HBS Announces New Members of the Firm’s Partnership

Atlanta, GA. – Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) announces the election of new partners, Duane Cochenour and Michael Williams, effective January 1, 2015.

Duane Cochenour is a Partner in the Atlanta office of HBS. Duane is a litigator specializing in the representation of medical professionals and is the leader of the firm’s Insurance Coverage Practice Group.  He has a unique perspective, with almost 20 years of experience as an insurance claims professional prior to becoming a lawyer.  He knows exactly what it is like to be an adjuster, supervisor, regional claims manager and major case negotiator, because he has worked in each of those positions.  He draws on this vast experience to defend clients in serious bodily injury and property damage litigation.  He also specializes in insurance coverage and bad faith litigation, regularly providing guidance on complex coverage matters to major insurance carriers. Mr. Cochenour is also a certified mediator and licensed to practice in Georgia and Florida.

Michael Williams is a Partner in the Atlanta office of HBS. Since 1987,  Mr. Williams has represented clients in complex, high-damage litigation matters. With a particular emphasis in defending catastrophic loss claims, Mr. Williams has defended multi-party construction defect cases, medical malpractice claims, premises liability matters and products liability cases. He has tried to verdict numerous cases in a wide variety of disciplines. As a former City Attorney, he has handled civil rights cases both at the trial and appellate levels. Mr. Williams has also litigated highly technical issues in aviation litigation and software licensing litigation. He has written articles for trade publications on construction defect litigation and construction technology issues. Representing clients that range from Fortune 100 companies to individual healthcare providers, Mr. Williams has a wide range of experience that he leverages for the benefit of his clients.

“We are delighted to welcome Duane and Michael to our partnership, ” said Alex Booth, managing partner of HBS. “They bring valuable experience and total dedication to client projects. They will help us to continue expanding our practice both regionally and nationally.”

Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) is a leading law firm in the Southeastern United States with nine regional offices in Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Since 1989, HBS has delivered quality legal services with a mission “to ethically and professionally serve our clients by providing the highest quality legal representation in a personally satisfying firm environment.” Our promise – “Serving to Achieve Excellence”.