House Majority Leader, Georgia House of Representatives
Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Georgia
Chief Justice David E. Nahmias (pronounced “NAH-mee-iss”) has served on the Georgia Supreme Court since his appointment by Governor Sonny Perdue in August 2009, winning election to six-year terms in 2010 and 2016. He became the Court’s Presiding Justice in September 2018 and its Chief Justice in July 2021. As Chief Justice, he leads the State’s judicial branch and chairs the Judicial Council of Georgia, the policy-making body for the judicial branch. Chief Justice Nahmias also chairs the Court’s Justice for Children Committee and the Chief Justice’s Commission on Professionalism. Before taking the bench, he was a federal prosecutor for almost 15 years, including service as a line prosecutor and as the United States Attorney in Atlanta, where he prosecuted and supervised many high-profile cases, and service as a senior Justice Department official in Washington, where he oversaw terrorism cases and other matters for three years after the 9/11 attacks.
Chief Justice Nahmias is a graduate of Briarcliff High School in DeKalb County, where he was the state’s STAR Student in 1982; Duke University, where he finished second in his class; and Harvard Law School, where he served on the Law Review with former President Barack Obama. He was a law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Chief Justice Nahmias has received numerous local, state, and national awards and honors for his public service, and he has served on several committees and boards that work to improve the legal system and the community. Chief Justice Nahmias has two teenage sons. His wife, Catherine O’Neil, was a partner at King & Spalding before she passed away in 2017.
Miles Skedsvold is a litigator with Robbins Alloy Belinfante Littlefield in Atlanta, where he focuses on government and regulatory litigation. Building on his time with the Georgia Solicitor General's Office and as a law clerk for the Georgia Supreme Court, Miles studies Georgia Constitutional history and interpretation, representing clients and writing articles for law reviews and blogs. Miles also serves on the Board of the Atlanta Lawyers Chapter of the Federalist Society and helps lead the Association of Corporate Counsel (Georgia Chapter)'s Government Solutions member interest group.
Partner, Ashby Thelen Lowry LLP
Max began his legal career working on the other side of the federal bench, clerking for the Hon. Henry Coke Morgan, Jr., of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and then for the Hon. Daniel A. Manion of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
After two years working for federal courts, Max landed a position at a large law firm in Atlanta, where he devoted his practice 100% to litigation of liability matters in defense. Max took responsibility for dozens of high-value cases, handling every aspect of fact and expert discovery, depositions, mediations, motions practice, and argument across the state of Georgia in state and federal courts. His clients ranged from small businesses to Fortune 100 corporations.
After a few years working in defense, Max joined the plaintiff’s side at an elite appellate litigation boutique. There, he honed the craft of protecting and defending victories from appellate risk, preparing arguments to overturn unjust results, and crafting creative solutions to improve results and avoid pitfalls in exceptionally high-stakes cases. Within his first year, he was embedded appellate counsel for a trial team which obtained a $9.6M jury verdict in a wrongful death case that many thought was unwinnable. His work ran the gamut from critical dispositive and Daubert motions, post-trial practice, to appeals with seven and eight figure awards on the line.
Now, at Ashby Thelen Lowry, Max brings the strategic benefit of his background in judicial service, defense experience, and appellate practice to bear in all of his catastrophic injury cases with the goal of obtaining excellent results for his clients by staying several moves ahead of the opposition. In his first trial with ATL, Max served as embedded appellate counsel in a boat defect case against Malibu Boats that resulted in a verdict that has already changed the industry forever.
Judge, Florida's Third District Court of Appeal
Judge Kansas R. Gooden serves on Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal.
Prior to her appointment by Governor Ron DeSantis in June 2024, Judge Gooden was in private practice for 16 years. She was an equity shareholder in her firm, chaired its appellate department, and served as the firm’s general counsel. She handled all types of civil appellate proceedings, including oral argument, before all of Florida’s district courts of appeal, the Florida Supreme Court, and the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. She was counsel in over 400 civil appeals and extraordinary writ proceedings. She is one of the few attorneys to argue back-to-back cases on the same day before the Florida Supreme Court.
In addition, Judge Gooden provided trial and litigation support to attorneys throughout the state. She assisted in devising litigation strategy, argued evidentiary hearings and dispositive motions, and often attended trials to help preserve errors for appellate review.
Judge Gooden is a Board Certified Specialist in Appellate Practice and was rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell. She was consistently recognized for appellate practice by Florida Super Lawyers, Florida Trend, and U.S. News’ Best Lawyers in America. She received awards from the Florida Defense Lawyers Association, such as the Amicus Award, James A. Dixon Young Lawyer Award, Joseph P. Metzger Outstanding Achievement Award, and President’s Award. Florida’s Guardian ad Litem Program awarded her the Children’s Champion Award in 2019 for her appellate pro bono work.
