News

Attorneys at 40 of 52 "Employers Counsel Network" Law Firms Named Among Best in U.S.

National Network Advises and Represents Employers in Workplace-Related Legal Issues and Disputes

NASHVILLE, TN, September 14, 2005 - Each year, highly respected publications and organizations such as 'The Best Lawyers in America,' 'Chambers USA,' and the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers select the U.S. attorneys they believe to be among the highest-caliber in the practice of labor and employment law. This year, attorneys at 40 of the 52 Employers Counsel Network firms have been so honored.

The nationwide Employers Counsel Network is a three-year-old association of law firms in all 50 states (plus Washington, D.C. and Canada) that helps employers remain compliant with federal and state employment law. Each of the member firms provides editorial content for one of the state-specific employment law newsletters published by M. Lee Smith Publishers LLC of Brentwood, Tennessee.

The specific number of Employers Counsel Network law firms and attorneys cited as among America's finest by the publications and organizations is as follows:

The Best Lawyers in America, 2006 Edition - - 41 Employers Counsel Network attorney/editors from 34 firms cited. (Selection process: A vote by attorneys' peers nationwide.)
Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business (Published May 2005) - - 37 Employers Counsel Network attorney/editors from 32 firms cited. (Selection process: In-depth interviews with clients and attorneys via telephone. For the current U.S. directory, more than 10,000 interviews were conducted over 8 months by a team of 40 full-time researchers.)
College of Labor and Employment Lawyers - - 14 Employers Counsel Network attorney/editors from 12 firms inducted as Fellows in past years. (Selection process: By invitation only, honoring those attorneys who have demonstrated the highest professional qualifications and ethical standards to their peers, the bar, the bench, and the public.)

Connie Smith, Executive Director of the Employers Counsel Network, said she believes the honors bestowed upon ECN attorneys this year and in the recent past help to spotlight for employers the benefits of working with these firms.

"The existence of the nationwide Employers Counsel Network makes it much easier for any given business, in any given state, to find superior legal counsel and representation whenever they need any type of workplace-related legal assistance," Smith said. "And the prestigious honors just accorded these firms spotlight the high level of professionalism employers can expect when engaging their services."

More About M. Lee Smith Publishers LLC

M. Lee Smith Publishers LLC is the only company in America that produces a state-specific employment law newsletter for all 50 states, along with the national best-selling newsletter Federal Employment Law Insider. The company is the nation's leading provider of state-specific employment law content for human resources professionals, employers, and attorneys. The 51 newsletters are researched and written by attorneys in each of the states, under the umbrella of the Employers Counsel Network.

NOTE TO JOURNALISTS: Connie Smith, Executive Director of the Employers Counsel Network, along with ECN-member attorneys in all 50 states plus Washington, D.C. are available for interviews and features in connection
with this or other workplace-related stories.

For additional information, or to schedule an interview,
please call David Carew at (615) 661-0249, ext. 8077
E-mail: dcarew@mleesmith.com

For more information on the Employers Counsel Network,
please visit www.employerscounsel.net

Specific listings of Employers Counsel Network
attorneys follow:

"Best Lawyers in America" 2006 Listing

AK Thomas M. Daniel and Helena L. Hall
Perkins Coie LLP

AL David J. Middlebrooks
Lehr Middlebrooks Price & Vreeland, P.C.

AZ Jane E. Reddin and Rick Cohen
Lewis and Roca LLP

CO John M. Husband
Holland & Hart LLP

DE William W. Bowser
Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP

FL G. Thomas Harper
Harper Gerlach, PL

GA David C. Hagaman
Ford & Harrison LLP

HI David F.E. Banks
Cades Schutte LLP

IN John T. Neighbours
Baker & Daniels

KS Douglas L. Stanley
Foulston Siefkin LLP

KY Richard S. Cleary
Greenebaum Doll & McDonald PLLC

LA H. Mark Adams
Jones Walker

MA Ralph F. Abbott, Jr. and Susan G. Fentin
Skoler, Abbott & Presser, P.C.

MI Robert N. Vercruysse
Vercruysse Murray & Calzone, P.C.

MN Dennis J. Merley
Felhaber, Larson, Fenlon and Vogt, P.A.

MO Vance D. Miller
Armstrong Teasdale LLP

MS Peyton S. Irby, Jr. and H.A. (Topper) Thompson, III
Watkins Ludlam Winter & Stennis, P.A.

