Best Lawyers:
Corporate Law & Commercial Litigation
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Featured in Best Lawyers
Himanshu Patel was born in Chicago, Illinois. He graduated from Vanderbilt University in December, 1994 with a B.A. in Economics, then earned his J.D. from the University of Louisville School of Law in May, 1998. During law school, Himanshu clerked for various law firms in Louisville, Kentucky and gained valuable experience in all aspects of corporate, tax and probate law. He was a member of the Securities Law Moot Court Team and represented his school in a national competition. He was also t...
Kaari-Lynn S. Gagnon was born in Seoul, Korea and grew up near Albany, New York. She graduated from Tufts University in May 2004 with a B.A. in Sociology, then earned her J.D. from the University of Miami School of Law in May 2007. During law school, Ms. Gagnon clerked for Zarco Einhorn Salkowski, P.A. Ms. Gagnon also had the opportunity to work at the Public Defender’s Office of Rensselaer County, New York as a summer intern. Ms. Gagnon has been with the firm of Zarco Einhorn Salkowski...
PRACTICE AREAS Complex Commercial Litigation White Collar Criminal Defense Trials EXPERIENCE Chase Scolnick specializes in complex civil and criminal litigation. Having tried as lead counsel approximately fifty federal jury trials, Chase is among the most seasoned young trial attorneys in the United States. He has also been one of the most successful. In separate years, Chase led three of the nation’s largest federal districts in both defense trials and wins. In 2017, Chase was the only...
PRACTICE AREAS Trials Commercial Litigation Bet-the-Company Trials Class Actions White Collar Criminal Defense EXPERIENCE Kay is a seasoned trial attorney, having tried over 100 jury trials to verdict. She represents both plaintiffs and defendants in a broad range of high-stakes commercial litigation and white collar cases. Chambers USA ranks her among the top commercial litigators in California, quoting sources who describe Kay as “having great instincts and clients listen breathlessly...
PRACTICE AREAS Commercial Litigation White Collar Criminal Defense Appellate Litigation EXPERIENCE Reuben Cahn is a courtroom advocate of rare experience and ability. A Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, he has tried over 100 cases to jury verdict and has argued twice before the Supreme Court (in 2011 and 2018) in addition to numerous arguments before both the 9th and 11th Circuits. This combination of skill and experience at the highest levels establish Mr. Cahn as one of the m...
PRACTICE AREAS Trials Commercial Litigation Intellectual Property Insurance Recovery/Bad Faith Legal Malpractice EXPERIENCE Shaun Hoting focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation. Shaun’s practice includes litigation related to legal malpractice, contract disputes, patents, copyrights, trademarks, securities, and white collar defense. He has litigated cases involving technologies as diverse as software, cellular telephones, aerospace seals, and waterpark attractions. Shaun&r...
Joe DeLisle concentrates his practice on domestic and cross-border mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, private debt and equity and venture capital transactions, securities laws, corporate formation and governance, shareholders, partnership and joint venture agreements, and other general business and commercial matters. Prior to joining Miller & Martin PLLC, Mr. DeLisle led the corporate and tax group at a mid-sized Atlanta law firm and before that practiced in the corporate group of a...
Alfred Smith concentrates his practice on municipal finance, corporations, tax, local government and international law. He has assisted foreign and domestic companies in locating facilities in Tennessee through the development of tax exemptions, tax exempt finance and other tax incentives. Mr. Smith has recently served as bond counsel in connection with tax exempt bond issues for major corporations ranging from $3.75 million to $10 million. He has also served as borrower's counsel in connecti...
Allen McCallie, Chair of the firm's Exempt Organizations Group, concentrates his practice on tax-exempt charitable organizations, conservation law, public entity law, and public/private nonprofit development ventures. For more than 30 years, Allen has enjoyed working on public/private partnerships and ventures which have helped shape the renaissance of Chattanooga into one of the most vibrant cities in the South, through projects such as the Tennessee Aquarium, Tennessee RiverPark, Miller Pla...
