M. Brandon Smith

John J. Ginley III is a Partner in the firm’s Real Estate Development and Finance, Real Estate Capital Markets, Commercial Finance, and Funds & Alterative Investments practices. He concentrates in real estate development, acquisitions, dispositions, financings, preferred equity transactions, commercial leasing and REIT mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Ginley has acquired, financed and sold various real estate assets amounting to more than $4 billion. He has structured and negotiated nu...

Charlie Henn concentrates his practice in the area of intellectual property litigation, including cases involving trademarks, copyrights, patents and trade secrets. Mr. Henn is listed in the 2009 edition of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business for Intellectual Property Litigation (Georgia) and Sports law (Nationwide). He was recognized in The Best Lawyers in America ® 2010 for Intellectual Property Law. LawyersUSA named Mr. Henn one of six "Lawyers of the Year" nationally for ...

Nichole Hair is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Medical Malpractice Law - Defendants. Nichole, 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 Nichole is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Kevin Gooch is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Banking and Finance Law and Commercial Finance Law. Kevin, who practices law in Atlanta, Georgia, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Kevin is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Elizabeth L.A. Garvish is the Founder and Managing Member of Garvish Immigration Law Group, LLC. Elizabeth is the granddaughter of Hungarian immigrants and grew up with a love for languages and culture. These passions landed her in her very first job as an attorney at an immigration firm in Houston, Texas. As an immigration lawyer, Elizabeth had found her purpose. After years of immigration practice experience with small boutique firms, big law and nonprofits, Elizabeth founded Garvish Immigr...

David is a business and intellectual property attorney with expertise in all areas of litigation, dispute resolution, and trial. David represents his clients in state, federal, and appellate courts throughout the country, achieving successful outcomes by identifying pragmatic and creative solutions to complex issues while minimizing business disruptions and expense. David has handled a myriad of business disputes, including issues relating to contracts, copyrights, employment agreements, non-...

Brian Teras is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mergers and Acquisitions Law. Brian, who practices law in Atlanta, Georgia, has been recognized since 2024. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Brian is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Mr. Leonard focuses on assisting private investors, high net worth individuals, hedge funds, business owners, and small to middle-market companies in navigating complicated corporate and financial issues, including raising and investing capital, restructurings, distressed debt/insolvency and corporate control disputes. He brings over 25 years of big firm experience working on mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings, investment fund organization and regulatory compliance, corporate and ...

Lavern was named FordHarrison's first Talent and Recruiting Partner in 2018. In this new role, Lavern is responsible for recruiting and developing lawyers firm-wide. She will oversee the hiring and on-boarding of new lawyers, manage utilization and workflow, and design and implement talent development initiatives to support the career growth of our lawyers. Lavern concentrates her practice on defending employers in discrimination, harassment, wage and hour, whistle-blower, retaliation, employ...

Sam Kaywood is a co-chair of the Federal Income & International Tax Group. Sam concentrates his practice on federal income tax and international tax, including cross-border M&A and joint ventures, as well as in-bound investments into the United States. Sam has worked on virtually all forms of cross-border investments, with substantial experience in Canada, Europe, China and Latin America. He is particularly active in structuring investments and acquisitions in Latin America, including...