Barnes & Thornburg Expands to Nashville, Bolstering National Healthcare and Capital Markets Practices

• Nashville a Strategic Pillar of Firm's 90-lawyer Healthcare Industry Practice 
• Companies in Region to Benefit From AmLaw 100 Firm's Diverse Practice Mix and National Footprint

NASHVILLE, TN – Barnes & Thornburg LLP today announced the opening of a new office in Nashville, Tennessee. The office will be anchored by the arrival of five partners in significant areas for the firm, including capital markets partners Jay H. Knight and Taylor K. Wirth, healthcare partners J.D. Thomas and Elisa Harris, and white collar litigation partner Joy Boyd Longnecker. 

Jay Knight and Taylor Wirth join the Securities and Capital Markets Practice Group in the firm’s Corporate Department, with a focus on securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions, real estate capital markets, and general representation of public companies and underwriters. Jay Knight, who previously was with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Division of Corporation Finance in Washington, D.C., will co-chair that practice group.

“Barnes & Thornburg has a proven track record of successfully launching and growing new offices in strategic markets across the country,” said Jay Knight, who will serve as partner-in-charge of the Nashville office. “My colleagues and I are excited to build an office in Nashville and attract top talent to the collaborative, collegial, client-focused culture that Barnes & Thornburg is known for.”

The Nashville office is a key component of the strategic growth of the firm’s national Healthcare Industry Practice and Corporate practice. The Healthcare Industry Practice has more than 90 attorneys that provide legal services to companies across the healthcare and life sciences industries. The additions of J.D. Thomas, Elisa Harris and Joy Boyd Longnecker position Barnes & Thornburg to serve the region’s healthcare market. J.D. Thomas and Elisa Harris advise healthcare clients on a range of matters, including regulatory compliance, fraud and abuse, government investigations, operations, managed care contracting, payor audits, and policy. Joy Boyd Longnecker and J.D. Thomas both bring prosecutorial backgrounds and extensive defense work within the healthcare industry, which add depth to the firm’s White Collar and Investigations Practice.

Barnes & Thornburg’s Nashville office will temporarily reside at the Moore Building, 827 19th Avenue, Suite 930, with plans to move into a permanent space next year.

Latest in a String of Strategic Office Openings

Nashville continues to attract large companies across a range of industries, making it an important market for Barnes & Thornburg’s strategic growth plans. The new office follows the opening of the firm’s New Jersey, Philadelphia and Boston offices, as well as significant growth in its Washington, D.C., Dallas, and Delaware offices, in the past two years.

The firm also opened its New York office in 2020, which has since grown to more than 30 lawyers, and life sciences-focused locations in Raleigh, Ann Arbor, and Salt Lake City in 2019.

“Nashville has long been a strategic priority for us given our existing clients in the area, the prominence of healthcare in the market and the growing number of Fortune 500 companies putting down roots in the city,” said Andrew J. Detherage, Barnes & Thornburg’s managing partner. “We are thrilled with the team of partners joining the firm, and we look forward to growing the office with top lawyers who value our culture and national platform.”

Current Barnes & Thornburg associates Megan Krivoshey and Molly Sigler will round out the group, while Chief Client Officer Eleanor Smith and Lauren Parkhurst, senior client growth manager-healthcare, also will be based in the new office. 

A Leading Healthcare Industry Practice

Barnes & Thornburg’s Nashville expansion follows the arrival of prominent healthcare compliance, investigations, and litigation partner John Kelly, who joined as chair of the firm’s Healthcare Industry Practice in June 2022. The Nashville office will deepen the breadth and depth of this practice, which advises leading physicians, hospitals, long-term care facilities, hospices, health systems, clinical labs, pharmacies, drug manufacturers, medical device companies, and other healthcare and life sciences entities on their business and legal needs.

“Barnes & Thornburg has long recognized the strategic importance of Nashville as a hub of innovation and expertise in the healthcare industry,” John Kelly said. “An expansion of our national healthcare practice into Nashville simply made sense, and it allows Barnes & Thornburg to continue to serve existing clients in the region while attracting new clients to the firm’s large geographic footprint and diverse practice areas.”

Capital Markets Team Fuels AmLaw 100 Firm’s Corporate Growth

The addition of Jay Knight and Taylor Wirth in Nashville is aligned with the firm’s goal of establishing a premier national financial industry and capital markets practice, which was accelerated by the successful launch of the firm’s New York office in 2020.

