Little Rock Soiree polled lawyers and readers to discover the best lawyers in Little Rock. Here are the top picks in 16 specialties.
Alternative Dispute Resolution-Mediation
Jack Bell, ADR, Inc.
John A. Davis, ADR, Inc.
Frank Hamlin, Hamlin Dispute Resolution
Robert Henry, The Barber Firm
Mike Reif, Dover, Dixon & Horne, PLLC
James Tilley, Watts Donovan & Tilley, P.A.
Bankruptcy
Clarence Cash, Cash Law Firm
Charles T. Coleman, Wright, Lindsey & Jennings LLP
Jonathan Horton, Wright, Lindsey & Jennings LLP
Joe Kolb, The Barber Firm
Harry Light, Friday Eldredge & Clark
Kelly McNulty, Gill Ragon Owen, P.A.
Geoff Treece, Quattlebaum, Grooms, Tull & Burrow
Business Litigation
Chip Chiles, Quattlebaum, Grooms, Tull & Burrow
Judy Henry, Wright, Lindsey & Jennings LLP
Lloyd W. “Tre” Kitchens, The Brad Hendricks Law Firm
Matt Finch, Gill Ragon Owen, P.A.
Edward Oglesby, Kutak Rock
Amy Stewart, Rose Law Firm
Commercial Real Estate
Mitch Berry, Eichenbaum Liles P.A.
Amy Brown, McMullan Law Firm
Charles “Skip” Davidson, Davidson Law Firm
Kelly Halstead, Halstead Law Firm
Marian McMullan, McMullan Law Firm
Jay Taylor, Friday Eldredge & Clark
Corporate Finance — Merger & Acquisitions
Doug Buford, Mitchell Williams
Kevin Burns, Rose Law Firm
Walter M. “Skip” Ebel III, Friday Eldredge & Clark
Price Gardner, Friday Eldredge & Clark
Tim Grooms, Quattlebaum, Grooms, Tull & Burrow
Christopher Travis, Gill Ragon Owen, P.A.
Corporate Insurance
Patt Goss, Rose Law Firm
Kevin O’Dwyer, Hope Trice & O’Dwyer, P.A.
Scott Strauss, The Barber Firm
Jeff Thomas, Mitchell Williams
Richard Watts, Watts, Donovan & Tilley, P.A.
Criminal Defense
Patrick & Kara Benca, Benca & Benca
Tommy Bennett, Bennett & Williams
John Hall, John Wesley Hall Law Firm
William James Jr., James Law Firm
Stuart Vess, Vess Carpenter & Ables
Win Wilson, Hope Trice & O’Dwyer, P.A.
Environmental
Chuck Nestrud, Chisenhall, Nestrud and Julian
Ross Noland, McMath Woods, P.A.
Alan Perkins, Perkins & Trotter
Brian Rosenthal, Rose Law Firm
Walter Wright, Mitchell Williams
ERISA
Danny W. Broaddrick, Hyden Miron & Foster
Bryant Cranford, Rose Law Firm
Joseph B. Hurst Jr., Friday Eldredge & Clark
Alex Ifrah, Friday Eldredge & Clark
Family Law
Katherine Blackmon, Law Offices of Katherine E. Blackmon
Beth Echols, Gill Ragon Owen, P.A.
Steve Engstrom, Wilson, Engstrom, Corum & Coulter
Sam Hilburn, Hilburn Law Firm
Ron Hope, Hope Trice & O’Dwyer, P.A.
Labor & Employment Law
Tim Boe, Rose Law Firm
John Davis, Wright, Lindsey & Jennings LLP
Dan Herrington, Friday Eldredge & Clark
John Holleman, Holleman & Associates, P.A.
Joe Purvis, Dover, Dixon & Horne, PLLC
Jim Robertson, The Barber Firm
Carolyn Witherspoon, Cross, Gunter, Witherspoon, Galchus
Litigation
Hank Bates, Carney Williams Bates Pulliam and Bowman
Rick Beard, Mitchell Williams
Rick Donovan, Rose Law Firm
Denise Hoggard, Chisenhall, Nestrud and Julian
Ed Lowther, Wright, Lindsey & Jennings LLP
B.J. Walker, Rose Law Firm
Perry Wilson, The Barber Firm
Personal Injury
David Couch, David A. Couch PLLC
Joshua Gillispie, Chad M. Green & Associates
Brad Hendricks, Brad Hendricks Law Firm
Judson Kidd, Dodds, Kidd & Ryan
Bruce Munson, Munson Rowlett Moore & Boone PA
Mike Rainwater, Rainwater, Holt & Sexton
Brian Reddick, Reddick Moss
Shane Strabala, Munson, Rowlett, Moore & Boone
Bill Trice, Hope Trice & O’Dwyer, P.A.
Tab Turner, Tab Turner & Associates
Taxation
Chris Brockett, Hatfield & Sayre
Neil Deininger, Deininger & Wingfield
Lyle Foster, Hyden Miron & Foster
Wilson Jones, Rose Law Firm
Matt Mullins, Frost, PLLC
Wyck Nisbet, Friday Eldredge & Clark
Charles Owen, Gill Ragon Owen, P.A.
Jennifer Pierce, Mitchell Williams
David Smith, Kutak Rock
Thomas Tarpley, Tarpley Law Firm
John Tisdale, Wright, Lindsey & Jennings LLP
Trusts & Estates
Wayne Ball, Ball & Stuart
Thomas Baxter, Friday Eldredge & Clark
Lillian Dee Davenport, Delta Trust Bank
Lori Holzwarth, Hyden Miron & Foster
Sarah Cotton Patterson, Friday Eldredge & Clark
Adam Reid, The Barber Firm
Carla Spainhour, Friday Eldredge & Clark
White Collar Criminal Defense
Chuck Banks, Banks Law Firm
Erin Cassinelli, Lassiter & Cassinelli
Drake Mann, Gill Ragon Owen, P.A.
Brad Williams, Bennett & Williams
Frequently Asked Questions
How does Little Rock Soiree determine which lawyers make the list?
Best Lawyers is a two-component voting system: Peer review voting and voting by readers of Arkansas Business and Little Rock Soiree. We rely on the lawyers’ expertise to determine who deserves to be on the list and on the readers to tell us how their experiences with individual lawyers rank.
We e-mailed local lawyers from our online directory, inviting them to vote using an online ballot on our website. We solicited votes from readers through our e-newsletter, social media pages and websites.
The nomination form asked participants to cast a vote, bearing in mind the following question: “Which lawyers in Little Rock, would you rank among the best based on your experience with them?” Our research editor tallied the votes and we examined the list to confirm Arkansas Bar status and reviewed practice specialty for each lawyer.
How do you pick the categories?
We included categories that would be helpful to a business client as well as a personal client. We presented the categories to the panel of lawyers to make certain we did not leave out a worthy category.
Do lawyers have to pay to be on the list?
No, a lawyer cannot pay to be on the list. After the editorial staff finalizes the list, it is given to our sales department, which invites lawyers to buy profiles. Those profiles appear on the following pages and are labeled as paid advertising. But whether the lawyers advertise has no bearing on this list. The editorial department does not know who purchased a profile in the magazine until the magazine is in the final stages of production.
How do you prevent cheating?
Our online ballot records each voter’s IP address. If we notice a suspicious pattern — a block of votes from the same IP address, for instance, or a high number of votes cast in a short time — we investigate.
What if I don’t see my lawyer on the list?
This list is by no means inclusive. If you don’t see your lawyer here, and he/she is someone you like and trust, you should stick with them. The process selection will start over next year.