William L. Lundy Jr.
Bill Lundy focuses his attorney services on several practice areas, including personal injury, wrongful death, motor vehicle collisions, tractor trailer collisions, elder and nursing home abuse and negligence, and workers compensation representing injured workers.
Three of Bill's most recent jury verdicts were for $9.5 million and $2 million, both involving nursing home and assisted living facilities in the mistreatment of the elderly (both were cases involving the development of pressure ulcers, infection, and death). The cases were tried in Walker State Court and Polk Superior Court. Bill recently jury tried a police misconduct case involving an Anniston, Alabama, police officer who was chasing a speeder without operation of his siren and lights, and which case brought a $500,000 verdict in Calhoun County, Alabama. These are just some of Bill's recent jury verdicts. He has many other settlements and jury verdicts over his career.
Bill was born in Marietta, Georgia and his family moved to Cedartown in 1968 for his father to assume his job as the head football coach for the Cedartown High School Bulldogs. Bill graduated in 1977 from Cedartown High School and earned a full football scholarship to Jacksonville State University in Jacksonville, Alabama, playing four years from 1977-81. While playing for the Gamecocks, Bill was a member of three NCAA Division II Playoff teams, two Gulf South Conference Championship teams, and teams that played in the Grantland Rice Bowl and Pioneer Bowl.
Bill was Captain for six games his senior year and was a two year letterman. He received the O.C. Ashworth Award his senior season at J.S.U. (Even now Bill stays involved with J.S.U. Football, serving as the attorney for the football letterman’s ".1-Club.") Bill obtained his B.S. Degree in Finance and Real Estate in 1981.
Bill obtained his law degree from the Cumberland School of Law of Samford University (J.D. 1984), earning Dean's List distinction and was a member of the National Trial Client Counseling Team competing nationally.
Bill returned to his hometown to practice law beginning in 1985, joining up with the late Senator James I. Parker, a past President of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association. The firm has been known as Parker and Lundy since then. Bill's law partners are his brother, Richard, and Chuck Morris, with Georgia State Representative Trey Kelley joining the firm in 2012.
Professionally, Bill and his firm won the U.S. Supreme Court case of Easterwood vs. CSX Transportation, 507 U.S. 123; 113 S.Ct. (1993); 933 F.2d 1548 (11th Circuit, Georgia, 1992). This landmark U.S. Supreme Court case involved a citizen of Cartersville, Georgia, struck and killed by a CSX train at an unsafe crossing, and issues of federal pre-emption at a grade crossing. Bill has handled this and many other cases over his 31 year career.
Bill has an active practice involving serious injuries as a result of medical malpractice, nursing home malpractice, tractor trailer collisions on our public highways, and representing workers injured on the job.
Bill is an active member of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association (GTLA), and the American Association for Justice (AAJ).
Bill was recognized in 2015 as the Plaintiffs Lawyer of the Year by the General Practice and Trial Section of the State Bar of Georgia, known as the Tradition of Excellence Award.
Bill has served as past Chairman of the Disciplinary Board for the State Bar of Georgia, as President of the Tallapoosa Judicial Bar Association, Chairman of the General Practice and Trial Section, and founding member of the Alabama Kids Chance Scholarship, which awards scholarships to seriously injured workers.
Related to his law practice, Bill started a Safe and Defensive Driving School in 2004, which instructs teenage drivers on rules of the road and defensive driving skills. This class was born from the fact that Bill has seen many teenage drivers commit careless acts on the road and his efforts have been to educate teenage drivers on many areas of safe driving. No fee is charged for this annual class.
Bill is a founding owner and creator of the Cedartown Theatrical Performers Company, LLC, a children’s theatre company he began with his wife, Catharine, and law partner, Chuck Morris. The theatre company produces one show per year, is open to all children, and are known regionally and draw full houses to Cedartown's beautiful 1,000 seat auditorium. No child is charged a fee for participating in these annual shows.
Bill recently wrote, produced, and directed the feature film, "A Larger Life," based on a nursing home malpractice trial and other trial experiences. The movie stars former U.S. Senator Fred Thompson (Law and Order, The Hunt for Red October). The film is set in the fictional town of Harper, Alabama, and reveals the true efforts and difficulty of bringing a major malpractice case to trial, while highlighting the daily life of a small town lawyer. The film may be viewed on the UP Faith and Family network or on Amazon Prime. It was released in 2015.
Bill and his wife Catharine started a Christian Academy to fill a need for a college preparatory education in a Christian environment in Cedartown, Georgia. While small in number, the school boasts graduates who have attended the college of their choice, and has produced lawyers, doctors, engineers, nurses, and educators.
Bill has served on the Cedartown civic arts commission, the Cedartown Jaycees, and for 26 years was the color analyst for the Cedartown Bulldog football team. He has broadcast two state championship football games for WGAA RADIO, 1340AM in Cedartown for the Bulldogs.
Bill has spoken at many seminars on jury trials, trial practice, mediations, trucking cases, railroad grade crossing cases, and workers compensation claims.
Bill believes in individual attention to his clients and his cases. He personally meets with his clients and feels a deep sense of satisfaction helping people in difficult times, and in holding accountable those that engage in harmful and careless conduct.
Bill is happily married to the former Catharine Wells of Birmingham, Alabama, and she has served as his paralegal for 31 years of his law practice. She has an Accounting Degree from J.S.U. Bill and Catharine have four children, Laura Wheale, (a practicing attorney and actress), Will, a biology major graduate of Samford University, Lee, a Theatre and English major graduate of Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, and Spencer, a rising Junior at Auburn University.
Bill worships with his family at the Cedartown Church of Christ.
Areas Of Practice
- Personal Injury and Wrongful Death 50%
- Workers' Compensation 50%
Bar Admissions
- Georgia, 1984
- Alabama, 1985
- U.S. Federal Courts, 1985
- U.S. Supreme Court, 1985
- U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit, 1989
Education
- Cumberland School of Law, Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama
- J.D., Doctor of Jurisprudence - 1984
- Honors: Dean’s List Distinction
- Honors: National Trial Client Counseling Team, Member
- Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Alabama
- B.S., Bachelor of Science - 1981
- Honors: Football Scholarship
- Honors: President of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes
- Major: Finance
- Major: Real Estate
- Cedartown High School
- 1977
Representative Cases
- U.S. Supreme Court case of Easterwood vs. CSX Transportation, Inc., 507 US. 123; 113 S.Ct. (1993)
- U.S. Supreme Court case of Easterwood vs. CSX Transportation, Inc., 933 F.2d 1548 (11th Circuit GA 1992)
Honors And Awards
- Gulf South Conference champion
- O.C. Ashworth Award
Professional Associations And Memberships
- Georgia Trial Lawyer Association (GTLA), Member
- American Association for Justice (AAJ), Member
- Director on the Board of United Bank and Trust
- Board of Directors for Suntrust Bank
- Investigative Panel for Lawyers Discipline, State Bar of Georgia, Chairman
- Tallapoosa Circuit Bar Association, President
Pro Bono Activities
- 3 NCAA Division II Playoff Football Team, Member
- WCCL Executive Committee, Member
- Alabama Kids Chance Scholarship