Throughout her career, Judge Gooden has been active in the legal community. She chaired the Florida Bar’s Appellate Practice Section, its Appellate Board Certification Committee, and its Board of Legal Specialization and Education. She was the president of the Florida Defense Lawyers Association, served on the board of directors of the Third District Court of Appeal Historical Society, and was elected to the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel. She is a member of The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies, and she has spoken at several of its events.
Judge Gooden was a commissioner and vice chair on Florida’s Eleventh Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission and a commissioner on U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s Judicial Advisory Commission for the Southern District of Florida.
Judge Gooden frequently presents and speaks at legal and judicial conferences. She has spoken on a wide range of topics, including appellate practice, civil trial practice, and insurance law.
Judge Gooden received her J.D. magna cum laude from St. Thomas University School of Law. She was an Articles Editor on the St. Thomas Law Review, a member of the mock trial team, a research assistant, and a teaching assistant for Civil Procedure. She interned at the Third District Court of Appeal with Judge David Gersten. She received her B.B.A. in Finance from James Madison University. She was a member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars.
Judge Gooden played nationally competitive junior, amateur, and collegiate golf. While in undergraduate school, Judge Gooden was a member of the two-time CAA Conference Champion women’s golf team and was named to the All-Conference Team. She is the 1997 and 1999 Virginia State Girls Golf Champion and was awarded the Marion Miley Bracelet by the Western Women’s Golf Association in 1997.
General Counsel & Wealth Advisor, Ullmann Wealth Partners
Patrick Kilbane is the General Counsel and a Wealth Advisor for Ullmann Wealth Partners headquartered in Jacksonville Beach, FL. Ullmann Wealth Partners is an independent wealth management firm that manages half a billion dollars of client assets in custody at Fidelity. Before joining Ullmann Wealth Partners, Pat was a Shareholder at Gray Robinson, P.A. where he had a thriving specialty litigation practice. Pat was recognized multiple times by Florida Trend and Super Lawyers Magazine for his skills and professionalism.
Pat serves the Northeast Florida Region in several roles. He’s received five gubernatorial appointments to the Judicial Nominating Commission for Florida’s Fourth Judicial Circuit and the Jacksonville Aviation Authority Board of Directors. His fellow board members elected him Chairman of both boards. Further, Pat is the President of the Jacksonville Lawyers Chapter of the Federalist Society. In 2014-2015, Pat was elected President of the Young Lawyers Section of the Jacksonville Bar Association.
In 2005, Pat received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Notre Dame. He received his Bachelor of Business Administration degree, summa cum laude, from Adrian College, where he earned the full-ride, merit-based Dawson Scholarship and was named the Outstanding Graduate by faculty vote for the Class of 2002.
President, Florida Justice Reform Institute
William W. Large is the president of the Florida Justice Reform Institute (FJRI), an organization dedicated to restoring fairness and personal responsibility to Florida's civil justice system.
Under his leadership, FJRI has delivered notable successes on numerous and complex legislative, regulatory, and judicial issues. These have included repealing Florida’s one-way attorney fee statute and reforming the contingency risk fee multiplier, strengthening the rules of evidence for medical damages, providing COVID liability protections for health care workers, and adopting the Federal summary judgment standard, among many others.
Prior to serving as president, Mr. Large served as Governor Bush's deputy chief of staff responsible for a portfolio of health and human service agencies.
Before that, Mr. Large served as general counsel for the Florida Department of Health, and during that time served as director of the Governor's Task Force on Professional Liability Insurance. Prior to working for the state, Mr. Large was a partner practicing in professional malpractice litigation defense.
Mr. Large is admitted to practice before all Florida courts and U.S. District Courts in Florida, and the U.S. Supreme Court. Mr. Large is "AV" rated by Martindale-Hubbell and a member of the Federalist Society, the Florida Defense Lawyers Association and the Defense Research Institute.
Mr. Large holds B.S. and J.D. degrees from the University of Florida, and an M.B.A, an M.S in Political Science, and an M.S. in Risk Management and Insurance from The Florida State University.
Chief Counsel, Legal Studies Division and Director, Communications, Washington Legal Foundation
Glenn Lammi started at WLF in 1993 and has directed our publishing and programs division since 1995. He is the lead editor of WLF’s blog, The WLF Legal Pulse, and writes several columns a month for the site. He earned his B.A. from Penn State University and his J.D. from American University’s Washington College of Law. During law school he served as a law clerk in WLF’s Legal Studies Division.
