ERIC is a Partner in the firm, a member of the firm’s Litigation Section, and the leader of the firm's Joint Use and Energy Litigation Focus Team. Though his background is general business litigation, more than two-thirds of Eric's practice is devoted to representing electric utilities in pole attachment and joint use matters. This practice area spans multiple disciplines, ranging from day-to-day consultation with clients as a joint use team member, to major matter representation in contract negotiations, state and federal rulemaking proceedings, and litigated disputes in state court, federal court, and the Federal Communications Commission. Eric is a frequent speaker at joint use conferences and trade meetings across the country. His core litigation practice focuses on joint use, commercial, banking, energy and class action litigation, but he also has tried casualty, intellectual property, consumer credit and zoning cases.

Eric is married and has three children. He enjoys running, college football, NASCAR and the beach.

Representative Experience

• Pole Attachment and Joint Use Litigation - represents electric utilities in proceedings before Federal Communications Commission and state utility commissions; represents electric utilities in pole attachment and joint use matters in state and federal courts; co-lead counsel in one of the only full-scale pole attachment trials in the Federal Communications Commission.

  Pole Attachment and Joint Use Consultation - provides advice and counsel to electric utilities regarding their relationships with third-party attachers (CATV, Telecom, etc.); represents electric utilities in negotiation of pole attachment and joint use agreements; co-lead counsel in recent pole attachment agreement negotiation between electric utility and state cable television association.

  Energy Litigation - represented generation and transmission cooperative in wholesale power dispute; represented investor owned utility in anti-trust case arising out of coal purchase practices; regularly represents electric utility interests in various types of disputes.

  Business Litigation - represents entrepreneurs and investors in business disputes; represented government contractor in breach of subcontract arising out of overseas manufacturing facility; has represented banks in numerous check-clearing cases; represented financial institutions in Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and Fair Credit Reporting Act cases.

  Class Action - represented banks, insurers, and other businesses in various bond default and other class action lawsuits; represented numerous food/diet companies in class action lawsuits alleging mislabeling of nutritional aspects of product.

  
   

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

• • American Bar Association
  • Birmingham Bar Association
  • Alabama State Bar
  • U.S. District Court, Middle District, of Alabama
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District, of Alabama
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District, of Alabama
  • United States Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
  • Listed in The Best Lawyers in America, 2012
  • Listed in Birmingham Magazine's Top Attorneys (Energy & Natural Resources), 2011

NEWS

PUBLICATIONS

Speaking Engagements