Cathy Speers Johnson

Mr. Palmer is an experienced litigator specializing in both employment litigation and general civil litigation in state and federal courts. His interest in litigation began early in his legal career when as a law student at Vanderbilt University, Mr. Palmer won the Harlan Dodson Moot Court Competition and was appointed to the position of Associate Justice of Vanderbilt’s Moot Court Board. Mr. Palmer began his career in 1988 as an associate and later a partner in a large general practice...

John's practice exercises his extensive experience in the deployment and recovery of debt and equity capital and in commercial law. His practice includes business formations, acquisitions and dispositions, distressed asset investing, private equity transactions, mezzanine lending, commercial lending, creditor's rights, loan workouts and recoveries, lender liability, securitizations, the Uniform Commercial Code, and commercial law generally. John’s practice spans a wide range of differen...

Erika Barnes is a member of the firm's Creditors' Rights and Bankruptcy Service Group and the Business Litigation Service Group. Erika is certified as a specialist in Business Bankruptcy by the American Board of Certification. Erika represents creditors and franchisors in bankruptcy cases nationwide. She also has experience representing creditors' committees and Chapter 11 trustees. Erika handles real estate curative litigation and complex commercial litigation matters in state and federal co...

Matt Hardin is a second-generation attorney who grew up in Cookeville, Tennessee. He attended Rhodes College as an undergraduate before going on to obtain both his master’s and law degrees from the University of Tennessee. Matt’s practice is focused in the areas of plaintiff personal injury, car & tractor trailer wrecks, wrongful death, medical malpractice and premises liability. He practices law throughout all three grand divisions of the state of Tennessee and in Kentucky. H...

Matthew B. Mattingly advises clients in their endeavors related to commercial real estate, commercial lending transactions and general business matters. The majority of his practice is concentrated on real estate-related transactions with an emphasis on real estate acquisition and development and commercial leasing transactions. Mr. Mattingly regularly serves as counsel to both landlords and tenants in the lease negotiation process, with a specific emphasis on the representation of institutio...

Margaret L. Behm has earned the reputation as the go-to person in 45 years of representing clients and forging coalitions for change. After beginning her legal career in 1976 at Legal Services if Middle Tennessee, Inc., Behm and Marietta Shipley in 1980 founded Shipley and Behm, the city's first all-woman law firm. “Back then, women just weren’t taken seriously as business owners or lawyers,” Behm says. “I wanted to run my own business and demonstrate that women could ...

Patrick Witherington is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs. Patrick, who practices law in Nashville, Tennessee, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Patrick is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Jonathan Bobbitt is a civil trial lawyer that has one singular focus – to obtain the best possible result for his clients. Passionate, thoughtful and relentless, this guy loves to spend his free time running 50-plus miles through mountains, deserts and country roads. Those “ultra-experiences” have taught Jonathan the value of having the courage to take on challenges, the patience to stay the course and the creativity to solve problems along the way. Jonathan’s areas of...

J. Douglas Sloan III is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Land Use and Zoning Law and Real Estate Law. J. Douglas, who practices law in Nashville, Tennessee, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which J. Douglas is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Henry Walker focuses his practice on state utility regulation with emphasis in the fields of telecommunications, wastewater services, pipelines and natural gas. He represents utility clients in proceedings before state public service commission throughout the southeast. Prior to joining Bradley Arant Boult Cummings, Henry was the General Counsel for the Tennessee Public Service Commission for 13 years. He also worked for the United States Department of Justice and as an Assistant District Att...