Paulina Lawyers

Melissa Hemmans is an experienced Litigation Attorney in Kean Millers's Baton Rouge office. Her practice includes Petrochemical, Manufacturing, Municipal, Civil Rights Defense, Oil and Gas, and Local Business matters. She has extensive experience with cases involving Toxic Tort and Environmental claims. Melissa is dedicated to providing clients with creative solutions, unique strategies, and unparalleled value.

In 1996, Melissa received her B.A. from Louisiana State University. She obtained her J.D. from the LSU Law Center in 1999. Melissa is admitted to practice law in the State of Louisiana, United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit, United States District Courts for the Eastern,...

Ben Jumonville is an associate in the Baton Rouge office of Kean Miller.

Richard McConnell is a partner in the Baton Rouge office of Kean Miller. He is trial counsel for energy and financial companies in high stakes lawsuits involving a wide variety of claims. Prior cases involved soil and groundwater contamination, wetlands loss, toxic tort exposure, lost mineral leasing opportunities, mineral lease cancellation, pipeline right-of-way claims, expropriation/condemnation, and commercial litigation. Richard also serves as appellate counsel arguing before state and federal appellate courts.

Richard’s recent experience includes obtaining a successful verdict as trial counsel for national pipeline companies in a wetlands loss lawsuit involving canals that widened over time, he was lead...

Matthew Meiners is a partner in the Baton Rouge office of Kean Miller. He joined the firm in 2009 and practices in the business and corporate group. Matthew has experience in the drafting and negotiation of numerous industrial service and purchase agreements. He also has experience representing numerous individuals and small businesses in connection with acquisitions and divestitures of their respective businesses and with formation of new entities, including drafting organizational documents and planning of overall corporate structure.

Matthew earned his B.S. in International Trade and Finance with a minor in Economics from Louisiana State University in 1998. He earned his...

Gayla Moncla is a partner in the Baton Rouge office of Kean Miller and practices in the areas of toxic tort and environmental litigation, premises liability, and commercial litigation. She has more than 25 years of experience in the chemical and petrochemical industries, defending workplace accidents, chemical exposure cases, products liability cases, as well as advising clients regarding workplace safety issues and OSHA regulations. Gayla also has experience in retail premises litigation having defended retail clients for over 25 years.

Gayla earned her B.S. from Louisiana State University in 1973. She earned her J.D. in 1989 from the LSU Law Center...

Bob Hawthorne is of counsel to the Baton Rouge office of Kean Miller. He is one of the founding members of the firm and practices in the estate planning and probate, business and corporate, and real estate groups. Bob represents clients in the finance, acquisition, construction, purchase, refinancing, management, leasing and sale of various types of real estate developments, both commercial and residential, including office buildings, shopping malls, manufacturing facilities, retail centers, industrial facilities, and commercial developments.

Bob advises business and corporate clients with regard to commercial lending transactions, financings, and the structure and formation of corporate entities. He has extensive...

Dana Brent Brown is the Managing Attorney of The Law Offices of Ossie Brown. He was born and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and he is the son of former East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Ossie and Faye Brown, a retired teacher. Dana has managed The Law Offices of Ossie Brown since his father’s retirement in 2000.

Victoria Alford joined Arnold & Itkin LLP in 2011. Today, she spends much of her time guiding the firm’s newest clients through the initial steps of their case while handling her own caseload. Victoria is the first point of contact for almost all clients and is a key part of the firm's—and the client’s—success. Most of the firm’s record-setting cases involve clients whom Ms. Alford spoke to when they first called for help, like a young man who suffered life-threatening injuries in a refinery accident. He eventually reached an $87 million settlement.

Victoria has dedicated her career to helping people in...

Jeffrey W. Weiss attended high school at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, from which he graduated with honors, and college at Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, California, from which he received a B.A. degree in 1983, graduating magna cum laude, with honors in economics. Upon graduation from Claremont McKenna College, Jeff was admitted to Phi Beta Kappa.

Jeff obtained his Juris Doctorate degree from Tulane School of Law in 1986, from which he graduated summa cum laude. At Tulane, Jeff served as a member of the Tulane Law Review, and was admitted to the Order of the Coif honor society.

Jeff has...

Susan is originally from Monroe, Louisiana and is a mother of two. Susan is a graduate of Louisiana Tech University and Southern University Law Center. After becoming a member of the Louisiana State Bar Association in 1998, she began her career at The Law Office of Ossie Brown in 1999. She also served as an Assistant Public Defender from 2000 to 2008 with the Baton Rouge Public Defender’s Office. Susan’s areas of practice include: Criminal Defense, Personal Injury, DWI, and Traffic Offenses.

Kris is a father of two and has been a resident of Baton Rouge since attending LSU in 1993. While at LSU, Kris, a two-time letterman, was a special teams captain for the LSU Tigers football team and recipient of the LSU Scholar Athlete’s Award. Since graduating LSU Law School in 2000, Kris has made an impression by helping hundreds in the courtroom and volunteering in the community.

I focus my practice on intellectual property and environmental regulatory matters, while also handling cases related to energy, administrative law, and utility regulation. As a registered Patent Attorney authorized to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, I have filed both provisional and non-provisional patent applications. My work includes drafting and negotiating licensing agreements and assignments for trade secrets, patents, trademarks, and other intellectual property concerns. Additionally, I assist clients with intellectual property protection, transactions, and litigation matters. My previous experience includes engaging with state and federal agencies in environmental regulatory proceedings. This involved drafting nine-factor analyses in response to...