Mr. Smith has a broad-based practice with emphasis in antitrust, business, healthcare, utility and telecommunications law. His extensive experience includes handling trial and appellate work in state and federal courts as well as regulatory, transactional and legislative assignments for clients in each of these sectors. Mr. Smith has more than forty years’ experience in assisting individuals and business clients with all aspects of their legal representation. He serves as outside counse...
Don Aho practices in the area of litigation with an emphasis on business and banking litigation, securities-related litigation, professional liability, healthcare, insurance, arbitration and mediation. With more than 30 years of experience in these areas, Mr. Aho is able to provide clients with guidance to assist them in avoiding disputes, to use creative alternative dispute resolution techniques to settle the disputes or litigate them to a successful conclusion. Mr. Aho routinely represents ...
Matt Jannerbo, Chair of Miller & Martin's Corporate Department and its Emerging Business Group, focuses his practice on start-up and emerging companies, venture capital, mergers and acquisitions and general business representation. Mr. Jannerbo advises clients with respect to mergers and acquisitions of middle-market companies on a nationwide basis. He represents both buyers and sellers in transactions generally ranging in size from $5 million to $50 million and works with financial buyer...
Ned Boehm concentrates his practice in the areas of antitrust, trade regulation, franchising, distribution and business law. He regularly provides antitrust advice on marketing, pricing, distribution and other business practices and has conducted antitrust compliance meetings for management personnel for numerous clients. He has handled a number of federal and state antitrust investigations of clients including federal (Department of Justice) criminal grand jury investigations and FTC civil i...
Eileen Hintz Rumfelt is a member in the firm's Litigation Practice and concentrates her practice in the area of complex commercial litigation with a special focus on intellectual property litigation and white collar crime and corporate investigations. She regularly advises her colleagues and clients on the management of eDiscovery issues in commercial litigation. Ms. Rumfelt represents both large and small national, regional and international companies in a variety of industries, including ph...
Evan Allison represents real estate developers, investors, landlords, tenants and lenders in all types of commercial real estate transactions including industrial, retail, hotel, office, multi-family and medical office building deals. He prides himself on his responsiveness and helping his clients get deals closed. His experience includes working with both developers and investors in creating joint ventures for acquiring and developing real property and he has specific experience in the devel...
Jason McCarter is a skilled business litigator who represents automotive, technology, and other business enterprises in complex commercial disputes and regulatory investigations. Jason is often called upon to counsel and advocate for clients facing contract, business tort, secured lending, creditors' rights and licensing issues. Jason practices in state and federal courts and alternative dispute resolution forums around the country. For example, he recently prevented class certification in an...
Mr. Henry has more than 40 years of experience practicing corporate and securities law in Chattanooga, Tennessee, focusing on representation of public companies. Mr. Henry has represented public companies in a wide variety of industries, including transportation/trucking; manufacturing; textiles; carpet and rug; garment and apparel; and soft drink bottling and distribution. He has advised clients on public and private offerings of debt and securities, mergers, tender offers, acquisitions and ...
Luke Curtis advises both domestic and international clients in all facets of commercial real estate and secured commercial lending. He represents institutional investors in the negotiation of office leases, as well as an Atlanta-based real estate developer and an Atlanta-based lender to the hospitality industry.
Mark Smith is a business and regulatory lawyer who focuses his practice on economic development, government relations and telecommunications and utility matters. Mark has been involved in numerous state and local tax incentive projects with capital investments ranging from less than $2 million to more than $1 billion. He also represents a wide range of clients before the Tennessee General Assembly and before various State agencies and local governmental entities. Mark serves as Assistant Gene...
Mike Marshall concentrates his practice on corporations, mergers and acquisitions, securities and general business law. He has an active practice in the financial institutions area, including commercial banks and other holding companies. Mr. Marshall has represented both sellers and buyers in numerous mergers and acquisitions ranging in size from less than $1 million to over $1 billion. He has also represented companies in both public and private equity offerings and represents public compani...
