be the inaugural recipient of Chambers and Partners’ Lifetime Achievement Award: Diversity & Equality. He was selected for his commitment to furthering the advancement of diversity and inclusion. West will be honored at the 2019 USA Chambers Diversity and Inclusion Awards on June 6, 2019, in San Francisco.

In a release, the firm said West has more than 30 years of experience practicing law, including more than 25 years in litigation, business and advisory roles—both in-house and in law firms.

Previously, he served as in-house counsel for Walmart, managing outside legal resources, coordinating more than 600 law firms and overseeing a budget of more than $300 million. Earlier in his career, West served as assistant general counsel – litigation for New Orleans-based Entergy Corporation. Prior to joining Duane Morris, West spent more than four years focused on diversity and inclusion within the legal profession as president and CEO of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA).

As Duane Morris’ chief diversity and inclusion officer, a role he has held since 2016, West manages the firm’s comprehensive diversity and inclusion program, speaks widely on diversity and inclusion topics and provides consulting services to help companies create sustainable diversity and inclusion programs and solutions.

West serves as an appointed member of the ABA Council on Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, the body that oversees law school accreditation and bar admissions nationwide. He is also currently serving as a member of the influential ABA Commission on Women in the Profession and previously served as a member of the ABA Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Profession as well as the groundbreaking ABA Diversity & Inclusion 360 Commission.

West also was elected and currently serves on the board of directors of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law as well as the board of trustees of Xavier University of Louisiana.

Listed in Savoy magazine’s 2018 list of the 100 Most Influential Black Lawyers, West is the recipient of numerous awards. Some of the recognitions that he has received include: the 2009 In-House Counsel of the Year Award from the National Bar Association; the 2010 Advisory Board Member of the Year from the National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms; the Diversity Collaboration Award in 2016 from the JTB Pipeline Organization; the Beacon of Diversity Award in 2014 from the Black Entertainment and Sports Lawyers Association; the Louis L. Redding Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014 from the Delaware Barristers Association; and a 2014 Minority Business Leader Award from the Washington Business Journal.

West is a graduate of Tulane Law School (J.D., 1986), where he was formerly adjunct professor of trial advocacy, and Southern University (B.A., 1983).

Colorado attorney and former Holland & Hart patent partner Christopher Kulish died Monday after reaching the summit of Mount Everest, the latest climber to perish in what’s become a deadly season on the mountain, according to Bloomberg Law.

“Kulish, 62, died early in the morning at a camp below the summit on its southeast ridge during his descent,” writes Bloomberg’s Meghan Tribe. She reports that an initial assessment of Kulish’s death indicates that he died of cardiac arrest, though the cause is not yet known, his brother said.

He was a patent partner in Holland & Hart’s Boulder, Colorado, office from 2002 to 2009, before opening his own solo practice in Denver.

Read the Bloomberg Law article.

Immigration law firm Foster LLP was ranked as a “Band 1” firm for immigration in the USA category for the firm’s Houston and Austin offices in the newly released 2019 Chambers USA Guide. Chambers provides an annual ranking of the best law firms based on independent research and interviews with lawyers and clients worldwide.

Chambers says the firm is “adept at acting for corporations, as well as individuals and families, on a range of issues, including work permits, visas and citizenship. [Foster LLP] routinely acts for investors and startups in connection with securing EB-5 visas. The full range of assistance includes litigation and appellate services.”

Notable practitioners include founding partner and Chairman Charles Foster, recognized by Chambers among the Senior Statespeople. Clients say Foster is “very knowledgeable” and a “thought leader” in the immigration space, Chambers says, and he has a well-established reputation for advising on a range of immigration strategy and policy matters for corporate clients.

Judy Lee, recognized by Chambers as a Band 1 attorney, is “highly recommended for the strength of her business immigration practice and she enjoys an excellent reputation among her clients.” Lee focuses her practice on assisting corporations with their employment-based immigration concerns.

