Shannon already had an impressive list of activities, attorney, businesswoman, artist and mother, but she can add one more.  Shannon's first book, Hunting License, is available on Amazon.com. Click the picture to go directly to the site and keep an eye out for local book signing events.

For the second year in a row, Scott will serve as the Chairman of the Edmond Chamber of Commerce's Leadership Edmond Alumni Council.  Scott is a 2002 graduate of Leadership Edmond and served as Chairman of the Leadership Edmond Alumni Council for the first time many years ago.  In the last few years, the Council has revitalized beginning with the leadership of Amy Bailey of Citizens Bank of Edmond and with the incredible support of the Chamber, especially Ken Moore and Kristen Figart.  The number and quality of sponsored events continues to grow and 2012 should be the best year yet.

This week the State Bond Advisor's Office completed the FY 2013-2018 Capital Improvement Plan.  As Chairman of the Long Range Capital Planning Commission, Scott signed the final plan for submission to the Governor, Speaker of the House and President Pro-Tempore of the Senate. The CIP rates the requests for capital expenditures made by state agencies.

Scott was a presenter at a CLE from the National Business Institute entitled "Business Contracts from A to Z."  Scott had two segments during the CLE.  First, Scott spoke on Essential Legal Elements of contracts, including common terminology, master agreements, choice of law and forum issues and statutes of limitations.  Later, Scott spoke on Drafting Business Contracts, covering terms and conditions, representations, warranties, indemnification and dispute resolution.  Scott also covered specific issues relating to operating agreements and purchase and sale agreements.

Andy was the subject of a Q&A with the Daily Oklahoman regarding the Supreme Court's recent opinion striking a California statute regulating violence in video games.  The interview can be read here.

Thanks to all who attended the reception for new LL&D of counsel, Governor Brad Henry.  We hope you all had a great time. We know we did.  See here for the Oklahoman's mention of the event. 

Shannon was recently asked to serve on the Oklahoma Bar Association's Special Committee on Public Education ("SCOPE").  The purpose of the SCOPE task force is to review all of the programs of the Law Related Education Committee to determine which should be kept as is, which should be kept, but modified, and which should be scrapped. 

Governor Brad Henry announced today that upon leaving office he will join Lester, Loving & Davies as of counsel.  The full article in the Oklahoman can be read here.

     LL&D is pleased to announce that James Sears Bryant and C. Peter Goplerud have joined the firm as of counsel. Bryant and Goplerud will head LL&D's new Higher Education Practice.  Bryant and Goplerud regularly consult with institutions of higher education regarding issues surrounding governance, development, finance, intellectual property, the administration of charitable funds, and financial restructuring. Bryant and Goplerud also work closely with all types of institutions to prevent and defend claims arising out of institutional misrepresentations and other complex allegations. Both have special expertise in intercollegiate athletics, including NCAA matters, coaches’ contracts, and intellectual property as well as the overall strategic management of institutional sports marketing.

      James Bryant is an experienced higher education professional with over two decades of hands-on institutional experience over a wide range of issues. Bryant holds a doctorate in Higher Education Administration from the University of Pennsylvania, as well as a law degree. He was formerly the chairperson of the Higher Education practice at the Stolar Partnership, based in St. Louis, and for almost a decade before that was with the Washington D.C. firm of Dow, Lohnes.

     Bryant’s practice covers a wide range of issues affecting higher education. These include NCAA issues and related litigation, governance issues, accreditation projects, institutional development, financial and administrative restructures, student affairs, complex internal investigations as well as the defense of institutions charged with a variety of infractions. Over the past few years, Bryant and his team have litigated successfully against the NCAA in a case that marked the first time ever a Division One athletic program was given early entry into post-season tournaments and full division one benefits. He also headed up a team that investigated an alleged cover-up by the Administration of a Big Ten university of a sexual assault by members of one of its athletic teams, defended a major university against allegations by the New York Attorney General that it had improperly benefited from its student loan programs, helped a private institution receive an $18 million dollar grant and assisted numerous institutions with structural changes and administrative reorganizations.