Neil Wilcove is a commercial litigator focusing on the construction industry in all aspects of construction disputes. Representing contractors, subcontractors, owners, architects, engineers and material suppliers, he handles such matters as payment disputes and delay claims, as well as construction and design defect cases. Neil also assists his clients in negotiating and drafting construction contracts. Further demonstration of his commitment and understanding to the construction industry is ...
Bobby Dann concentrates his practice on commercial real estate, commercial finance and troubled assets. From 1981 to 1995, he served as in-house investment counsel to a group of insurance companies in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, focusing on commercial real estate development, management and lending. He also served as lender’s counsel in the sales of mortgage pools, the acquisition and syndication of retirement facilities, and in workouts, foreclosures and interim operations of troubl...
Scott Parrish is the Chairman of Miller & Martin and concentrates his practice on civil litigation, including the areas of trade secrets, class action, professional liability, corporate, securities, product liability and construction litigation. He provides general risk and litigation management assistance for a number of companies. Named among The Best Lawyers in America© for professional excellence in the area of litigation, he has substantial experience representing clients in fed...
Clay Walts concentrates his practice in employee benefits and executive compensation, which includes drafting and preparing qualified retirement plans, welfare benefit plans and executive compensation arrangements for both public and closely held companies; addressing employee benefit issues in corporate transactions; advising clients on issues relating to the investment of plan assets and exemptions from the plan asset and prohibited transaction rules; and counseling clients on issues relati...
Bill DuPré focuses his practice on returning money to its rightful owners. His pragmatic approach draws on over 30 years of experience in negotiating and, if necessary, litigating to get past opposing parties' unrealistic expectations and instead maximize the net recovery for his business clients. In addition to handling commercial loan workouts, bankruptcies and related litigation for one of the largest commercial banks in the world, Mr. DuPré has successfully represented corpo...
Featured in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch
Brenda Phang attended the University of Miami, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology. She also obtained her law degree from the University of Miami. During her time at UM, Brenda interned for the Honorable Beth Bloom where she gained valuable insight on the federal court system. She was also a staff editor for the University’s Race and Social Justice Law Review. Brenda started with the firm in 2016 as a law clerk and worked throughout her time in law school. She bec...
Michael D. Braunstein received his Bachelors of Science in Business Administration from the University of Miami in May 2014. Upon graduation, Mr. Braunstein attended the University of Miami School of Law where he graduated magna cum laude in 2017. During law school, Mr. Braunstein received Honors distinctions in Litigation Skills I, Litigation Skills II, and Alternate Dispute Resolution and received the Excellence Award in Professional Responsibility. Mr. Braunstein was the Captain of the Tri...
Alex is a litigator, with an emphasis on white collar criminal defense. He also has experience with construction disputes and intellectual property matters. Prior to joining Miller & Martin, Alex spent two years as part of the Criminal Appeals Division of the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office. He handled over 100 appeals and argued more than two dozen cases before Tennessee’s Court of Criminal Appeals and Supreme Court. Alex has strong roots across Tennessee and Georgia than...
Chuqin Anderson focuses her practice on various aspects of complex commercial real estate transactions, including acquisition of retail, industrial, medical and office properties, secured and unsecured lending, and leasing of retail and office properties. She has represented privately funded investors in the acquisition and disposition of commercial real estate properties including office buildings, industrial sites and retail shopping centers; landlords and tenants in lease negotiation of of...
Elizabeth concentrates her practice in the area of litigation. Her experience includes successfully litigating insurance coverage disputes in federal court through summary judgment, bringing declaratory judgment actions in federal court, defending insureds in personal injury and premises liability lawsuits in both state and federal court, and advising clients on complex coverage disputes. She has experience in arguing motions in state and federal court, deposing parties and non-party witnesse...