John Meyer, recognized by Chambers as a Band 3 attorney, is regarded by peers as “a strong, competent attorney.” He has a wide-ranging business immigration practice and divides his time between the firm’s headquarters in Houston and multiple international locations, according to Chambers.

Chambers has been ranking clients and firms across many practice areas and geographies for nearly 30 years. Their independent research collects information about the organizations, individuals, and marketplaces. Their London-based team of over 200 researchers conducts thousands of interviews and collects the information by phone and email interviews.

Chambers ranks lawyers and law firms on several factors of consideration, all of which are investigated by their research team. Law firm rankings relate to a department of the firm, not the firm as a whole. Individual lawyers are ranked in their practice-area(s) on the basis of their legal knowledge and experience, their ability, their effectiveness and their client-service. Lawyers cannot buy their way into Chamber’s rankings; as a result, its annual directories are considered among the most accurate and reliable.

Michael Best partner Lyndon L. Ricks has been appointed to the five-member State of Utah Securities Commission.

The commission formulates and makes recommendations to the division director regarding policy and budgetary matters and fees, acts in an advisory capacity to the division director and conducts administrative hearings adjudicating enforcement actions brought by the Division. Each member is appointed to the commission by the governor and with the consent of the Utah State Senate to serve a four-year term.

Ricks is a partner in Michael Best’s Corporate and Securities & Capital Markets Practice Groups. The firm said he advises clients on a broad range of securities matters including preparing limited or private offering documents for offerings exempt from registration under federal and state securities laws, ensuring compliance with reporting requirements under federal and state securities laws, and advising clients as to initial and secondary public offerings, proxy fights, and tender offers.

Ricks is a frequent lecturer and panelist at continuing legal education seminars and previously served as chair of the Securities Section of the Utah State Bar.

Ricks was sworn in on May 23.

Thirteen Texas attorneys from global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP have been recognized in the 2019 Chambers USA Guide, one of the most prestigious listings for business lawyers. In addition, Chambers recognized three practice areas in Texas: Health Care, Intellectual Property, and Real Estate.

Kent Newsome, chair of the Texas Real Estate Practice and co-managing shareholder of the Houston office, received a Band 1 ranking in Real Estate. Thomas J. Bond, the firm’s Austin managing shareholder and co-chair of its Government Law & Policy and Insurance Regulatory & Transactions Practices, earned a Band 1 ranking in Insurance.

Read the complete list of GT lawyers honored by Chambers USA.

Trial attorney Majed Nachawati, co-founding partner of Fears Nachawati Law Firm, has been appointed to the State Bar of Texas Committee on Professionalism. His three-year term will begin in June.

The Committee on Professionalism reports directly to the State Bar Board of Directors and is responsible for recommendations on improving professionalism among Texas lawyers, with particular attention to the development of new attorneys.

“The legal system has always depended on the professionalism of licensed attorneys. Those of us with established practices should feel duty-bound to help guide and teach newcomers just what it means to be a lawyer,” said Nachawati.

In a release, the firm said Nachawati represents individuals, businesses and public and private entities in high-stakes litigation, including state, city and county representation against unscrupulous opioid manufacturers, distributors, and retailers. His practice also includes representation of mass tort clients, and public and private entities across the country in environmental and water contamination matters.

Nachawati serves on the Dallas Bar Association’s Legal Ethics Committee and Lawyer Referral Service Committee. He is also district chairman of the State Bar’s District 6 Grievance Committee and is a member of the Public Justice Board of Directors, the Texas Trial Lawyers Association Board of Directors, and a Leader’s Forum member of the American Association for Justice.

Jackson Walker announced the addition of Joseph P. Regan and Adam L. Plumbley to the Chambers USA-ranked Trial & Appellate Litigation practice in Fort Worth.

In a release, the firm said Regan practices energy litigation with a concentration in eminent domain and related matters. He regularly serves as counsel for midstream energy clients and other condemning authorities in matters related to real property rights acquisitions, easement negotiations, and condemnation proceedings and trials. He has spoken and written on a range of industry topics, including condemnation and eminent domain, general litigation, and issues impacting the energy industry and financial services institutions.