      Peter Goplerud is Dean and Professor of Law at Florida Coastal School of Law, where he teaches sports law. Prior to his tenure at Coastal Law, Goplerud served as dean of Drake University Law School, the University of Oklahoma College of Law, and Southern Illinois University School of Law.  He has also been a faculty member at the University of Akron School of Law and a visiting professor at Saint Louis University School of Law and New York Law School.  He began his career as a law clerk for Justice David Prager of the Supreme Court of Kansas.

     Goplerud, an Iowa native, has been a member of the Sports Lawyers Association Board of Directors since 1997.  He has been a frequent lecturer and has written numerous law review articles regarding sports law topics.  He is a co-author of one of the leading sports law textbooks now in its sixth edition.  He has been a consultant in the sports law field, as well as providing service as an expert witness.  He also has experience with representation of athletes, coaches' contracts, athlete eligibility issues, and collegiate athletic compliance matters. In addition, he has extensive experience with the American Bar Association law school accreditation process, having served numerous times as a member or chair of site evaluation teams.  He was previously Of Counsel to The Stolar Partnership in St. Louis, before becoming Of Counsel to LL&D.

*Goplerud is admitted to practice in Florida. He is not admitted to practice in Oklahoma.

Andy was recently the subject of a Q&A with the Daily Oklahoman regarding violence in video games.  Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court heard argument on whether states can pass statutes restricting access to extremely violent games.  The interview can be read here.

LL&D represents the City of Edmond in a lawsuit filed by members of the Edmond Fellowship of Police suing for additional pay for time they allege they spent at roll call.  In Oklahoma County District Court, the officers were awarded  approximately $2.1 million for these alleged unpaid wages. LL&D prosecuted an appeal on behalf of the City of Edmond and on June 29, 2010, the Oklahoma Court of Appeals reversed the district court's judgment. The full opinion can be read here.

The Plaintiffs filed a Petition for Certiorari to the Oklahoma Supreme Court.  The Petition was denied on October 13, 2010, making the Court of Appeals decision final.

Andy was the guest speaker at Oklahoma State University's Constitution Day celebration.  The text of the speech can be found here.

George was elected to the Oklahoma Regional Volleyball Association (OKRVA) Board of Directors yesterday.  OKRVA is the United States of America Volleyball (USAV) governing body for the Oklahoma Region.  It has over 5,000 members.

Jami was recently interviewed by KFOR-TV Channel 4 in Oklahoma City regarding a recent lawsuit filed by LL&D.  The storey and a video of the interview can be seen here.

Andy has been hired by the Oklahoma House of Representatives in connection with a corruption probe by the Oklahoma County District Attorney.  The article can be read here.

Scott recently had a Q&A session with Oklahoman business reporter Paula Burkes about copyrights. The exchange can be read here.

LL&D represents the City of Edmond in a lawsuit filed by members of the Edmond Fellowship of Police. Officers were scheduled for 8 hour shifts, but required to be present for line-up 15 minutes before the beginning of their shifts. Officers were also required to be available for 15 minutes following their shifts if the next shift rolled out late.  During the 8 hour shift, officers were given two 15 minute breaks and a meal break.  They were still paid for 8 hours. The officers sued claiming they were also entitled to be paid for the 15 minutes before and after shifts, despite the breaks they got during their shifts.

In Oklahoma County District Court, officers were awarded  approximately $2.1 million for alleged unpaid wages. LL&D prosecuted an appeal on behalf of the City of Edmond and on June 29, 2010, the Oklahoma Court of Appeals reversed the district court's judgment. The full opinion can be read here.

The Oklahoman conducted a lengthy interview of Andy in its Business Section. The article can be read here.

Courtney was named to the Journal Record’s 2010 list of Leadership in Law honorees. Award recipients were recognized at the Law Day event on April 30, 2010 and featured in a special publication that is inserted into The Journal Record.

