Five more shareholders added at Chambliss Law

Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel, P.C., announce that Catherine Dorvil, Christopher Hennen, Willa Kalaidjian, Andrew Leffler, and Laura McKinney have become shareholders at the firm. The new class of shareholders is the largest group of attorneys the law firm has promoted in the past decade and reflects Chambliss’ focused development of its next generation of diverse leaders. Their respective practice areas cover litigation, health care, mergers and acquisitions, real estate, and corporate governance and commercial transactions.

Dorvil, a member of the firm’s litigation and health care sections, has extensive experience representing clients before administrative, state, and federal courts. Prior to joining Chambliss, Dorvil worked as a commercial litigator for the national firm of Hogan Lovells US LLP in Miami where she was honored with the 40 Under 40 Outstanding Lawyers of Miami-Dade County Award.

Serving in the firm’s business and mergers and acquisitions sections, Hennen focuses his practice in the areas of general corporate matters, asset and stock purchase transactions, preparation and negotiation of commercial contracts, entity formation and structure, corporate governance, and similar corporate matters and business transactions. He is a founding member of Chambliss Startup Group.

Kalaidjian chairs the Chambliss Startup Group and is a member of the firm’s business and real estate sections. Entrepreneurs, emerging growth companies, and investors turn to her for counsel on entity choice and incorporation, intellectual property and technology rights, and investment and commercial transactions. In addition, she advises some of Chambliss’ top clients on commercial and business transactions, environmental matters, telecommunications and energy law, and real estate. Kalaidjian regularly speaks and mentors at The Company Lab, a predominant Chattanooga-based startup incubator, and is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association Environmental Law Section Executive Council, serving as chair of the section in 2016.

Leffler advises regional and national real estate clients on all sides of the deal from contract to closing, whether seller, buyer, lender, landlord, tenant, or investor. He also assists with issues and disputes that arise after the closing, including easement and reciprocal rights agreements, owners association issues, and financial workouts. Prior to joining Chambliss, he practiced law at a boutique real estate firm in New York City for seven years. Leffler currently serves on the board for the North Chickamauga Creek Conservancy and has participated in the tnAchieves program.

McKinney has over a decade of domestic and international transactional experience and practices in the firm’s business and mergers and acquisitions sections. Before joining Chambliss, she practiced law at the international firm of Debevoise & Plimpton LLP in New York, advising clients on complex cross-border transactions and joint ventures. McKinney is an active member of the Chattanooga Women’s Leadership institute.