IN THE HEADLINES
► Hall Booth Smith: Charles Dorminy (medical malpractice law – defendants, 2018) commented at a utility meeting that Brunswick and Glynn County process as much waste water as Atlanta. The Georgia General Assembly created the Water and Sewer Projects and Costs Tax to help the aging systems.
► Hull Barrett: David E. Hudson (bet-the-company litigation; commercial litigation; First Amendment law; litigation – construction; litigation – First Amendment; personal injury litigation – defendants, 1993) is representing the Ledger-Enquirer in Superior Court regarding their desire for the release of a surveillance video that recorded a classroom altercation. In September 2016, there was a recording of an incident between a 13-year-old student and a behavior specialist at Edgewood Student Services Center, which was captured on video. The student’s family alleges that the incident caused an injury that led to many surgeries and ultimately an amputation of the teen’s leg.
► LeClairRyan: John P. Hutchins (copyright law; information technology law, 2009) cautioned that social engineering, which can show itself as con jobs, is a huge threat. “Most security breaches are not the result of sophisticated technical hacks,” he wrote on the firm’s law and technology blog. “The fact is that social engineering is the top method of gaining access to corporate computer systems and the sensitive data they hold.”
► Thompson Hine: Tim McDonald (employment law – management; labor law – management; litigation – labor and employment, 2009) argued that a couple who hid five undocumented immigrants in their basement did so out of greed and to maximize profits through cheap labor. The five immigrants were hidden by a restaurant owner (their boss) and his wife and died almost two years ago in a fire. The husband was sentenced to nine months in prison, and the wife was not sentenced since she attempted suicide shortly after the fire and the judge believed prison could potentially harm her further.
HONORABLE MENTION
► Oliver Maner: Patrick T. O’Connor (bet-the-company litigation; commercial litigation; legal malpractice law – defendants; litigation – municipal; mediation; municipal law, 1995) and Lee A. Summerford (trust and estates,
2003) were named “Legal Elite” by Georgia Trend magazine. O’Connor was recognized for general practice/trial law and Summerford was recognized for corporate law.
► Taylor English Duma: W. Scott Creasman (copyright law; litigation – intellectual property; litigation – patent; trademark law, 2013), Julian A. Fortuna (litigation and controversy – tax; tax law, 2011), and other attorneys from the firm were recognized by Georgia Trend’s magazine as “Legal Elite.” Creasman was named for intellectual property and Fortuna for taxes, estates, and trusts.
ITN FEATURE
Squire Patton Boggs is opening a new office in Atlanta, which will be its 18th office in the United States and 47th global office.
The firm is welcoming Wayne Bradley (corporate law; mergers and acquisitions law, 2008), Ann-Marie McGaughey (corporate law; mergers and acquisitions law, 2012), and Petrina Hall McDaniel of Dentons to its new office. McGaughey will be the managing partner of the new location.
Chair and Global CEO of Squire Patton Boggs, Mark Ruehlmann, said, “We have long had interest in building upon our existing ties in Atlanta and the addition of this dynamic group gives us a natural entry point into one of the country’s largest and most exciting markets.”
The new team will be able to offer the firm’s clients more transactional and dispute capabilities, which will include corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, class action, and privacy and data protection.
Steve Mahon, global managing partner – clients and strategy at Squire Patton Boggs, said, “Atlanta is home to a vibrant and growing business community where we already have clients and contacts. Planting our flag now with a seasoned and diverse team with both deep local connections and premiere international relationships presents an exciting opportunity for us to hit the ground running.”
