Skip to Content

Adams and Reese had 129 attorneys named to the 2018 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America© (by BL Rankings, LLC), one of the oldest and most respected peer-review publications in the legal industry. Best Lawyers® has published its list for more than three decades, earning the respect of the legal profession, the media and the public as a reliable, unbiased source of legal referrals.

Of Adams and Reese’s 129 listed attorneys, 114 are repeat honorees with 98 celebrating five-plus years, 58 celebrating 10-plus years and 10 celebrating 15-plus years in The Best Lawyers In America, including 20-year designees Richard Carmody of Birmingham, F. Earl Ellis, Jr., of Columbia, S.C., Henry C. Shelton, III, of Memphis, Tenn., Philip M. Kirkpatrick of Nashville, Tenn., and Holmes S. Adams of Jackson, Miss.

The Best Lawyers® list of outstanding attorneys is compiled by conducting exhaustive peer-review surveys in which tens of thousands of leading lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers. Attorneys are separated by geographic region and practice areas. They are reviewed by their peers on the basis of professional expertise and must undergo a stringent authentication process to confirm their current practice and good attorney standing.

Adams and Reese congratulates the following attorneys who will appear in The Best Lawyers in America, 2018 Edition:

2018 BEST LAWYERS® IN AMERICA

Atlanta, Ga.
  Ron C. Bingham, II (2016)
     • Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law

Baton Rouge, La.
  V. Thomas Clark, Jr. (2010)
     • Administrative / Regulatory Law
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Entertainment Law – Motion Pictures and Television
     • Government Contracts
     • Insurance Law
     • Professional Malpractice Law – Defendants
  E.L. Henry (2010)
     • Government Relations Practice
  Kellen J. Mathews (2018)
     • Commercial Litigation
  Robert L. Rieger, Jr. (2018)
     • Government Relations Practice
  J. Robert Wooley (2018)
     • Insurance Law

Birmingham, Ala.
  Richard P. Carmody (1995)
     • Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
     • Litigation – Bankruptcy
  Jeffery S. DeArman (2018)
     • Real Estate Law
  Robert D. Eckinger (2005)
     • Antitrust Law
     • Litigation – Antitrust
     • Litigation – Banking and Finance
     • Litigation – Bankruptcy
  M. Ann Huckstep (2005)
     • Health Care Law
     • Mergers and Acquisitions Law
     • Securities / Capital Markets Law
     • Securities Regulations
  Charles C. Pinckney (2005)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Financial Services Regulation Law
     • Securities / Capital Markets Law
     • Securities Regulations
  Stephen A. Rowe (2005)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Litigation – Securities
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
  Stephen A. Walsh (2018)
     • Employment Law – Management

Columbia, S.C.
  John F. Beach (2013)
     • Commercial Litigation
  Robert P. Bethea, Jr. (2011)
     • Corporate Law
     • Mergers and Acquisitions Law
     • Tax Law
  F. Earl Ellis (1995)
     • Insurance Law
     • Workers’ Compensation Law – Employers
  Ernest G. Lawhorne (2005)
     • Workers’ Compensation Law – Employers
  William P. McElveen, Jr. (2007)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Real Estate Law
  W. Cliff Moore, III (2010)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Litigation – Banking and Finance
     • Litigation – Real Estate
  Louis T. Runge, Jr. (2013)
     • Real Estate Law 
  Kirby D. Shealy, III (2001)
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
  Lana H. Sims, Jr. (2005)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Insurance Law
     • Workers’ Compensation Law – Employers

Houston, Texas
  F. Lee Butler (2015)
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  Alex E. Cosculluela (2012)
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  Christopher Derden (2018)
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
  Daryl G. Dursum (2006)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
  Raymond R. Ferrera (2016)
     • Litigation – Intellectual Property
  Alton J. Hall, Jr. (2013)
     • Commercial Litigation
  Chris P. Perque (2011)
     • Technology Law 
  David Toney (2015)
     • Construction Law
  Craig G. Townsend (2009)
     • Natural Resources Law
     • Oil and Gas Law

