Maria has over 13 years of experience as a litigator, working both in-house and in private practice. Formerly managing corporate counsel with a national consumer finance company, she is experienced in interpreting the laws and regulations that govern highly regulated industries with an eye toward mitigating potential and actual risks. This experience allows her to pivot among other industries to provide effective legal counsel. She provides cross-functional legal support to clients in the highly regulated distribution, global consulting and consumer finance industries, including commercial lease and contract drafting and negotiation, regulatory guidance and general corporate governance.

Maria also has a broad range of experience directing strategy in a wide variety of state and federal litigation, including consumer, regulatory and commercial disputes. Her experience handling disputes related to commercial contracts provides her with a unique perspective, and she brings to bear best practices on mitigating risks and negotiating favorable terms when drafting contracts, templates and playbooks on behalf of her clients. She works to protect companies by managing litigation and ensuring compliance with state and federal laws, while providing creative business solutions that allow the company to execute strategy and operate successfully within compliance standards.

Representative Experience

Any result the lawyer or law firm may have achieved on behalf of clients in other matters does not necessarily indicate similar results can be obtained for other clients. 

  • Drafted and revised commercial leases and commercial contracts for a global company with over 400 locations with coverage in all 50 states in the business-to-business distribution of electrical, industrial and safety products and related solutions.
  • Drafted and revised distribution agreements for a family of companies that offers a portfolio of innovative, high-quality medical products, simulation capabilities, training courses and consultancy programs.
  • Drafted distributor, operator, master operator and location agreements for the leading developer of legally compliant games of skill in the US.
  • Drafted and revised service agreements for a global consulting firm that collectively offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to assist clients across the business cycle – from proactive risk management to the ability to respond rapidly to unexpected crises and dynamic environments, including handling service agreements across all of their business divisions.
  • Handled customer complaints and pre-litigation demands for an international cloud software company in response to a global security incident.
  • Conducted commercial contract due diligence, including drafting “red flag” reports for multiple clients ranging from privately held organizations to Fortune 100 companies in the manufacturing and consumer goods industries.
  • Developed litigation intake procedures and management processes for a publicly traded REIT that operates and owns a portfolio of 38 upscale outlet shopping centers. 
  • Managed the litigation portfolios of clients in the consumer finance, distribution, and REIT industries. 
  • Provided coverage opinions regarding claims and appeals for captive insurance clients.
  • Handled M&A due diligence for publicly traded and private companies.

Professional & Civic Engagement

  • Committee Member, SmartWomen
  • Member, Georgia Association for Women Lawyers 
  • Member, Savannah Bar Association
  • Member, State Bar of Georgia
     

Previous Experience

  • Managing Corporate Counsel, Regulatory, TMX Finance Family of Companies, 2019 – 2020 
  • Litigation and Corporate Counsel, TMX Finance Family of Companies, 2014 – 2019 
  • Associate, Brannen, Searcy & Smith, LLP, 2013 – 2014 
  • Associate, Brennan, Wasden & Painter, LLC, 2010 – 2013