ATLANTA (August 21, 2025) – Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP is pleased to announce that 104 of its attorneys were selected for inclusion in the 2026 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®, the leading peer review-based directory of legal practitioners.
Lawyers on The Best Lawyers in America list are divided by geographic region and practice areas. They are reviewed by their peers based on professional expertise and undergo an authentication process to make sure they are in current practice and in good standing. For the 2026 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®, more than 26 million votes were analyzed, which resulted in more than 170,000 leading lawyers included in the 32nd edition.
The following Smith Gambrell attorneys were named to 2026 The Best Lawyers in America list in their respective practice areas, listed by city:
Atlanta, GA
Ronald E. Barab (Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law)
Jason S. Bell (Commercial Litigation)
Thomas D. Bever (Bet-the-Company Litigation; Commercial Litigation; Criminal Defense: White-Collar)
Elizabeth G. Borland (Litigation – Intellectual Property)
Benjamin J. Brooks (Banking and Finance Law; Public Finance Law)
Edward D. Burch, Jr. (Appellate Practice; Insurance Law; Litigation – Insurance; Litigation – Real Estate *Lawyer of the Year)
David J. Burge (Commercial Finance Law; Real Estate Law)
Scott D. Cahalan (Construction Law; Litigation – Construction)
Matthew W. Clarke (Cannabis Law; Employment Law – Management; Litigation – Labor and Employment)
Alexander S. Clay V (Real Estate Law)
Anthony L. Cochran (Administrative / Regulatory Law; Commercial Litigation; Criminal Defense: White-Collar)
Randall A. Constantine (Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law; Employment Law – Management; Labor Law – Management; Litigation – ERISA; Litigation – Labor and Employment)
Peter M. Crofton (Construction Law; Litigation – Construction)
S. Gardner Culpepper III (Commercial Litigation)
Sharon Duvall (Real Estate Law)
Marcia M. Ernst (Commercial Litigation)
John C. Ethridge, Jr. (Corporate Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law)
Stephen M. Forte (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Banking and Finance)
Emily E. Friedman (Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law)
Lori A. Gelchion (Corporate Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law; Securities / Capital Markets Law)
Sarah T. Gordon (Commercial Litigation)
Brian P. Hall (Banking and Finance Law; Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law; Commercial Finance Law)
Edward J. Hardin (Corporate Governance Law; Corporate Law)
Michael F. Holbein (Commercial Litigation)
Thomas H. Hong (Antitrust Law)
Phillip E. Hoover (Environmental Law)
Robert C. Hussle (Corporate Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law; Securities / Capital Markets Law)
Alex Khoury (Commercial Litigation)
Teri King (Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law)
Gregory J. Kirsch (Litigation – Patent; Patent Law)
Kiyoaki Kojima (Mergers and Acquisitions Law)
Dale Lischer (Copyright Law; Litigation – Intellectual Property; Patent Law)
Brett Lockwood (Information Technology Law; Privacy and Data Security Law; Technology Law)
William F. Long (Litigation – Intellectual Property; Litigation – Patent; Patent Law; Technology Law)
Joseph C. Mandarino (Litigation and Controversy – Tax; Tax Law)
Don A. Mazursky (Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law)
James H. Morgan, Jr. (Trusts and Estates)
David C. Newman (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Securities)
Stephen E. O’Day (Energy Law; Environmental Law; Litigation – Environmental)
P. Andrew Patterson (Real Estate Law)
M. Everett Peaden (Corporate Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law; Tax Law)
Mark G. Pottorff (Real Estate Law)
Robert B. Remar (Administrative / Regulatory Law; Bet-the-Company Litigation; Commercial Litigation; First Amendment Law; Litigation – Labor and Employment; Litigation – Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy)
Thomas W. Rhodes (Antitrust Law; Commercial Litigation)
Dana M. Richens (Commercial Litigation)
Michael J. Riesen (Litigation – Intellectual Property)
Anthony J. Rollins (Tax Law)
Darren G. Rowles (Construction Law)
Arthur Jay Schwartz (Corporate Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law; Private Funds / Hedge Funds Law)
Justice Leah Ward Sears (Appellate Practice; Commercial Litigation; Mediation)
Julie A. Sebastian (Corporate Law)
Laleh Sharifi (Immigration Law)
Gregory K. Smith (Commercial Litigation; Construction Law; Litigation – Construction *Lawyer of the Year)
John H. Spillman (Corporate Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law)
Thomas A. Spillman (Real Estate Law)
Andrew M. Thompson (Environmental Law; Litigation – Environmental)
David G. Thunhorst (Corporate Governance Law; Corporate Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law; Securities / Capital Markets Law)
