Ball Janik LLP’s Construction Litigation Practice Growing: Firm Hires Attorneys to Accommodate Growth
07/25/2012
Ball Janik LLP is pleased to announce Wendy J. Paris and Amy J. Heverly have joined the firm’s Portland office, supporting its growing construction litigation practice. With increased demand for legal services in the construction litigation arena, Ball Janik LLP is responding to market demand by adding to its talented pool of lawyers. “Adding Wendy Paris and Amy Heverly to the team underscores our pursuit of excellence in this niche. Paris’s 15 years of in-house insurance experience gives clients a distinct advantage when handling construction claims and suits,” said Phillip Joseph, co-chair of Ball Janik LLP’s construction litigation practice. “Paris brings a unique, invaluable ‘insider’s perspective’ on these types of cases,” he added.
Wendy J. Paris joins the firm as Of Counsel in the Portland office of Ball Janik LLP. Ms. Paris represents individual and corporate policyholders in insurance coverage disputes specific to commercial and residential construction defect cases. She is an accomplished litigator with over twenty-three years of experience. Her past experience includes prosecuting and defending construction defect, product liability, and general liability claims. Ms. Paris has worked with and in the insurance industry for over fifteen years, including serving as Senior Claim Counsel at Travelers Insurance Co., Managing Attorney at Zurich North American Insurance Co., and Senior Trial Counsel at Fireman’s Fund Insurance. Ms. Paris received her J.D. from the Northwestern School of Law of Lewis & Clark College and her B.A. from Marquette University. She is licensed to practice in Oregon and Washington, and to appear before the U.S. District Court of Oregon and the Ninth District Court of Appeals.
Amy J. Heverly is an associate in the construction litigation practice. Before joining Ball Janik LLP, Ms. Heverly was an appellate judicial clerk for the Honorable Rebecca A. Duncan and the Honorable Walt I. Edmonds at the Oregon Court of Appeals. During law school, Ms. Heverly worked as a law clerk concentrating on construction litigation, insurance coverage, and personal injury cases, and she was the Editor in Chief of the Lewis & Clark Law Review. Ms. Heverly is a member of the Appellate Practice and Construction Law sections of the Oregon State Bar and is also a member of Oregon Women Lawyers. Ms. Heverly received her J.D., cum laude, in 2008 from the Northwestern School of Law of Lewis & Clark College. She earned her B.A., with honors, from the University of Iowa in 2006.
Ball Janik LLP’s construction litigation practice relies on an aggressive, experienced team of creative litigators, skilled at prosecuting and defending design and construction defect claims. The firm represents commercial property owners and residential owners of single-family residences, community associations of subdivisions, condominiums and townhomes, apartments, hotels, schools, retirement facilities, retail stores, offices and shopping centers. As plaintiff’s counsel, the firm has secured tens of millions of dollars in judgments and settlements for clients. The firm also defends developers and general contractors in design and construction litigation. Ball Janik LLP has built one of the Pacific Northwest’s premiere commercial litigation practices, perennially ranked as an industry leader by Chambers USA. “Guided by a pragmatic and cost-effective, client-centered approach, the results we achieve speak volumes,” stated James McDermott, chair of the litigation practice. “We are excited to add Wendy Paris and Amy Heverly to the Ball Janik team.”