Meredith Lee focuses her practice in the area of business litigation, primarily on complex litigation matters, including consumer class actions and deal break cases. Prior to returning to her hometown of Chattanooga to work for Miller & Martin, Ms. Lee was an associate in the Atlanta office of King & Spalding. Ms. Lee received a B.A., with high distinction, in Political and Social Thought and a minor in East Asian Studies from the University of Virginia in 2006. While a student at the...
Merrill Nelson advises clients on a wide variety of corporate law matters, including mergers and acquisitions, private equity and venture capital financing and general corporate contracting. Merrill has advised purchasers and sellers in business transactions in the manufacturing, healthcare, video production and industrial supply industries, among others. He has also counseled both founders and investors in negotiating private equity investments for startup and emerging companies. Additionall...
Scott Evan Simmons focuses his practice on employment litigation and preventative counseling in the firm's Labor & Employment practice. Mr. Simmons regularly counsels clients on a wide range of employment-related topics, including wage-and-hour compliance, hiring, termination and creation and modification of general personnel policies. He also has significant experience defending a wide variety of employment-related lawsuits in front of a variety of employment-related forums, including st...
Featured "Lawyer of the Year" Honorees
Robert F. Salkowski is a 1988 graduate of George Washington University. Robert earned his J.D. from the University of Miami School of Law in 1991. After graduating from law school, Robert practiced complex commercial litigation and bankruptcy in Tampa, Florida, where he represented both creditors and trustees. Prior to his employment with Zarco & Pardo in 1995, he was employed as Counsel by Ocwen Financial Corporation, a publicly traded investment banking concern located in West Palm Beac...
Robert M. Einhorn, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1986. He dual-majored in Accounting and Risk & Insurance. Robert attended law school at the University of Miami. During law school, Robert studied for and obtained his C.P.A. license in the State of Florida. Robert actively maintains his C.P.A. license and regularly attends seminars focused on the business valuation, accounting and damages issue...
Robert Zarco, Founding Partner of Zarco Einhorn Salkowski, P.A., has built a national reputation in franchise law and complex commercial litigation and been at the forefront of protecting the legal rights and interests of business clients in the USA and internationally for over 35 years, handling complex commercial trials, legal transactions, business disputes and litigation in Federal and State Courts, as well as Arbitration and Mediation. Well known as an experienced, aggressive and creativ...
PRACTICE AREAS Trials Commercial Litigation Intellectual Property Securities Insurance Recovery/Bad Faith White Collar Criminal Defense Legal Malpractice Entertainment/Sports EXPERIENCE Jennifer Keller is one of America’s most successful trial attorneys. She represents both plaintiffs and defendants in a broad range of high-stakes commercial litigation and white collar cases. Chambers USA and Chambers Global rank her among the top commercial litigators in the nation, quoting sources who...
Ansley Moses practices in the area of federal and state taxation. His primary focus is assisting clients in tax planning in connection with business formations, transactions and reorganizations. Mr. Moses also has significant experience in representing exempt organizations in qualification and compliance matters. He also represents business clients before federal and state tax authorities in connection with audits, appeals and litigation. Prior to joining Miller & Martin, Mr. Moses was in...
Charles (Chuck) Lee, Vice-Chair of the firm's Litigation Practice and Co-Chair of the firm's Labor & Employment Practice, has been with Miller & Martin since 1985 and concentrates his practice primarily on employment law, corporate/commercial litigation and federal agency investigations. In the employment law practice area, Chuck is lead defense counsel for a number of major companies and other employers in connection with wrongful discharge, discrimination, retaliation, FLSA, ADA, FM...
Chris Crevasse focuses his practice on employee benefits, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and other aspects of employment law, including immigration law. He assists his clients with the design, drafting, and updating of retirement plans and other employee benefit plans; with ERISA and federal tax compliance; with benefit plan administration and audits, including audits by the IRS and DOL; and with resolving employee benefits issues through the IRS and DOL correction programs. He also counsels ...
