Administrative Law & Governmental Affairs

The Firm maintains an active practice in administrative law - state and federal. State areas include issues arising under the Alabama Administrative Procedures Act, as well as certificate of need matters, insurance and banking regulation, environmental matters and health care matters. The Firm represents clients in various federally-administrated matters, including employment and labor matters before the EEOC and NLRB (see Employment & Labor Relations), construction and procurement matters before several federal contract appeal boards (see Construction & Procurement), OSHA appeals and environmental matters before the ADEM. The Firm regularly represents clients before the Alabama Banking and Insurance Departments and serves as outside counsel to the Receiver for the Alabama Department of Insurance.

Governmental Affairs

The Firm's legislative and governmental affairs practice includes working with government agencies at the local, state, and federal level, and with legislators and legislative staff in connection with a broad variety of legislative and regulatory issues. The Firm assists with the preparation and promulgation of bills and regulations, principally at the state level.

The Firm has extensive experience in matters involving the regulation of public utilities with particular emphasis on administrative hearings and litigation involving setting of utility rates. The Firm also maintains an active practice in regulatory matters involving telecommunications issues. In this rapidly changing area, the Firm's attorneys' experience permits the representation of a diverse group of clients in all aspects of telecommunications matters.

The Firm has for many years represented numerous transportation clients. Although deregulation has been accomplished at the federal level, the state regulation of transportation companies continues and the Firm is a recognized leader in representing clients in this area.

Principal Contact:
James H. McLemore   email    (334) 241-8058

Insurance & Banking Regulation

The Firm's insurance regulation practice includes matters involving application for approval of acquisitions of control of Alabama insurance companies, licensing of insurance companies and agents, and disciplinary and enforcement matters. The Firm's banking regulation experience includes filing regulatory applications, such as applications to organize banks and bank holding companies and seeking approval of the Superintendent of Banks under the Alabama Interstate and International Banking Act of 1995, which members of the Firm helped draft.

Principal Contact:
Robert F. Northcutt   email   (334) 241-8083

Health Care

The Firm has represented a variety of clients for many years in the health care industry. The Firm was instrumental in the formation of the Alabama Medicaid Agency in 1975, and served as its general counsel for several years, and continues to represent the Agency in selected matters in litigation. Today, the firm regularly represents health care providers in areas of general representation, civil and criminal litigation, and government regulatory, licensing and disciplinary proceedings, before the many state and federal agencies whose offices are here in the capital city. More particularly, the Firm regularly represents clients regarding the following health care matters:

  • Corporate representation, including the organization, formation, sales, merger, and financing of health care facilities and physician groups
  • Health planning and compliance concerning Anti-Kickback, Stark, HIPAA, and FDA laws and regulations, reimbursement issues, and other fraud and abuse issues
  • Licensing and Medicare/Medicaid certification and enrollment, including proceedings before the Certified Need Agency, the State Department of Public Health, the Board of Medical Examiners, and the numerous additional State Boards in Montgomery governing health care professionals
  • Litigation and disciplinary proceedings involving Licensure issues
  • Civil proceedings and criminal prosecution involving Medicare and Medicaid false claim and fraud and abuse charges
  • Compliance plans for physicians' practices and health care facilities
  • Corporate transaction services including self-insurance plans, personnel manuals, taxable and tax exempt bond financing, restructuring with consideration of physician self-referral, Anti-Kickback, and other fraud and abuse avoidance
  • Privacy issues involving HIPAA and State Privacy Laws
  • Negotiation of Managed Care contracts

Principal Contact:
James H. McLemore   email   (334) 241-8058

Environmental Law

The Firm's environmental section serves the variety of issues and clients inherent in a full service law firm. Among other services, the Firm assists clients in obtaining and protecting permits from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, provides counseling on state or federal regulatory compliance and enforcement, and advises on environmental site assessments, remediation, and risk management for hazardous and other regulated substances. The Firm's experience ranges from trial advocacy of environmental matters to general counseling for construction, engineering, and commercial development matters.

Representative clients include municipal authorities, industrial and commercial facilities, lenders, engineering and construction firms, and property owners/developers. For over a decade, the Firm has served as general counsel to the Alabama Pulp and Paper Council, an industry trade group composed of Alabama-based pulp and paper companies with particular emphasis on environmental issues. Working for the Council and collaborating directly with state authorities, the Firm has helped launch several environmental initiatives, such as the Title V Operating Permit program mandated by the federal Clean Air Act.

The Firm's environmental lawyers are also involved in administrative and leadership positions in their field. Firm members, such as Brooke Lawson, serve on the Executive Committee or Editorial Board of the Alabama State Bar's Environmental Law Section. Lister Hubbard has chaired the Environmental Law Section of the State Capital Global Law Firm Group. Jimmy McLemore has served as an administrative law judge for the Alabama Environmental Management Commission and has represented the Commission in selected litigation matters. Members of the Firm also engage in environmental rule-making before state agencies and in drafting environmental legislation beneficial to the Firm's clients.

Principal Contact:
J. Lister Hubbard   email   (334) 241-8035