MT Jeanne M. Bender
Holland & Hart LLP

NC Richard L. Rainey
Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, PLLC

NH Edward M. Kaplan
Sulloway & Hollis, P.L.L.C.

NJ Michael T. Bissinger, Patrick McCarthy, and Gregory C. Parliman
Pitney Hardin LLP

NM Robert P. Tinnin, Jr.
Tinnin Law Firm, A Professional Corporation

NY Peter Panken
Epstein Becker & Green, P.C.

OH Bradd N. Siegel
Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP

OK Charles S. Plumb
Doerner, Saunders, Daniel & Anderson, LLP

OR Calvin L. Keith
Perkins Coie LLP

TN John B. Phillips, Jr.
Miller & Martin

TX Michael P. Maslanka
Ford & Harrison LLP

VA David E. Nagle
LeClair Ryan

VT Robert McKearin
Dinse, Knapp & McAndrew, P.C.

VT Karen McAndrew
Dinse, Knapp & McAndrew, P.C.

WA Michael T. Reynvaan and Nancy Williams
Perkins Coie LLP

WI Michael J. Modl
Axley Brynelson, LLP

WV Larry J. Rector
Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

WY Bradley T. Cave
Holland & Hart LLP

Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business 2005

AK Thomas M. Daniel and Helena L. Hall
Perkins Coie LLP

AL David J. Middlebrooks and Albert L. Vreeland
Lehr Middlebrooks Price & Vreeland, P.C.

AZ Jane E. Reddin and Rick Cohen
Lewis and Roca LLP

CO John M. Husband
Holland & Hart LLP

D.C. David S. Fortney
Fortney & Scott, LLC

DE William W. Bowser and Scott A. Holt
Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP

HI David F.E. Banks
Cades Schutte LLP

IN John T. Neighbours
Baker & Daniels

KS Douglas L. Stanley
Foulston Siefkin LLP

KY Richard S. Cleary
Greenebaum Doll & McDonald PLLC

LA H. Mark Adams
Jones Walker

MI Robert N. Vercruysse
Vercruysse Murray & Calzone, P.C.

MN Dennis J. Merley
Felhaber, Larson, Fenlon and Vogt, P.A.

MO John A. Vering, III
Armstrong Teasdale LLP

MS Peyton S. Irby, Jr.
Watkins Ludlam Winter & Stennis, P.A.

MT Jeanne M. Bender
Holland & Hart LLP

NC Richard L. Rainey
Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, PLLC

ND Lisa Edison-Smith
Vogel Law Firm

NH Edward M. Kaplan
Sulloway & Hollis, P.L.L.C.

NJ Gregory C. Parliman
Pitney Hardin LLP

NM Robert P. Tinnin, Jr.
Tinnin Law Firm, A Professional Corporation

NV Von S. Heinz
Lewis and Roca LLP

OH Bradd N. Siegel
Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP

OK Charles S. Plumb
Doerner, Saunders, Daniel & Anderson, LLP

OR Calvin L. Keith
Perkins Coie LLP

RI Daniel K. Kinder
Little, Medeiros, Kinder, Bulman & Whitney, P.C.

TN John B. Phillips, Jr.
Miller & Martin

TX Michael P. Maslanka
Ford & Harrison LLP

VA David E. Nagle
LeClair Ryan

VT Robert McKearin and Karen McAndrew
Dinse, Knapp & McAndrew, P.C.

WA Nancy Williams
Perkins Coie LLP

WY Bradley T. Cave
Holland & Hart LLP

Fellows of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers

AR Stephen W. Jones and Philip K. Lyon
Jack, Lyon & Jones, P.A.

CO John M. Husband
Holland & Hart LLP

D.C. (Fed) J. Robert Brame
McGuireWoods LLP

David S. Fortney
Fortney & Scott, LLC

IN John T. Neighbours
Baker & Daniels

KY Richard S. Cleary
Greenebaum Doll & McDonald PLLC

MA Ralph F. Abbott, Jr.
Skoler, Abbott & Presser, P.C.

MI Robert N. Vercruysse
Vercruysse Murray & Calzone, P.C.

MS Peyton S. Irby, Jr. and H.A. (Topper) Thompson, III
Watkins Ludlam Winter & Stennis, P.A.

NH Edward M. Kaplan
Sulloway & Hollis, P.L.L.C.

NJ Gregory C. Parliman
Pitney Hardin LLP

OH Bradd N. Siegel
Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP