Balch & Bingham

Last updated

Balch & Bingham
Headquarters Birmingham, Alabama
No. of offices10
No. of attorneys200+
Major practice areasGeneral practice, Energy, Environmental, Financial Services
Date founded1922
FounderWilliam Logan Martin Jr
Company type Limited liability partnership
Website www.balch.com

Balch & Bingham LLP is a United States law firm based in Birmingham, Alabama. [1] [2]

Contents

As of 2022, Balch & Bingham was the fourth largest law firm in Birmingham. [3] The firm has additional offices in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Texas, and Washington, D.C. [4] Primary practice areas include energy, environmental, and banking and financial services. [5] [6]

History

The firm was founded in 1922 by William Logan Martin Jr, who served as Alabama's Attorney General between 1915-1917 and as attorney for Alabama Power Company. [7] [8] Martin's private practice in Birmingham was joined by Judge Fritz Thompson and Perry Turner to form Martin, Thompson & Turner in 1922. [9] In 1983, then known as Balch, Bingham, Baker, Hawthorne, Williams & Ward, the firm merged with Montgomery partnership Smith, Bowman, Thagard, Crook & Culpeper, expanding the firm's presence in Montgomery. [10] In 1985, the firm's name was changed to Balch & Bingham in recognition of partners Eason Balch and John Bingham. [9] In 2001, the firm merged with Eaton & Cottrell in Mississippi, followed in 2003 by a merger with Meadows, Ichter and Bowers in Atlanta. [11] [12] In April 2012, Balch & Bingham acquired Birmingham-based Presley Burton & Collier, along with Jacksonville-based Stoneburner, Berry, Gocker, Purcell & Greenhut PA later that year. [13] [14]

Notable representations

In August 2010, the firm was hired by the Governor of Georgia to conduct a special investigation into the Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal. [15] The report, delivered to the Governor in June 2011, uncovered cheating by over 178 administrators and teachers from 56 elementary and middle schools in the Atlanta Public School System. [16]

Beginning in 2010, Balch & Bingham assisted the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality in litigation against BP for environmental damages following the April 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. [17] In 2014, the firm's billing was central to litigation in which the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality responded to a public records request by producing heavily redacted versions of invoices for expenses incurred by Balch and other subcontractors. [18]

In March 2015, Balch & Bingham was hired by Lee May, CEO of DeKalb County, Georgia, to investigate improper spending by government officials. [19] Led by Balch's lead investigator Richard Hyde and firm Partner Mike Bowers, formerly the Attorney General of Georgia, the firm's investigation uncovered many examples of misconduct, including stolen county property, taxpayer funded charge cards used for liquor purchases, and ignored requests for public record. [20] May, who was himself implicated in the investigation’s findings, criticized the firm for the cost of the far reaching inquiry. [21]

In 2019, the firm filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Mississippi Secretary of State’s office against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Mississippi River Commission. The suit alleged that these entities violated federal law by “failing to study the consequences of diverting the Mississippi River into the Mississippi Sound through the Bonnet Carré Spillway” causing ecological and economical damage. [22]

Balch attorney Chris Anulewicz served as Georgia's special assistant attorney general in the Post-election lawsuits related to the 2020 United States presidential election from Georgia. On January 8, 2021, four of the cases were dismissed. [23]

Notable attorneys and alumni

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References

  1. ↑ Rumore, Pat Boyd (2000). Lawyers in a New South City: A History of the Legal Profession in Birmingham. Association Publishing Company. ISBN   0966838017.
  2. ↑ "Balch & Bingham Offices". Balch & Bingham. November 19, 2020.
  3. ↑ Bagwell, Dan (January 22, 2022). "Birmingham's Largest Law Firms". Birmingham Business Journal.
  4. ↑ "Balch & Bingham expands footprint to Texas, longtime Bham attorney joins firm's new Houston office". Birmingham Business Journal. February 6, 2012.
  5. ↑ A.J., O'Leary (December 29, 2022). "Here's what Balch has on the horizon in 2023". Birmingham Business Journal.
  6. ↑ Corder, Frank (February 5, 2024). "Buffington joins Balch & Bingham". Magnolia Tribune.
  7. ↑ "Balch & Bingham founder selected for Alabama Lawyers' Hall of Fame". The Birmingham News. October 31, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Hall of Fame Class – 2012". Alabama State Bar. December 1, 2012.
  9. 1 2 "Birmingham's big 5". Birmingham Business Journal. March 24, 2002.
  10. ↑ "H. Harold Williams". Legacy.com. November 20, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Balch & Bingham Reels In Ala. Public Financing Firm". Law360. April 9, 2012.
  12. ↑ "Former Attorney General Mike Bowers Leaves Balch & Bingham for Athens Firm". Law.com. September 25, 2020.
  13. ↑ "After Partner Departures, Balch & Bingham Takes Over Birmingham Firm". The AM Law Daily. April 10, 2012.
  14. ↑ "Alabama law firm expands to Jacksonville with Stoneburner merger". Jacksonville Business Journal. September 26, 2012.
  15. ↑ "Bowers, Wilson named special investigators for state test cheating probe". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. August 21, 2010.
  16. ↑ "Report Eviscerates Atlanta Schools for Decade of Systematic Cheating". Courthouse News Service. July 27, 2011.
  17. ↑ "DEQ defends redacting turned-over invoices". The Clarion-Ledger. May 21, 2014.
  18. ↑ Emily Le Coz, "Agency defends redacting invoices", The Clarion-Ledger (May 2, 2014), p. A1-A4.
  19. ↑ "Corruption investigation targets DeKalb County". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. March 19, 2015.
  20. ↑ "Investigators find 'stunning' misconduct in DeKalb". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. August 5, 2015.
  21. ↑ "DeKalb corruption report calls for Lee May's resignation". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. September 30, 2015.
  22. ↑ "'Unlawful' operation of Bonnet Carré prompts MS Secretary of State to sue US Army Corps". Sun Herald. December 30, 2019.
  23. ↑ "Trump and allies drop 4 Georgia election lawsuits; state officials deny settlement claim". ABA Journal. January 8, 2021.
  24. ↑ "Candidate Greg Cook (R) for Alabama Supreme Court to speak at Harvey's on Noble". Sylacauga News. March 3, 2022. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
  25. ↑ "Former Mississippi House speaker Gunn joins Balch Policy Advisors in Jackson". Mississippi Business Journal. February 21, 2024.
  26. ↑ "Edwina Rogers, Executive Director". Secular Coalition for America. Archived from the original on February 3, 2014. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
  27. ↑ "FindLaw's United States Eleventh Circuit case and opinions". Findlaw. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
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