Matthew P. Warenzak (Litigation – Intellectual Property; Patent Law; Trademark Law)
Laura L. Wartner (Tax Law; Trusts and Estates)
Edward H. Wasmuth, Jr. (Commercial Litigation; Ethics and Professional Responsibility Law)
Dennis J. Webb, Jr. (Land Use and Zoning Law)
Daniel D. Zegura (Litigation – Intellectual Property; Litigation – Labor and Employment)
Kathryn M. Zickert (Land Use and Zoning Law* Lawyer of the Year; Litigation – Land Use and Zoning)
Charlotte, NC
Jason P. Huff (Equipment Finance Law)
Chicago, IL
Roger H. Bickel (Government Relations)
Mitchell A. Carrel (Land Use and Zoning Law)
Kenneth M. Crane (Venture Capital Law* Lawyer of the Year)
Jeffery M. Cross (Antitrust Law)
David J. Doyle (Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law; Consumer Protection Law)
James R. Figliulo (Bet-the-Company Litigation; Commercial Litigation; Legal Malpractice Law – Defendants; Legal Malpractice Law – Plaintiffs; Litigation – Banking and Finance; Litigation – Securities)
Andrew L. Goldstein (Copyright Law; Entertainment Law – Motion Pictures and Television)
Joseph T. McCullough IV (Commercial Litigation; Insurance Law)
Michael A. Moynihan (Real Estate Law)
Steven D. Pearson (Commercial Litigation; Insurance Law; Litigation – Insurance)
Peter A. Silverman (Commercial Litigation)
Richard J. Traub (Real Estate Law)
Michael D. Whitty (Closely Held Companies and Family Businesses Law; Trusts and Estates)
Jacksonville, FL
Daniel K. Bean (Commercial Litigation; Military Law)
Dana G. Bradford II (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Insurance; Product Liability Litigation – Defendants)
Steven E. Brust (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Insurance; Litigation – Securities)
Adam J. Buss (Corporate Governance Law; Corporate Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law *Lawyer of the Year)
Brandon C. Dodd (Corporate Law; Real Estate Law)
Andrew J. Fawbush (Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law)
Scott S. Gallagher (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Real Estate)
James R. McCachren III (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Intellectual Property; Litigation – Real Estate)
James B. Porter (Corporate Law; Real Estate Law)
William S. Rogers, Jr. (Real Estate Law)
Alan S. Wachs (Commercial Litigation; Insurance Law; Litigation – Insurance *Lawyer of the Year; Litigation – Intellectual Property)
Los Angeles, CA
Elizabeth B. Blakely (Corporate Law)
Patrick J. Cain (Litigation – Labor and Employment; Trusts and Estates
Miami, FL
Jeffrey S. Tenen (Corporate Law; Derivatives and Futures Law; Securitization and Structured Finance Law; Transportation Law)
New York, NY
Neal T. Dorman (Trusts and Estates)
Michael R. Glanzman (Litigation – Construction)
James Lotito (Construction Law; Litigation – Construction)
Roger Juan Maldonado (Litigation – Intellectual Property)
Dana L. Mark (Trusts and Estates)
Victor M. Metsch (Litigation – Real Estate)
Todd S. Pickard (Real Estate Law)
John T. Van Der Tuin (Litigation – Real Estate)
Svetlana Zagorina (Trusts and Estates)
Tampa, FL
Jason P. Stearns (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Insurance; Litigation – Intellectual Property; Litigation – Patent; Trade Secrets Law)
Washington, DC
James L. Bikoff (Copyright Law)
John P. Moy (Patent Law)
Thomas G. Wiseman (Biotechnology and Life Sciences Practice)
Four Smith Gambrell attorneys, Edward D. Burch, Jr., Gregory K. Smith, Adam J. Buss and Alan S. Wachs were also recognized by Best Lawyers as 2026 “Lawyer of the Year” in their respective practice areas. Additionally, 34 attorneys were named to 2026 Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America in their respective practice areas in the category’s sixth year.
About Best Lawyers®
Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers® has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers recognitions are compiled based on an exhaustive Purely Peer Review® evaluation. More than 184,000 industry leading lawyers are eligible to vote (from around the world), and we have received more than 25.8 million evaluations on the legal abilities of other lawyers based on their specific practice areas around the world. Visit www.bestlawyers.com for more information.
About Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP
Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP is a full-service, international law firm that advises regional, national and global businesses on a wide range of legal matters. The Firm’s nearly 350 attorneys provide legal counsel in more than 50 specialized practice areas, including corporate transactions, litigation, intellectual property, aviation, banking, real estate, insurance/reinsurance, construction, employment law, international, and employee benefits and executive compensation. Founded in 1893, Smith Gambrell has 14 domestic and international offices, including Atlanta; Austin; Charlotte; Chicago; Jacksonville; London; Los Angeles; Miami; Milan; Munich; New York; Southampton; Tampa; and Washington, D.C.