Whitwell Lawyers

Graduate United States Naval Academy 1958 and University of Tennessee Law School 1963. Admitted to all state courts of record and Eastern and Middle District Federal Courts in Tennessee, and 6th Circuit Court of Appeals and United States Supreme Court.

Attorney R.Garth Best is a native of Cleveland, TN where he graduated from Bradley Central High School in 1998. He is an alumni from the prestigious Virginia Military Institute (Class of 2003). Upon graduation from VMI he received a degree in International Studies (B.A.) with a concentration in Middle Eastern Studies, as well as minors in Arabic and Business. During his studies at VMI, Mr. Best had the opportunity to study abroad in both Morocco and Egypt. His studies abroad concentrated on Arabic and Political Science while studying at the American University of Cairo. Upon graduation, Mr. Best came...

Mr. Higgins is a Nashville native. He attended the University of Tennessee where he graduated with honors and returned to home to work with a large insurance defense law firm. About 17 years ago Mr. Higgins left the defense practice and created a firm that only represents injured victims and their families. To better serve his clients the firm is broken down into specific litigation groups, such as the nursing home neglect division and serious injury division.

Mr. Higgins is a member of the million dollar advocates forum, recognized by Best Lawyers and is a board...

Layne Gillespie received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Experimental Psychology from the University of South Carolina in 2002 and a Juris Doctor from the Appalachian School of Law in 2007. Layne began her legal career in Virginia as an intern for the Honorable Michael L. Moore, Circuit Court Judge for the 29th Judicial Circuit of Virginia. After her internship, Layne worked at ChildLaw Services, Inc., a non-profit organization devoted to the representation of abused and neglected children. Upon relocating to Chattanooga in 2008, Layne joined Clark & Washington, LLC as an associate attorney where she practiced bankruptcy...

My legal career has focused on protecting the rights of individuals against big corporations. My main work in this regard is in three areas: (1) pursuing justice for victims of dangerous corporate products (mainly mesothelioma / asbestos victims); (2) representing labor unions; & (3) advocating for employee's rights.

Martin L. Pierce is a native of Memphis, Tennessee, and received his undergraduate degree, summa cum laude, from Tennessee Technological University in 1978. He received that institution's Outstanding Young Alumnus Award in 1988. Martin received his law degree, with high honors, from the University of Memphis in 1981, where he was a published member of the University of Memphis Law Review. He is licensed to practice law in Tennessee and Georgia, as well as before the U.S. Tax Court and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Martin works primarily in the areas of: (1) Estate Planning, Wills, Trusts, Elder Law,...

I represent families and individuals seeking legal status or citizenship in the United States, entrepreneurs starting or purchasing businesses, and businesses hiring or transferring foreign workers. Our cases include adjustment of status (green cards), citizenship, fiancee visas (K1), business visas (E, L, H-1B, O-1), and people with extraordinary ability (EB-2 with National Interest Waiver).

Amanda manages a boutique firm which serves clients in Tennessee and Georgia. Amanda focuses primarily on business and estates matters including: contracts, trademarks, business formation, wills & trusts, powers of attorney, and probate.

Mr. Weiss concentrates his practice on civil litigation and criminal defense. This defense lawyer represents individuals and businesses in a wide range of legal issues. He has handled an array of civil cases including automobile collisions, malicious prosecution, defamation, bad faith insurance claims, residential construction disputes, and many others.

As a keen negotiator and litigator, this criminal law attorney has resolved numerous cases that achieve results that meet or exceed client expectations. As a strong proponent of zealous advocacy, Mr. Weiss stands up for the rights of his clients. For those accused of a crime, Mr. Weiss is able to effectively...

Graduated Vanderbilt University in 2002 Graduated from University of TN College of Law in 2005 Former Law Clerk to the Honorable Joseph Tipton on TN Court of Criminal Appeals Worked with Summer, Rufolo & Rodgers (formerly known as Summers & Wyatt) in Chattanooga since 2006 Specializes in appellate work and criminal defense, including state and federal cases.

John was born and raised in Chattanooga. He was active in the Boy Scouts growing up and earned his Eagle Scout Award. In law school, John earned the Book Award in his estate planning class for the highest grade. Prior to joining his father's law practice in 2002, he worked for two years with UBS Trust Company (formerly Bradford Trust Company). John speaks on the areas of Chattanooga estate planning and probate to other attorneys and professionals, as well as the public. In the past, John served on local boards such as the Orange Grove Center, the Siskin...

Nick has practiced law since 2012. His main practice areas include automobile liability, business and commercial litigation, family law, construction litigation, and premises liability, among other general civil litigation matter.

Jeffrey W. Rufolo grew up in New Jersey and originally came to Chattanooga in 1983 to attend the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on a wrestling scholarship. He liked the area so much he decided to stay. Since joining Summers, Rufolo & Rodgers, Mr. Rufolo has successfully represented those who have been injured on the job, or injured in car accidents, fall down cases, or other premises liability type cases due to the negligence of others. Recently, Mr. Rufolo successfully overturned an unfavorable decision from the trial court in a wrongful death lawsuit brought against Hamilton County, Tennessee, in which a...

Wayne grew up around Law Enforcement and Education. Wayne spent his formative years being active in the outdoors and sports. Wayne spent 12+ years in private sector investigations and holds advanced interview and interrogation techniques certifications.