The Leadership in Law program is produced in conjunction with the Oklahoma County Bar Association’s Law Day event. This program recognizes outstanding leaders in the legal community who unselfishly give their time and energy to improve the lives of fellow Oklahomans, in addition to juggling their busy legal careers.

Jami was a featured presenter at the 2010 International Public Management Association - HR Southern Regional Conference.  Jami's presentation, which was entitled Secrets, Informers & Other Classified Issues in Public Workplace Law, addressed privacy, secrets, whistleblowers and representation of government clients.

Shannon was interviewed recently by The Oklahoman about her forthcoming mystery novel entitled "Hunting License."  The novel is set in Oklahoma City and features a lawyer protagonist pulled into unexpected events when representing a client dealing with workplace sexual harassment.  The article can be read here.

Scott took part in the OKC Memorial Marathon this past weekend competing on a team with others from the Edmond Trails TaeKwon Do school.  The teams total marathon time was 4 hours 43 minutes 11 seconds.  Scott ran the 3.4 mile 4th leg in 26 minutes 29 seconds. The team's split times can be seen here.

Courtney appeared in the March 2010 issue of the Oklahoma County Bar Association's Briefcase.  The article, which can be read here, looks at the issue of lawyers married to lawyers.

Continuing its support of area schools, LL&D is proud to announce its sponsorship of the Cheyenne Middle School PTO auction.

As part of its effort to benefit the community, Lester, Loving & Davies has begun a weekly ask-a-lawyer column in the Edmond Sun. The first question concerns divorce matters and was answered by LL&D attorney George Freedman.

As part of the Edmond Chamber's Total Resource Campaign, LL&D is once again a bronze sponsor of the Annual Auction.  Previously this year, LL&D was a sponsor at the Chamber's Annual Banquet.

LL&D is a proud supporter of Russell Dougherty Elementary School.  RD is a public, parent choice school in Edmond and is a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence.  Admission to RD is by lottery, except that current students and siblings of current or former students are given a preference.  RD is an A+ school that utilizes the arts in a central role in all aspects of learning. LL&D partners Shannon Davies and Scott Thompson have children attending or that have attended RD.

Scott was recently the subject of an article in the Oklahoma Gazette on extreme weight loss. Read the article here.

On January 9, 2010, Johnny was inducted into the Hall of Fame for the Oklahoma Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity.  The induction took place at this year's annual Founder's Day dinner.  Johnny was a member of the Epsilon-Eta chapter at Southwestern Oklahoma State University.  Johnny currently serves as Chairman of the Epsilon-Eta Board of Advisors.

Matt's longtime friend Governor Brad Henry recently called on his skills, not as an attorney, but as a decorator.  Matt was asked to undertake a decorating mission of incredible importance and complexity: the Governor's Mansion.  See Matt describe the project here.

Jami is set to take over as the 2010 Chair of the Oklahoma Bar Association's Government & Adminstrative Law Section.  Jami brings her wealth of knowledge and experience to the position.  Jami served as General Counsel for the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, after previously serving in the legal department at the Oklahoma Department of Health.  In private practice, Jami frequently participates in cases on behalf of and against administrative agencies.

Johnny has been named to the board of the Edmond Lacrosse Club as one of its founding members.

The Edmond Lacrosse Club (parents/booster volunteer group) was formed to assist EdmondParks and Recreation with marketing, fund raising, and scholarships. The Edmond Lacrosse fields are at the corner of Kelly & Covell. While the program has seen rapid growth already, the club is working to increase numbers for the spring season.

Beech's son Jordan, now a student at OSU, has played lacrosse for many years.

Andy, Shannon and Courtney were all recognized by Oklahoma Superlawyers magazine in 2009.  All were recognized in the "Employment and Labor" category.  Andy and Shannon have appeared here for several years running. 

