Colonel (R) Greg Gunter is a 30-year Army veteran and we were both commissioned as U.S. Army Second Lieutenants on the same day in May 1984 from the University of Arizona. My Sigma Chi fraternity brothers liked Greg so much that we offered him a bid late in his college career. Greg went through pledgeship in the spring of his junior year so that we could be fraternity brothers and have an uproarious senior year. As it turned out, Greg's father was a Sigma Chi, Beta Phi Chapter, at the University of Arizona and his mother was the Sweetheart of Sigma Chi. I was in New Orleans for a legal conference some years back and I did a couple of Next Lawyer Up podcasts, and while there, I also did one with Greg so that we could commemorate a little bit of our history for posterity's sake. Greg lives in New Orleans after retiring from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He is a great guy and I hope you like this little bit of personal history!
William Messervy is a highly respected personal injury attorney with the Huntsville firm of Timberlake, League and Brooks. You can also listen to previous podcast episodes with Michael Timberlake here and Will League here. In addition, this law firm sponsors the popular LawCall show on WAAY/ABC 31 on Sunday nights at 10:30pm. As you’ll hear, William has been working at that same firm, in some form or fashion, since high school! William gives back to the community and is a strong believer in pro bono work, as reflected by his receipt of the Order of the Samaritan from the University of Alabama School of Law and his work on the board of the Madison County Volunteer Lawyers Program. I enjoyed getting to know his history on this episode of the podcast.
Michael Harrison is one of the preeminent creditor’s attorneys in the state of Alabama. I know Michael’s skill level from first-hand knowledge, since he initially worked with Bond and Botes here in Huntsville many years ago, right after he graduated from law school. He subsequently moved back to Birmingham and has been with his law firm, Key, Greer, Harrison and Casey, for the past 25 years or so. Michael specializes in the area of creditors bankruptcy representation, and he works throughout the state of Alabama in all of the bankruptcy courts in the state. He is highly regarded and, as you'll hear, he has a warm and engaging spirit and is eminently likable. I really enjoyed catching up with Michael on this episode of the podcast.
I have known Morgan Stangle for probably 25 years or so. He is a close friend and a great guy! I have always observed that people like being around Morgan. As he mentions on the podcast, he is a “glass half full” kind of guy, and he has an easy-going nature. Morgan is the one person that I know where his work life always interfered with his various and assorted weekend hobbies and interests. As you’ll hear, Morgan is now busier in retirement than when he was working!
I know attorney Robert Geller as a fellow member of the American Consumer Bankruptcy College. As you’ll hear, Robert is personable, thoughtful, engaging and intelligent. His main office is located in Tampa, Florida and he practices in the areas of consumer bankruptcy, personal injury, family law and immigration. South Floridians are fortunate to have such an accomplished attorney available to represent them. I enjoyed getting to know Robert’s story on this episode of the podcast and I hope you like it too!
Attorney Andrew Jennings is currently an assistant law professor at Brooklyn Law School. Prior to that, he served as a teaching fellow and lecturer in law at Stanford University School of Law. Andrew’s “side job” is serving as the creator and moderator of the Business Scholarship Podcast, which is how he came to my attention. A number of lawyers that I know have mentioned that this is one of their favorite podcasts. These podcasts contain intellectual and cutting edge legal and business issues. Please listen to his podcasts when you get a chance. I think you’ll enjoy getting to know Andrew’s history on this episode of Next Lawyer Up.
This episode of the Next Lawyer Up podcast features retired bankruptcy judge, the Honorable Keith Lundin. For those of us who practice in the bankruptcy world, Judge Lundin is a universally known name. Judge (Ret) Lundin sat on the bench for the Middle District of Tennessee in Nashville for 34 years. Before that, he served as the chapter 13 bankruptcy trustee for the Middle District of Tennessee. What I found interesting, and did not realize, is that Henry (Hank) Hildebrand became the chapter 13 trustee one day before Judge Lundin took the bench. Judge Lundin and Hank are also renowned for putting on their CLE bankruptcy “road show” several times each year, which is a “must-attend” continuing legal education for bankruptcy practitioners. Judge Lundin has authored and co-authored several books and keeps his hands involved in bankruptcy on a daily basis as reflected by his website, LundinonChapter13.com. Judge Lundin also serves as the Managing Editor of the Norton Bankruptcy Law Adviser (Thomson Reuters). I enjoyed talking to Judge Lundin and getting to know his career path on this episode of the podcast.
Student loan debt in our country is at an alarming and disturbing level. Of the approximately 1.6 trillion dollars of student loan debt, approximately 6% of the total is 90 days past due or in default with the average student loan debt at approximately $37,000 per borrower. For many consumers in our country, this feels like an albatross that will never go away in their lifetime. On top of that, if someone is behind on student loan debt, there is the overwhelming worry if the debt is in some various stage of collections. Fortunately, there is a great resource for people in trouble or concerned with their student loans. This episode of the Next Lawyer Up podcast features attorney Joshua Cohen. Josh is The Student Loan Lawyer. If you have trouble, concerns or questions regarding your student loans, go to Josh’s website and see how he can help and assist you. You’ll find Josh engaging on this podcast and you’ll hear his wealth of knowledge regarding everything student loan related. I enjoyed catching up with Josh on this podcast and I think you’ll enjoy hearing about his life and his exclusive work in the area of student loans.
This episode of the Next Lawyer Up podcast features Bart Stichman. There has been a lot of discussion in our country over the last couple of decades about how we, as a nation, need to do more for our veterans. To that end, I can’t imagine that there are many individuals who have done more for veterans, whether they know it or not, than attorney Bart Stichman. Even with high-flying degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, New York University School of Law and Georgetown University Law Center, Bart has kept a singular focus on doing public interest law for his life’s work. Beyond that, he has focused his entire forty plus year legal career devoted to helping veterans get their benefits from the VA. Bart is the co-founder and current executive director of the National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP). Bart’s litigation efforts through NVLSP have resulted in payment of more than six billion dollars in disability and healthcare benefits to hundreds of thousands of disabled veterans and their families. Additionally, Bart helped organize and currently serves as a trainer for the Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program, which has recruited and trained more than 2,000 volunteer attorneys over the last 25 years to represent those who have appealed to the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims without a representative. Bart is also a co-author of The Veterans Benefits Manual, a 2200 hundred page treatise published by Lexis. This masterwork is a must-have for any attorney practicing in the area of veteran’s law. I enjoyed getting to know Bart on this podcast and I think you will too.
Penny Hays Cauley is the founder and principal of the Hays Cauley, P.C. law firm located in Florence, South Carolina. Penny first formed her law firm years ago in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and subsequently moved to South Carolina when her husband took over as pastor of a church in South Carolina. That, as you’ll hear, unfortunately required Penny to take another bar exam several years removed from law school! Penny is originally from Florida but a fortuitous scholarship brought her to Alabama. Piano performance and business degrees then started her on a career to become a consumer trial lawyer. Penny is an exceptional lawyer and one of the top consumer advocates in the country. I don’t make that statement lightly. I have worked with her on many consumer cases over the years, fifteen or so as she reminds me, and I have seen first hand her compassion, knowledge and desire to help her clients with a legal dexterity that few lawyers possess. It was good to catch up with Penny on this podcast and I think you’ll enjoy hearing her story.