KRAMER RAYSON - Key Persons
Andrew is dedicated to representing clients with integrity and professionalism - helping them navigate the nuances of the law while seeking practical solutions. He maintains a diverse practice, handling both transactional and litigation matters. His primary areas of practice are business, commercial, and corporate law; real estate; local government, municipal, and land use/zoning; labor and employment; wills, probate and estates.
Andrew holds a bachelor's degree in political science and public administration, with a minor in business, from the University of Tennessee, and a juris doctorate from the University of Tennessee College of Law. In law school he served as the Vice President of the Student Bar Association and a member of the Dean's Student Advisory Council. After graduation, Andrew served as a member of the Dean's Alumni Council.
Andrew is an active member of the community, and currently serves on the Vestry of the Episcopal Church of the Ascension. He is active in the Knoxville Bar Association, serving on various committees and writing regularly for DICTA. Andrew and his wife, Morgan, make their home in West Knoxville with their daughters, Charlotte and Mary Michael, and their goldendoodle, Maggie.
Job Titles:
- North America, Vice President of Human Resources and General Counsel
Beecher A. Bartlett, Jr., a highly qualified, dedicated and effective trial lawyer with over 33 years of experience, focuses his practice in the areas of Litigation, Insurance, Personal Injury and Employment and Labor. He strives to create reasonable expectations for his client in the resolution of their legal matters, which ultimately helps minimize the stress and anxiety that many clients experience. Mr. Bartlett is committed to providing an honest assessment of each matter by engaging in early dispute intervention when possible and examining each angle to evaluate and protect his client's interest. He devotes the time to first understand his client's goals and then look for cost-effective solution to obtain the results his client desires.
Mr. Bartlett represents corporations as well as individuals and has vast trial and appellate experience in both state and federal courts. An accomplished litigator, he handles every phase of the litigation process which includes investigation, pleadings and discovery, pre-trial, trial, settlement and appeal. He is familiar with and regularly utilizes the services of some of the best experts in the nation.
The Best Lawyers in America, a prominent, highly respected peer-review publication, selected Mr. Bartlett for inclusion to its 2011 list for personal injury and insurance law. Mr. Bartlett was named Lawyer of the Year for 2012 in the area of Insurance Law. He was also named a Top Attorney by City View in several categories.
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Partner and a Member
Betsy J. Beck is a Partner and a member of the Firm's employment law team. Ms. Beck has spent her career litigating issues involving employment discrimination, retaliation, wage and hour and other compensation issues, and all other aspects of the employer-employee relationship both in federal or state court and in front of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Department of Labor (DOL), and various other state and federal administrative agencies. Business owners, in-house counsel, and human resources professionals rely on Ms. Beck to provide practical and cost-effective solutions to challenging issues in the workplace. She strives to assist clients with difficult employment-related issues as quickly as possible, with the understanding that these are real-time problems that require immediate action.
In addition, Ms. Beck frequently delivers training for clients and industry groups on a wide variety of topics, including harassment prevention, effective and compliant hiring, employee discipline, wage and hour topics, and Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) compliance. Her goal is to deliver training topics in an engaging and relatable way, all while covering topics of significant importance.
Ms. Beck has been hired by companies to perform workplace investigations into a wide variety of complaints, including but not limited to harassment, discrimination, retaliation, ethical violations, and wage and hour compliance. She has also developed and maintained affirmative action plans for government contractor clients.
Ms. Beck represents clients in a broad range of industries, including public utilities, professional services firms, retail establishments, financial institutions, healthcare organizations, quick-serve restaurants, construction and construction vendor companies, and a host of others. Her clients range from companies employing thousands to those employing just a few. For employers large and small, Ms. Beck is a trusted advisor who partners with clients to create a true team approach to handling challenging workplace issues.
By appointment from the Governor, Ms. Beck serves on the Governor's Council for Judicial Appointments. The Council evaluates candidates for any vacancy on Tennessee's appellate courts, Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, or the Tennessee Claims Commission. Ms. Beck has served as the Council's Vice Chair since her appointment to the Council in 2020.
