Beth McFadden Rouse

A fifth-generation attorney with 40 years of legal experience, Bill’s practice at Helmsing Leach is focused on civil litigation with an emphasis on appellate advocacy. He has handled numerous appeals in state and federal courts resulting in more than one hundred published decisions. Bill’s practice also includes environmental law and insurance litigation, and he has represented clients in a variety of civil disputes in product liability, construction litigation and more. In additi...

Focusing on strategic planning, motion practice, and appeals, Dave Wirtes has worked for over three decades helping our firm and our clients be successful in litigation. Dave’s efforts in Alabama, Mississippi, and throughout the Country help protect working men and women in ways most will never know. He has won many battles against powerful defendants and in the course of doing so helped change laws to give victims justice. He has been rated by Martindale Hubbell for decades as AV® ...

Bo Williams is licensed in Alabama and Florida and practices in the areas of insurance, litigation and admiralty throughout those states and the broader Southeast. He focuses his practice on complex first-party and third-party insurance coverage, litigation and counseling. Bo represents various Underwriting Syndicates at Lloyd's and domestic market insurers in first and third-party bad-faith matters and excess engagements and routinely represents their insureds in litigation throughout the So...

Joey Steadman is a partner in the Litigation Practice Group. Joey represents banks, financial institutions, and investors in commercial collection disputes and real estate matters in Alabama and Florida state courts. He also has defended municipal clients in civil litigation involving personal injury claims and land use disputes, as well as insurance companies in personal injury matters. Before joining Jones Walker, Joey served as a law clerk for the Honorable Charles A. Graddick, presiding j...

Steve Nicholas is part of an elite group of Alabama litigators known for their skill in handling Bet-the-Company cases. A big picture thinker, his work revolves around complex litigation claims including business disputes, class actions, mass torts and major construction disputes. Among his many noteworthy cases is representing thousands of business owners who filed lawsuits and claims in connection with the BP oil spill , an event that is deemed to be the worst environmental disaster in the ...

Sumpter M. McGowin II is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Corporate Law. Sumpter M., who practices law in Mobile, Alabama, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Sumpter M. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

As the lead and co-lead counsel in numerous cases that have resulted in multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements totaling over $200 million in recoveries for his clients, David Cain’s reputation as a “litigation star” is well deserved. David has proven himself a skilled litigator at every stage in his career and his success in the courtroom has earned him an enviable reputation within the Alabama legal community as well as nationally. A few of David's successes include:...

Richard Johnson practices primarily in the areas of construction, real estate, tort and commercial litigation. His construction practice involves handling matters for developers, sureties, general contractors, subcontractors, manufacturer and/or suppliers in almost every aspect of construction projects, including the initial bid phase, disputes that arise during construction and post-construction issues which include, but are not limited to, delay damage claims, construction defect claims and...

Clay Lanham is a partner in the Corporate Practice Group. He focuses on real estate development and finance. Clay regularly represents private equity funds in the negotiation and documentation of loans secured by real estate and other assets as well as the purchase and sale of loans, real estate, and other assets. Clay also represents developers and investors in the purchase and sale of properties and throughout the entire development process, from the formation of development entities, initi...

In an era when fewer and fewer civil cases go to trial, Skip Finkbohner has consistently won major court battles over a significant period of time and across a wide range of different types of cases, including wrongful death, product liability, complex commercial litigation, fraud, industrial accidents, environmental, medical malpractice, and others. Skip and his team examine the smallest of details and take the time to explain to juries the complex scientific, engineering and medical issues ...