Jackson, Miss.
  Charles P. Adams, Jr. (2005)
     • Corporate Law
     • Litigation – Securities
     • Mergers and Acquisitions Law
     • Securities / Capital Markets Law
     • Securities Regulation
  Holmes S. Adams (1999)
     • Litigation – Trusts and Estates
     • Trusts and Estates
  William C. Brabec (2010)
     • Insurance Law
  C. Phillip Buffington, Jr. (2016)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Commercial Finance Law
     • Corporate Law
     • Mergers and Acquisitions Law
  Paul A. Carrubba (2008)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Finance Services Regulation Law
  James A. Keith (2010)
     • Education Law
     • Employment Law – Management
     • Labor Law – Management
  Elizabeth Lee Maron (2012)
     • Education Law
  Powell G. Ogletree, Jr. (2005)
     • Energy Law
     • Litigation – Real Estate
     • Natural Resources Law
     • Real Estate Law
     • Timber Law
  Charles N. Parrott (2007)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Corporate Law
     • Financial Services Regulation Law
     • Litigation – Real Estate
  Raymond G. Russell (2017)
     • Corporate Law
  A. Jerry Sheldon (2003)
     • Energy Law
     • Natural Resources Law
  Jeff Trotter (2010)
     • Energy Law
     • Environmental Law
     • Litigation – Environmental
     • Oil and Gas Law
  Charles R. Wilbanks, Jr. (2014)
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants

Jacksonville, Fla.
  Jamie W. Olinto (2018)
     • Commercial Litigation
  John T. Rogerson, III (2015)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtors Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
     • Insurance Law
     • Litigation – Insurance
  Timothy W. Volpe (2016)
     • Arbitration
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Insurance Law
     • Litigation – Insurance
  Leslie A. Wickes (2016)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Insurance Law
     • Litigation – Insurance

Memphis, Tenn.
  Cannon F. Allen, Sr. (2009)
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
  Donna L. Boyce (2010)
     • Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants
  Jay Campbell (2016)
     • Corporate Law
  James B. McLaren, Jr. (2009)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Economic Development Law
     • Project Finance Law
     • Public Finance Law
  Mark S. Norris, Sr. (2017)
     • Litigation – Municipal
  Lucian T. Pera (2005)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Ethics and Professional Responsibility Law
     • First Amendment Law
     • Health Care Law
     • Legal Malpractice Law – Defendants
     • Legal Malpractice Law – Plaintiffs
     • Litigation – First Amendment
     • Media Law
  Henry C. Shelton, III (1995)
     • Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
     • Litigation – Bankruptcy
  Clarence A. Wilbon (2013)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Litigation – Banking and Finance

Mobile, Ala.
  Raymond L. Bell, Jr. (2012)
     • Eminent Domain and Condemnation Law
     • Workers’ Compensation Law – Employers
  Randall Scott Hetrick (2010)
     • Employment Law – Management
     • Labor Law – Management
     • Litigation – Labor and Employment
  W. David Johnson (2009)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Corporate Law
     • Mergers and Acquisitions Law
  Victor H. Lott, Jr. (2005)
     • Corporate Law
     • International Mergers & Acquisitions
     • Mergers and Acquisitions Law
     • Securities / Capital Markets Law
     • Securities Regulations
     • Timber Law 

Nashville, Tenn.
  C. Dale Allen (2015)
     • Government Relations Practice
  Cynthia Mitchell Barnett (2006)
     • Public Finance Law
  Reber M. Boult (2007)
     • Copyright Law
     • Litigation – Intellectual Property
     • Litigation – Patent
     • Patent Law
     • Trademark Law
  F. Laurens “Larry” Brock (2011)
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
  Martin S. Brown, Jr. (2009)
     • Corporate Law
     • Litigation – Securities
     • Mergers and Acquisitions Law
  William R. Bruce (2007)
     • Government Relations Practice
  John L. Chambers (2011)
     • Arbitration
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Litigation – Bankruptcy
     • Litigation – Construction
     • Litigation – Real Estate
  Charles W. Cook, III (2009)
     • Financial Services Regulation Law
     • Health Care Law
     • Litigation – Banking and Finance
     • Litigation – Bankruptcy
  Fred Russell Harwell (2011)
     • Real Estate Law
  Reed Houk (2006)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Financial Services Regulation Law
     • Real Estate Law
  Linda Edell Howard (2006)
     • Copyright Law
     • Entertainment Law – Music
     • Media Law
  Philip M. Kirkpatrick (1999)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Entertainment Law – Motion Pictures and Television
     • Entertainment Law – Music
     • Litigation – Intellectual Property
  Brad A. Lampley (2016)
     • Government Relations Practice
  Haverly MacArthur (2018)
     • Litigation – Intellectual Property
     • Litigation – Patent
     • Trademark Law
  Lynn Morrow (2008)
     • Copyright Law
     • Entertainment Law – Music
     • Litigation – Intellectual Property
  Anne L. Russell (2013)
     • Litigation and Controversy – Tax
  Larry Stewart (2008)
     • Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
     • Public Finance Law
  Thomas Anthony Swafford (2016)
     • Labor Law – Management
     • Litigation – Labor and Employment
  Guilford F. “Gif” Thornton, Jr. (2007)
     • Education Law
     • Government Relations Practice
     • Health Care Law
     • Insurance Law

