Birmingham, Alabama, United States
From growing up in small town south Alabama, to spending seven wonderful years getting my undergraduate and law degrees at Samford University, to raising a wonderful family in suburban Birmingham, I have had a life beyond my expectations. I had the amazing opportunity to represent legal clients in 66 of Alabama's 67 counties (Lamar County - sorry I missed you!). I started my legal career in Public Service at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Birmingham, and after almost 25 years away from Public Service, got the amazing opportunity to return to that arena as Executive Assistant to Sheriff Mark Pettway, who was elected to that position in November 2018. The chance to serve the people of Jefferson County has been such a wonderful experience and I continue to be amazed at my good fortune.
After practicing law for over 31 years, I was offered the amazing opportunity to work as Executive Assistant to Sheriff Mark Pettway. Sheriff Pettway was sworn in as the Sheriff of Jefferson County, Alabama in January 2019, and I joined the Office in August 2019. I serve primarily in the Bessemer Division, but have responsibilities throughout the County. Having started my career in Public Service, I have so appreciated the opportunity to return to that life after 25 years away. I work with a dedicated and incredible group of people who spend every day trying to make Jefferson County a safer and better place to live.
After my retirement from Travelers, I joined my dear friend Annesley DeGaris to form DeGaris & Rogers, LLC. I assumed that we would both be there until the end of our careers; however, in the spring of 2019, I was offered an incredible opportunity to return to public service. Annesley continues to practice and we remain close friends. I had a wonderful time working with him for those 3 and a half years and created some fantastic memories during that time.
Managing Attorney of Rogers & Associates, Staff Counsel for the Travelers Indemnity Company and its Property Casualty affiliates I managed an office of up to eight (8) attorneys, all of whom handled cases throughout the State of Alabama. I personally handled cases in 66 or Alabama's 67 counties during my time in this position and conducted over 25 trials personally. In addition, I oversaw the trial of more than 200 jury cases during my tenure and acted as the Regional Trial Supervisor for Travelers. My experience ranged from complex Product Liability cases to Construction accidents to Workers Compensation. I also handled the defense of public entities such as cities, counties and public utilities. My duties included reviewing the work of other Travelers offices around the country, from Boston to Los Angeles and I personally evaluated cases in over 20 states. My experience as an insurance defense attorney should serve my clients well as I re-focus my practice to representing injured clients in our new firm.
Civil Division Asst. U.S. Attorney; handled Federal Tort Claims Act cases, Title VII cases, Social Security Disability cases and other civil litigation; conducted approximately 15 trials
Served as Law Clerk to Chief Judge Robert P. Bradley