Representative Experience

• Obtained directed verdict for employer in federal employment discrimination litigation involving Americans with Disabilities Act; affirmed on appeal to Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals.
• Defended three separate ambulatory surgery centers (costing roughly $1.3 million each) in Georgia mandamus actions challenging the issuance of letters of non-reviewability.
• Defended Georgia Certificate of Need for establishment of senior adult psychiatric hospital at administrative level and on appeal.
• Obtained settlement payment of more than $4 million, plus attorneys’ fees, in complex business dispute involving multiple real estate parcels and contractual agreements.
• Obtained settlement payments of more than $14.4 million in series of related physician partnership disputes in Georgia.
• Obtained judgment in excess of $1.3 million, plus attorneys’ fees, on behalf of bank against corporate debtor and guarantor.
• Obtained arbitration award of more than $2 million, plus attorneys’ fees, on behalf of national chemicals company in complex commercial dispute.
• Obtained arbitration award in excess of $500,000 in favor of large window manufacturer in complex commercial dispute involving exclusive manufacturing and distribution rights of patented manufacturing process.
• Obtained letters of non-reviewability for medical practice for purchase of medical equipment costing roughly $750,000 over challenge from largest competitor before Georgia Department of Community of Health.
• Has represented employers in all phases of employment claims, including federal, state and local agency investigations and lawsuits involving Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Equal Pay Act and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act.
• Has represented clients – including hospitals, academic medical centers, physician practice groups and individual physicians – in a variety of health care matters, including disputes involving hospital-physician relationships, enforcement of and compliance with Certificate of Need laws and regulations, establishment of ambulatory surgery centers, managed care contracting and reimbursement, physician employment relationships, Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement, fraud and abuse issues, false claims and qui tam actions.
• Represented various local school districts throughout the country in administrative hearings, federal and state court litigation, mediations and government investigations involving special educational programs and services for children with disabilities, including The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the No Child Left Behind Act.

Professional and Community Involvement

• Alabama State Bar
• Alabama Defense Lawyers Association: Member
• Birmingham Bar Association
• State Bar of Georgia: Member, General Practice & Trial Law, Labor & Employment Law and School & College Law Sections
• American Bar Association: Member, Health Law Section, Section of Labor and Employment Law, Litigation Section and Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice
• Claims and Litigation Management Alliance (CLM): Member, Alabama State Chair, Lead
• Litigation Management Institute, Graduate
• Defense Research Institute: Member
• Primerus Labor & Employment Practice Group
• American Health Lawyers Association

presentations and publications

• Leslie A. Allen & Abbott Marie Jones, US Supreme Court Ruling Opens the Door to Potential Liability for Discrimination by Non-Decision Makers Who Influence Employment Decisions, Paradigm: A Primerus Publication (Fall 2011).
• Leslie A. Allen & Abbott Marie Jones, Cautionary Signs for Employers: Recent Supreme Court Decisions, The Job Description: The Newsletter of the Employment Law Committee of DRI (May 10, 2011).