Courtney was named as a "Rising Star."  Selection to the Oklahoma Rising Stars list is based on a survey of approximately 12,000 active attorneys across the state, and honorees are selected through peer nominations and the independent research of Law & Politics, a publication of Key Professional Media, Inc. No more than 2.5 percent of the lawyers in the state are named to the list.

George and Susan won a $225,000 verdict on behalf of the Receiver of the now-insolvent insurance company, Security General.  After 2 1/2 days of trial, the jury took less than half an hour to return a verdict in favor of the Receiver.

Susan will be teaching a seminar for adults on retirement planning.  The seminar will cover a wide range of topics, including, but not limited to, retirement income sources, retirement plan distributions, investments, risk management and asset protection and estate planning.  There will be two multi-day seminar courses.  One will be a Tuesday evening course offered September 22, 29 and October 6, from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.  The other will be a Saturday course offered on September 26 and October 3 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.  Full seminar information, including registration information can be found here.

George Freedman, with help from Courtney Powell, successfully defended a jury verdict challenged on appeal in the Tenth Circuit.  In addition, they prevailed on an issue involving extending the right of a veteran of the war in Iraq to file a counterclaim under various complicated procedural rules. The Court's opinion can be found here.

George was recently named to the Board of Directors for the Oklahoma Charge Volleyball Club.  Both of George's daughters have played for the Charge.

Andy is named as Vice-Chairman of a new board of trustees created by the legislature to advise the president of Langston and the A&M regents on the supervision and management of Langston's Tulsa and Oklahoma City campuses.

Andy begins his term as President of the Edmond Rotary Club on June 24, 2009.  His first address to the membership was published in the July 1, 2009, Edmond Rotarian.

The OSU School of International Studies recently celebrated its 10th Anniverary with the dedication of the Wes Watkins Center Global Plaza. Andy gave remarks. (Picture near bottom of article).

LL&D is proud to announce Sherman Reed has joined the firm as of counsel. Sherman has co-counseled with LL&D attorneys on several occasions over the years, including a wrongful death case with a verdict in excess of $1 million.  Sherman will primarily practice in the areas of personal injury and adoption.

Andy was appointed to the Oklahoma Advisory Committee of the United States Commission on Civil Rights.  In addition, Andy will serve as its Chairman.

Jami and George recently tried and won a breach of contract case.  The jury awarded their client approximately $131,000.  The case was tried in Oklahoma County District Court before the Honorable Judge Vickie Robertson.

Shannon was recently appointed to the Board of Directors for the Edmond Historical Society.  The Society is the caretaker of Edmond's rich history and runs a history museum.  The museum has rotating displays and provides all kinds of history-based programs for the community.

Jami was elected to a term as the Vice-Chair of the Oklahoma Bar Association's Government and Administrative Law Section.

Jami recently gave a presentation on medical records law in Oklahoma as part of a Lorman Education Services program.

Although a lawyer by day, Scott is secretly a computer/technology geek at night.  Actually, it is not much of a secret and he acts that way during the day as well.  When it came time for enrichment clusters at Russell Dougherty Elementary School, where his son Brennan recently completed first grade, Scott agreed to teach a one-day-a-week course for five weeks on understanding a computer inside and out.  His class of ten 3rd through 5th graders, first learned all about what makes a computer work and then over the course of several weeks built one part by part.  The class culminated in the class using the now working computer to create a DVD video of the experience to play for their classmates at the end of the program.

Discovery of electronically stored information has become one of the hotbutton issues in litigation.  In big cases, millions of pages of documents and emails can be produced.  A recent case handled by LL&D resulted in the production to LL&D of more than 9 million pages of documents. In order to stay ahead of this issue, LL&D recently installed the preeminent document management system, CT Summation, along with upgrading the infrastructure.

With CT Summation, LL&D is able to manage, review, and produce documents on a scale many firms are incapable of handling. Scott Thompson serves as the firm's E-discovery and Technology Partner.  Scott has extensive training and experience in handling electronic discovery issues.  He is also in charge of the Summation system for the firm.

