MSP partner Chris Jackson has been appointed to serve on the Board of Governors for the State Bar of Georgia by State Bar President, Sally Akins. Chris joins Andy Davis in representing the Rome Judicial Circuit on the Board of Governors, the statewide governing and policy-making body for lawyers in Georgia. Chris’s appointment fills the remaining term of Rome attorney, Chris Twyman, who has been elected Secretary of the State Bar, vacating his post as a representative from Rome.
MSP is proud to have been a firm sponsor of Heart of the Community this year. In the 36 years since its beginning, the Heart of the Community Foundation has continued to raise money to support heart-related projects in the Rome community. Seen here are Chair Elect Chris Jackson, who spoke at the event on Saturday, and Lint Johnson.
MSP Partner Virginia Harman has been announced as the new Chair of the Georgia Conservancy’s Board of Trustees, succeeding Dr. Mark Berry.
For immediate release:
A Georgia native and lifelong resident, Virginia Harman began her legal career as one of the first two women to serve as Assistant District Attorney in the Lookout Mountain Judicial District. In 1993, she became the first woman partner at McRae, Smith, Peek, Harman & Monroe, a 123-year-old law firm. She is a member of the Bar of the U.S. Tax Court and has served as a member of both the Investigative and Review Panels of the State Bar of Georgia’s Disciplinary Board. Since 2006, Harman has served as a Special Assistant Attorney General for the State of Georgia. Georgia Trend Magazine has recognized Harman as one of Georgia’s “Legal Elite” and she was named by CEO Monthly “Leading Business Women of the Year” for 2018.
As a civic leader in Northwest Georgia and beyond, Harman has served as Chair of and current member of the Legal Counsel Section of the Georgia Bankers Association, as well as Chair of the Board and legal counsel for Cancer Navigators, Inc., a nonprofit serving cancer patients and their families in Northwest Georgia. She is also active in supporting the local free legal clinic for U.S. veterans and local animal rescue initiatives through the North Georgia Animal Partnership. She has served on the Georgia Conservancy Board of Trustees since 2019.
Harman holds a law degree from the University of Georgia and a bachelor’s degree from Georgia State University. She is the proud mother of three children and grandmother to two grandchildren.
“The Georgia Conservancy has a rich history of action and leadership after careful deliberation on matters involving stewardship of Georgia’s natural resources,” says Harman. “It is an organization where business leaders who are also conservationists can find a seat at a table to make a positive impact. I have been a proud member of the Georgia Conservancy for many years and look forward to working with our Trustees, partners and staff to see our organization thrive and maintain its role in protecting our state’s remarkable resources long into the future.”
Harman succeeds Dr. Mark Berry as Board Chair, a position that Dr. Berry held for two years and one from which he oversaw a number of positive changes and events, including the development of a new three-year strategic plan and the hiring of Georgia Conservancy President Katherine Moore.
“Since joining the Board of Trustees, Virginia has been an incredible resource for the Georgia Conservancy and a steadfast champion for our state’s natural resources,” says Georgia Conservancy President Katherine Moore. “As we celebrate our 55 years as an organization, the staff of the Georgia Conservancy is beyond excited to welcome Virginia into her new role as Board Chair. Her wise guidance and passion for conservation lead us into an exciting future for Georgia’s land, water and communities.”
Founded in 1967, the Georgia Conservancy’s mission is to protect Georgia through ecological and economic solutions for stewardship, conservation, and sustainable use of the land and its resources. www.georgiaconservancy.org
Since the pandemic, MSP, through our Rome and Cedartown offices, has performed over 1,700 real estate closings throughout Georgia, with most in Northwest Georgia. These closings involved all types of deals ranging from residential purchases to multi-million dollar commercial transactions. MSP has represented or assisted lenders, realtors, institutional clients, and individual purchasers/sellers. These have been unusual times with closings taking place remotely, outside, in cars or with people in separate rooms. MSP is glad we could help navigate what can already be a stressful situation, plus being coupled with the unknown of COVID protocols and restrictions. We especially appreciate everyone that we’ve had the opportunity to help, and feel truly blessed to practice law in the communities of Northwest Georgia. Thank you!
Jason Sanker recently filed and argued a successful motion for summary judgment in a slip and fall case he was defending in the Superior Court of Bartow County, Georgia. Jason represented a condominium association which had been sued by the plaintiff who alleged the association was at fault for his fall and resulting injuries. As a result of this successful motion Jason’s client was found not to be at fault and was been dismissed from the case.
Rob Monroe recently settled a slip and fall case against a local restaurant for $325,000. Rob’s client slipped in a wet area of the restaurant, shattering her tibial plateau and requiring several surgeries. The restaurant continually denied any responsibility. But Rob was able to prove that the area had not been cleaned in several hours and that it was actually the restaurant’s negligence that caused the client’s injuries.
The official mascot of MSP, seen here biting into her legal problems.
McRae, Smith, Peek, Harman & Monroe, LLP is pleased to announce the election of Linton S. Johnson, III as Partner at the firm as of January 1, 2022. After nearly a decade of litigation practice in the metro-Atlanta area, Lint began working for the firm in 2016. His experience in a multitude of courtrooms around the state of Georgia has provided for an expansion of his practice areas to include domestic/family law, criminal defense, probate disputes, commercial and business litigation, creditor collections, condemnations, and local government law.
Lint is a “Double Dawg”, having earned both his undergraduate and law degrees at the University of Georgia, the 2021 College Football National Champions. He currently serves as the Vice-President of the Rome Bar Association, is a graduate of Leadership Rome, Class XXXVI, and is a Board Member of Open Door Home, a non-profit which provides for the needs of underprivileged older children and teenagers of Northwest Georgia.
Lint basks in spending his free time with his two beautiful daughters, Emory (10) and Kennedy (8). They all enjoy weekend soccer tournaments, camping/hiking, Georgia football, and trying to outsmart each other in a game of chess.
MSP Partner Chris Jackson recently settled a personal injury case for $125,000 on behalf of a local driver. Chris’s client’s vehicle was struck on the driver’s side door when the at-fault driver failed to yield while turning onto Turner McCall Boulevard. The client sustained cracked ribs and a broken finger, but has thankfully made a full recovery.
MSP and Partner Virginia Harman were honored to host a reception on November 17, 2021 for Mark Ponter one of the Directors The African Wildlife Foundation. In his “Sikeleli Talk” Mark spoke eloquently and passionately about efforts to preserve iconic species such as the rhino which are being targeted for their horns by poachers throughout Africa. The horn is sold in Asian markets as an aphrodisiac despite being nothing more than keratin, the same thing your finger nails are made of. These same Asian markets pose a threat to fresh water turtles and black bears here in the Southeast. The International Anti-Poaching Foundation’s all woman ranger squad known as the Askashinga, shown in the photo, have been uniquely successful and Mark explained that the all-female units have been used as a model around Africa to fight poaching.
