Phyllis B. Sumner

Ashley Gillihan is counsel in the Atlanta office and a member of the firm’s Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation and ERISA Litigation Groups. Ashley focuses his practice exclusively on health and welfare employee benefit compliance and litigation issues for employers, health plan administrators, and other health and welfare benefit plan service providers. He also has extensive experience assisting financial institutions and insurance companies who serve as Health Savings Accou...

Anne Cox-Johnson advises public and private companies in a variety of complex transactions, including acquisitions and divestitures, joint ventures, strategic investments, carve-outs, recapitalizations, going-private transactions and special committee representations. She represents clients in various industries, including food and beverage, technology, pharmaceuticals, restaurants, telecommunications, consumer products, healthcare, manufacturing, real estate and retail. Anne also represents ...

Jenny Hergenrother is a partner with Alston & Bird’s Products Liability Group, where she focuses on products liability and other complex litigation. Her practice experience includes representing companies in a variety of product litigation, including allegations of false and deceptive advertising, high-value personal injury and wrongful death cases, claim substantiation, and product-related class and mass actions. She chiefly represents automotive, food and beverage, and pharmaceuti...

Angela Spivey provides defense and counsel for food manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, and packaging entities in a host of legal and regulatory compliance issues. She has extensive experience defending clients in consumer class action labeling cases, implementing product recalls, and defending widespread international outbreaks and resulting civil litigation. Angela also defends corporations and individuals in FDA criminal investigations. In addition to consulting with food industry clie...

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...

Lori L. Brewer is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Corporate Law and Technology Law. Lori L., who practices law in Atlanta, Georgia, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Lori L. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Justin R. Barnes is office managing principal of the Atlanta, Georgia, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He is the co-leader of the Wage and Hour practice group. He represents employers in federal and state courts and before administrative agencies on a variety of labor and employment related issues, focusing on collective and class action wage and hour disputes and complex single plaintiff wage and benefit disputes. Justin’s practice is focused primarily on defending complex wage and hour c...

For over thirty years, Johnna Goodmark has represented clients in the acquisition, sale, and leasing of commercial real estate. As a former Deputy City Attorney for the City of Atlanta, Johnna brings a unique combination of government and private practice experience to her real estate practice that helps clients achieve their goals. With an eye for detail and a creative problem solving approach, Johnna has closed some of the most complex, sophisticated, and high profile real estate deals in t...

Jennifer Adair is a Partner in Freeman Mathis & Gary, LLP Atlanta office, Vice-Chair of the firm's Tort and Catastrophic Loss national practice section, and Chair of the firm's Southeast Tort practice team. Jennifer has extensive experience representing commercial motor carrier, their drivers, and their insurers in trucking lawsuits throughout Georgia. As a member of FMG’s construction section, Jennifer defends design professionals, owners and contractors in design and construction ...

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...