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Employment Lawyer
Brandon is an employment lawyer and mediator. He advises clients in the boardroom, and he represents them in the courtroom. Half of his practice is devoted to serving as an outside general counsel for large and small businesses, colleges and universities, and religious institutions, advising them on human resource policies, employment laws, and litigation avoidance. The other half of his practice is spent litigating employment-related issues, such as discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour, non-compete, and trade secret claims. He is also licensed as a General Civil Mediator by the Tennessee Supreme Court, focusing his efforts on helping parties resolve employment-related disputes.
Brandon co-authors an employment law column, The Law at Work, in the Tennessee Bar Journal. This column has been cited by federal and state courts on the topic of employment law. See Sadler v. Tyson Foods, Inc. (W.D. Tenn. May 27, 2022); Hardy v. TPC Southwind (Tenn. Ct. App. July 2, 2015).
He is a 2019 graduate of the National Advocacy Training Program (Washington, D.C.) sponsored by the American Inns of Court.
Outside of employment law, Brandon has worked with his clients on a number of other notable matters:
Negotiated resolution of a property dispute for client, a Vice President of WWE and former professional wrestler.
Negotiated lease of minor league baseball park between client and the Cincinnati Reds organization.
Obtained dismissal of a lawsuit against one of Knoxville's oldest churches on First Amendment grounds.
Part of team that obtained dismissal of $500,000 defamation lawsuit against client, a local attorney.
Part of team that successfully represented local community organization in highly-publicized zoning dispute.
A former legislative aide to a four-term U.S. Senator, he holds a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Tennessee and a juris doctorate from the University of Tennessee College of Law. He serves as campaign manager and treasurer of the Campaign to Elect Judge Hector Sanchez, a criminal court judge in Knoxville. Brandon and his wife, Jenny, are the parents to three children, Bonds, Olivia, and Larkin.
Bryce E. Fitzgerald, committed to professionalism, integrity and delivering high quality work product, maintains a diverse practice that includes a wide range of litigation in employment, government, estates, and health care in state and federal court. He has experience in wage and hour disputes arising under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and in discrimination and retaliation lawsuits arising under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, and various state laws.
Mr. Fitzgerald brings a thoughtful approach to representing his clients. He strives to understand the clients' needs and goals so that he can conduct a thorough analysis of the law and assist in achieving those goals. Mr. Fitzgerald is dedicated to building a meaningful relationship with his clients and endeavors to provide them with clear, understandable guidance at every step in the process.
Mr. Fitzgerald graduated summa cum laude from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, with a B.A. in Philosophy, and minors in Spanish and Political Science. He received his J.D. from Washington and Lee University School of Law, where he graduated cum laude in May 2014. During each of his three years in law school, he was the recipient of the Ross L. Malone Honor Scholarship. In his last year of law school, Mr. Fitzgerald dedicated his time to representing indigent clients in various civil matters as a student attorney in the Community Legal Practice Center. In his spare time, Mr. Fitzgerald loves spending time with friends, traveling, playing soccer and tennis, Tennessee Volunteers football, and enjoying a good meal.
Job Titles:
- of Counsel
- Knoxville Lawyer of the Year
Job Titles:
- Partner, Managing Partner 2004 - 2006
Edward ("Ward") Phillips has a wealth of knowledge and trial experience in his practice areas of Labor and Employment Law. Ward represents management exclusively in all areas of employment and labor relations, including state and federal employment litigation and in administrative proceedings before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the United States Department of Labor, and the National Labor Relations Board. He is a forceful, effective litigator. Ward has been described by Chambers and Partners USA as, "one of the most talented lawyers in the state with a varied practice of litigation avoidance and successful litigation." Employment law is his passion, and he gives his clients timely prospective advice (i.e., how to deal with problem employees and structure policies).
Erica D. Green is a native of East Tennessee and a graduate of Tennessee Wesleyan University and The University of Tennessee College of Law. Ms. Green is passionate about providing ethical, efficient, and effective representation for her clients, and she maintains a diverse civil litigation practice that focuses primarily on insurance law. Ms. Green also assists employers with a variety of legal needs, including advising them on a broad range of employment matters ranging under state and federal law.
