Jeffery Hartley & Casey Pipes Become American Bar Foundation Fellows

Jeffery Hartley  and Casey Pipes have been invited to join the American Bar Foundation (ABF) as Fellows.  Membership as a Fellow of the ABF is by invitation, and the number of Fellows from each state cannot exceed one percent of the lawyers admitted to practice in that state.  The ABF was founded in 1952 by the American Bar Association, and its primary purpose is to research the legal profession and its impact and role in society.  Current and recent research areas included civil justice, access to justice, legal education, criminal justice, human rights, diversity and equal justice.  For more information about the ABF and its research projects, and to find out how you can help the ABF, please visit its website at www.americanbarfoundation.org.

Martindale-Hubbell Gives Top Ranking To Helmsing Leach

Martindale-Hubbell recently listed Helmsing Leach among its Top Ranked Law Firms™ for 2015. The firm is honored to be recognized by Martindale-Hubbell, which has been publishing information concerning lawyers and legal services since 1868, the year President Andrew Johnson was impeached for “high crimes and misdemeanors.”

Casey Pipes Participates In Virtual Round Table Discussion Concerning National & International Developments In Eminent Domain & Condemnation

Casey Pipes recently joined other eminent domain and condemnation law experts from across the nation in a Virtual Round Table discussion concerning some of the latest trends and developments in this area of practice around the United States.  The forum also included an international dimension, with a focus on the eminent domain and condemnation landscape in Brazil, including a discussion about a high speed train that will join Rio de Janeiro – São Paulo – Campinas.  To learn more about the round table, please click here.

Eleven Firm Lawyers Named In 2015 Edition of Best Lawyers In America

Alan Alexander, Joe Babington, Russell Buffkin, Jeffery Hartley, Warren Herlong, John Leach, Jim Newman, Charlie Mixon, Casey Pipes, Robert Rouse and Win Stuardi were all selected for inclusion in the 2015 edition of The Best Lawyers in America© (copyright by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, South Carolina). In addition, Mr. Babington (product liability litigation), Mr. Hartley (bankruptcy, creditor/debtor rights, insolvency and reorganization) and Mr. Newman (banking and finance litigation) were each recognized as Mobile Lawyer Of The Year in his practice specialty area.

Chris Conte To Speak At Bankruptcy Litigation Seminar

Chris Conte will give a presentation on preferential and fraudulent transfers under Title 11 U.S.C. §§ 547 and 548 at a seminar sponsored by the National Business Institute that will take place on December 15, 2014 at the Holiday Inn in Downtown Mobile.  Mr. Conte will discuss the various types of avoidance actions, the elements required to prove them and the defenses available to defendants.

Casey Pipes To Speak At Real Estate Law Seminar in Birmingham on October 17, 2014

Casey Pipes will give a presentation concerning pre-condemnation action considerations for owners of property targeted for condemnation at a real estate law seminar taking place on October 17th at the Hyatt Regency Wynfrey Hotel, which is located at the Riverchase Galleria in Birmingham, Alabama.  The seminar is being co-sponsored by CLE Alabama and the Real Property, Probate & Trust Section of the Alabama State Bar.

U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Appoints Jeff Hartley To Bankruptcy Rules Committee

United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. has appointed Jeff Hartley to the United States Judicial Conference’s influential Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules. The Judicial Conference is the federal court system’s principal policy-making body. Its Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules is charged with developing and promulgating policies and procedures to govern the nation’s constantly-evolving bankruptcy system.

Mr. Hartley, who heads up the Bankruptcy and Creditor’s Rights Department at Helmsing Leach, is one of only four lawyers in private practice to be honored with an appointment to the Bankruptcy Rules Committee and will serve a three-year term.

Mr. Hartley has deep experience in the development and practice of bankruptcy law. At Helmsing Leach, he handles all aspects of insolvency litigation and all manner of bankruptcy transactions involving financially-troubled companies. From 1994 to 1997, he was a member of the National Bankruptcy Review Commission, which was established to evaluate the bankruptcy system and make recommendations for legislative reform to the President, Congress and the United States Supreme Court. From 1994 to 1996, he was a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Margaret A. Mahoney, Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Southern District of Alabama.

Casey Pipes To Give Presentation On Land Use Law At NBI Seminar

Casey Pipes will present a paper titled, Land Use Law: Current Issues in Subdivision, Annexation and Zoning, at a National Business Institute seminar to be held in Mobile, Alabama on October 2, 2014. Mr. Pipes will focus on legal and practical considerations relating to annexations by municipalities.

2014 Edition Of Chambers USA Recognizes Helmsing Leach & Three Of Its Lawyers

In its 2014 edition, Chambers USA, a reference guide to the legal profession, recognizes Helmsing Leach for excellence in commercial litigation and, in addition, recognizes three of the firm’s lawyers as leaders in specialty areas of practice:  Joe Babington (commercial litigation), Jeff Hartley (bankruptcy/restructuring) and Warren Herlong (real estate).  Chambers USA uses in-depth, client-focused research to rank the leading US law firms and lawyers in a wide range of practice areas.  The guide is read by major companies and organizations throughout the US and the world.  It is also widely used by law firms for referral purposes.

Alabama Supreme Court Victory For Jim Newman Client

On December 30, 2013, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in favor of defendant BASF Construction Chemicals, LLC in a personal injury lawsuit in which Jim Newman represented the company.  The case turned on whether BASF had assumed the duty to inspect certain construction work performed using a BASF product.  After a lengthy and thorough analysis, the Supreme Court held that the question of duty was, in this particular case, one for the trial court and that the trial court had correctly ruled in favor of BASF.

Mr. Newman represented BASF in the case from its inception in the Circuit Court of Mobile County, which granted summary judgment to the company.  After plaintiff appealed, the Supreme Court transferred the action to the Court of Civil Appeals, which reversed the trial court.  BASF then petitioned for certiorari to the Alabama Supreme Court which granted the petition and reversed the Court of Civil Appeals.

Ex parte BASF Construction Chemical, LLC (In re:  Jeannie West Crabtree and Edward Wayne Crabtree vs. BASF Building Systems, LLC), Alabama Supreme Court 1101204 (December 30, 2013).