Butler Snow attorneys Orlando R. Richmond, Sr. and Kari L. Sutherland will serve as panelists for a session at the International Association of Defense Counsel’s 2020 Midyear Meeting Feb. 23 in Pebble Beach, Calif. The session titled “Defending Against Punitive Damages” will ask the panel to explore how to prepare for punitive damages in advance of trial, how to leverage legal protections available to defendants facing punitive damages claims and the key issues to consider during trial. More information about the Midyear Meeting can be found here: https://www.iadclaw.org/education-events/cle-events/midyear-meeting/
Recognized as one of Benchmark Litigation’s 2019 Top 100 Trial Lawyers in America, Richmond has nearly 30 years of experience and has served as lead counsel or co-counsel in numerous jury trials in state, federal and military venues. He has tried at least 60 cases to verdict, and his trial practice over the past several years has primarily focused on mass tort litigation involving pharmaceutical products, toxic torts and environmental issues. The breadth of his litigation practice includes municipal law, cases involving serious personal injuries and commercial disputes. Richmond is typically called upon to prepare and try cases in challenging venues with significant amounts in controversy. He has built a commendable reputation for his courtroom presence, calm demeanor and oral advocacy skills.
Richmond is consistently recognized as one of the country’s leading trial attorneys. AmLaw’s The Litigation Daily profiled him as its Litigator of the Week, May 11, 2018 for his work in helping to achieve a defense verdict in a bellwether product liability trial, and Law360 featured him as one of its 2016 Trial Pros. He has also been recognized by a variety of other industry publications, including Chambers USA (Product Liability & Mass Torts – Nationwide), Best Lawyers in America® (Product Liability Litigation – Defendants), Super Lawyers® (Mid-South Super Lawyers, Personal Injury – Products: Defense), Who’s Who Legal: Product Liability Defense and Martindale-Hubbell® (AV-Preeminent Peer Review Rating).
Richmond is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers and the Mississippi Bar Foundation, and is a member of the American Bar Association, the Bar Association of the Fifth Federal Circuit, The Mississippi Bar, the Magnolia Bar Association, the International Association of Defense Counsel and the Capital Area Bar Association. He received his undergraduate degree, cum laude, from Jackson State University and his Juris Doctor from Georgetown University.
Sutherland is a trial attorney who focuses her practice on pharmaceutical and medical device product liability litigation. She has tried many pharmaceutical cases in various jurisdictions across the country. She currently serves as a crucial part of a national counsel team defending prescription medical devices.
Sutherland has been recognized as a Mid-South Super Lawyers for Personal Injury – Products: Defense from 2013-2019 and by Benchmark Litigation as one of its Top 250 Women in Litigation (2016-2019). She also received a 2017 Burton Award and a 2018 Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association “The Quarterly” Editorial Award for her written work.
Sutherland is a member of the American, Mississippi, Tennessee, 5th Circuit and Lafayette County Bar Associations, Defense Research Institute, Fellowship of the Litigation Counsel of America, Federalist Society, Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association and Trial Attorneys of America. She is also a former special agent for the U.S. Secret Service. Sutherland received her undergraduate degree from the University of Alabama and her Juris Doctor from Mississippi College School of Law.