Partner and Co-Chair, Public Policy Group, Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP
Mark Behrens co-chairs Shook's Washington, DC-based Public Policy Practice Group and is a leading national expert on civil justice issues with over thirty years of experience. A substantial part of his practice is working to improve the civil litigation environment through state and federal legislation; in the courts through amicus curiae briefs; through legal scholarship and judicial education; and in the court of public opinion.
Mark is actively involved in civil justice reform efforts at the federal and state levels. He has testified before the U.S. Congress and most state legislatures on behalf of business and civil justice organizations. Mark also has an active amicus brief practice specializing in tort liability and civil justice issues. He has authored or co-authored over 150 amicus briefs in cases before the United States Supreme Court and federal and state appellate courts on behalf of business, civil justice, and defense lawyer organizations. In addition, Mark routinely files comments on behalf of business, civil justice, and defense lawyer organizations regarding potential changes to federal and state court rules. He chairs the International Association of Defense Counsel’s (IADC) Civil Justice Response Committee and serves on the Board of Directors of Lawyers for Civil Justice (LCJ).
Mark is a member of the American Law Institute (ALI). He received his J.D. in 1990 from Vanderbilt University Law School, where he was a member of the Vanderbilt Law Review. He received his B.A. in economics from the University of Wisconsin in 1987.
Partner and Co-Chair, Public Policy Group, Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP
Mark Behrens co-chairs Shook's Washington, DC-based Public Policy Practice Group and is a leading national expert on civil justice issues with over thirty years of experience. A substantial part of his practice is working to improve the civil litigation environment through state and federal legislation; in the courts through amicus curiae briefs; through legal scholarship and judicial education; and in the court of public opinion.
Mark is actively involved in civil justice reform efforts at the federal and state levels. He has testified before the U.S. Congress and most state legislatures on behalf of business and civil justice organizations. Mark also has an active amicus brief practice specializing in tort liability and civil justice issues. He has authored or co-authored over 150 amicus briefs in cases before the United States Supreme Court and federal and state appellate courts on behalf of business, civil justice, and defense lawyer organizations. In addition, Mark routinely files comments on behalf of business, civil justice, and defense lawyer organizations regarding potential changes to federal and state court rules. He chairs the International Association of Defense Counsel’s (IADC) Civil Justice Response Committee and serves on the Board of Directors of Lawyers for Civil Justice (LCJ).
Mark is a member of the American Law Institute (ALI). He received his J.D. in 1990 from Vanderbilt University Law School, where he was a member of the Vanderbilt Law Review. He received his B.A. in economics from the University of Wisconsin in 1987.
Raoul Berger Professor of Legal History at Northwestern University School of Law
Stephen Presser is a leading American legal historian and expert on shareholder liability for corporate debts. He is frequently an invited witness before committees of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives on issues of constitutional law. He holds a joint appointment with the J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management and also teaches in Northwestern's history department.
Shareholder, Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart
Chris Murray is Co-Chair of the firm’s Arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution Practice Group. In this role, he assists attorneys throughout the firm and clients nationwide to create, roll out, and enforce effective employment arbitration agreements and other ADR programs. Mr. Murray has extensive experience with class/collective action waivers in employment arbitration. Mr. Murray was part of the Ogletree team that successfully defended the use of such waivers in the Fifth Circuit’s landmark decision in D.R. Horton, Inc. v. N.L.R.B. Since then, he has successfully defended the enforceability of class action waivers in numerous subsequent cases and submitted an amicus brief on the subject on behalf of several major employers’ associations in the Supreme Court’s Murphy Oil case. Mr. Murray assists clients and the Firm’s attorneys to draft or revise arbitration programs focused on a client’s specific needs and goals and in light of changing law and evolving best practices.
Founder & Partner, John L. Dodd and Associates
John L. Dodd has been in private practice for over 20 years, is a former staff attorney at the California Court of Appeal, and has handled over 1,000 appellate matters, including several landmark parental rights and adoption cases decided by the California Supreme Court. He has served as a member of the Orange County Bar Association Board of Directors, the California Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation and has Chaired the Committee of Bar Examiners of the State of California.
Mark Pulliam, a longtime member of the Federalist Society (and former President of the San Diego Lawyers Chapter), is a lawyer and writer in Austin, Texas. He is a contributing editor of Law and Liberty, and also writes for a variety of publications, including his blog, Misrule of Law.