Attorney Chase Walker is a young attorney full of energy and a desire to help others. Over the years, Chase has seen numerous legal issues arise with various friends and family members and often heard the same two complaints: I can't afford an attorney, and I don't feel like my interests are being fairly represented. Too often, attorneys claim to be client-centered, while simultaneously trying to figure out how they can resolve as many cases as quickly as possible, for the maximum profit, and with the least amount of time and effort possible. After taking the bar exam, Chase put...

Valerie W. Epstein currently owns her own firm concentrating her practice in the areas of civil litigation, wills and estates, arbitration/mediation and business. She has been a practicing Rule 31 mediator for over 10 years and she has been a commercial arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association for over 15 years (by invitation only). She was awarded a contract with the State of Tennessee to perform Independent External Reviews and she is a neutral for the American Health Lawyers Association. She has had numerous cases in Chancery, Circuit and Sessions court in Hamilton County representing both plaintiffs and defendants. She...

I am a Tennessee-licensed attorney and my practice focuses exclusively on assisting my clients with the acquisition, maintenance and enforcement of intellectual property, including patents, trademarks, and copyrights.

One of my primary roles is to identify potentially patentable inventions and the scope of protection available for those inventions. In this role, I regularly prepare, file and prosecute U.S. patent applications before the United States Patent and Trademark Office and also work with attorneys around the world in order to obtain foreign patent protection.

I also assist clients in identifying competing technologies that might limit the scope of their patent protection or...

Shaheen I. Imami is the managing Member of Imami Law, PLLC, in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Mr. Imami practices solely in the trusts and estates area and assists clients with: estate planning; trust, estate, and incapacity administration; and trust, estate, and fiduciary litigation. Having significant experience in each of these areas allows him to provide better, and more practical, advice to his clients. He primarily serves clients in Tennessee and Michigan, but with colleagues can assist clients throughout the United States. Mr. Imami holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Michigan State University. He earned his law degree from Georgia State University...

John Mark Griffin obtained his doctorate of jurisprudence from the University of Mississippi in 1988. He obtained his Masters of Business Administration from Louisiana Tech University in 1986 and a bachelor of science in finance in 1982. He is licensed to practice law in Tennessee, Mississippi, and Ohio and is admitted to practice in both Federal and State Courts. For more than twenty-five years, Mr. Griffin has represented individuals hurt by the negligence of others. He has collected millions of dollars for his clients in jury verdicts, judgments, mediations and settlements against insurance companies and corporations for the injuries...

I have been practicing criminal law for over 26 years in federal and state courts. I am licensed to practice in the states of Tennessee and Georgia, however, I have appeared or consulted in criminal cases in many other states across the United States. I have tried well over 150 jury trials, including approximately 20 murder and/or death penalty cases. I have also been successful in appellate litigation, and have argued cases before federal court of appeals and state supreme courts. In 2011, I successfully argued a constitutional speedy trial violation before the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, which resulted...

Mr. MacNeill graduated with honors from Nashville School of Law.

Annette Kelley uses the past experience she had as an insurance defense lawyer for over a decade to help secure just compensation for her clients in cases involving car wrecks, truck wrecks, workers compensation, premises liability and other serious personal injury cases throughout Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama.

Estes has been practicing law since 1974. He started in Memphis, TN where he worked for the best criminal and personal injury lawyers in that City. He moved to Chattanooga in 1976 where he again worked under the tutelage of one of Chattanooga's premier criminal attorneys. In 1999 he joined ERMC and eventually became the Chief Legal Officer and Sr. Vice-President of that company. In that capacity he oversaw civil personal injury litigation in over 40 states and supervised up to 100 outside top-notch personal injury lawyers around the country, attending numerous trials and mediations regarding...

Trial Attorney

Jerry H. Summers is a lifelong resident of Chattanooga and Hamilton County, Tennessee. Following his graduation from law school, he initially worked for two years as a prosecutor in the Hamilton County District Attorney's Office. Entering private practice in 1969, he became the founding member of what is now Summers, Rufolo & Rodgers. An experienced trial lawyer, Mr. Summers is one of a small number of attorneys who has been included in every yearly volume of "Best Lawyers in America" in both personal injury and criminal law. He is also only one of approximately five attorneys in the State of...

Herbert Thornbury, Esquire and his staff work with clients who have personal injury claims including social security, workers’ compensation and accident injuries in Tennessee.

Wagner & Wagner is one of the longest-established law firms in Chattanooga. With more than seven decades of proven legal experience, our law practice has steadily grown through repeat business, valuable referrals and a tradition of client satisfaction.

Pete Johnson has experience representing a wide variety of businesses ranging from small local companies to some of the country’s largest publicly traded corporations. Before joining the Hutton Company, Johnson was the General Counsel for a real estate development and commercial general construction company. Johnson has practiced with law firms in Georgia and Tennessee, including an AmLaw100 firm, primarily in the areas of general corporate transactions, government representation, construction, and real estate law. Johnson has held a variety of public offices including serving as Assistant District Attorney, City Solicitor, and Magistrate. He has been...

Wagner & Wagner is one of the longest-established law firms in Chattanooga. With more than seven decades of proven legal experience, our law practice has steadily grown through repeat business, valuable referrals and a tradition of client satisfaction.

Mr. Gilbert assists families in both the employment law and in special education law. He believes a wrongful termination affects an entire family. Additionally, Mr. Gilbert has long been active in upholding the rights of schoolchildren with disabilities—those who have individual education plans (IEPs) or 504 plans.