As a member of the Oklahoma Bar Association's Legislative Monitoring Committee, Scott had a busy legislative session.  Scott served on the Constitutional Law and Civil Law and Procedure Subcommittees where he reviewed more than thirty relevant House and Senate bills and provided comments and concerns to the Bar.

LL&D is proud to announce D. Matt Hopkins has joined the firm as of counsel.  Matt will practice primarily in the areas of state and local government, corporate, banking & commercial law, administrative law and estate planning.  In addition, Matt is a registered lobbyist and will be representing clients in that capacity through the Government Relations Group of Oklahoma. 

LL&D is proud to announce Lisa M. Wilcox has joined the firm as of counsel.  Lisa will practice primarily in the areas of labor and employment, civil rights, employee assistance, general and complex litigation, family law, trust and estate, corporate, banking and business, bankruptcy and securities.

George spoke at the Western Oklahoma Chapter of the Oklahoma State Human Resources Council.  During his presentation, he covered employment law topics relevant to businesses.

Scott has been appointed and confirmed to the Carl Albert State College Development Foundation Board of Trustees. Carl Albert State College, named for Oklahoma's only former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, is a two-year college located in Poteau, Oklahoma.

George was appointed Vice-President of Governance for the Lyric Theatre and Academy.

As chairman of the board of the 10th Circuit Historical Society, Andy hosted a nationally televised interview of United States Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer.

George was named to the Board of Directors for Oklahoma Charge Volleyball.  George is responsible for legal affairs.

Jami has been selected to serve as an Administrative Law Judge for the Merit Protection Commission ("MPC"). The MPC is the state agency which handles disputes between classified state employees and their state agency employer. After exhausting the procedures at the employing agency, classified employees can appeal to the MPC. Jami will serve as one of the judges conducting the hearings at MPC.

Carrie joins Lester, Loving & Davies.  Carrie's practice will primarily consist of Family Law, Estate Planning and Intellectual Property.

George spoke at the Oklahoma State Human Resources Conference in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  Freedman spoke about the interrelationship of employment laws when an employee is injured.

Andy has been hired as special counsel by the House Committee looking into possible impeachment proceedings against State Auditor and Inspector Jeff McMahan. 

Courtney was named to Marquis' Who's Who in American Law.

Shannon Davies has become a member of the American Bar Association's Committee on Business and Corporate Litigation.

Scott was elected by the Long Range Capital Planning Commission to serve as its Chairman for the upcoming year. He had previously served two terms as the Commission's Vice-Chairman. The Long Range Capital Planning Commission advises and assists the Legislature in providing for capital facilities in the State. The Commission is made up of 12 members, with the Governor, Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate each having four appointments. Each year, the Commission prepares a state Capital Improvement Plan for addressing the capital facility needs of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education and all state agencies for the next ensuing five years. More information on the Commission and the Capital Improvement Plan can be found at the State Bond Advisor's website, http://www.ok-bonds.state.ok.us

Andy was named to the Board of Regents for the Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical Colleges, which oversees Oklahoma State University, Langston University, Oklahoma Panhandle State University, Connors State College and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College.

According to an article in Human Events, LL&D client and friend of Andy Lester has been vindicated by the release of evidence showing Brown did, in fact, warn the White House and Department of Homeland Security of the potential for Hurricane Katrina to flood New Orleans.

In an interview with Human Events, Andy and former FEMA Director Michael Brown explain how Brown became the White House scapegoat for the federal government failures during Hurrican Katrina.

Brian Williams, Michael Brown and Andy Lester shortly after exclusive network television interview of Michael Brown with NBC Nightly News Anchor Brian Williams.  This was the first major television interview since Hurricane Katrina of former FEMA Director Brown and was had at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.

Andy and White House Counsel Harriet Miers disagree about the proper application of Executive Privilege Mr. Brown's Congressional testimony.  See Andy's letter and Miers' response.

Andy is interviewed by the Edmond Sun about the legislative session.  (Article Used By  Permission)