She focuses diligently on each case and client and provides legal services in a timely and cost-effective manner. She is an active member of the Knoxville Bar Association, as well as the Tennessee and American Bar Associations; the Defense Research Institute; and Tennessee Defense Lawyers Association. Ms. Green resides in Lenoir City with her husband, Derek, and their two children.
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-related legal matters. He is diligent and honest in his relationship with his clients and finds the practice of law to be both challenging and highly rewarding. He is admitted to practice in the Tennessee Supreme Court, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee and the U.S. Court of Appeals, 6th Circuit, and the United States Tax Court.
In his Corporate and Transactional practice, Mr. Arrants handles the follows:
Entity formation
Contract drafting and review for unique transactions
Transactional work (business and assets Buy-Sell), ranging from drafting to closing
Mr. Arrants' Employment and Labor practice is concentrated on matters arising from:
Legal compliance with employment regulations and the law
Wage and hour compliance
Counseling on workplace policies and practices - termination or disciplinary
Employment agreement drafting, with emphasis on separations and hiring
Employment Discrimination Defense litigation
His Tax Practice Includes:
Delinquent and amended returns
Defending taxpayers during civil audits
Request for Waiver of Penalties
Job Titles:
- American Inns of Court, Executive Committee, 2010 to 2015
- American Inns of Court, Member
- American Inns of Court, President, 2013 to 2014
- Barrister
Job Titles:
- Judge of the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals, Clerk, 1989 to 1990
Jackson G. Kramer, a highly skilled, knowledgeable and trusted counselor who has over 33 years of legal experience, concentrates his practice in the areas of Corporate and Transactional, Real Estate, Estate Planning, Administration and Trusts, and Local Government and Public Utilities. He is a strong but reasonable advocate for his clients. His primary goal is to help his clients solve their legal issues and achieve their overall objectives while simultaneously protecting their best interests.
A lifelong Vols fan as the son of two Knoxville natives, Jimmy was born in Germany (where his father was stationed as an Air Force officer) and lived all over the United States. He then moved to Knoxville to attend the University of Tennessee, where he graduated cum laude in 2014, majoring in Political Science while receiving a minor in English. Jimmy remained in Knoxville to attend the University of Tennessee College of Law, where he graduated cum laude in 2017. During law school, Jimmy served as an editor on the Tennessee Law Review, the director of the UT Pro Bono Homeless Project, and the 2017 Student Commencement Speaker.
Following his graduation, Jimmy served for one year as a pro se law clerk under Chief District Judge Thomas A. Varlan in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, where he worked on pro se civil rights and post-conviction cases for all eight district court judges. Next, Jimmy served for three years as a law clerk to United States Magistrate Judges H. Bruce Guyton and Debra C. Poplin, also in the Eastern District of Tennessee.
Jack Burgin has a diverse legal practice, primarily advising and defending employers on a variety of labor and employee benefit related topics and on representing and advising government contractors about costs and labor issues. Jack's advice and litigation practice focuses on
Job Titles:
- Partner, Managing Partner 2013 - 2015
John E. Winters, an effective trial lawyer with over 23 years of experience, focuses his practice in the areas of Labor and Employment and Commercial Litigation. His vast knowledge and experience coupled with a common sense approach to resolving disputes is vital to helping his clients save not only money but also valuable time away from their businesses. He takes the time to understand his clients' needs and legal goals and looks for cost-effective solutions that will get them the results they want.
For those cases that require court action, Mr. Winters has extensive trial experience. He has served as lead counsel in approximately 50 jury trials throughout Tennessee, and represented clients in cases filed in Ohio, South Carolina, Kentucky, Florida, Indiana and West Virginia. He has also served as lead counsel in many non-jury, arbitrations and administrative hearings.
The Best Lawyers in America, a highly regarded peer-review publication, first selected Mr. Winters for inclusion to its list in 2011 for Labor and Employment and Insurance Law. He has received this distinction every year since.
In his Labor and Employment practice, besides providing litigation assistance, Mr. Winters gives general employment law advice, provides training and represents companies in a wide array of matters before state and federal administrative agencies.
