John Earnhardt

Stephen W. Shaw is a lawyer recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice areas of Criminal Defense: General Practice, Criminal Defense: White-Collar, DUI / DWI Defense and Family Law. Stephen W. practices law in Birmingham, Alabama Best Lawyers has recognized Stephen W. Shaw since 2009. The Best Lawyers recognition is based on a peer-review survey of lawyers in the same geographic region and legal practice area. The recognition reflects the professional regard in which Stephen W. Shaw is held b...

David is the Managing Partner of the Birmingham location of Hall Booth Smith, P.S. He has tried dozens of jury trials in various state and federal courts in Alabama. He is a member of the Health Care Practice Group where his practice is focused on medical malpractice defense. His litigation experience also extends to the defense of matters involving employment discrimination, products liability, insurance fraud, commercial disputes and premises liability. David participated in the successful ...

There’s a lot that goes into it, but to really succeed in this profession, I’ve come to believe these three qualities are 90% of it: courage, humanity, and humility. Courage. You must be unafraid. Following a particularly nasty trial, my wife summed up my job: “They are schoolyard bullies. They’ve already bullied your client once, and now they want to use the trial to do it again. But you walk up, stand next to them, put your hand on their shoulder, steel yourself, and...

Beau Grenier is a partner in the Corporate Practice Group and co-leader of the firm’s mergers and acquisitions and private equity team. He provides comprehensive legal and strategic counsel on M&A, capital raising, and other business transactions; securities matters; and corporate governance. Beau is a leading corporate and securities lawyer with more than 35 years of experience. For more than 17 years, he also served as the managing partner and board chairman for a diversified AmLa...

Trey Dowdey is a lawyer recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area of Workers' Compensation Law - Employers. Trey practices law in Birmingham, Alabama Best Lawyers has recognized Trey Dowdey since 2025. The Best Lawyers recognition is based on a peer-review survey of lawyers in the same geographic region and legal practice area. The recognition reflects the professional regard in which Trey Dowdey is held by other lawyers.

John H. Cooper is a shareholder in Dentons Sirote’s Birmingham, Alabama office, where he is a member of the Corporate practice group. As the previous managing partner of Dentons Sirote (formerly Sirote & Permutt, PC) (1999–2005; 2006–2015), John’s practice spans corporate, securities and tax law, with an emphasis on mergers and acquisitions, private equity and venture capital, securities, business and succession planning, corporate finance, corporate tax, directors...

Jason Avery is a member of the Firm’s Real Estate Practice Group and the Natural Resources and Banking and Financial Services Practice Teams. Unlike many other lawyers who concentrate in either a transactional practice or litigation, Jason represents clients in both areas, splitting his time between real estate transactional matters and real estate and mortgage litigation. This hybrid practice allows Jason to think progressively on transactional matters by understanding potential areas ...

Rusty has extensive experience in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, corporate and tax law. Rusty works with closely held and family businesses on business planning and taxation, including their formation, operation and sale. He is recognized as being highly knowledgeable in tax issues related to estate and succession planning, trusts and probate.

Katie T. Powell is a lawyer recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area of Commercial Litigation. Katie T. practices law in Birmingham, Alabama Best Lawyers has recognized Katie T. Powell since 2021. The Best Lawyers recognition is based on a peer-review survey of lawyers in the same geographic region and legal practice area. The recognition reflects the professional regard in which Katie T. Powell is held by other lawyers.

Michael Waters is a partner in the Corporate Practice Group. He focuses on issues facing banks, financial institutions, and other financial-services entities. Mike has practiced corporate and securities law, primarily in the financial institutions area, for more than 30 years. He routinely represents banks, bank holding companies, and other financial entities in acquisitions, capital raising transactions, SEC and shareholder issues, new bank formations, and board fiduciary duty issues. He has...