Past associations: Staff Attorney at The Pittston Company Coal Group, 1981-1982; Assistant Attorney General in the Office of the Virginia Attorney General, 1983-1987.

Law School: University of Tennessee College of Law

Undergraduate: Morehead State University

Home: Abingdon, Virginia

Spouse: Susan P. Gresham

Children: Jordan Gresham Kaatz, 38; Anthony Overbay, 36; Nicholas Prudenzano, 33.

Grandchildren: 10, ages: 22 to 1.

Favorite restaurant in Abingdon: 128 Pecan. The restaurant is small and intimate and just a block from our office! The owner/chef is very creative and his specials are delightful. He and the staff make you feel very welcome.

EMLF Involvement: Past President of EMLF who occupied several leadership roles with EMLF before becoming President and a frequent speaker at EMLF events; member of EMLF Board of Trustees; recipient of the EMLF’s John L. McClaugherty Award for extraordinary service; Chaired 2 Annual Institutes.

Your practice focuses on worker’ compensation and occupational disease cases. How did you get involved in this area of the law? Forty-two of my forty-four years practicing law have involved in one way or another coal mining and mineral law. At Pittston I advised the safety departments, conducted mining accident investigations, and participated in training sessions for supervisory personnel. As an Assistant Attorney General, I litigated mining violations of safety and environmental rules and regulations. At PennStuart, my practice was to be 50% court and administrative litigation concerning mining and mineral development. However, eventually the 50% workers’ compensation and state and federal occupational disease cases overtook my time, as the coal industry shrank but the need for workers’ compensation and occupational disease representation grew to what it is now.

What portion of your practice involves clients in the mining and oil and gas sectors?  Do cases involving clients in those industries differ significantly from cases involving clients from other industries? Most of my client work has involved mining clients. I have not had much direct with clients in the oil and gas areas. As Assistant Attorney General, I was the primary attorney enforcing the rules and regulation for both coal mining and oil and gas operations.  The legal issues in the mining sector are similar to the issues any business has, but given the regulated nature of the coal industry, there are many that are unknown to other clients, occupational disease litigation being one of those.

You travel some for work. Do you find time to travel for fun? Do you have a favorite place to visit? With three children in three different parts of the country, much of our travel is to visit them and grandkids. We like the beach. Emerald Isle and the Outer Banks in NC are a couple of our favorites.

Any pets? We presently have two English Bulldogs. We at one time had as many as eight dogs, ranging from an English Mastiff to small rescue mutt.

You have been very active in leadership roles within the Energy & Mineral Law Foundation and given it untold hours of your time. What is it about EMLF that has prompted you to give so much time to the organization when you have a busy law practice and a family? The people. From Tom Lane and Neal Pierce who made me feel welcome at my first Annual Institute in 1984 to the members I have worked with and have called friends for over 40 years. I also thoroughly enjoyed working with Sharon Daniels and now with Anna Fletcher.

You have been practicing law for a while and have had success. Is there any advice you would give to new lawyers and law students who are about to become lawyers? Work hard and master your craft, but do not ignore your family and friends.