New Orleans, La.
  E. Gregg Barrios (2010)
     • Admiralty and Maritime Law
  Mark R. Beebe (2007)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Litigation – Antitrust
     • Litigation – Securities
  Philip O. Bergeron (2011)
     • Health Care Law
  Charles A. Cerise, Jr. (2012)
     • Admiralty and Maritime Law
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Litigation – Environmental
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  Robin B. Cheatham (2010)
     • Banking and Finance Law
     • Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
     • Financial Services Regulation Law
  Jaimmé A. Collins (2018)
     • Litigation – Insurance 
  Kathleen F. Drew (2012)
     • Litigation – Environmental
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  John M. Duck (2006)
     • Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
     • International Mergers & Acquisitions
  Brooke Duncan, III (2007)
     • Employment Law – Management
     • Labor Law – Management
  Richard B. Eason, II (2012)
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
     • Workers’ Compensation Law – Claimants
     • Workers’ Compensation Law – Employers
  Mark S. Embree (2010)
     • Tax Law
     • Trusts and Estates
  Philip A. Franco (2012)
     • Litigation – Real Estate
  A. Kirk Gasperecz (2010)
     • Insurance Law
  William B. Gaudet (2010)
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
  Charles F. Gay, Jr. (2003)
     • Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  Louis C. LaCour, Jr. (2018)
     • Appellate Practice
  Edwin C. Laizer (2012)
     • Admiralty and Maritime Law
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  Leslie A. Lanusse (2010)
     • Employment Law – Management
     • Insurance Law
     • Litigation – Labor and Employment
  Francis V. Liantonio, Jr. (2012)
     • Admiralty and Maritime Law
     • Energy Law
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
  Don S. McKinney (2013)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Litigation – Health Care
  Robert B. Nolan (2005)
     • Oil and Gas Law
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  Glen M. Pilié (2009)
     • Litigation – Environmental
  Jane C. Raiford (2010)
     • Energy Law
     • Environmental Law
     • Litigation – Environmental
  Lee C. Reid (2018)
     • Economic Development Law
  Edward J. Rice, Jr. (2003)
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  Jeffery E. Richardson (2012)
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
     • Personal injury Litigation – Defendants
  James T. Rogers, III (2013)
     • Admiralty and Maritime Law
  Deborah B. Rouen (2010)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  Elizabeth Roussel (2016)
     • Commercial Litigation
     • Employment Law – Management
     • Labor Law – Management
  E. Paige Sensenbrenner (2010)
     • Government Relations Practice
     • Health Care Law
     • Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants
  Ronald J. Sholes (2007)
     • Arbitration
     • Environmental Law
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
  Mark J. Spansel (2006)
     • Admiralty and Maritime Law
     • Litigation – Environmental
  Martin A. Stern (2008)
     • Appellate Practice
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
  Mark C. Surprenant (2005)
     • Litigation – Environmental
     • Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
     • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
  Roland M. Vandenweghe, Jr. (2015)
     • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
  Robert A. Vosbein (2005)
     • Commercial Litigation
  Lara E. White (2018)
     • Commercial Litigation
  David M. Wolf (2013)
     • Public Finance Law

Sarasota, Fla.
  David Boyette (2018)
     • Litigation – Trusts and Estates
  Thomas H. Dart (2013)
     • Litigation – Construction
     • Litigation – Real Estate
  Jason T. Gaskill (2018)
     • Litigation – Intellectual Property

St. Petersburg, Fla.
  David S. Bernstein (2011)
     • Real Estate Law
  V. James Dickson (2009)
     • Construction Law
     • Litigation – Construction
  Richard H. Malchon, Jr. (2013)
     • Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law

Tampa, Fla.
  Robert W. Boos (2012)
     • Litigation – Bankruptcy
     • Litigation – Construction
     • Litigation – Real Estate
  Marilyn Mullen Healy (2013)
     • Land Use and Zoning Law
     • Real Estate Law
  Donald A. Mihokovich (2013)
     • Commercial Litigation
  Eric Partlow (2018)
     • Commercial Litigation
  Lynn Welter Sherman (2008)
     • Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
     • Commercial Transactions / UCC Law
     • Litigation – Bankruptcy

NOTE: (Year) denotes first year earning Best Lawyers® recognition

ABOUT BEST LAWYERS
Best Lawyers (https://www.bestlawyers.com/) is one of the oldest and most respected attorney ranking service in the world. For more than 30 years, Best Lawyers has assisted those in need of legal services to identify the attorney qualified to represent them in distant jurisdictions or unfamiliar specialties. Best Lawyers lists are published in leading local, regional, and national publications across the globe.