If the words “trial law” that appear in their e-mail addresses didn’t give it away, Liles, Gavin, Constantino, & Murphy is a civil litigation firm that represents everyone from small businesses to the Fortune 500 companies to personal injury claims. Founded by longtime Jacksonville attorney Rutledge Liles in 1991, the firm has grown to six attorneys. Daily Record staff writer Sean McManus met recently with Liles, Kyle Gavin, Scott Constantino, Niels Murphy, Geddes Anderson and Robert George to discuss the firm.
HOW BROAD IS CIVIL LITIGATION?
“We handle all sorts of civil trial and appellate practice areas, including business and commercial, contractual, employment, environmental, insurance coverage, intellectual property, malpractice, medical devices, personal injury, products liability, professional liability, real estate, securities, trade secrets, unfair competition, warranty law and wrongful death.”
HOW DID THE FIRM EVOLVE SINCE ITS INCEPTION IN 1991?
Gavin and Constantino joined Liles to start the firm as Liles & Gavin. “We were doing a lot of products liability work at first. Then in 1994, the firm changed its name to Liles, Gavin & Constantino. Niels Murphy joined in 1996 and he waited five years for us to add him to the marquee.”
WHAT BIG CASES ARE YOU WORKING ON?
“We’ve got a huge case between a major global telecommunications provider who is having some disagreements with a major transportation company over some fiber optic cable. And we’ve got a case going on with a producer of the band Matchbox 20 that’s too complicated to go into.”
WHAT INDUSTRIES TAKE THE MAJORITY OF YOUR CASES?
“We do a lot of work with heavy equipment and heavy trucks [not operating them — just representing them]. We also have a substantial number of agriculture clients, contractors, technology companies, medical devices.”
WHERE DID YOU GO TO LAW SCHOOL?
“We all went to the University of Florida.”
ANY SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENTS IN GAINESVILLE?
“Rut was executive editor of the University of Florida Law Review. Kyle was associate editor, but not at the same time. Scott was the student works editor and senior executive editor of the Journal of Law and Public Policy. Geddes was a member of the defense counsel for the UF Student Honor Court, Niels was chairman of the Justice Campbell Thornal Moot Court Team, and Robert was chief defense counsel for the Conduct Court. Niels is still a presiding officer in the Duval County Teen Court program.”
WHAT’S YOUR CACHET?
“We represent a lot of other attorneys and other law firms. We think it is a nice compliment that attorneys look to us when they need legal representation. We’ve got Martindale-Hubbell’s highest rating as a firm — AV.”
WHAT’S RUT’S BACKGROUND?
“Rut started out at Mahoney Hadlow in 1966 and has worked with Walter Arnold and at Smith Hulsey. He was will Bill Howell and Charlie Milton until he founded Liles, Gavin. Rut founded, and chairs, a lecture series on ethics and professionalism at UNF and he’s a member of the American Board of Trial Lawyers, which is only awarded to only one percent of all Florida lawyers, and he is listed in Best Lawyers in America. He also served on the Judicial Qualifications Committee for eight years, from 1990-1998, which investigates complaints against the judiciary and conducts trials to determine whether or not to recommend punishment by the Supreme Court.”
WHAT’S THE DEAL WITH THE FERTILITY AROUND HERE?
“I don’t know but we had three newborns in the same month last month and two of our wives are pregnant. So out of six lawyers, we’ve got 11 kids and two on the way.”