BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (January 15, 2009) - The new firm of Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, the result of a recent merger between Bradley Arant Rose & White LLP and Boult, Cummings, Conners & Berry, PLC, is pleased to announce it has named 17 attorneys to the partnership, effective January 1, 2009.
"We are very happy to elevate these members of the firm to the partnership," said John B. (Beau) Grenier, the firm's managing partner. "Each of these attorneys demonstrates not only top-level skills in their respective practice areas, but also the dedication to client service that we expect from partners of Bradley Arant Boult Cummings."
Birmingham
Rhonda Caviedes is a member of the firm's Construction & Procurement Litigation and Environmental & Toxic Tort practice groups. A mechanical engineer by education, Caveides worked in the field for more than 10 years before pursuing a legal career. Now, she assists contractors, subcontractors, engineers and owners with all elements of a project, including contract drafting and compliance, design issues, environmental compliance, project administration, delays, changes, liens and dispute resolution. She holds a J.D. (magna cum laude) from the University of Alabama School of Law, and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Christian W. Hancock is a member of the firm's Litigation, Real Estate and Insurance practice groups. Her practice focuses on defending insurance and mortgage companies in a variety of matters, including class actions, breach of contract actions, fraud and bad faith actions, agent disputes, ERISA coverage actions and coverage disputes. Hancock has represented clients before both trial and appellate courts in more than a dozen states, from Florida to Nevada. She holds a J.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a B.A. (cum laude) from the University of South Carolina Honors College.
Jonathan Head is a member of the Construction & Litigation Procurement Practice Group and represents general contractors and owners. He has experience trying cases to juries, judges and arbitrators. Head's representative matters include writing a winning brief to the Supreme Court of Alabama involving an issue of first impression regarding the state's statute of repose for builders and design professionals, and the successful defense of a surety's post-takeover claims against a public owner. He holds a J.D. (cum laude) from the University of Alabama School of Law and a B.S.C.E (magna cum laude) from the University of Alabama School of Engineering.
Thomas Atkinson Roberts, Jr. is a member of the Banking and Financial Services practice group and works primarily in the areas of commercial finance, real estate and bank regulation. He counsels banks, financial institutions, investors, real estate developers and individuals in a broad range of commercial lending activities. Roberts regularly assists clients with projects in Latin American markets, advising on issues such as licensing of intellectual property, negotiating distribution and agency agreements, mergers and acquisitions, forming Mexican subsidiaries for U.S. corporations, and establishing warehouse operations and manufacturing plants in Mexico. He holds a J.D. from the University of Alabama School of Law, an M.B.A. and M.A. from Universidad Adolfo Ibanez (Chile), and a B.A. from Hampden-Sydney College.
Jason A. Walters is a litigator and focuses his practice on life, health and annuity litigation as well as cases involving agents and insurance marketing organizations. He has represented insurance clients on both a regional and national basis in complex, high-exposure cases. Walters' representative matters include defending a Fortune 500 insurance client in a case involving the alleged bad faith denial of a claim under a long-term care policy, and defending two nationwide class actions involving the administration of long-term care and supplemental health policies. He holds a J.D. from Cumberland School of Law, an M.B.A. from Samford University and a B.S. from Jacksonville State University.
Nashville
Tara L. Cleare has an active health care practice focusing on a wide range of regulatory, operational and transactional matters, including the acquisition and licensing of health care entities, advising clients on HIPAA and fraud and abuse regulatory matters, and providing guidance on a wide range of health care facility issues including healthcare contracting. Cleare is a member of the American, Tennessee and Nashville Bar Associations; American Health Lawyers Association; Lawyers Association for Women; and the Napier Looby Bar Association. She also is an active member of the Nashville Bar Association's Minority Opportunities Committee. Cleare received both her law and undergraduate degrees from Vanderbilt University.
Andrew Elbon practices in the areas of employee benefits and executive compensation with a focus on the design and administration of employee pension and welfare benefit plans. He also assists the firm's clients in the protection of health information under the privacy and security regulations imposed on group health plans by HIPAA. Elbon is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the American Health Lawyers Association. He received his law degree from the University of Kentucky College of Law, his doctorate from the University of Michigan and his master's and undergraduate degrees from the University of Kentucky.
