Justia Legal Services & Lawyers Directory

John has Spent His Legal Career Fighting for His Clients Throughout Georgia and Gainesville, Hall County (whether it be an auto accident, criminal charge or general litigation). Additionally, John is a Registered Court Mediator and Helps Parties Resolve Their Disputes via Mediation.

Plaintiff's Personal Injury:
Gainesville, Hall County, Georgia attorney John Breakfield represents those that need a lawyer because of an auto accident, car wreck, trucking accident, tractor trailer wreck (18 wheeler), property damage, a DUI driver, negligence, intentional torts, slip and fall or helping the family of a wrongful death victim.

John, as a lawyer in our Hall County law firm, knows the process and has assisted clients by dealing with insurance companies, insurance adjusters and insurance defense lawyers on important issues like: lost wages, pain and suffering, fair compensation for injuries and damages, accident reports, photos, witnesses, police reports, medical bills, medical records and trial or settlement.

Criminal Defense:
Additionally, John Breakfield, as a criminal defense lawyer has represented numerous clients through out all of Georgia, Hall County and Gainesville.

John, as a criminal defense attorney in our Gainesville, Hall County, Georgia office informs clients of the options in their case, whether it be a jury trial, bench trial, a negotiated plea, a motion to attack the case on legal grounds or alternative sentencing options (such as drug and alcohol counseling), First Offender Act, Nolo Plea, conditional discharge or pretrial diversion.

If you need a lawyer anywhere in Georgia and have been charges with possession of marijuana, cocaine, meth, underage possession of alcohol, consumption of alcohol by a minor, shoplifting, burglary, possession with intent, manufacturing, DUI/ D.U.I. (Driving Under the Influence), assault, battery, Family Violence Act (FVA), or any other crime, please understand that you have rights and the presumption of innocence.

Mediator/Mediation:
After seeing the large number of cases being fairly and efficiently resolved in mediation, attorney John Breakfield decided to take the training to become a registered mediator with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution and the local office of the 9th District.

As a mediator, based in Gainesville, Georgia, John understands that his job is not to simply pass dollar amounts back and forth, but to listen to each party and to engage the parties in a meaningful discussion about the strengths and weakness of both sides of the case. If both parties can agree upon a reasonable resolution, then a formal written agreement can be reached in order to resolve the matter without the need for further court or trial.

Likewise, attorney Breakfield can also assist our clients through out Georgia that have Business Litigation, Real Estate Litigation or Eminent Domain/ Condemnation/ Government Taking cases.

Please visit our website to learn more: www.GainesvilleGeorgiaLawyers.com

Atlanta Sandy Springs Dunwoody Alpharetta Roswell Norcross Johns Creek Duluth Buckhead Brookhaven Smyrna Marietta Fulton County Gwinnett County Cobb County DeKalb County Forsyth County Real Estate, Business, Finance, Wills & Trusts Law Firm Attorney Lawyer; Over 20 years of experience; Reasonable Rates; Document Drafting, Review and Negotiation; Commercial Real Estate; Residential Real Estate; Banking, Finance and Financial Services Law; Commercial Law; Corporate Law; Business Law; Contravt Law; Foreclosures; Mortgages and Mortgage Modifications; Disputes and Dispute Resolution

Practice Areas

Since 2000, Mr. Meriwether has focused seventy percent (70%) of his practice on family law and thirty percent (30%) on business law. Through time, he has found that family and business law complement each other well in practice, as his skills from one area transfer easily to the other. Business litigation cases tend to require fewer Court appearances, but the family law cases of Mr. Meriwether's practice has afforded him the opportunity to appear in Court more often and hone skills necessary both for family law and business litigation. Mr. Meriwether's business litigation and transactional work provide the experience and ability to examine and tirelessly move through financial documents, both for business cases, including personal and small businesses, as well as family law cases involving large marital estates in need of equitable division.

Mr. Meriwether utilizes the latest computer software to maintain detailed and comprehensive records of his complex cases. This software allows Mr. Meriwether and his clients to quickly access case information and ensures that no details of the case are overlooked.

Family Law

Mr. Meriwether handles a broad range of family law cases, including divorce, adoption, child custody and support modification, adoption, domestic violence, and premarital agreements. He regularly deals with marital assets ranging from those of little or even negative value to those worth millions of dollars, and competently calculates spousal and child support when applicable.

