Perry Hall Email & Phone Number

Mobile, Alabama Area

Complex commercial litigation. Business separations. Counseling small businesses on administrative proceedings, regulations as well as preventive and corrective measures against active and potential lawsuits. Appeals. Probate litigation. Estate planning.

Mobile, Alabama Area

Complex commercial litigation, including spearheading separate suits by two sets of unrelated businesses and individuals for conversion, fraud and fiduciary breaches against CPA firm and convicted former partner; sales rep's suit for past/future commissions; CPA's suit for former employer's slander; and, defense of buyer in business purchase dispute. In defending employee against former employer's retributive libel suit, after its computer forensics expert rendered opinion that employee destroyed files on her PC, built & executed deposition strategy placing expert in box from which he admitted errors & retracted "expert" opinion. Wrote successful brief defending against Walmart's appeal of significant federal negligence verdict.

Mobile, Alabama Area

Defended business contract, personal injury & products liability suits.

Mobile, Alabama Area

Represented Miss. AG in civil investigation and suit against largest MS utility for manipulative & anti-competitive practices in generating, transporting & dispatching electricity into & out of Miss. within 4-state power grid (Enron-like power games). Launched countermeasures to protect small to mid-sized businesses, including entrepreneur from former employer’s attempted railroading out of town by defamatory remarks to his customers and franchisees from franchisors' aggression. Wrote lengthy post-trial order that Ala. Supr. Ct. affirmed & extensively quoted in upholding $7.5 Million defamation verdict obtained for client car dealership against competitor. Wrote appeal briefs including, e.g., successful appeal of dismissed suit to enforce deceased father’s agreement to leave his children 500-acre ranch & coffee mfg. plant. Represented Ala. AG in confidential civil investigation into certain business practices. Represented MS AG in civil investigation and lawsuit against nation's largest tax preparer for defrauding consumers into buying financial product that lost money. Jury trials including, e.g., claims v. competitor for defaming client coffee business resulting in $2.2M verdict; school board’s claims for severely leaking roofs & buckling floors in several new schools (settled during trial); and, newspaper publisher’s lifetime employment contract claims against NYC employer (settled during trial). Negotiated recording artists' mgmt. contracts. In litigated suits, including above and, e.g., corp. derivative suit re: fiduciary breaches; CPA firm's fraud; and, salesman's suit for commissions upon sale of limestone quarry: responsible for, and highly successful in, getting claims into court and past all defensive motions to face the jury.

Mobile, Alabama Area

Formerly, Bowron, Latta & Wasden, P.C. Conceived/elaborated innovative and aggressive defense strategy, in absence of any precedent, to streamline cases and decrease exorbitant discovery burdens on clients (thereby leveling the playing field) by petitioning state supreme court chief justice to consolidate legion of statewide predatory lending/trade practices claims being dropped like bombs against door-to-door vacuum seller and purchase-financing credit card lender (unsustainable as class action). Defended suits for business torts, employee benefits, unfair competition and employment rights. Principal litigator in successful pursuit and negotiated resolution of bank’s action for insurer’s bad faith denial of indemnity claim and of large rehab. service provider’s action for breach of contract against large private retirement community. Advised lead singer of multi-platinum rock music group on business structuring and publishing & recording contracts, and prepared complex estate planning documents addressing future music royalties' stream. Negotiated & documented numerous complex commercial transactions including, e.g., clients' purchase of health care plan, sale of majority interest in large telecomm. fiber optics LLC to finance expansion, purchase of franchisee's assets out of bankruptcy, lender financing of business acquisitions, and industrial revenue bond financing for expansion of large lumber mill facilities. Consulted clients on regulatory matters. Designed complex estate plans. Handled numerous business startups and drafted complex governing documents and necessary agreements, both among shareholders and with third parties. Secured approval for clients’ purchase of health care plan from state insurance dept.

Mobile, Alabama Area

Litigated First Amendment challenges to Mobile City Ordinance prohibiting nudity in nightclubs, wrote appeal briefs, and successfully orally argued constitutionality of ordinance, under heated questioning, before 11th Circuit Court of Appeals; then drafted response to cert. petition denied by U.S. Supreme Ct. Successfully defended petition challenging sheriff’s absolute immunity from suit. Defended suits against government and law enforcement officials for gender and race discrimination, sexual harassment and unlawful use of force. Defended Mobile City Council in appeals of licensing & zoning decisions. Assisted ongoing representation of Mobile City Council, Town of Dauphin Island and Mobile County Sheriff. In suit for employee benefit plan contributions against contractor, its out-of-state law firm, in obvious attempt to intimidate my law firm, filed against firm a baseless motion for sanctions that magistrate judge denied as improper after day-long hearing; months later, after fed. district judge entered judgment for client plans, I persuaded him to award attorneys' fees against large law firm for violating fed. statute prohibiting 'vexatious multiplication of proceedings,' turning that firm's pompous motion, on its face, back against it.

Mobile, Alabama Area

Taught courses in Advanced Federal Tax for Corporations and Partnerships; Federal Tax for Individuals and Tax Research; and, Business Legal Environment

Mobile, Alabama Area

Conducted audits & supervised team of auditors of businesses. Prepared complex corporate, individual and estate tax returns. Completed substantial tax research projects and drafted memoranda for tax planning and advice on complex tax issues. Drafted financial rpts. and analyses for clients. Prepared clients' regulatory filings. Conducted forensic reviews of business books and records.

J.D., Cum Laude, Law

Bs/Mba, Accounting/Business