Donald E. Morton concentrates his areas of practice in estate planning, business succession, estate and trust administration and employee benefits. Mr. Morton advises family business owners regarding the transfer of family assets and family business to second and third generations and equalizing distribution to children not actively involved in business. Mr. Morton uses a variety of trusts to preserve family assets and to minimize taxation of asset transfers to beneficiaries. He makes creativ...
Doug Berry concentrates his practice in land use and zoning, eminent domain, municipal law, state administrative law and commercial litigation, particularly disputes related to real estate. Mr. Berry advises and represents private and public sector clients on antitrust and trade regulatory issues. He represents both land developers and municipalities in zoning and planning matters, as well as buyers and sellers in commercial real estate transactions. Mr. Berry has been a Rule 31 Mediator sinc...
Doug Johnson concentrates his practice on trademarks, technology and patents and on intellectual property litigation. He negotiates software licensing and technology agreements for both technology companies and end users. Mr. Johnson also coordinates trademark prosecution and administration, patent prosecution and administration, patent portfolio strategies, and intellectual property litigation for companies with international brands primarily in the food, sports, carpet and consumer products...
Frank Williams, Chair of the firm's Healthcare Group, concentrates his practice on corporations, securities and healthcare. He has provided assistance on the formation of several managed care organizations. He handles reporting obligations with the Securities and Exchange Commission for publicly held clients. He advises investment partnerships with respect to structuring alternatives, securities offerings and various regulatory matters.
Hugh Sharber practices business law with an emphasis on mergers and acquisitions, securities transactions and other general business and commercial matters. He has advised both strategic and private equity purchasers and sellers in business transactions in the healthcare, consumer products, restaurant and financial services industries, among others. He has also advised numerous clients on securities offerings, including public offerings and private placements of securities. Mr. Sharber counse...
Jim concentrates his practice in the areas of commercial, industrial and planned unit real estate, and in banking. He has represented developers, lenders, landlords and tenants in a variety of complex and multi-state transactions, and continues to relish the enjoyment of resolving issues to close a transaction successfully. He has led teams on transactions as diverse as the financing of the acquisition and development of a 1,300-acre parcel in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and a $300 million corpora...
John Bode concentrates his practice on labor relations and employment opportunity. For more than three decades, John has served as lead trial counsel in numerous cases before state and federal agencies and courts and the National Labor Relations Board. He has extensive experience representing many prominent national, regional and Tennessee employers in union organizing campaigns, collective bargaining, arbitrations, strikes, decertification petitions, wage and hour and other state and federal...
In Brief
Employment Alterations
by Ariel Beverly
As corporate America continues to grapple with pandemic-induced employment shifts, companies are still facing wage-hour compliance issues. Here’s some advice for navigating a post-pandemic work world.
Anna Inventing: The Importance of Diversity in Innovation
by Emily C. Peyser
A patent from 1887 by female inventor Anna Connelly not only revolutionized fire safety, but highlighted the need for diversity in innovation. Our world is facing big problems that need diverse voices at the table to find solutions that work for everyone. Building diverse teams and encouraging diversity in innovation is a beneficial step forward in resolving our collective challenges.
The Employment Pandemic
by Meredith Caiafa and Sarah Greene
The pandemic has had far-reaching effects on employment law since it officially took hold in 2020, but the litigation and lawmaking surrounding it are mutating faster than the variants. Here’s how lawmakers and businesses can keep up.
Trending Top Five: Critical Corporate Components for 2022
by Justin Smulison
It’s no longer “business as usual” for most of Corporate America. With a growing list of challenges facing the legal and financial health of many companies, we talked to several major General Counsel about the biggest areas in which businesses should remain vigilant.
Announcing the 2022 Best Lawyers: The Corporate Law and Commercial Litigation Issue
by Best Lawyers
The first edition of Best Lawyers: The Corporate Law and Commercial Litigation Issues features thought leadership articles from attorneys around the nation, as well as listings in more than 70 practice areas.