“Jay and Taylor’s capital markets practice is broad and sophisticated, whether it’s advising on public M&A transactions, IPOs, secondary offerings or structured finance deals, counseling clients on evolving securities regulations, or any number of other issues critical to participants in today’s public markets,” said Jahan Sharifi, chair-elect of the firm’s Corporate Department. “They are an ideal fit for our increasingly high-profile financial services practice – and their arrival in Nashville will undoubtedly drive its continued growth.”

“We are extremely excited to have Jay and Taylor join our Securities and Capital Markets Practice Group and add their securities and public company advisory experience to our practice,” said David Hooper, co-chair of the firm’s Securities and Capital Markets Practice Group. “Jay is a fantastic addition to the leadership of the securities practice.”

About the Partners

Jay H. Knight, who joins from Bass Berry & Sims, focuses on securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions, real estate capital markets, structured finance, and the representation of public companies and underwriters. He frequently works with issuers and underwriters in connection with capital markets transactions, including initial public offerings, follow-on and secondary offerings, PIPEs, SPACs, and at-the-market (ATM) offerings in a variety of industries including retail, healthcare, real estate, and life sciences, among others. Additionally, he represents clients in real estate capital markets, structured finance, mergers and acquisitions, going private transactions, spinoffs and tender offers. Notably, Jay Knight was previously a special counsel with the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance, which translates into his counseling companies on complex securities, SEC disclosure and corporate matters involving the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, governance, stock exchange listing requirements and public company disclosure.

Taylor K. Wirth, who also joins from Bass Berry & Sims, counsels clients in securities regulation, capital formation, and corporate governance matters. Taylor Wirth also advises issuers and underwriters in IPOs, PIPEs, follow-on and secondary public offerings and ATM offerings. He often works in the healthcare, retail and real estate investment space. In addition to his transactions experience, Taylor Wirth assists on matters including insider trading, public company disclosure, executive compensation, and Section 16 and beneficial ownership issues.

J.D. Thomas, who joins from Holland & Knight (formerly Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis), focuses his practice on representing healthcare clients in government enforcement actions, False Claims Act and qui tam actions, and other significant civil, criminal, and regulatory matters. In addition, he regularly counsels healthcare clients on regulatory issues including anti-kickback and Stark concerns, non-routine regulatory questions, payor audits, and certificate of need matters. Prior to Holland & Knight, J.D. Thomas served as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Nashville U.S. Attorney’s Office where he investigated and prosecuted healthcare fraud matters.  His experience as a prosecutor and defense attorney creates a distinctive approach that benefits his clients. In addition to his healthcare practice, J.D. Thomas represents companies and individuals, in connection with criminal investigations and prosecutions and high-stakes civil litigation. J.D. Thomas serves on the executive committee of the Tennessee Bar Association’s Healthcare Section, and as secretary of the Nashville Bar Association. 

Joy Boyd Longnecker, a former prosecutor who joins from Baker Donelson, represents individuals, healthcare providers, and other companies in matters involving litigation, internal investigations, and government enforcement.  In addition to her litigation experience, Joy Boyd Longnecker focuses on counseling and defending white collar clients facing substantial civil or criminal liability. She routinely helps clients respond to government subpoenas and navigate matters arising under the False Claims Act. Joy Boyd Longnecker also defends international hotel chains, timeshare companies, and franchisors involved in commercial and contract disputes. She currently serves as the co-chair of the Tennessee/Alabama chapter of the Women’s White Collar Defense Association and is the Vice-Chair of the Executive Council for Tennessee Bar Association’s Criminal Justice Section. 

Elisa Harris is well-versed in providing counsel for health systems and facilities, provider-owned health plans and risk-bearing provider entities, start-up healthcare companies and innovative care delivery systems in matters including governance and operations, contracting, reimbursement and regulatory compliance. Elisa Harris was previously in house general counsel for Contessa Health and then Wayspring, with a focus on operations and health plan contracting relationships including Medicaid, Medicare Advantage, and commercial and health insurance exchange products. Elisa Harris’ in-house experience gives her a unique perspective when assisting clients in daily operations and evolving payment models.

With more than 800 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from offices in Atlanta, Boston, California, Chicago, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minneapolis, Nashville, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Philadelphia, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, South Florida, Texas and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit us online at www.btlaw.com or on Twitter @BTLawNews.