Five Prominent Attorneys Join Jackson Lewis' Expanding Raleigh Office
- Five Labor & Employment Attorneys To Join Jackson Lewis
- Expands Raleigh, NC Office
- National Law Firm Now With One of Raleigh’s Largest Labor & Employment Practice Groups
WHITE PLAINS, NY March 8, 2010 - Jackson Lewis (www.jacksonlewis.com), one of the largest and fastest-growing workplace law firms in the United States with more than 600 attorneys in 45 offices, announced that three female partners and two associates from the Raleigh office of Cranfill Sumner & Hartzog LLP have joined the firm, significantly increasing the firm’s presence in the greater Raleigh area and the state of North Carolina. Patricia L. Holland, M. Robin Davis, and Ann H. Smith will join the firm as Partners, together with two associates, Allison Serafin and Paul Holscher, and an experienced supporting staff. With this addition, Jackson Lewis will have 10 attorneys in their Raleigh office, making it one of the largest specialized labor and employment legal practices in the region.
“We are extremely pleased to welcome such accomplished lawyers and people to our growing team and are excited for the support they will provide to our valued clients in North Carolina,” says Richard McAtee, Managing Partner of the firm’s Raleigh office. “They are a highly respected group in the legal community and we are honored to have local attorneys of this caliber join us. We look forward to the contributions they undoubtedly will bring to our growing Raleigh practice.”
“It is a wonderful professional opportunity for us to join Jackson Lewis and their well-established workplace law practice,” said Patricia L. Holland. “With the firm’s resources and extensive national footprint, we expect to provide terrific service to our current clients.”
Patricia L. Holland is a prominent A.V. rated North Carolina litigator and employment law leader. A former Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, she brings to Jackson Lewis significant expertise in a wide range of litigation and workplace law matters, including significant litigation experience in the North Carolina Federal and State courts, as well as before administrative agencies such as the EEOC, the N.C. Department of Labor and the N.C Employment Security Commission. Throughout her 30-year career, Trish has been consistently honored and recognized by her peers as one of America’s best lawyers in the field of employment law. She was listed in North Carolina Super Lawyers in December 2009, a recognition granted only to five percent of all lawyers in the state, and ranked third overall of those who made the list. She has been repeatedly ranked among the Top 50 female lawyers in North Carolina Super Lawyers editions, is listed in Chambers USA as one of the leading employment lawyers in North Carolina, and is currently named in The Best Lawyers in America® in the field of Labor and Employment Law and the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution. In 2006, Trish was voted the top employment law attorney by North Carolina Legal Elite in a poll conducted of all licensed attorneys in the state, and as such remains in the Legal Elite Hall of Fame in the field of Employment Law. Additionally, she was recently selected to the Litigation Counsel of America™ and the American Board of Trial Advocates, both invitation-only trial lawyer honoraries, which recognized her as a leading trial lawyer in America. Ms. Holland is a certified DRC mediator.
Ms. Holland received her B.A. from Wittenberg University where she graduated cum laude in 1976, and her J.D. from Wake Forest University in 1979 where she was a member of the Wake Forest Law Review and the Wake Forest Moot Court Board.
M. Robin Davis brings nearly 20 years of experience to Jackson Lewis. Ms. Davis represents employers in a broad spectrum of employment related issues including personnel policies, employment contracts, restrictive covenants, employee training sessions, investigations, discrimination and harassment claims. Ms. Davis also regularly advises and represents cities, towns, counties and quasi-governmental boards and agencies throughout the state of North Carolina on employment and personnel matters specific to public entity employers. These areas include due process claims, constitutional torts, open meeting laws, public records laws and grievance hearings. Ms. Davis has been selected to North Carolina’s Legal Elite in the field of employment law since 2008 and was recently listed in the 2009 and 2010 editions of North Carolina Super Lawyers. In addition, Ms. Davis was recently honored as a fellow in the Litigation Counsel of America TM trial lawyer honorary society. Ms. Davis is a certified DRC Mediator.
Ms. Davis received her B.A. from the University of Louisville where she graduated with honors in 1987, and her J.D. from Georgetown University in 1990.
For over ten years, Ann H. Smith has been practicing defense litigation in Raleigh, North Carolina. She primarily focuses her practice in the areas of employment, education, and municipal and police law. She handles a wide variety of employment matters before both federal and state courts and agencies relating to federal statutes such as the ADA, FLSA, the FMLA, Title VII, and ERISA as well as state and local employment laws. Representative clients include school districts, private companies and insurance companies. She is a frequent speaker, writer and presenter on employment-law issues. She is also a certified DRC Mediator.
Ms. Smith earned her B.A. from North Carolina State University where she graduated summa cum laude in 1991, and her J.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she graduated with high honors in 1996.
“We are honored to have these distinguished partners and associates join our office in Raleigh Durham,” said Patrick L. Vaccaro, firm-wide Managing Partner. “Trish and her group not only bring to Jackson Lewis an enhanced local and regional presence but give us the critical mass and talent base so necessary to compete in today’s environment. Our ability to attract this type of talent is a credit to our Raleigh Durham office and the firm. I am particularly pleased that this acquisition brings our total of female partners to 86 and 257 female attorneys firm-wide, which, I believe, speaks to the fact that Jackson Lewis provides an ideal environment for women to grow, thrive and become leaders.”
Jackson Lewis’ Raleigh office is located at 1400 Crescent Green, Suite 320, Cary NC. The main phone number is 919-854-0044, and the main fax line is 919-854-0908.
About Jackson Lewis
Founded in 1958, Jackson Lewis is dedicated to representing management exclusively in workplace law with over 600 attorneys practicing in 45 cities nationwide. Jackson Lewis has a wide range of specialized practice areas, including: Affirmative Action and OFCCP Diversity Planning; Disability, Leave and Health Management; Employee Benefits, including Complex ERISA Litigation, Workplace Privacy and Executive Compensation; Global Immigration; Labor, including Preventive Practices; Litigation, including Class Actions, Complex Litigation and e-Discovery; Trade Secrets, Non-Competes and Workplace Technology; Wage and Hour Compliance; and Workplace Safety Compliance. In addition, Jackson Lewis provides advice nationally in other workplace law areas, including: Reductions in Force, WARN Act; Corporate Governance and Internal Investigations; Drug Testing and Substance Abuse Management; International Issues; Management Education, including e-Based Training; Alternative Dispute Resolution; Public Sector Issues; Government Relations; Corporate Diversity Counseling, and College and University Employment Law and Compliance Issues.
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Contact: Roger Ardan/Christina Cozzi
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