Mr. Meriwether has said, "In the Courtroom, we zealously represent our clients. But often, fierce litigation is not the best way to resolve a divorce, and we work to settle cases through active negotiation. A divorce can be the most life altering and stressful event anyone can go through, but it does not have to be." To help alleviate the stress often involved in family law cases, Mr. Meriwether takes a collaborative approach to family law. This approach involves utilizing negotiation and mediation to help maintain an amicable relationship between the parties. In cases with children, collaborative law protects the children above all else, creates a win/win situation for the parties, and the parties walk away as satisfied as possible.

In some family law cases, collaborative law will not work, or is inappropriate. Mr. Meriwether evaluates every case on an individual basis to determine how aggressive to approach the case based on the facts, the Court in which the case will be heard, and the Judge who will hear the case. The goal is to achieve the best possible outcome for an individual client. In Mr. Meriwether's experience, compared to a more subtle approach, a "take no prisoners" attitude often results in higher lawyer's fees without a corresponding increase in the achieved result. As such, Mr. Meriwether aims to provide the correct level of aggressiveness to each case for the best result possible.

Business Law

Mr. Meriwether handles a variety of business law cases including simple and complicated business formations, and business divorces. He routinely forms Limited Liability Companies and Corporations. In so doing, he often is asked to draft complex contracts to assist the new business entity with its operations. He also assists clients with the buying and selling of businesses (including the due diligence associated with this process).

Mr. Meriwether views business formations involving a group of friends or acquaintances as marriages, albeit financial ones, and he excels in spotting potential pitfalls when parties are entering into a business relationship. He works hard to ensure that his clients enter into their business ventures well-informed and protected from whatever business complications they may encounter.

Membership

State Bar of Georgia (Member of the Family Law and Business Law Sections)
The Florida Bar
American Bar Association (Member of the Family Law and Business Law Sections)

Admissions
1996, Georgia
1996, Florida

Speaking Engagements
LLC Trends and Developments by National Business Institute. Continuing Legal Education for fellow attorneys.

Arbitration
In 2007, Mr. Meriwether obtained his certification for arbitration. He is ready to arbitrate any Family Law issues and most Business Law matters.

Professional Experience - Mr. Meriwether was admitted to practice law in Florida and Georgia in 1996. In 1998, Patrick L. Meriwether left the Atlanta office of Arthur Anderson and joined Robert Tharp to establish Meriwether & Tharp. His position at Arthur Anderson involved providing tax advice to a variety of large corporations. Mr. Meriwether; however, missed the personal satisfaction that comes with running his own practice and assisting small businesses and individuals with their legal needs. This is where he felt that he could really make the biggest difference.

Community Experience - Mr. Meriwether volunteers time to teach Judo to both children and adults. He holds a Black Belt in Judo and, when he competed in law school, he was the Florida State Champion in his weight division two years in a row. At the 2007 Georgia State Games, he won the gold in his division.

Persuasive and creative team player with nearly 6 years legal experience, 12 years total work experience, and solid interpersonal, communication, and negotiation skills that move others beyond positions to results. Works well unsupervised while maintaining client goals and adhering to rigid deadlines. Quick, resourceful, and enjoys new challenges.

My practice areas: as required by the rules of the Georgia State Bar and other state bars, I do not claim "specialization" in any area. However, I have practiced extensively in the following areas:

Drafting/negotiating contracts; corporate representation involving matters of governance, compliance (including HIPAA), and risk reduction; litigation of business, contract, tort/personal injury, insurance, probate, and property matters; estate planning for Medicaid, tax, and special needs cases; and criminal defense.


Should you want to know more about me personally, feel free to check out the websites and profiles on the right.

Gerry Balboni is an experienced deal lawyer representing growth companies, investors, and buyers and sellers of growth companies.

He has distinctive expertise in venture capital, private equity, acquisitions, and licensing and distribution of technology and software.

Gerry brings a results-oriented approach to every engagement. He knows what works and what doesn't.

Gerry graduated from the University of South Florida in 1975 with a B.A. in English, from the Graduate School of Business of Stetson University in 1977 with an MBA, and from the Cumberland School of Law of Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama in 1984 with a J.D., cum laude.

Prior to attending law school Gerry sold computers and software for NCR.

When not practing law, Gerry likes to sail, flyfish, ride bikes, garden, and drink good wine.

