Stephen T. LaBriola

Stephen T. LaBriola has been awarded Martindale-Hubbell's highestrating of AV. He is a former prosecutor with extensive jury trialexperience. He has litigated extensively in federal and state courts inGeorgia and numerous other jurisdictions in the United States. He is aMaster with and the President-Elect of the Lamar Inn of Court, a groupof experienced trial attorneys who present continuing legal educationseminars and workshops in conjunction with Emory University School ofLaw. He is a Director of the Atlanta Bar Association LitigationSection. His peers have identified him as a "Super Lawyer" and among"Georgia's Legal Elite".

While Mr. LaBriola was a prosecutor, he tried more than 50 jury also has tried jury trials in the U. S. District Court for theNorthern District of Georgia and in Georgia State and Superior Courts,and he successfully has argued in the Georgia appellate courts.

In the commercial litigation area, Mr. LaBriola has represented bothlocal and national clients in contract disputes, tortious interferencewith business and contractual relations actions, suits involvingmisappropriation of business opportunities and of trade secrets, suitsinvolving disputes over business acquisitions, alleged breach ofemployment cases, employment discrimination cases and shareholderdisputes involving rights of first refusal and other shareholderissues. He has assisted businesses in pursuing bad faith denial ofinsurance coverage claims where significant insurable interests hasbeen at issue. He has authored and spoken at continuing legal seminarson commercial business related legal issues.

Mr. LaBriola has represented many businesses in largeenvironmental Insurance Recovery and has obtained millions of dollarsof insurance coverage from insurers after they issued denial ofinsurance coverage decisions. Large firms frequently handle theunderlying dispute with EPA/EPD and refer the insurance coverage workto Mr. LaBriola.

Mr. LaBriola has earned the respect of physicians and adversecounsel prosecuting medical malpractice wrongful death cases on behalfof surviving spouses and decedent's estates and patients withpermanent, life altering medical injuries. Because the firm maintains ahigh threshold regarding proof of liability and as to the enormity ofdamages suffered, the firm declines representation in the vast majorityof medical malpractice cases reviewed. With regard to the cases thefirm does accept, the firm invests significant resources consultingwith and retaining the assistance of doctors to testify and educate thejury as to why the defendant doctor, hospital or other medical serviceprovider was negligent. Consequently, the firm has earned a high rateof success on behalf of its clients, and Mr. LaBriola has become therecipient of case referrals from other lawyers who do not handlemedical negligence cases but who seek excellent representation onbehalf of their clients as well as from local physicians.

Because of his experience as a prosecutor, Mr. LaBriola receivesnumerous referrals from other attorneys to handle matters involvingfraud and misrepresentation. In that role, he has represented a numberof individual and corporate clients. Some of Mr. LaBriola's morenotable cases include his successful defense of a well-known Japanesecompany regarding alleged federal customs violations and his defense ofthe designee to be the chief-of-staff to the mayor of a majormetropolitan city. The later representation involved a month-longhearing presented by a special prosecutor before the city council, atwhich time it was concluded that no wrongdoing could be proved. He alsohas conducted internal investigations of alleged corporate has defended medical service providers in qui tam actions and inhealthcare fraud grand jury investigations and prosecutions.

Mr. LaBriola has represented clients in matters involving theSecurities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and has been involved in"Wells Process" discussions with the SEC to resolve allegations ofsecurities fraud. The "Wells Process" gives a party under SECinvestigation a formal opportunity to present its side of the storybefore the SEC decides whether to charge it with a violation ofsecurities laws.

Mr. LaBriola has been the "lawyer's lawyer," having been askedby his peers and by insurers to represent attorneys accused ofmisconduct and legal malpractice. His representation has involved bothpublic battles in court and confidential negotiations with State Barofficials.

Mr. LaBriola also has assisted whistleblowers in prosecutingFalse Claims Act (sometimes referred to as "Whistleblower" or "QuiTam") lawsuits. The False Claims Act, first signed into law byPresident Lincoln in 1863, is the principal weapon of the United Statesin fighting government contract false claims and fraud. It is soeffective because it encourages people with knowledge of such practicesto file a lawsuit in the name of the United States and share in therecovery with the United States. In 1986, the False Claims Act wasamended to increase the ability of private citizens to pursue actionsas a "relator" of the United States. Mr. LaBriola has assisted clientsin presenting complex False Claims Act cases to the United States andin prosecuting such actions.