Cindy Hanson focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation and class action defense. A significant portion of Ms. Hanson’s practice is devoted to the defense of class actions. She has been a member of several teams that have filed Petitions for Permission to Appeal under Fed. Rule of Civ. Proc. 23(f) in the Fourth, Fifth, Seventh and Ninth Circuits. She was part of the team that prepared the Fed. Rule of Civ. Proc. 23(f) Petition to the Seventh Circuit in Blair v. Equifax Check Services, 181 F.3d 832 (7^th Cir. 1999). The Blair decision is the first reported decision on the standard that a court should use when deciding whether or not to accept a Petition for Permission to Appeal under Rule 23(f). This standard, while slightly modified by some circuits, has remained the basis by which Rule 23(f) petitions are reviewed.

In addition, Ms. Hanson has handled hundreds of matters under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Her practice includes the representation of consumer reporting agencies, entities who furnish information to consumer reporting agencies and employers who use background checks for employment purposes.

Prior to joining the firm, she practiced at a New York firm for four years. Ms. Hanson has made presentations on class actions, and all aspects of compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act. She was named as a 2008 and 2009 Georgia "Rising Star" in the areas of Class Action/Mass Torts and Civil Litigation Defense by SuperLawyers magazine and is AV^® rated by Martindale-Hubbell.*

*CV, BV, and AV are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedure's standards and policies.