Job Titles:
- Partner, Managing Partner 2010 - 2012
John T. (Tom) Johnson, Jr., is a highly skilled, experienced, and knowledgeable civil trial lawyer who has over 48 years of jury trial experience. He is passionate about providing ethical, efficient, and effective representation for his clients in his practice areas of General Litigation, Insurance Defense, Insurance Coverage and Arson and Fire Claims. While every case presents different scenarios and challenges, Mr. Johnson focuses diligently on each case and the clients he represents, and he provides legal services in a timely and cost-effective manner. Mr. Johnson was one of the first mediators in Knoxville and he has served as a mediator in numerous cases. In addition, Mr. Johnson has been selected to serve as an arbitrator in several cases. Mr. Johnson is highly regarded by his peers and he was selected as a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers in 2015, the pre-eminent organization of trial lawyers in North America. In 1995, Mr. Johnson was selected for inclusion in American Board of Trail Advocates. Mr. Johnson has been included in Best Lawyers of America, a highly regarded peer-review publication, for several years. Best Lawyers of America named Mr. Johnson Lawyer Of The Year in 2016 and 2019. Mr. Johnson has been included in Super Lawyers and Mid-South Super Lawyers since 2008. He is consistently listed in City View magazine as one of the top attorneys in Knoxville in several different categories. Mr. Johnson is licensed to practice in the state of Tennessee, and he has been admitted to practice in the state courts of Tennessee, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and the United States Supreme Court. Mr. Johnson focuses his practice on the following:
• Insurance Defense
• Insurance coverage issues
• Arson investigation and defense of fire insurance claims
Mr. Johnson has tried to verdict hundreds of jury trials and has, in some years, been listed by The Tennessee Jury Verdict Reporter as having tried the most jury trials in the state of Tennessee for that year. The Tennessee Jury Verdict Reporter recently reported that for the years between 2005 and 2010, Mr. Johnson tried the second highest number of cases for any lawyer in the state.
Mr. Johnson has extensive experience in insurance coverage issues and has actively participated in the drafting of provisions in insurance policies issued by a major insurance company.
Mr. Johnson has been a speaker at a number of seminars sponsored by various bar associations and other organizations. He has made presentations to local claims organizations and at statewide meetings of claims managers and claims representatives. On October 29, 2010, Mr. Johnson participated with other well-known attorneys from around the state of Tennessee and other parts of the United States in a mock cross-examination at a seminar sponsored by The Foundation of The American Board of Trial Advocates.
Kate E. Tucker focuses her legal practice on Immigration Law. Having been through the U.S. immigration process herself as a British National, Ms. Tucker fully understands the far-reaching effects of immigration status on an individual's entire life and provides individualized legal advice after a thorough review of her client's short and long-term objectives. She provides valuable insight, reliable and efficient advice and step-by-step guidance to her clients throughout the complex immigration process.
Ms. Tucker's clients include business entities, educational institutions and national laboratories, as well as individual foreign nationals. Her representation of corporate clients includes advice regarding general employment issues, employment and sponsorship of foreign nationals, preparation of the necessary petitions to effect such sponsorship, advice regarding issues that arise following approval (travel, layoffs, extensions, change or status, etc.) and I-9 compliance (including self audits, correction of I-9s, and Department of Homeland Security [DHS] audits).
Ms. Tucker's representation of individual foreign nationals includes advice regarding planning the immigration process from start to finish, assessment of job offers and qualifications for employment-based visas, and assistance in preparation of employment-based and family-based petitions.
Ms. Tucker's Immigration practice includes:
Non-Immigrant (Temporary) Status (Employment and Family Based)
U.S. Lawful Permanent Residence (Employment and Family Based)
Consular Visa Processing (Non-Immigrant and Immigrant)
I-9 Compliance, Training and Audits
Ms. Tucker has defended employers in several I-9 audits by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), resulting in no or lower penalties, as well as successfully negotiating down hefty government fines for I-9 violations. Ms. Tucker has also obtained approval on several petitions that were previously denied (or noticed with an intent to deny by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services [USCIS]) prior to her representation of the client.