Gerry is a past Senior Warden of St. Patrick's Episcopal Chruch in Dunwoody, GA, and is on the Board of Ring Lake Ranch, in Dubois, WY.

Kurt Raulin is the founding member and principal lawyer of The Raulin Professional Group, an Atlanta, Georgia commercial law firm. Immediately prior to forming the firm, Kurt served as the general counsel for Tivoli Properties, an Atlanta developer of high-rise condominiums, apartments and hotels.

Kurt brings a wealth of experience in contract, corporate and real estate-related matters to his practice of law. In particular, he has expertise in the acquisition and entitlement of real estate for development, the preparation of construction contract documents, the negotiation of equity and institutional financing, the formation of corporate, limited liability company and partnership investment vehicles, the structuring of commercial refinancing and work-outs, the drafting of condominium documents and subdivision covenants, and the negotiation of telecommunications agreements and related easements.

Before returning to Atlanta, Kurt previously served as the general counsel for two different South Florida real estate development and investment companies, based in Boca Raton and Miami, respectively. Kurt started his full-time legal career as a commercial real estate attorney in the Atlanta office of Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, Williams & Martin.

Kurt earned a Bachelor of Arts degree (B.A.) in Economics and Political Science from the University of Florida, a Juris Doctor degree (J.D.), with honors, from the University of Florida, and a Master of Laws degree (LL.M.) in Real Property Development & Finance from the University of Miami. He also attended the University of Virginia as an undergraduate and Oxford University as a law school exchange student, and completed two years of economics graduate work at the University of Florida graduate school of business.

Before Kurt attended graduate school and law school, he managed five political campaigns on behalf of U.S. congressional and state legislative candidates in Indiana, Virginia, North Carolina and Florida.

Kurt is a member of the Atlanta Bar Association, the State Bar of Georgia, the American Bar Association and the Federalist Society. He is admitted to practice before the Georgia Supreme Court, the Georgia Court of Appeals and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.

Kurt serves as a member of the University of Florida Law Alumni Council, and is also a contributing life member of the alumni associations of the University of Florida, the University of Miami and the University of Virginia.

In his free time, Kurt enjoys running, sailing, snow skiing, tennis, hiking, hunting, trout fishing, and reading history and political biographies. He is also an avid college football fan.

Rhys T. Wilson is a partner of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP and Co-Leader of the Firm's National M&A Practice Group. Mr. Wilson has been selected by his peers as a Georgia Super Lawyer in Mergers and Acquisitions. More information about Mr. Wilson and his M&A work and other experience can be found at LinkedIn, Martindale, Avvo and the Nelson Mullins websites (see links at right).

Our firm is dedicated to all aspects of intellectual property law including: Patent, Trademark, Copyright, Trade Secret, Domain Name Dispute, Entertainment, Sports Law, Licensing and related Litigation.

Our practice positions your business to meet its objectives by creating a strategy to identify and maximize your intellectual property.

At our core, our Intellectual Property practice is focused on leveraging your innovation.

Robert Sneed has more than eleven (11) years' of experience in all aspects of litigation. Robertâs primary focus of practice is in the area of personal injury and wrongful death, products and premises liability, insurance coverage disputes, estates, domestic matters, general tort litigation, and corporate formation and representation.

Robert has tried numerous jury and non-jury trials, representing plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal courts in Georgia and other jurisdictions. He has appeared before arbitral forums such as the American Arbitration Association, and has successfully mediated hundreds of civil cases in Georgia.

Prior to forming McConnell & Sneed, Robert previously served as a trial lawyer with the Property Team at Swift, Currie, McGhee & Hiers, LLP, where he regularly defended the interests of insurance companies and their insureds. Prior to that, Robert was a trial lawyer at Weinstock & Scavo, P.C., where he aggressively represented the interests of his clients within Georgia and in other jurisdictions. Robert has also served as in-house counsel for Infinity Property & Casualty Company, where he defended insureds in third party civil actions and was instrumental in drafting insurance policy language in various states across the country. Robertâs diverse background in representing insurance companies, insureds, and injured parties, provides him with the unique ability to apply his experience in practicing on both sides of the aisle in effectively representing his clients.

Robert is married to Beth Sneed, a native of the Atlanta area and Marist High School graduate, and currently live in the Brookhaven area of Atlanta. Robert plays on a regular ALTA tennis team and enjoys golf and traveling.