Ellen Persons

Tom Rebel is a partner who works in both the Atlanta and Fort Lauderdale offices. He has extensive experience in several industries, including education, healthcare, hospitality and automobile dealerships. He has been a member of the National Association of College and University Attorneys for 30 years and co-chairs the firm’s Affirmative Action and Federal Contract Compliance Practice Group. He has assisted many companies in Title III access cases and advised clients on various complia...

Jason Cooper is a co-coordinator of the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Area, with emphasis in mechanical, manufacturing and medical device technologies. Mr. Cooper manages patent portfolios of various domestic and international clients and helps monetize those portfolios. He counsels clients in avoiding the infringement of patents of others and opines with regard to infringement and/or validity of individual patents, or advises on strategy for avoiding the patent portfolios of ot...

Allegra Lawrence-Hardy is creative and results-oriented. She uses strategic analysis and innovative thinking to develop legal solutions that work for her clients. She has successfully defended Fortune 100 companies throughout the United States and abroad in numerous trials, arbitrations and other forms of alternative dispute resolution. Allegra is known for her skill in trying cases and working through complex settlements with tenacity and patience. Allegra also develops processes, tools and ...

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

Zahra focuses her practice on whistleblower cases (False Claims Act/qui tam), white collar criminal defense, corporate internal investigations, and complex civil litigation. For 8 years, Zahra served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia. As a veteran and former state Senator, she has extensive experience dealing with the government. Due to her experience and expertise, Zahra has been called upon numerous times to be a legal analyst in high profile cases. Zahra ha...

Ian R. Macdonald Co-Chairs the firm’s Labor & Employment Practice’s International Employment, Immigration & Workforce Strategies group. He has over 25 years of experience working with employers on worksite immigration compliance (criminal and civil), employment-based immigration sponsorship and global mobility transfers to 200+ countries. Ian founded the Firm’s immigration practice in Atlanta and has led the group since joining the Firm in 2013. He focuses his practi...

Henry R. Chalmers is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Commercial Litigation. Henry R., who practices law in Atlanta, Georgia, has been recognized since 2015. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Henry R. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Righton serves as the Practice Group Leader for the Products, Catastrophic, and Industrial Litigation Practice Group. Skilled in the courtroom and in pre-trial proceedings and litigation management, Righton focuses her practice on trial litigation and strategic counseling in personal injury, product liability, and toxic tort matters. She routinely guides clients through the response to and subsequent litigation resulting from catastrophic incidents.

Elizabeth Lindsey is a shareholder practicing in the Domestic Relations and Family Law section. Her practice is devoted to the representation of clients in all areas of family law, including divorce, custody, child support, pre-nuptial agreements, alimony, legitimation, and paternity.Elizabeth is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers. She is also a Fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, for which she serves on the Board of Governors. She is Chair of the Georgia Cha...

Burton Dodd is a partner in the firm's Atlanta office. For more than 30 years he has successfully defended colleges and universities, independent schools, multi-national manufacturers, hospitals, professional medical groups, textile manufacturers, telecommunications corporations, and other employers throughout the United States against claims of employment discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wrongful discharge brought in federal and state courts and administrative agencies. Burton al...