Best Lawyers in Tennessee, United States for Labor and Employment Law - Management

Mr. Binkley joined Rainey, Kizer, Reviere & Bell PLC in 1986 after earning his Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Tennessee College of Law. Based in Jackson, Tennessee, he has spent more than thirty-eight years representing employers and individuals in a wide range of employment-related, workers’ compensation, insurance, and tort matters. Mr. Binkley regularly advises and represents private and public employers in investigations, administrative proceedings, and litigatio...

Mr. Palmer is an experienced litigator specializing in both employment litigation and general civil litigation in state and federal courts. His interest in litigation began early in his legal career when as a law student at Vanderbilt University, Mr. Palmer won the Harlan Dodson Moot Court Competition and was appointed to the position of Associate Justice of Vanderbilt’s Moot Court Board. Mr. Palmer began his career in 1988 as an associate and later a partner in a large general practice...

Chuck Mataya has developed a focused practice of litigation and counseling in various areas of labor and employment law, including the defense of class, collective individual actions in both state and federal courts. Chuck acts as a lead counsel for prominent employers throughout the United States in the counsel and defense of employment and labor claims, including claims of wrongful discharge, breach of an employment contract, illegal discrimination under the various federal and state laws, ...

Carl I. Jacobson is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Employment Law - Management. Carl I., who practices law in Memphis, Tennessee, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Carl I. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Mr. Dement is an AV rated attorney through Martindale-Hubbell and has that special combination of skill of being both an advocate and a counselor. Not only has he served as a litigator for approximately 29 years, he has advised many clients over the years in business, transactional, and financial matters. Prior to law school, Mr. Dement received a masters degree in business administration with a concentration in corporate finance. His training has given him unique insight into the problems hi...

Scott Hickman practices in the areas of employment law and business dispute resolution. His practice primarily involves assisting businesses involved in litigation or other dispute resolution, often representing employers in employment matters, as well as assisting and advising them on day-to-day employee relations. Mr. Hickman graduated from Vanderbilt University Law School, where he was the senior managing editor of the Vanderbilt Law Review and was a member of the Vanderbilt Moot Court Boa...

Sam C. Doak is a shareholder in Lewis Thomason’s Knoxville office. Sam has been a trial attorney for over 35 years and focuses his practice primarily on civil trial litigation, arbitration and mediation in practice areas ranging from complex construction matters, product liability, marine product liability, commercial business disputes, employment litigation, transportation litigation, and general insurance defense. Sam served in several leadership positions in the Knoxville Bar Associa...

Jay Ebelhar guides company leadership through lawsuits and administrative proceedings to resolve complex employment disputes. He acts as a go-to resource for the full spectrum of employment matters, from harassment and discrimination claims to wage and hour challenges. Utilizing this varied experience, Jay partners with employers to explore options and develop sound strategies that manage risk in line with their organizational goals. Whether this means taking a case through trial or resolving...

Stephen is a Partner at Burr & Forman LLP where he serves on the firm's Executive Committee. He is a member of the Labor & Employment and Commercial Litigation Practice Groups. Stephen’s practice focuses primarily on employment law and litigation. His practice also focuses on business and intellectual property litigation. He frequently defends employers against claims for alleged employment discrimination, retaliatory discharge, and wage and hour violations. He also handles non-...

Jeff Weintraub is the managing partner of the Memphis office. He is a trial attorney who has represented employers in more than 59 jury and bench trials in the private and public sectors in employment-harassment/discrimination and retaliatory discharge lawsuits alleging violations of public policies and statutes, such as the False Claims Act. Jeff also handles Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charges, wage and hour cases, labor cases, and enforcing non-competes in all federal an...

George R. Arrants, Jr. focuses his legal practice in the areas of Corporate and Transactional and Employment and Labor and Taxation. He has extensive experience in his practice areas as well as a thorough knowledge of his clients' businesses and unique legal needs. While simultaneously protecting their business interests from unintended or unexpected legal consequences, he efficiently and effectively identifies and pursues the best options and/or solutions to their employment or business-rela...

Lisa Ramsay Cole is President and Managing Shareholder of Lewis Thomason, where she provides firmwide leadership focused on strategic growth, governance, and long-term sustainability. She works closely with the Board of Directors to guide business planning, talent development, and operational excellence across the firm’s offices and practice groups. She also serves as Managing Shareholder of the firm’s Nashville office. Ms. Cole serves as the firm’s General Counsel, overseei...

David has nearly 30 years of experience practicing litigation in a variety of practice areas, including labor and employment, commercial, and products liability matters. A Fellow in the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, he has particularly extensive experience in non-compete and trade secret matters. David is recognized in Chambers USA and other publications.

M. Reid Estes, Jr. has nearly 40 years of experience as a trial lawyer and has served as trial counsel for numerous Fortune 500 and smaller companies in the restaurant, hospitality, retail, manufacturing, construction, health care, and other industry sectors, and during his career has handled nearly every conceivable type of case from tort claims, to theft of trade secret, covenant and contract breach, commercial litigation, and “bet the company” cases. He has significant class ac...

Kerby Bowling has practiced labor and employment law exclusively since 1980. After graduating from law school, Mr. Bowling began waging his own campaigns against organized labor. The principles and the universe of forces at play in the workplace during a union campaign have become Mr. Bowling's lifelong study. Mr. Bowling believes that his experience as a labor lawyer gives him a keener insight into the countless employment issues confronting human resource managers in a wide variety of work ...

Margaret L. Behm has earned the reputation as the go-to person in 45 years of representing clients and forging coalitions for change. After beginning her legal career in 1976 at Legal Services if Middle Tennessee, Inc., Behm and Marietta Shipley in 1980 founded Shipley and Behm, the city's first all-woman law firm. “Back then, women just weren’t taken seriously as business owners or lawyers,” Behm says. “I wanted to run my own business and demonstrate that women could ...