Neal has spent his career defending and trying cases involving personal injury and death. He specializes in complex product liability matters, working closely with professionals in industrial and commercial enterprises to defend claims of allegedly defective devices and equipment. He has defended hotels and restaurants from Mobile to Huntsville involved in personal injury and food poisoning cases.  His work as a young lawyer on automobile liability matters led to his current work (as a not-so-young lawyer) on behalf of commercial carriers.  In addition to his personal injury work, Neal specializes in the financial regulations governing lenders and debt collectors. A popular speaker, Neal has written and lectured on a variety of topics, including legal ethics and training for young lawyers. He was honored to serve on the Board of Directors for the Alabama Defense Lawyers Association and as a repeat instructor at the Young Lawyers Deposition Boot Camp.  In 2012, Neal was awarded the designation of Certified Litigation Management Professional from the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance, and has completed Alabama’s required instruction for civil mediation from Alabama Mediation Training.

Neal and his wife, Kelley, have two children that are a constant source of pride and worry. In addition to his professional affiliations, Neal is one of the few Georgia Bulldog Club members brave enough to live in Alabama, and he is a four-decade-long member of the KISS army.

Admissions:

  • Alabama
  • U.S. District Court Northern District of Alabama
  • U.S. District Court Middle District of Alabama
  • U.S. District Court Southern District of Alabama
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit
  • United States Supreme Court

Practice Areas:

  • Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • Bankruptcy & Restructuring
  • Business Services and Commercial Litigation
  • Class Actions & Toxic Torts
  • Insurance
  • Professional Liability
  • Product Liability
  • Retail and Hospitality
  • Transportation

Education:

  • The University of Georgia, B.A., cum laude
  • Cumberland School of Law, Samford University, J.D., Cumberland Law Review

Professional and Community Involvement:

  • International Association of Defense Counsel
  • Alabama Defense Lawyers Association; Board of Directors 2008-2011
  • American Bar Association
  • Birmingham Bar Association
  • Defense Research Institute
  • The Association of Credit and Collection Professionals (ASA)

Awards and Recognition:

  • Certified Litigation Management Professional (CLM)
  • ACA International Scholar

Publications and Presentations:

  • Presenter, CPCU Atlanta I-Day: 2019-2022 Trial Techniques
  • Presenter, Matt Stone Trucking Seminar – Oct 2016
  • Presenter, AIG Insurance Seminar – Mediation Issues/Settlement Strategies – September 2016
  • Presenter, CPCU Atlanta Chapter I-Day – August 2016
  • Presenter, CPCU Atlanta Chapter I-Day –  March 2015
  • Presenter, FDCPA and Collecting the Judgment sponsored by National Business Institute – May 2014
  • Presenter, Atlanta CPCU I-Day 2014: The Challenges of International Product Liability Losses – February 2014
  • Quoted in ACA International’s The Paper, ‘Communicating in Collections’, January 2013
  • “Waiver of Alabama’s Psychotherapist-Patient Privilege through Assertion of Claims for Specific Mental Disorders”; Alabama Defense Lawyers Association Journal, October 2010
  • “Modern Technology and Juror Misconduct: Faster and Smarter”; Alabama Defense Lawyers Association Journal, October 2009
  • Interviewed to provide defense perspective in the feature article “Consumer Lawyers Find Niche Suing Debt Collectors” published April 7, 2009, by LawyersUSA (www.lawyersusaonline.com)
  • “Inherent Obligations: When Investigation Reveals a Conflict”; For the Defense, January 2005