29 Capell & Howard Attorneys Recognized
September 10, 2024
Capell & Howard, P.C. is pleased to announce that 29 of its attorneys have been included in the 2025 editions of The Best Lawyers in America® and The Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America. Additionally, five of the firm’s attorneys were named the Best Lawyers® 2025 “Lawyer of the Year” in six different practice areas in Montgomery.
The Best Lawyers in America
Best Lawyers is the oldest and most respected lawyer ranking service in the world. For 40 years, Best Lawyers has assisted those in need of legal services to identify the lawyers best qualified to represent them in distant jurisdictions or unfamiliar specialties. Capell & Howard, P.C. would like to congratulate the following attorneys named The Best Lawyers in America for 2025:
- Shapard D. Ashley (Of Counsel) – Real Estate Law
- Bowdy J. Brown – Real Estate Law
- Michael P. Dalton – Tax Law; Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships)
- Bruce J. Downey III (Of Counsel) – Employment Law – Management; Labor Law – Management; Litigation – Labor and Employment
- Ashley H. Freeman – Litigation – Insurance
- Timothy J. F. Gallagher – Commercial Litigation
- Richard Hill Jr. – Administrative / Regulatory Law; Litigation – Insurance; Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
- Lister Hubbard – Construction Law; Litigation – Construction
- David B. Hughes – Real Estate Law
- Henry H. Hutchinson (Of Counsel)– Corporate Law; Litigation and Controversy – Tax; Tax Law
- Mai Lan F. Isler – Litigation – Labor and Employment
- Kyle Johnson – Corporate Law; Tax Law; Trusts and Estates
- Brooke Lawson III – Commercial Litigation; Construction Law; Litigation – Construction
- William K. Martin (Of Counsel) – Mortgage Banking Foreclosure Law
- Robert T. Meadows III (Of Counsel) – Commercial Litigation; Family Law
- Robert F. Northcutt – Commercial Litigation; Insurance Law; Nonprofit / Charities Law
- Carla Cole Penton – Employment Law – Individuals; Employment Law – Management; Litigation – Labor and Employment
- Caty H. Richardson (Of Counsel) – Trusts and Estates
- Robert D. Rives – Corporate Law and Real Estate Law
- Lee M. Russell – Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships); Litigation – Trusts and Estates; Real Estate Law
- Patrick L. W. Sefton – Commercial Litigation; Employment Law – Management
- Allen Sheehan – Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Insurance
- Palmer Smith (Of Counsel) – Real Estate Law
- Debra D. Spain (Of Counsel) – Litigation – Trusts and Estates; Tax Law; Trusts and Estates
- James N. Walter Jr. – Arbitration; Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Banking and Finance; Litigation – Insurance; Litigation – Securities; Mediation
- Christopher W. Weller Sr. – Appellate Practice; Civil Rights Law; Employment Law – Individuals; Employment Law – Management; Labor Law – Management; Litigation – Labor and Employment
- Courtney Williams – Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships); Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law; Litigation and Controversy – Tax; Tax Law
Best Lawyers 2025 “Lawyer of the Year” in Montgomery
Capell & Howard, P.C. would also like to congratulate five of its attorneys who were recognized by Best Lawyers for the 2025 “Lawyer of the Year” in Montgomery in six practice areas. Only a single lawyer in each practice area and designated metropolitan area is honored as the “Lawyer of the Year,” making this a significant and coveted accolade. Receiving this designation reflects the high level of respect a lawyer has earned among other leading lawyers in the same community and the same practice areas for their abilities, their professionalism, and their integrity.
The five attorneys at Capell & Howard who were recognized by Best Lawyers as the 2025 “Lawyer of the Year” award winners in Montgomery for their respective practice areas are as follows:
- Shapard D. Ashley – Real Estate Law
- Henry H. Hutchinson – Litigation and Controversy – Tax
- Caty H. Richardson – Trusts and Estates
- Debra D. Spain – Litigation – Trusts and Estates
- Christopher W. Weller Sr. – Appellate Practice and Employment Law – Individuals
Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America
Capell & Howard, P.C. is pleased to announce that two attorneys have been included in the 2025 edition of Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America. Blake A. Piel was recognized in the practice areas of Corporate Law, Health Law, and Real Estate Law. W. Jackson Britton was recognized in the practice areas of Administrative / Regulatory Law, Appellate Practice, Civil Rights Law, and Insurance Law. Ones to Watch recognizes associates and other lawyers who are earlier in their careers for their outstanding professional excellence in private practice.
Best Lawyers Methodology
Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers honors and celebrates the professional accomplishments of the top legal talent in the country who were selected by their peers through Best Lawyers’ exhaustive peer-review survey and selection process. Lawyers are not required nor allowed to pay a fee to be listed; therefore, inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor.