Gerald is a partner in the firm’s Litigation section. His practice has focused on complex commercial litigation, including business tort claims, shareholder and securities actions, contract and fraud claims, intellectual property disputes, as well as class action defense and insurance coverage litigation. He has also litigated construction and real estate claims. Gerald has over 20 years of experience litigating in state, federal, and bankruptcy courts in Alabama and throughout the nation. He has led clients to successful results through summary adjudication, mediations, arbitrations, settlement, and trials.  Gerald has represented individuals, and represented companies in several different industries, from sole proprietorships to publicly held corporations.

Gerald has consistently been rated AV by his peers in Martindale-Hubbell, and has been recognized and selected by his peers to be included in Alabama Super Lawyers in Business Litigation and The Best Lawyers in America in Commercial Litigation.

Gerald is a life-long resident of Birmingham and is a long-time member of the local, state and American bar associations, as well as DRI, IADC, ADLA, PLUS, and NADC.  He graduated magna cum laude from Hampden-Sydney College and was a member of numerous honor societies, including Phi Beta Kappa.   Gerald graduated from the University of Alabama School of Law where he was a member of the Alabama Law Review, the John A. Campbell Moot Court Board, and the Jessup International Moot Court Team, and was selected to the Order of Barristers

Recent Decisions:

• Altrust Financial Services, Inc. v. Adams, 76 So. 3d 228 (Ala. 2011). Shareholders of a bank holding company brought direct claims against company, and its officers and directors, for violation of the Alabama Securities Act and common law fraud claims. On motion of defendants, the trial court dismissed the securities claims but did not dismiss the common law fraud claims due to conflicting case law and in particular the decision of the Alabama Supreme Court in Boykin v. Arthur Anderson & Co., 639 So. 2d 504 (Ala. 1994). On appeal, the Alabama Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal of the securities claims, and reversed the trial court’s denial of the motion to dismiss the common law fraud claims, based on the defendants’ argument that the claims were derivative and could not be brought as direct claims, overruling the Court’s prior decision in Boykin.