Polsinelli Launches Atlanta Office in 2014

Kansas City, Mo. (December 16, 2013) Polsinelli begins the New Year with the addition of an Atlanta, Georgia office ushering into the firm a group of highly experienced and well-known labor and employment and complex litigation attorneys. The 11 attorneys at Rafuse Hill & Hodges LLP, a prominent Atlanta law firm, will join Polsinelli’s nearly 700 attorneys effective January 1, 2014. The group will include five shareholders and six associates who serve local and national clients in labor and employment and litigation matters.

“We wanted to begin our Atlanta office with a group of high quality and well-known attorneys who share our commitment to client service,” said Polsinelli Chairman Russ Welsh. “Litigation is one of Polsinelli’s strategic areas of focus, and Nancy Rafuse and William Hill, along with their colleagues, complement our team and fit culturally with our firm. We look forward to building the office around our key national practices and becoming part of the Atlanta business community,” said Welsh.

The addition of Atlanta expands the firm’s national footprint to ten states and 18 cities. Currently, the firm stretches from Los Angeles to New York City. The American Lawyer magazine recognized Polsinelli as the fastest-growing law firm in America over a five-year period beginning in 2008.

“Everything we learned about Polsinelli’s client service and commitment to addressing clients’ challenges attracted us to the firm,” said Nancy Rafuse about joining Polsinelli. “In addition, we like the firm’s national reputation in labor and employment law and litigation. The firm has a deep trial history and is not afraid to try tough cases.”

BTI Litigation Outlook listed Polsinelli among a dozen national firms as a “standout” for its counsel in complex employment litigation matters. The firm’s more than 240 litigation attorneys include Fellows of the American College of Trial Attorneys; one of The National Journal’s Top Ten Trial Attorneys in America; and members of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business.

 

Shareholders Joining Polsinelli in Atlanta Include:

Nancy E. Rafuse ranked Tier 1 in Chambers in Labor and Employment. Rafuse, the managing partner of Rafuse Hill & Hodges, helped build the firm Chambers described as having “a stellar reputation for bet-the- company cases.” Chambers chose Rafuse as a Leading Lawyer in Georgia in employment litigation, and in 2012 she was a Chambers USA Women in Law Awards nominee.

William B. Hill “Hill” is described in Chambers as “a tremendous trial attorney.” He served as a Judge on the Superior Court of the Atlanta Judicial Circuit in Atlanta Georgia, and a State Court Judge for the State Court of Fulton County. Hill now concentrates his practice on commercial and complex litigation with a focus on products liability and employment defense.

Kenneth B. Hodges, III is a former 15- year prosecutor including serving 12 years as the District Attorney of the Dougherty Judicial Circuit. He has appeared before juries hundreds of times in both civil and criminal matters, supervised literally thousands of cases and argued before the Georgia Court of Appeals and Supreme Court of Georgia.

Joe Sharp concentrates his practice on commercial litigation and has significant experience litigating cases in a variety of areas including intellectual property, real estate, financial services, and employment. Sharp has been involved in numerous complex matters, including securities class actions, consumer class actions and actions consolidated before the Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation.

Jim Swartz represents clients in employment, civil rights, and public accommodations cases, including matters brought pursuant to Titles II and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, and the Family and Medical Leave Act. 


About Polsinelli 


real challenges. real answers. Serving corporations, institutions, entrepreneurs, and individuals, our attorneys build enduring relationships by providing legal counsel informed by business insight to help clients achieve their objectives. This commitment to understanding our clients' businesses has helped us become the fastest growing law firm in the U.S. for the past five years, according to the leading legal business and law firm publication, The American Lawyer. Our more nearly 700 attorneys in now 18 cities work with clients nationally to address the challenges of their roles in health care, financial services, real estate, life sciences and technology, energy and business litigation. The firm can be found online at www.polsinelli.com. Polsinelli PC. In California, Polsinelli LLP.