Catherine Grow focuses her practice primarily on business entity transactional work involving mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures, as well as general corporate matters such as business formation and contract negotiations. She also spent a number of years as in-house legal counsel for HCA, Inc., and is a member of the Nashville, Tennessee and American Bar Associations as well as the American Health Lawyers Association. Grow received her law degree from The College of William & Mary and received her undergraduate degree from the University of Arkansas.
Jonathan D. Rose concentrates his practice in the areas of intellectual property, civil litigation and appeals. He serves on the executive board of the Harry Phillips American Inn of Court and is a past chairperson of the intellectual property and appellate practice sections of the Nashville Bar Association. Rose received his law degree from Harvard Law School and received master's and undergraduate degrees from Murray State University.
Eric W. Smith represents clients in the areas of business litigation, tort litigation and real estate litigation. He is a member of the Nashville, Tennessee and American Bar Associations; the Tennessee Association for Justice; and the American Association for Justice. Smith received his law degree from The College of William & Mary and received his undergraduate degree as a Distinguished Graduate from Virginia Military Institute.
Joycelyn A. Stevenson represents clients in litigation and dispute resolution matters, primarily involving labor and employment litigation, health care litigation and business litigation. She is a member of the Nashville, Tennessee and American Bar Associations as well as the American Health Lawyers Association, and currently serves on the Board of Directors and as Treasurer for the Council on Aging of Greater Nashville. Stevenson received her law degree from Vanderbilt University Law School and her undergraduate degree from Howard University.
Charlotte
David Hill Bashford is a member of the Construction and Procurement Practice Group, focusing his work on large-scale public and private construction project disputes. He represents owners, developers, engineers, architects, contractors and sureties. Bashford also counsels clients in drafting, structuring and negotiating a broad range of construction contracts. He has experience pursuing and defending construction claims in state and federal courts, mediation and arbitration. Bashford received his J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law and a B.A. from Davidson College.
Huntsville
Daniel Kaufmann is a member of the firm's Litigation practice group and represents both plaintiffs and defendants in commercial disputes, professional liability claims, and cases involving media law. His representative matters include obtaining a declaratory judgment for a medical service provider in a stock buy-back dispute, and securing a preliminary injunction and declaratory judgment for a local newspaper in a dispute concerning Alabama's open record statute. Kaufman received his J.D. from the University of Alabama School of Law, as well as a B.A. and M.A. from the University of Alabama in Huntsville.
Jackson
J. Douglas Minor, Jr. represents both plaintiffs and defendants in business tort cases involving contract and insurance disputes. He has tried several cases to verdict in both state and federal courts, and his appellate experience includes appearances before the Second and Fifth Courts of Appeal. Minor's clients include national and international financial services and lending institutions, as well as several small businesses. He received his J.D. from Georgetown University and an A.B. from Harvard University.
Jack Robinson Dodson III is a construction litigator and regularly represents clients in construction claims, product liability claims, environmental and toxic tort liability and commercial litigation. He has also represented a major brokerage firm in claims relating to non-compete agreements, as well as numerous manufacturers in claims relating to silica and asbestos exposure. Dodson received both his J.D. and a B.A. from the University of Mississippi.
Montgomery
Angela Raines Rogers is a litigator and has experience in product liability, employment discrimination, legal malpractice, wrongful death, personal injury, insurance defense, fraud, civil RICO and other types of commercial litigation. She has defended national and international manufacturers in claims involving defective seat belts, elevators, tires, large trucking equipment, air conditioning products and food safety; as well as employers in race and sex discrimination, sexual harassment and wrongful terminal claims. She holds a J.D. (magna cum laude) from Loyola University Chicago School of Law and a J.D. from Thomas Goode Jones School of Law, as well as an M.S. and a B.A. from Auburn University at Montgomery.
Washington, D.C.
Daniel P. Golden focuses his practice primarily on white-collar criminal investigations and defense. His work has included representing a former president of the construction products division of a multi-billion dollar company in the defense of a complex environmental criminal case pending in Montana. Golden serves on the firm's Recruiting Committee. He holds a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law and a B.A. from Georgetown University.