Melanie Derefinko

Roy E. Blossman is a founding partner of the firm. Mr. Blossman handles a variety of matters in banking and finance, including commercial financings, trouble debt restructurings, workouts, preparation of standard banking forms, general banking and lending advices and regulatory work. He also represents sellers and purchasers in sales and exchanges of developed and undeveloped real estate, preparation and negotiation of leases on improved and unimproved property, and all other kinds of transac...

Steve Herman is special counsel in Fishman Haygood’s Litigation Section. With thirty years of experience, Steve’s primary practice has lately focused on representing both plaintiffs and defendants in commercial, class action, and professional liability cases, and he is often asked to provide expert testimony in such matters. He recently, for example, submitted a series of declarations in support of class counsel’s successful fee petition in the multi-billion dollar Aqueous F...

Stewart Spielman is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Banking and Finance Law. Stewart, who practices law in New Orleans, Louisiana, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Stewart is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Of Counsel

Ed Harold is the regional managing partner in the New Orleans office and chair of the firm's Retail Industry Practice Group. His practice is primarily devoted to employment litigation in both state and federal courts in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama and counseling employers to avoid litigation. Throughout his career, he has spent significant time and attention assisting employers in managing employee attendance and leave issues. As a result of this work, in 1999, Ed testified before the...

Ms. Gillen is a partner in the Metairie office and has been with the firm since 2013. Her practice consists primarily of environmental and toxic tort litigation and commercial litigation. Ms. Gillen graduated from Tulane University in 2010, where she received her BA degree in sociology, cum laude . In 2013, she was awarded a JD, magna cum laude , from Loyola University College of Law in New Orleans, Louisiana. She was also recognized as a William L. Crowe, Sr. Scholar for graduating in the to...

Michael S. Blackwell is Of Counsel with Riess LeMieux, L.L.C.. Michael represents a variety of clients, ranging from general contractors, subcontractors, owners, developers, insurers, and sureties in construction and labor issues, to companies involved in sales, acquisitions, corporate governance matters, commercial disputes, and other challenges arising in the commercial arena. He has engaged in significant contract negotiation, corporate formation, structuring, and governance matters, sales...

Since competing in Mock Trial tournaments in high school, Jennifer Adams has been hooked on the law. A naturally gifted communicator, Jennifer takes her clients’ best interests into consideration when completing difficult, but sometimes necessary, negotiations. Her love of triaging complex cases, whether defending cancer claims related to alleged asbestos exposure in the work place or "take-home" exposure claims, keeps Jennifer working hard to meet her clients’ needs. Jennifer is ...

From our New Orleans office, Benjamin focuses on several practice areas including bankruptcy, restructuring, and creditors’ rights; corporate and commercial law, mergers and acquisitions; litigation; and asset-based finance. After graduating from Louisiana State University in 2002, Benjamin earned his law degree from Tulane University Law School in 2005. During law school, he served as a judicial clerk for the Honorable Magistrate Judge Alma Chasez, United States District Court for the ...

Tyler Rench is a partner in the Litigation Practice Group. He focuses on fiduciary, insurance, and banking disputes. Tyler has broad-based experience representing clients in federal and state courts, as well as in administrative proceedings and alternative dispute resolution. He represents and advises clients in connection with succession and trust litigation; disputes over life, health, and disability insurance; banking and commercial issues; and class action and civil RICO litigation. Befor...