Jones Walker Announces New Partners, Office Heads, and Board of Directors Members

NEW ORLEANS, Jan. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Jones Walker is pleased to announce that partner Rudolph R. Ramelli has been reelected, and Robert S. Lazarus and Gary J. Russo have been newly elected, to the firm's Board of Directors for a four-year term, commencing January 1, 2012. Michael D. Waters was also elected to complete the unexpired term of Robert Worley, who left the firm to become general counsel at IberiaBank. Mr. Waters' term will end December 31, 2012.

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Jones Walker's Managing Partner, William H. Hines, made the announcement today. Mr. Hines also thanked outgoing Board of Directors member John C. Blackman, IV for his service: "I would like to thank John for his years of valuable service on our Board. We greatly appreciate the leadership he provided the firm."

Before assuming the Board position, Mr. Lazarus was with the law firm of Watkins Ludlam Winter & Stennis in Mississippi. He and other attorneys from that firm joined Jones Walker last November. He practices in the area of public finance. He has over 30 years of experience in the practice of law, including an extensive background in obtaining financing for multimillion dollar projects.

Mr. Russo is a partner in the firm's Business & Commercial Litigation Practice Group in the Lafayette office. He practices in the areas of litigation involving insurance fraud, health care and medical insurance fraud, and commercial environmental litigation, and has represented insurers throughout the United States in organizing and handling complex multi-district litigation.

Mr. Waters is a partner in the firm's Banking & Financial Services Practice Group. His practice emphasis is on corporate and regulatory work for banks, bank holding companies, and other financial institutions.

Jones Walker's ten-member Board of Directors is now composed of the following partners:

Mr. Hines also announced that the following have been designated as office heads: Alan M. Warfield, Birmingham, Alabama; Ryan E. Johnson, Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Ian A. Macdonald, Lafayette, Louisiana; and Jeffrey R. Barber, Mississippi. He thanked Mr. Waters, Jeffry W. Gray, and Mr. Russo who had previously served as office heads in the Birmingham, Baton Rouge, and Lafayette offices respectively. Reappointed as office heads were Bradley R. Byrne, Mobile and Montgomery, Alabama; H. Hughes Grehan, Arizona; Laurie M. Chess, Florida; Joshua A. Norris, Texas; and Palmer C. Hamilton, Washington, D.C.

Jones Walker also announced today that 12 attorneys have been elected to partnership, effective January 1, 2012:

• Jean-Paul A. Escudier, Admiralty & Maritime, New Orleans
  Mr. Escudier is a graduate of the Paul M. Hebert Law Center, Louisiana State University, where he received his juris doctor degree. He received his bachelor of arts degree from the University of Mississippi.
• Todd Michael Feldman, Business & Commercial Litigation, Miami
  Mr. Feldman earned his juris doctor degree from the University of Miami School of Law, and he received his bachelor of arts degree from the University of Michigan.
• Kathryn S. Friel, Tax & Estates, New Orleans
  Ms. Friel received a LL.M. in Taxation from Boston University School of Law, a juris doctor degree from Tulane University Law School and her bachelor of science degree from Truman State University.
• Lauren J. Harrison, Business & Commercial Litigation, Houston
  Ms. Harrison earned her juris doctor degree from Cornell University Law School, magna cum laude, and her bachelor of arts degree from Dartmouth College, magna cum laude.
• Jane H. Heidingsfelder, Labor & Employment, New Orleans
  Ms. Heidingsfelder obtained her juris doctor degree from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, cum laude, and her bachelor of arts degree from the University of Virginia.
• Jonathan R. Katz, Tax & Estates, New Orleans
  Mr. Katz has an LL.M. in Tax from the New York University School of Law, a juris doctor degree from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, and a bachelor of science degree from the University of Texas at Austin.
• William D. Lampton, Business & Commercial Litigation, Baton Rouge
  Mr. Lampton earned his juris doctor degree from Washington and Lee University School of Law, and his bachelor of arts degree from Louisiana State University.
• Seth A. Levine,  Business & Commercial Transactions, New Orleans
  Mr. Levine has a juris doctor degree from Tulane University School of Law, cum laude, and a Bachelor of Science in Finance from New York University. He also studied Business and Finance at the Universiteit Masstricht in the Netherlands.
• Cortlan H. Maddux, Business & Commercial Litigation, Houston
  Mr. Maddux received his juris doctor degree, cum laude, from Baylor University Law School and earned a Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Science from Baylor University. He has practiced at both Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. and Stevenson & Murray, P.C. prior to joining Jones Walker in late 2011.
• Kirkland E. Reid, Business & Commercial Litigation, Mobile
  Mr. Reid earned his juris doctor degree from the Cumberland School of Law, Samford University, and a masters degree from the University of Georgia. His bachelor of arts was awarded from Columbus College, with honors.
• C. Barrett Rice, Admiralty & Maritime, New Orleans
  Ms. Rice graduated from Tulane University Law School, magna cum laude, with a juris doctor degree. Her bachelor of arts degree is from Northwestern University.
• Amy L. Vazquez, Business & Commercial Litigation, Houston
  Ms. Vazquez earned a juris doctor degree from Tulane University Law School, magna cum laude; Order of the Coif; and a bachelor of arts from Georgetown University.

Jones, Walker, Waechter, Poitevent, Carrere & Denegre L.L.P. (www.joneswalker.com), with more than 375 attorneys, provides a comprehensive range of legal services to a national and international corporate client base through offices in Alabama, Arizona, the District of Columbia, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.

Contact: Carol Todd Thomas
504.582.8438
[email protected]

SOURCE Jones Walker