Regan received his B.A., summa cum laude, from The University of Texas at Arlington and his J.D. from SMU Dedman School of Law, where he served as Casenote Editor of the Computer Law Review and Technology Journal and was President of the Student Bar Association. Upon graduating law school, he served as a briefing attorney for Justice Douglas S. Lang of the Fifth District.

He is president of the Board of Directors for The WARM Place, a grief support center for children and their families. In addition, he is a member of the Texas Bar College and has held leadership positions on the Tarrant County Bar Association’s Board of Directors and several of its committees.

Plumbley represents oil and gas producers, utilities, common carriers, and midstream companies in all aspects of energy litigation, condemnation and eminent domain, and real property disputes. He also handles a variety of general commercial litigation, including product liability and financial services.

Plumbley received his J.D., cum laude, from Texas Wesleyan University School of Law (Texas A&M University School of Law), where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Law Review. Prior to law school, he received his B.A., magna cum laude, from Texas Christian University.

He is a member of the Tarrant County Bar Association and the Eldon B. Mahon American Inn of Court. Previously, he volunteered his time with the Board of Directors of the Ladder Alliance and the March of Dimes Fort Worth Division.

Redgrave LLP announced that three of the firm’s attorneys have been ranked nationally for Litigation: E-Discovery in Chambers USA 2019, a leading resource guide for businesses seeking external legal counsel in the United States. In addition, three attorneys also are ranked in Chambers Global 2019 for Litigation: E-Discovery – USA.

Jonathan M. Redgrave, managing partner of the firm, is again ranked as the only “star” practitioner in the area, which Chambers awards to lawyers “with exceptional recommendations in their field.” Chambers USA’s editorial says:

Kevin F. Brady, of counsel at the firm, is ranked in Band 2 in the most recent USA listings.

Redgrave partner Karin S. Jenson is ranked in Band 4 in the most recent USA listing.

Redgrave partner Christopher Q. King is ranked in Band 4 in the most recent Global listing.

London-based Chambers and Partners annually ranks the leading U.S. firms and attorneys based on in-depth research and interviews with clients and peers. Chambers ranks individual lawyers in bands 1 (highest) to 6, with all band rankings considered to be a significant achievement. Chambers assesses attorneys on attributes most valued by clients, including technical legal ability, professional conduct, client service, commercial astuteness, diligence, and commitment.

The Texas Senate adopted a resolution honoring firm founder and legal legend Walter Umphrey for his legal accomplishments and philanthropic service to Southeast Texas and on behalf of all Texans.

Senate Resolution No. 641, at the request of Sen. Kirk Watson, was approved unanimously on April 25, 2019.

“Walter Umphrey has had a profound impact on the legal profession in Texas, and it is truly fitting that he receive special recognition for his career and for his invaluable service on behalf of the men and women of this state,” the resolution states.

Texas SR641 highlighted Umphrey’s commitment to the law and his legal accomplishments including his work as lead counsel for the group of attorneys representing the state of Texas in the historic $15.3 billion settlement with the tobacco industry.

Umphrey’s many accolades and awards include “Legal Legend” by Texas Lawyer and “Top Texas Lawyers of the 20th Century.” Of special note were Mr. and Mrs. Umphrey’s philanthropic support of Baylor Law School, Lamar University the Beaumont community and his service on the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission.

Thanking Senator Watson for carrying the resolution, Provost Umphrey partner Bryan Blevins said, “The Senate resolution is a noteworthy testament to Walter’s remarkable career and his dedication to the hard-working men and women of Texas.” In addition to the resolution, Mrs. Umphrey was presented with a gubernatorial proclamation and the flag flown over the capital in her husband’s honor.

Umphrey grew up in Port Arthur and graduated from Baylor Law School. Provost Umphrey Law Firm is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year.