Cory Watson Attorneys is proud to announce that 18 of our attorneys have been recognized in the 2027 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®, including 11 attorneys named to the flagship Best Lawyers list and 7 attorneys named to the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch list.
For more than 45 years, our firm has been committed to providing exceptional legal representation to clients across the country. This year's recognition reflects the same standard of excellence and dedication that our attorneys bring to every case, and every client, they represent. On behalf of our thousands of clients nationwide, we congratulate this outstanding group of lawyers on this well-deserved honor.
2027 Best Lawyers in America
The following 11 Cory Watson attorneys were named to the 2027 Best Lawyers in America list for Birmingham:
- Leila Hirayama Watson, Co-Founder
- Litigation – Construction
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Medical Malpractice Law – Plaintiffs; Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Joel Caldwell, Principal Attorney
- Civil Rights Law
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Tiffany Webber Carpenter, Principal Attorney
- Civil Rights Law
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Jon C. Conlin, Principal Shareholder
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- G. Rick DiGiorgio, Of Counsel
- Appellate Practice
- Civil Rights Law
- Consumer Protection Law
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Medical Malpractice Law – Plaintiffs; Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiff
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Stephen Hunt, Jr., Principal Shareholder
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- R. Andrew Jones, Principal Attorney
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Hirlye "Ryan" Lutz, Principal Shareholder
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- F. Jerome Tapley, Principal Shareholder
- Consumer Protection Law
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Mitchell Theodore, Principal Attorney
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Brett Thompson, Principal Attorney
- Civil Rights Law
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
2027 Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch
Seven of our attorneys were also selected for the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch 2027 recognition, which honors newer attorneys — typically those in practice less than 10 years — for outstanding legal excellence:
- Hannah Cory Caldwell, Attorney
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Medical Malpractice Law – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- James E. Cory, Attorney
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Nicolas Gutierrez, Attorney
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Hamilton Jordan, Attorney
- Insurance Law
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Nicole LeMier, Attorney
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Hunter Phares, Attorney
- Litigation – Environmental
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Medical Malpractice Law – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- R. Akira Watson, Attorney
- Litigation – Environmental
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Plaintiffs
- Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
About Best Lawyers
Best Lawyers is one of the oldest and most respected peer-reviewed publications in the legal profession. Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers has become the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers lists are compiled based on an exhaustive peer-review evaluation, and attorneys are not allowed to pay to be included on the annual list — making inclusion in Best Lawyers one of the highest accolades an attorney can receive. Corporate Counsel Magazine has called Best Lawyers "the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice."
About the "Ones to Watch" Award
Best Lawyers recognizes newer attorneys for outstanding legal excellence throughout the United States through its "Ones to Watch" awards. Recipients typically have been in practice less than 10 years, making the peer recognition even more significant.
About Cory Watson Attorneys
Cory Watson Attorneys is a nationally recognized personal injury law firm with offices in Birmingham, Alabama, and Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee. The firm has recovered more than $4 billion for clients across the country and is frequently at the forefront of major class actions and multidistrict litigation involving dangerous pharmaceuticals and product liability, often serving in leadership positions in national cases. Firm practice areas include Personal Injury, Product Liability, Class Action, Asbestos, Business & Commercial Litigation, Dangerous Pharmaceuticals, Defective Medical Devices, and Environmental/Toxic Torts.
Want to learn more about our award-winning attorneys? Meet our team.