Ms. Tucker also publishes and/or speaks regularly on the subject of immigration law, as well as provides training to her corporate clients regarding the employment of foreign nationals, sponsorship of foreign nationals, compliance with I-9 regulations, and other employment-related topics.
A Knoxville native, Katie earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Tennessee in 2017, majoring in Accounting, with a collateral in Finance.
Katie remained in Knoxville to attend the University of Tennessee College of Law where she graduated cum laude in 2021. During law school, Katie was Treasurer of both the Student Bar Association and Law Women. She also served on the Admissions Committee, the 3L Class Gift Committee, was a member of the Inns of Court, and was a Marketing Editor for the Transactions Journal on Business Law.
After two clerkships with the firm during law school, Katie joined as an associate in 2021. She has a broad practice that focuses generally on employment law, assisting and advising employers on a variety of employment matters arising under state and federal law. Her practice also includes general litigation.
Katie currently resides in downtown Knoxville with her husband and their rescue dog, Archie.
Job Titles:
- EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
- Member of the Knoxville Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators
- Treasurer for the TVHRA
Marc Upchurch serves as the Executive Director at Kramer Rayson LLP. He has been in Business Management and Finance since 1983. Marc is licensed as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), a Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA), a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR), a Society of Human Resources Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP), and a Certified Legal Manager (CLM).
Marc is a member of the Knoxville Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators (KALA), Tennessee Society of CPAs (TSCPA), the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), the Tennessee Valley Human Resources Association (TVHRA) and the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM). Marc is active and has served in numerous capacities within the local and international associations of legal administrators, including two terms on the Board of Directors of the International Association of Legal Administrators.
Marc currently serves as the Treasurer for the TVHRA and Secretary for the KALA. Marc serves as an elder at the Hardin Valley Church of Christ and has served on several local boards throughout his career.
Born and raised in Knoxville, Natalie Miramontes-Tankersley is a 2020 alum of Maryville College where she graduated with a degree in Religious Studies. She then attended Lincoln Memorial University's Duncan School of Law. While there, she served as President of the Immigration Law Society and graduated cum laude in 2023. She joined the firm in 2023 in her last year of law school as a law clerk, developing her legal skills with the firm's immigration team. Natalie's legal service focuses on immigration within the business sector. Married to a Mexican national, she understands the complexities and stresses surrounding the immigration process. She strives to offer her clients feedback to build a strong application, providing essential communication to relieve anxiety around their cases. Considering Guadalajara, Mexico her second home, she is also bilingual. Natalie currently resides in Knoxville with her spouse and her spoiled cat, Odin.
Nathaniel D. Moore is a meticulous and knowledgeable litigator who joined the firm as an associate in 2018. Nate maintains a diverse civil litigation practice that focuses primarily on insurance law, employment law, and civil rights matters. Nate practiced in courts across East Tennessee and Southwest Virginia for six years prior to joining the firm. He has extensive experience representing employers, insurers, and individual clients before various state and federal courts and administrative agencies.
Robert L. Bowman is an extremely qualified, experienced, and effective trial attorney whose practice areas are Employment and Labor and Local Government and Public Utilities. He is recognized by Best Lawyers in America and Mid-South Super Lawyers in the Employment and Labor practice area. Mr. Bowman has over 20 years of experience and is a Rule 31 Listed General Civil Mediator. He represents Fortune 500 companies as well as small business owners in complex litigation involving employment discrimination, Fair Labor Standards Act, non-competition, and trade secret issues. He also represents numerous quick-serve restaurant franchisees across the entire State of Tennessee and a cellular telephone retailer throughout the United States.
Helping his clients resolve their issues in a cost-effective and timely manner is one of Mr. Bowman's most important goals, while simultaneously providing a high degree of quality legal work. When representing a client, he looks for solutions and paths to prompt dismissal or summary judgment of the lawsuit. Employment Law is a constantly changing and challenging arena, and he is adept at keeping his clients proactively informed about laws that help protect their business interests.
Mr. Bowman has successfully tried numerous jury and non-jury cases involving a wide range of issues and industries in state circuit and chancery courts and federal district courts. He has handled cases on appeal in all state and federal appellate courts. In one such instance, he successfully defended in the Tennessee Court of Appeals and Supreme Court an award of summary judgment to an employer accused of retaliation.
