About

About Alabama Appellate Watch

Alabama Appellate Watch is a web blog devoted to Alabama civil appellate issues. This site was created and is maintained by the Birmingham, Alabama law firm of Lightfoot, Franklin & White, L.L.C. 


About the Authors

Ivan B. Cooper

 
Ivan's practice is focused primarily on written and appellate advocacy in both state and federal courts. He is admitted to practice in Alabama and Texas, as well as the United States Supreme Court, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Ivan is a member of several appellate organizations, and served as past Chair to the Appellate Practice Section of the Alabama State Bar. He can be reached at icooper@lfwlaw.com


Areas of Practice:

  • Appellate
Education:
  • J.D., Vanderbilt University Law School, 1994.
  • B.S., University of Alabama, 1991, magna cum laude.
Bar Admissions:
  • Texas, 1996
  • Alabama, 1994

Madeline H. Haikala

Madeline helped the firm develop its specialization in post-trial and appellate work. She has enjoyed representing a broad spectrum of clients who have engaged Lightfoot, Franklin to obtain relief from multi-million dollar compensatory and punitive damages verdicts, and she has had the pleasure of briefing many issues of first impression in the Alabama Supreme Court and in the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. She can be reached at mhaikala@lfwlaw.com


Areas of Practice:

  • Appellate
Education:
  • J.D., Tulane University School of Law, 1989, magna cum laude.
  • B.A., William College, 1986.
Admissions:
  • Alabama, 1989

Nikaa Jordan

Nikaa's practices is devoted to brief-writing at all phases of litigation. The focus of her trial-level work is the exclusion of expert testimony and complex dispositive motions. She has written briefs in support of excluding a host of expert witnesses, including physicians, toxicologists, economists, and alternative design theorists.  Nikaa's post-trial and appellate work also touches on a range of issues--including bad-faith, ERISA, toxic torts, and products liability. She can be reached at  njordan@lfwlaw.com


Areas of Practice:

  • Appellate
  • Business Litigation

Education:

  • J.D., University of Alabama School of Law, 2000, magna cum laude.
  • B.S., Auburn University, 1996, summa cum laude.
Bar Admissions:
  • Alabama, 2000

M. Christian King

Chris was one of the founding partners of the firm in 1990 and currently serves as its Managing Partner. He focuses his practice on handling high stakes litigation, often involving class action allegations or significant punitive damages claims, at both the trial and appellate levels. He has handled high exposure cases throughout the Southeast, and has tried a number of them to verdict. Chris is often retained post-verdict to handle post-trial motions and appeals in cases he did not try.  He can be reached at cking@lfwlaw.com


Areas of Practice:

  • Appellate
  • Consumer Fraud and Bad Faith
  • Business Litigation
  • Software and Technology Litigation
  • Class Actions
  • Environmental and Toxic Torts

Education:

  • J.D., University of Virginia School of Law, 1982.
  • B.A., Rhodes College, 1979, with distinction.
Bar Admissions:
  • Alabama, 1982

Craig N. Rosler

Craig's practice focuses exclusively on brief-writing, both for post-trial and appellate work, as well as in support of trial. His trial work centers on case-dispositive practice and the exclusion of expert testimony. In the latter area he has dealt with testimony ranging from alternative product designs, to toxicological and epidemiological analyses, to economic modeling. In his personal time, he uses his legal experience in the service of animal rights and welfare. He can be reached at crosler@lfwlaw.com


Areas of Practice:

  • Appellate
  • Class Actions
  • Consumer Fraud and Bad Faith
  • Product Liability

Education:

  • J.D., Duke University School of Law, 1995, with honors.
  • B.A., University of Pennsylvania, 1991, cum laude. Honors program in major.
Bar Admissions:
  • Alabama, 1998
  • Georgia, 1995

About Lightfoot, Franklin & White, L.L.C

Lightfoot, Franklin & White is one of the largest litigation-only law firms in the Southeast. Representing many of the world's leading corporations in such varied industries as financial services, manufacturing, energy and communications, our fifty-five lawyers bring a wealth of trial and appellate exerience to bear. Lightfoot, Franklin & White: When it matters.

For more information, log on at www.lfwlaw.com