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Tom is a trial lawyer with expertise in business litigation, and particularly in cases involving construction law, employment law, intellectual property, general commercial law and international law. Tom heads both the General Counsel Group and the Construction Law Group of LeClairRyan. He is listed in The Best Lawyers in America, an honor bestowed on the top 1% of lawyers as a result of peer surveys, and has been recognized repeatedly by Virginia Business magazine as one of Virginia's "Legal Elite" and Law and Politics magazine as a Virginia Super Lawyer for both civil litigation and construction law. Tom acts as general counsel to a number of companies. He is Immediate Past President of the International Alliance of Law Firms, a network of business-oriented law firms from around the world. He is active in a number of construction-related industry groups. Tom is a frequent lecturer on construction law, product liability, employment law and international law both in the States and abroad. He is a member of the American Bar Association (Litigation Section, International Law Section, and Forum Committee on the Construction Industry). He has served the Virginia State Bar as Chair of both the International Practice Section and the Construction Law and Public Contracts Section. Notable Cases Senior member of trial team that won then largest jury verdict in Virginia history - $100.5 million against Nationwide Insurance. Defense verdict in 8-week jury trial in federal court. Plaintiffs sought $100 million in compensatory and punitive damages for alleged misconduct in connection with the construction and operation of an INS detention facility. Successful defense of asbestos manufacturer in $1 billion case to remove asbestos from all state-owned buildings in Virginia Successful defense of European pharmaceutical company in case challenging safety of world's number one prescription drug. Successful defense of $100 million class action in federal court in Alabama. Victory on behalf of owner of power plant in three-week trial in federal court on $61 million contract claim--$11 million verdict for owner and zero to contractor on claims of $50 million. First RICO decision against a major brokerage house--Donato v. Merrill Lynch, 1988 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11116. First jury verdict in favor of a software user against a computer consulting firm for malpractice in the implementation of SAP R/3 Teaching Tom has served as Adjunct Professor teaching Construction Law for the T.C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond since 1986. Languages Fluent in French. Working knowledge of Spanish and Italian. Othe Commissioner, Virginia Port Authority, 2007-- Member, Governor Kaine’s Transition Committee Chair, LeClair Ryan Diversity Committee Member, Old Dominion Bar Association Member, Metropolitan Richmond Women’s Bar Association Board Member: HomeAgain, Inc. Virginia Poverty Law Center Greater Richmond Bar Foundation. Legal Experience LeClairRyan, Richmond, Virginia, 2002 - present Mezzullo & McCandlish (now McCandlish Holton), Richmond, Virginia, 1982 - 2001 McGuire Woods, Richmond, Virginia, 1978 - 1982 Rhône Poulenc, S.A., Paris, France, 1978 Imperial Chemical Industries PLC, London, England, 1977 Education Vanderbilt University School of Law, Order of the Coif, J.D. 1977 Vanderbilt University, B.A., cum laude, 1973. | 