CHARLESTON, S.C.– June 23, 2021 – Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) is delighted to welcome Rene Stuhr Dukes as Of Counsel to its growing office in Charleston, South Carolina. Rene represents clients in a wide range of family law matters, including divorce, child custody, parental alienation, grandparent visitation, modification actions, alimony, equitable division, adoption and other domestic issues. She has practiced law as an attorney since 2012, but has more than three decades of experience in the legal field. She also represents clients in employment disputes, including cases involving the Americans with Disabilities Act, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Title VII, Title

NASHVILLE, TN –  June 17, 2021 – Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) is pleased to welcome Madison C. Bryant (née Patey) as an Associate to its growing office in Nashville, Tennessee. Madison defends clients in a range of health care related matters including medical malpractice, long term care, dental and correctional health care litigation. Prior to joining HBS, Madison worked on health care liability litigation at other firms, where she handled the initial review of claims and analysis of pleadings, assisted with complex discovery, drafted and responded to dispositive motions and other motion practice. She also presented oral arguments to the court

MIAMI, FL – June 14, 2021 – Hall Booth Smith, P.C. is thrilled to welcome Partner Tullio E. Iacono and Associate Gabriel Lopez as the firm’s Miami office grows to meet the needs of clients across South Florida. Tullio E. Iacono is a Partner with 25 years of legal experience, and he specializes in defending health care providers in complex medical malpractice litigation. In addition to brain injury, catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death cases, Tullio represents emergency room physicians, urgent care practitioners and medical assistants on a wide range of high-exposure claims related to health care delivery. He has managed

ATLANTA – June 9, 2021 – Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) is pleased to welcome three new attorneys to the firm’s Atlanta headquarters office as it adds new talent to meet growing client needs. Partner James E. “Jim” Gilson specializes in high-exposure trial litigation for catastrophic injury, premises liability, insurance and transportation tort claims. For more than three decades, Jim has represented clients across the transportation and industrial sectors, including trucking companies, railroads, airlines, hotels and mining operators. In addition, he has successfully defended individuals, companies and their insurance carriers in a wide range of commercial litigation matters, including product liability,

SADDLE BROOK, NEW JERSEY – June 7, 2021 – Hall Booth Smith, P.C. is pleased to announce that Of Counsel David W. Badie has joined the firm to expand its medical malpractice defense capabilities in the New Jersey and New York region. Badie defends hospitals, health care systems, physicians, nurses, administrators and other health care professionals in high-exposure medical malpractice cases and other liability lawsuits. He develops litigation strategy and works alongside in-house counsel, risk management and administrative teams in pursuit of favorable outcomes. He also advises health care clients on regulatory, compliance, administrative and day-to-day business matters. Earlier in his career,

In an article published online in Physicians Practice on June 3, 2021, Partner James R. Embrey, Jr. discusses liability issues related to the COVID-19 vaccine. “As the long lines of patients seeking a life-saving vaccine begin to shorten, the physicians, nurses, pharmacists, medical technicians, and other health care professionals who have been working tirelessly to administer all those shots in the arm are bracing for a new threat: liability lawsuits,” Embrey writes. The Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act (PREP Act) provides immunity from legal liability for covered persons who work on the development, testing, manufacturing, and distribution of the vaccine (e.g.,

JACKSONVILLE, FL – May 25, 2021 – Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) welcomes Attorney Amber G. Williams to its Jacksonville office as the firm expands to serve client needs in the state of Florida. Amber concentrates her practice on aging services and medical malpractice defense, general liability and business litigation matters. Prior to joining HBS, Amber worked at a law firm where she defended first party property insurance claims, often defending multiple insurance carriers against homeowner claims. Earlier in her career, she worked as a Law Clerk for several boutique firms and for a third party collections company. Amber earned a

In an article published in The New York Law Journal on May 11, 2021, Partner Nicole Callahan discusses the emergence of decentralized clinical trials accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the risks and liabilities associated. “It is expected that the use of decentralized clinical trials will continue due to their numerous benefits as compared to site-based clinical trials,” Callahan writes. “These benefits include increased patient access and enrollment, increased diversity of a subject pool, easier and more frequent data collection, decreased participant burden in relation to time and travel, evaluation of possible confounding factors (sleep, physical activity) and decreased cost.” While there

In an article published by Healthcare Risk Management on May, 1, 2021, Partner Jeffery Randolph Saxby is quoted discussing common mistakes health care providers make that lead to patient lawsuits, and how to avoid such pitfalls. While a primary impetus behind a patient’s decision to sue is often how the patient feels after interacting with physicians and staff, the severity and permanency of the injury also play a significant role in the decision. “Unfortunate medical care results that are correctable have little value in the eyes of plaintiffs’ lawyers, particularly when a health care provider will cover the costs of additional care,”

The 2021 edition of the South Carolina Super Lawyers magazine recognized the law firm of Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) for its outstanding legal work, honoring Charleston Partner Lauren Spears Gresh on its list of Rising Stars. Ms. Gresh was selected for the second year as a Rising Star for her work in medical malpractice defense. Ms. Gresh defends cases throughout the Southeast in areas of medical malpractice, wrongful death, birth trauma litigation and insurance defense. Ms. Gresh also formerly served on the Charleston School of Law Alumni Association Board of Directors and is a member of the Charleston County Bar

In an article published in Annals of Long-Term Care on April 29, 2021, Partner Brittany Cone and Associate Jordan Johnson discuss common Medicaid issues and possible solutions for nursing facilities. “In many ways, Medicaid reimbursement is the buoy that keeps skilled nursing facilities afloat,” the authors write. “Unfortunately for facilities, however, actually obtaining Medicaid reimbursement for the care and services provided is dependent upon the resident and/or the resident's representatives providing the necessary financial verifications and the state Medicaid agency reviewing and approving the eligibility application. Naturally, countless issues can, and often will, arise during this process.” Cone and Johnson explain that

In an article published online and in print in the Tampa Bay Business Journal on April 16, 2021, Partners Ryan Rivas and Jacqueline Voronov discuss unionization efforts in the COVID-19 era. “The challenges faced by employers due to COVID-19 have emerged as fresh opportunities for unions to galvanize employees more easily than ever before,” the authors write. “Statistics suggest that, for many private employers, a union-organizing campaign could be just around the corner.” For employers who prefer to operate as a non-union company, Rivas and Voronov advise avoiding actions that might give employees a reason to explore union representation, such as unsafe