His important areas of focus within his Employment and Labor practice include:
Litigating employment discrimination, retaliation, and Fair Labor Standards Act cases, including class and collective action cases
Defending throughout the country employment discrimination charges filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)and overtime complaints filed with the Department of Labor
Providing daily employment law advice and feedback to clients
Providing training, as necessary, to his clients on Employment Law related topics
Arbitrating employment claims
Litigating Non-Competition Agreements and Trade Secret Cases
His Local Government and Public Utilities practice includes:
Litigating Open Records Act lawsuits
Reviewing contracts
Giving daily advice and feedback on zoning and planning issues
Interpreting statutory law applicable to local governments
His Professional Liability practice includes:
Defending manifold professional negligence claims
Litigating claims on behalf of mortgage brokers, title examiners, and bookkeepers
Advising engineers and other professionals on contract issues
Many of Mr. Bowman's cases have involved multiple plaintiffs; for example, he defended a municipality in a Fair Labor Standards Act case involving over 70 plaintiffs and played a significant role by handling discovery, drafting a dispositive motion, and negotiating a favorable settlement for his client. He defended a multi-national mining company in several counties in East Tennessee which had 125 separate employee benefits cases pending against it. Mr. Bowman has also defended several class and collective action overtime cases brought against quick-serve restaurants and retailers.
He recently represented a national school photography company in a non-competition and trade secrets lawsuit and obtained a verdict for compensatory damages of over $530,000, plus punitive damages, in his client's favor against the defendants, a former salesperson and his new employer.
Mr. Bowman was successful in getting a 2007 sexual harassment case dismissed on summary judgment, with the result of sanctions and costs entered against the plaintiff and her counsel, during his representation of the owner and president of an East Tennessee textile company.
He defended a lawsuit brought by a former manager against a convenience store chain who claimed that the company provided materially false information about the employee in a reference check from a prospective employer. Mr. Bowman was able to have the case dismissed on summary judgment due to the fact that the plaintiff had given a release encompassing his client.
Mr. Bowman recently defended a quick-serve restaurant that was accused of racial harassment by multiple employees and was successful at having the claims dismissed. He was instrumental in implementing training procedures for his client to use to help prevent similar future claims.
Job Titles:
- Diocese of Knoxville, Diocesan Counsel, 2010 to Present
Shannon Coleman Egle's extensive legal knowledge, coupled with a practical and responsive approach, allows her to help her clients achieve their business goals, which ultimately results in their businesses operating more smoothly and profitably. Her practice areas include healthcare regulation and transactions, general business consulting and transactions, as well as real estate acquisition and development and representation of individuals in civil tax controversies before both the IRS and the Tennessee Department of Revenue. She represents hospitals, physician organizations, individual physicians, physician practice management companies, and a host of other business and professional entities, as well as individuals.
Ms. Coleman Egle devotes the time required to fully understand her clients' businesses, the personalities of the players within their businesses, the specific industries involved, and the rules governing their businesses. She individually tailors her counsel to work within each client's business framework and helps her clients develop solutions to issues that arise day-to-day or within a particular transaction.
Her Corporate and Transactional practice includes:
Business planning, including advice related to management of the business and borrowing of funds
Organization of business entities, including choice of entity and preparing organizational documents
Advising clients on statutory requirements, such as annual meetings and annual reports
Assisting in mergers, acquisitions and general business transactions
Her Real Estate practice includes transactional items related to:
Commercial acquisition/divestiture
Development
Her Tax practice includes:
Delinquent and amended returns
Defending taxpayers during a civil audit
Offshore voluntary disclosure
Filing innocent spouse claims
Requesting waiver of penalties.