Paula Stannard is a former deputy general counsel and acting general counsel of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), where she oversaw the Food and Drug, Civil Rights and Legislation divisions of the 450-attorney HHS Office of the General Counsel and provided legal advice and counsel to senior HHS officials, including the Secretary of the department, on the issues arising in their respective areas.
At Alston & Bird, Paula advises clients on regulatory questions that arise out of the on-going health care reform effort and focuses her practice on HIPAA and health information technology (including certified EHR and meaningful use issues), food and drug and other regulatory issues in the health care sector. Her HHS experience provides clients substantive knowledge of, and experience in, FDA, HIPAA, e-health and health IT, federal health insurance regulation, patient safety, and public health preparedness and emergency response issues.
Paula received her J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1990, where she was an executive editor of the Stanford Law Review, and her B.A., magna cum laude, in political science and Latin from Amherst College, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She clerked for the Honorable J.L. Edmondson of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Stanford University
(J.D., 1990)
Amherst College
(B.A., 1987)
Raoul Berger Professor of Legal History at Northwestern University School of Law
Stephen Presser is a leading American legal historian and expert on shareholder liability for corporate debts. He is frequently an invited witness before committees of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives on issues of constitutional law. He holds a joint appointment with the J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management and also teaches in Northwestern's history department.
Shareholder, Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart
Chris Murray is Co-Chair of the firm’s Arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution Practice Group. In this role, he assists attorneys throughout the firm and clients nationwide to create, roll out, and enforce effective employment arbitration agreements and other ADR programs. Mr. Murray has extensive experience with class/collective action waivers in employment arbitration. Mr. Murray was part of the Ogletree team that successfully defended the use of such waivers in the Fifth Circuit’s landmark decision in D.R. Horton, Inc. v. N.L.R.B. Since then, he has successfully defended the enforceability of class action waivers in numerous subsequent cases and submitted an amicus brief on the subject on behalf of several major employers’ associations in the Supreme Court’s Murphy Oil case. Mr. Murray assists clients and the Firm’s attorneys to draft or revise arbitration programs focused on a client’s specific needs and goals and in light of changing law and evolving best practices.
Founder & Partner, John L. Dodd and Associates
John L. Dodd has been in private practice for over 20 years, is a former staff attorney at the California Court of Appeal, and has handled over 1,000 appellate matters, including several landmark parental rights and adoption cases decided by the California Supreme Court. He has served as a member of the Orange County Bar Association Board of Directors, the California Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation and has Chaired the Committee of Bar Examiners of the State of California.
Mark Pulliam, a longtime member of the Federalist Society (and former President of the San Diego Lawyers Chapter), is a lawyer and writer in Austin, Texas. He is a contributing editor of Law and Liberty, and also writes for a variety of publications, including his blog, Misrule of Law.
Paula Stannard is a former deputy general counsel and acting general counsel of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), where she oversaw the Food and Drug, Civil Rights and Legislation divisions of the 450-attorney HHS Office of the General Counsel and provided legal advice and counsel to senior HHS officials, including the Secretary of the department, on the issues arising in their respective areas.
At Alston & Bird, Paula advises clients on regulatory questions that arise out of the on-going health care reform effort and focuses her practice on HIPAA and health information technology (including certified EHR and meaningful use issues), food and drug and other regulatory issues in the health care sector. Her HHS experience provides clients substantive knowledge of, and experience in, FDA, HIPAA, e-health and health IT, federal health insurance regulation, patient safety, and public health preparedness and emergency response issues.
Paula received her J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1990, where she was an executive editor of the Stanford Law Review, and her B.A., magna cum laude, in political science and Latin from Amherst College, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She clerked for the Honorable J.L. Edmondson of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Stanford University
(J.D., 1990)
Amherst College
(B.A., 1987)
Panel 2 - Tort Reform
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The practice of tucking tax breaks or other legislative favors for special interests into “must...
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Mark A. Behrens
The Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy initiatives. Any expressions...
Philadelphia Tort Litigation: Forum Shopping and Venue Reform
Mark A. Behrens
The Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy initiatives. Any expressions...
The Case for Judicial Appointments
Stephen B. Presser, Christopher C. Murray, John L. Dodd, Mark S. Pulliam, Alfred W. Putnam, Paula M. Stannard
Views expressed in this paper are those of the authors only, and do not necessarily...
The Case for Judicial Appointments
Stephen B. Presser, Christopher C. Murray, John L. Dodd, Mark S. Pulliam, Alfred W. Putnam, Paula M. Stannard
Views expressed in this paper are those of the authors only, and do not necessarily...