News

Attorney Taylor A. Stockemer graduated on Friday, Oct. 9 from the Leadership Greater Little Rock Program. He is a member of the Class of XXXV. LGLR is a nine-month community leadership program from the Little Rock Regional Chamber.

James C. Baker Jr., a partner with Friday, Eldredge & Clark, was voted into the American Board of Trial Advocates at the National Board Meeting on Saturday, October 3, 2020. Attorneys Michelle Ator, Donald H. Bacon, William Mell Griffin III, Michael McCarty Harrison, James M. Simpson, Jr.and Frederick S. Ursery are also members.

The Defense Research Institute (DRI) recently presented Attorney Bradley S. Runyon with the Exceptional Performance Citation for his exemplar performance as the President of the Arkansas Association of Defense Counsel. The DRI is the largest international association of defense lawyers. Brad is lead counsel in many medical malpractice cases and conducts all aspects of discovery and defense preparation. He has served as counsel in several medical malpractice jury trials resulting in defense verdicts.

Lindsey Emerson Raines has been elected to serve on the Executive Committee of the Debtor-Creditor Section of the Arkansas Bar Association. The Executive Committee strives to promote the goals of the Association within the field of debtor/creditor law in Arkansas, including organizing and providing continuing legal education opportunities focused in these areas of law. Lindsey is an associate in the firm’s Litigation Practice Group. Her practice focuses on business litigation, creditors’ rights and bankruptcy.

As you know from following our alerts and blog (read previous article here) a federal district court recently ruled that portions of the April 2020 regulations from the Department of Labor (DOL) implementing the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) were overly broad and invalid. This ruling left a vacuum with no clear guidance on the state of the law. On Friday, September 11, 2020, the DOL issued new guidance addressing the federal court’s criticisms of the previous rules. The DOL left some rules in place with clarification and additional explanation, and it modified some of the rules, in particular the definition of “healthcare provider.”

Jamie Huffman Jones's article in the latest edition of Arkansas Lawyer educates the bar on possible amendments to FRE 702 related to the admission of expert testimony.

Friday, Eldredge & Clark is proud to announce the hiring of Isabel Thoma and Julio R. Olaya Jr. Isabel joins the firm’s Rogers office where she will practice in the Mergers & Acquisitions Practice Group. Her practice will include all aspects of business mergers and acquisitions, including structuring, due diligence, negotiation and documentation. Julio joins the firm’s Little Rock office where he will work primarily on issues related to medical malpractice and will assist clients with labor and employment issues.