William S. Mann

Will has worked on numerous appeals in the Court of Appeals of Georgia and the Supreme Court of Georgia and has briefed issues before both of Georgia’s appellate courts on the expert witness qualifications, hearings on summary judgment motions, the O.C.G.A. § 9-11-9.1 affidavit requirements, professional versus ordinary negligence distinctions, and premises liability questions of law.

Will represents general dentists, oral surgeons, and other dental professionals and their practices in all phases of litigation, from pre-suit investigation, discovery, hearings and trials, and appeals.

Will handles and represents insureds through all phases of liability litigation, including mediation, motion practice, hearings, summary adjudication, trials, and appeals. Will represents the interests of insureds in premises liability and auto liability cases.

Will represents both hospitals and health care practitioners and provides guidance on compliance with state and federal laws and regulations, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA).

Will represents and assists employers to avoid, resolve, and prevail in labor and employment lawsuits in state and federal courts and in actions before administrative bodies such as the EEOC.

Will’s experience includes representing employers in discrimination and retaliation claims involving the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), Title VII, 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981 and 1983 claims, and whistleblower claims.

Will and HBS Partner Charles A. Dorminy, in an issue of first impression in the Eleventh Circuit, successfully argued that the FMLA does not provide standing for a plaintiff to allege an “associational” or third-party retaliation claim against an employer for the protected acts of a third party. In addition, Will has successfully obtained summary judgment for an employer, a local Sheriff’s Office, in a case involving alleged discrimination and retaliation under the FMLA and PDA.

Will has also authored employment handbooks for local health care providers.

Will represents the interests of hospitals, health systems, skilled nursing facilities, physicians, surgeons, dentists, nurses, and other medical professionals from pre-suit claims and investigation through trial and appeal.

He has experience in representing medical professionals in all types of professional negligence cases, including catastrophic birth trauma cases. Will has a breadth of experience with the expert affidavit requirements, expert qualifications requirements, and Daubert requirements in Georgia and has successfully argued and obtained dismissals of actions for a party’s failure to comply with such requirements.

Will has previously presented at the Insurance Law Institute’s CLE on the “Admissibility of Expert Testimony in Georgia” in St. Simons Island, Georgia.

Will represents restaurants, hotels, and grocery stores in premises liability actions from the pre-suit investigation and claim through mediation, motion hearings, summary adjudication, and appeals. Will has successfully obtained summary judgment on behalf of grocery stores in premises liability actions.

• Forum
  Brunswick, Georgia; October 2015
• Admissibility of Expert Testimony in Georgia
  ICLE Insurance Law Institute; St. Simons Island, Georgia; September 2013