Job Titles:
- Listed General Civil Mediator
Job Titles:
- Partner, Managing Partner 2001 - 2003
Thomas M. Hale is an experienced, skilled and effective trial and transactional lawyer who brings a wealth of knowledge to his clients in his practice areas of:
Corporate and Transactional
Employment and Labor
Estate Planning, Administration and Trusts
Local Government and Public Utilities
Real Estate
Professional Liability
Litigation
Commercial
Corporate
Municipal
Land Use/Zoning
He is a solution seeker and problem solver and works hard as an advocate for his clients in an honest, straight-forward and professional manner. He exercises sound and prudent judgment in advising them of their legal alternatives, and his ability to clearly explain how the facts and the law are likely to converge, and what the most likely outcome would be, is of great benefit to his clients.
Mr. Hale tries all types of civil cases in both the federal and state courts throughout East Tennessee with specific emphasis in the areas of business-related disputes in contract, corporate, employment, as well as real estate and zoning/land use. He provides general commercial advice to local and national businesses.
His broad practice includes:
Professional liability (legal malpractice and other professional errors and omissions defense)
Contract preparation and review
Advice on entity issues (i.e., corporate, partnership, LLC)
Real property matters
Uniform Commercial Code issues
Purchases and sales of business entities
Purchases, sales and leases of commercial real property
Advice on obtaining and making loans
Advice in the formation and governance of legal entities
For his corporate law practice, the prestigious, peer-review publication, Best Lawyers in America selected Mr. Hale for inclusion to its list each and every year since 2008, and also selected him as the "Knoxville Lawyer of the Year" in 2012. He has also been included in this publication each year since 2011 for his litigation-commercial, land use and zoning, municipal and real estate law practices.
Warren Gooch is recognized as one of the leading health care attorneys in Tennessee. He established the firm's health law practice in 1987. He represents hospital systems and other health care providers in Middle and East Tennessee. He has extensive experience in the areas of:
Certificate of Need
Licensing Issues
Administrative Appeals and Litigation
Operational and Regulatory Matters for Health Care Providers
Corporate Compliance
Governmental Relations
Stark and Anti-Kickback Issues
Best Lawyers in America has selected Mr. Gooch for inclusion to its lists of administrative/regulatory law, governmental relations, and health care law every year since 2007, and named him Lawyer of the Year in 2012 for Health Care Law. CityView has also named him Top Attorney in the categories of administrative law and health care law every year since 2011.
Wayne R. Kramer has over 38 years of experience in his practice areas of Tax, Real Estate, Estate Planning, Administration and Trusts, and Corporate and Transactional. He represents individuals as well as a wide variety of small businesses and large companies. Mr. Kramer has a sound understanding of the law and is problem solver. He searches for "common ground" between parties in conflict and finds the counseling aspect of law to be the most rewarding. He has provided guidance to individuals, small businesses, and large companies through difficult times as well as in periods of growth and prosperity.
Mr. Kramer assists his clients in a myriad of business and tax issues and provides them with much predictability and guidance as they navigate through the complexities of the ever-changing tax and other laws and as they work with state and local authorities who regulate and implement those laws. Mr. Kramer has extensive experience in taxation and has represented clients with regard to many issues and before various administrative bodies, including the Tennessee Department of Revenue and Tennessee State Board of Equalization. Those areas of law include primarily the following:
Ad valorem real and tangible personal property tax
State and local sales and use tax
Real property and general corporate matters
Commercial and business transactions
Estate planning and administration
Will Carver is an AV rated, extremely knowledgeable, experienced and hard-working litigation attorney who values the relationships he builds with his clients and their businesses. He is a creative problem solver who diligently focuses on understanding his clients' goals, challenges and opportunities and provides his clients effective and efficient representation. His primary areas of practice are Litigation, Employment and Labor, small business advice, and Local Government and Public Utilities.
He also serves as the City Attorney for the City of Townsend, Tennessee.
In August 2013, Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam appointed Mr. Carver to serve on the Tennessee Education Lottery Board of Directors which oversees Tennessee's two-billion dollar annual lottery sales. Governor Bill Lee appointed Mr. Carver to a second five-year term, expiring in 2023. Proceeds from these sales fund college scholarships, after-school programs, and other education initiatives. He became Chair of the Board in 2021.
Legal Aid of East Tennessee selected Mr. Carver and one other attorney to receive its 2010 Pro Bono Partner Award for his role in establishing a Saturday Bar Clinic in Blount County, Tennessee.