Baker Donelson is pleased to announce it has added health care attorney Michelle Williams as a member of its Baker Ober Health Law Group resident in the Firm's Atlanta office.
Ms. Williams, who joins as a shareholder, focuses her practice on the regulatory and structuring aspects of hospital mergers, acquisitions, and integrations. Her experience includes obtaining attorney general and federal approvals for complex transactions and/or conversion from non-profit to for-profit status, and issues of successor liability.
She also advises on corporate governance and Medical Staff governance in connection with changes of control or ownership. She represents clients undergoing CMS, EMTALA and state surveys, Medicare terminations and regulatory review, and advises on hospital authority law, voluntary disclosures, corporate integrity agreements and qui tam defense.
Ms. Williams has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America© in Health Care Law since 2012, and has been recognized by Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business in the area of health care since 2008. A graduate of Case Western Reserve University School of Law, she is a member of the American Health Law Association, is a board member and legal counsel for Georgia BIO, and served as president of the Georgia Academy of Hospital Attorneys.
Ms. Williams previously served on the Advisory Committee on Childhood Vaccines, advising the U.S. Secretary of Health & Human Services on the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Fund. She was a former in-house counsel at University Hospitals of Cleveland and the former Mount Sinai Hospital, and has been acting in-house counsel to several academic medical centers. She trained as a medical technologist specializing in microbiology. Prior to joining Baker Donelson, she was a partner with Alston & Bird.
"Michelle is regarded as one of the elite health care attorneys in Georgia and nationally. Her blend of in-house experience, clinical experience and law firm acumen makes her a trusted advisor to hospitals, health systems, and other health care clients," said Richard G. Cowart, chair of Baker Donelson's Health Law/Government Relations & Public Policy Department.
Gary A. Barnes, managing shareholder of Baker Donelson's Georgia offices, said, "Michelle is well-known and very highly regarded in the southeastern health care market. Her addition to our Atlanta health care team presents an exciting opportunity to expand our work in the health care space and to better serve our existing clients in the Southeast and throughout the U.S."