Baker Donelson announces the addition of seven attorneys to the Firm’s New Orleans office.
“We are pleased to welcome this outstanding group of practitioners to our New Orleans office,” said Roy C. Cheatwood, managing shareholder of Baker Donelson’s Louisiana offices. “The addition of these highly qualified attorneys is a tremendous asset to our clients with business interests located in Louisiana, across the Gulf Coast and throughout the Southeast.”
Four of the attorneys previously practiced with Frilot, LLC and will join Baker Donelson’s Business Litigation Department:
Kerry J. Miller: Mr. Miller joins as a shareholder with extensive experience in the area of mass tort and class actions litigation, previously serving as co-leader of Frilot’s mass tort and class actions practice. He has served as court appointed lead attorney for several high-profile and high-impact cases in the New Orleans area in recent years, including litigation related to the BP oil spill, the Murphy oil spill and Chinese drywall. A frequent author on the topics of class action and complex litigation law, Mr. Miller has been recognized as a leading attorney in Mass Torts Litigation since 2010 by The Best Lawyers in America® and was named to the New Orleans City Business 2013 “Leadership in Law” class. In 2010, Mr. Miller received an invitation from the People to People Citizen Ambassador Programs to join a law delegation to China. He is a 1996 graduate of Tulane University Law School and is a member of the Defense Research Institute and the Louisiana State and American Bar Associations.
Paul C. Thibodeaux: Mr. Thibodeaux, who also joins Baker Donelson as a shareholder, focuses his practice in energy, environmental and construction law, as well as mass tort and class action litigation and intellectual property. A 2004 graduate of Tulane University Law School, Mr. Thibodeaux earned his undergraduate degree in civil engineering from Louisiana State University and is a registered patent attorney with the U.S. Patent and Trademark office. His background has assisted him in several high profile engineering failure cases, including the BP oil spill multi-district litigation, the Chinese drywall multi-district litigation and the Murphy oil spill class action litigation. He has also participated in the successful defense and prosecution of numerous jury trials involving complex engineering-related issues, and has handled multiple environmental cases involving Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act claims.
Daniel J. Dysart: Mr. Dysart joins as an associate with experience in energy law, environmental law, and mass tort and class actions. A 2011 magna cum laude graduate of Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, Mr. Dysart has worked on cases involving Chinese drywall litigation and the BP oil spill litigation.
James R. Parish: Mr. Parish also joins as an associate and focuses his practice in commercial litigation, mass tort and class actions, energy law and environmental law. He has worked extensively on litigation arising out of the BP oil spill and the Pearl River mill discharge. A 2009 magna cum laude graduate of the University of Houston Law Center, Mr. Parish has considerable experience with federal practice, procedure and court operations.
Three additional attorneys have joined the New Orleans office:
Matthew Chester: Mr. Chester, who joins as of counsel, is a member of Baker Donelson’s Business Litigation Department and the White Collar Crime and Government Investigations Practice. Prior to joining the Firm, he worked as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, serving as Deputy Supervisor of the Public Integrity Unit in the Criminal Division. As a prosecutor, Mr. Chester handled a wide variety of federal criminal matters, including cases involving bribery, extortion, public official corruption, honest services fraud, securities fraud, mail/wire fraud, money laundering, cybercrimes, environmental crimes, and other financial crimes. Mr. Chester is a 2004 graduate of Tulane University Law School, where he currently serves as an adjunct professor of law.
Anne E. Raymond: Also joining as of counsel, Ms. Raymond is a member of Baker Donelson’s Real Estate and Finance Group. Her practice covers many facets of real estate law, title insurance, wills and probate, foreclosures, condominium formation, business law and secured transactions. Ms. Raymond has extensive experience in mortgage servicing representation, and she previously chaired the real estate foreclosure and default servicing department at Jackson & McPherson, LLC. She has been recognized as a leading attorney in Real Estate Law since 2010 by The Best Lawyers in America®. Ms. Raymond is the immediate past president of the Louisiana Land Title Association, co-chair of its Legislative Committee, and an active member of New Orleans Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW).
Elizabeth Rutledge: Ms. Rutledge joins Baker Donelson as an associate in the Firm’s Advocacy Department, where she assists clients in general business-related litigation matters. She is a 2014 cum laude graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law.