Shane Sandefer is a partner in the Baton Rouge office of Kean Miller. He practices in the business transactions and environmental law groups and is a Registered Professional Engineer. Shane represents local, regional, and national clients in a variety of real estate, finance, and environmental matters including, industrial and commercial real estate transactions, title insurance matters, general preparation and negotiation, regulatory proceedings, wetlands permitting, wetlands mitigation, and state and federal environmental advice. Prior to law school, Shane was a project engineer for Turner Environmental and a senior staff engineer for URS. He also served as an assistant project manager for...

I was born and raised in Lafayette, Louisiana, living there until I was 21 years old, when I moved to New Orleans for law school. I have vivid memories of being a child and arguing with my father – who is a lawyer – about something, and after I had made my point, he would stare at me silently, then look down, shake his head, and say “gosh you’d be a good lawyer.” And because of that, I just always knew I was going to go to law school. I tried to stray from that path a few times – my...

Dylan is an associate at Denechaud & Denechaud. He was born in Melbourne, Australia. Dylan graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Melbourne and earned a Juris Doctor cum laude and a Master of Arts from the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. In law school, Dylan was a senior editor on law review and a moot court participant. Following law school, he clerked for the Honorable Donald E. Rysavy and the Honorable Fred W. Wellmann in Minnesota’s Third Judicial District. Dylan met his Covington-born wife while studying abroad in Germany. They live in New Orleans with...

Dually-licensed Attorney-CPA serving the tax planning & compliance, business law & planning, and accounting needs of domestic and foreign businesses, including their entrepreneurial owners. Currently owns and operates a multidisciplinary practice since 2012. Prior to 2012, spent over 10 years' professional experience within the "Big 4" global firms, including the Washington National Tax Office of one "Big 4" firm and the New York M&A-Transactions practice of another "Big 4" firm, having significant Director/Senior Manager-level experience. Licensed as both an Attorney (DC) and CPA (DC, FL, LA).

Megan handles cases in the greater New Orleans area and around Louisiana. She is nationally ranked in the top ten personal injuries under 40* and in the top ten personal injury attorneys in Louisiana. She is a trial attorney who has a proven track record in and out of court. She has a reputation as a fierce litigator and fights hard for her clients to get them the justice and compensation that they deserve. She has handled cases involving car accidents, motorcycle accidents, trucking accidents, severe spinal injuries, traumatic brain injuries, wrongful death, sexual harassment and assault,...

Christopher L. Williams focuses his practice on complex employment litigation, including cases involving violations of wage-and-hour laws, employment discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation, unpaid wages, breach of contract, whistleblower claims, and non-compete issues. After working for some of the nation’s largest labor-and-employment law firms, he opened his own practice in 2014 to concentrate on protecting the rights of workers and employees. Mr. Williams draws on his previous experience representing employers to provide legal advice to individuals regarding potential claims and legal remedies under state and federal employment laws. Mr. Williams has litigated a wide variety of employment issues in...

Mr. Nance has a general practice with special focus on all aspects of the Internet, entertainment, media, business and construction law, state and federal civil litigation. He has over 21 years of experience practicing law in Europe, South America and the US, including experience in litigation and administrative hearings as well as first-chair jury trial experience.

Mr. Nance speaks fluent English, German, Spanish and conversational Polish and French, having earned a bachelor's degree in German and Spanish from the University of Texas at Austin in 1990 and a J.D. in civil and common law from Loyola University School of Law, New...

Malveau Law Firm, L.L.C. provides legal representation for clients with Criminal, Family, Juvenile, Personal Injury, Traffic & Municipal matters in the New Orleans metropolitan area.

"Having been involved in a catastrophic car wreck only a few years ago, I know exactly what's it like to be laid up in a hospital for days, not be able to work or do normal daily activities for months at a time, and stuck wondering how you'll pay for a new car or your medical bills. I know the aggravation and frustration that my clients have because they can't drive, have to go to treatment, or simply hate waking up in the morning because they're sore. It's because of this first-hand knowledge that I am able to relate to...

I bring a unique business perspective to our clients, drawing from my background as a former in-house attorney. My areas of focus include corporate and transactional opportunities, employment issues, licensing challenges, workers' compensation claims, wage and hour concerns, local permitting, and general corporate governance. I concentrate my practice on business and transactional matters, with a wealth of experience in labor and employment, entity formation, business licensing, commercial and restaurant leases, vendor contracts, lease extensions and disputes, purchase agreements, title curative work, landlord and tenant issues, and special event permitting. My nearly 20 years as an in-house counsel have equipped me with...

Michael D. Allday experiences range from the representation of clients in local commercial matters, family disputes, personal injury and bankruptcy to the representation of large corporations in international arbitration, including the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal at the Hague. In today’s competitive environment, Michael D. Allday law office has the advantage of combining large firm experience with personal attention to clients’ needs at affordable rates. Every client receives “hands on” attention, and your goals and needs are the top priority. When necessary, Michael D. Allday has a network of respected colleagues in those areas of law that require a high degree of...