Tara Kepler

Jane Luciano

William McDevitt

Diane Peacock

Todd Vollmerhausen

Charles Bond
CB@physiciansadvocates.com

Charles Bond is a leading health law and appellate attorney, strategic planner and policy advisor. For 30 years he has advised physicians, medical groups and medical societies nationwide in all aspects of practice organization, managed care, health law and policy. He has been actively involved in the development of strategies for dealing with managed care and healthcare reform. Because of his recognized expertise in health policy and medico-economic trends, Mr. Bond has been named legal and policy advisor to the Center for Practical Health Reform, a non-profit group of healthcare experts which The Wall Street Journal suggests may be the successor to the "Jackson Hole Group."

Mr. Bond has lectured and written on all aspects of physicians and the law, including authoring books, treatises, and chapters for the American Medical Association and the California Medical Association. Additionally, he has been published on topics such as health policy, managed care strategies, physician employment contracts, and the legal aspects of asthma and pain management. His career has touched virtually all aspects of law and policy for doctors and patients. He began in 1974-75 by helping draft and champion MICRA, the malpractice reform law in California that has become a nationwide model for tort reform. Known as the "Physicians' Advocate," he has helped develop the concepts of doctor-owned malpractice insurance companies, the living will, management service organizations and many other healthcare innovations. He is recognized nationally as an expert on hospital-medical staff matters, licensure and medical ethics, as well as physicians' business strategies and medical device entrepreneuring.

Mr. Bond was selected by his peers and Law and Politics Magazine as one of Northern California's Super Lawyers. The distinction places Mr. Bond in the top 3% of the 35,000 attorneys in Northern California.

Mr. Bond also maintains a distinguished appellate law practice, winning more than 80 percent of his cases before the higher courts for both physicians and other clients. He is a member of the California Academy of Appellate Lawyers, the California Academy of Attorneys for Healthcare Providers and the American Medical Association Consulting Network. He is often consulted by other lawyers to assist with strategic and tactical decisions in pre-appellate situations at the trial level. His California offices are in Berkeley and Pasadena, and he maintains an office in Paris, France, for the practice of international law where his practice consists primarily of assisting other lawyers and clients in deal-making. He is a graduate of Duke University and the University of California, Hastings College of Law. He and his firm carry Martindale-Hubbell’s highest rating for law firms.

Tara Kepler
TK@physiciansadvocates.com

Tara Kepler is a health law generalist with experience representing both providers and payors in transactions, regulatory compliance, civil and administrative proceedings, and government investigations. Ms. Kepler began her legal career working as an attorney representing multi-state healthcare corporations at top-tier law firms and most recently served as in-house counsel for a physician-led management services organization and independent practice association in Northern California. She is a national expert in telemedicine and telehealth law and is licensed to practice law in both Texas and California. Ms. Kepler is also a member of the American Health Lawyers Association and the California Society for Healthcare Attorneys.

Prior to law school, Ms. Kepler served as a legislative liaison for the Texas Senate Health and Human Services Committee and worked in the Scientific Affairs Department of the California Quality Improvement Organization for the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. In addition to her law degree, Ms. Kepler also has a Masters Degree in Public Administration from the University of Colorado Graduate School of Public Affairs.

Jane Luciano

JL@physiciansadvocates.com

Jane Luciano serves as lead trial counsel in a wide variety of health care litigation matters and administrative matters. She handles all aspects of litigation, from initial case analysis, pleading, discovery, pleadings, motion, settlement, mediation, arbitration and trial. She has 20 years experience representing health care clients , collaborating with experts and managing witnesses for successful deposition and trial testimony. She has produced positive verdict results on behalf of physicians and other clients in diverse venues.

Ms. Luciano has an extensive medical background which compliments her health care litigation practice. She holds a Certification in Healthcare Risk Management credential demonstrating knowledge in Loss Prevention/Risk Reduction, Regulatory, Accreditation, Compliance, Operations and Bioethics within the health care delivery system. She also holds a current Registered Nurse license as well as a Public Health Nurse license.

Ms. Luciano is an active member of the American Society of Healthcare Risk Management and the California Society of Healthcare Risk Management with a strong interest in Patient Safety and Quality of Care initiatives which impact physician practices.

William McDevitt

WM@physiciansadvocates.com

William McDevitt is a skilled trial lawyer with over 37 years of litigation experience, both on behalf of plaintiffs and defendants. He has extensive experience in state and federal courts and expertise in multiple areas of the law, including catastrophic personal injuries, wrongful death, products liability, business litigation, probate litigation and insurance litigation. Mr. McDevitt's most recent focus has been on representing individuals and small groups litigating claims or defending themselves against large insurance companies, corporations and institutions. Mr. McDevitt has represented a numerous victims of insurance abuse in first party and third-party bad faith claims , and has been doing so since the 1970s.

Mr. McDevitt graduated from University of San Francisco School of Law in 1974, magna cum laude. While in law school, he was a member of the McAuliffe honor society, the Klepper program, the Marin County “private defenders,” and was a founder of the Interdisciplinary Health Information Committee, a collaboration of law students, medical students, nursing students and other aspiring healthcare professionals, created as a community service model for professionals practicing in the complementary, yet often isolated, fields of law and medicine.

After graduating from law school, Mr. McDevitt worked as a litigation associate for Sedgwick, Detert, Moran & Arnold from 1974 to 1979. He then formed Jones, Brown, Clifford & McDevitt in San Francisco, where he remained managing partner until his departure in 2002. In 2002, he returned to his roots to practice in Marin County. He joined Physicians' Advocates in 2011.

Mr. McDevitt has tried cases in Washington, Oregon and California. He has been lead trial attorney in federal and state court lawsuits. At Physicians' Advocates, Mr. McDevitt is representing doctors and other members of the health care community in their battle for equitable treatment in the fractious contemporary health care environment.

Mr. McDevitt is a member of the California State Bar, the San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association, the Marin County Trial Lawyers Association, Consumers Attorneys of California, AAJ, Attorneys for Public Justice and the Marin County Legal Aid Society. He is a member of ABOTA, an invitation-only group of the best trial lawyers in the country, and has earned an AVVO rating of 9.8. He has also authored a number of articles on civil litigation as well as a chapter in California Forms of Pleading and Practice. He has been a presenter at continuing education seminars sponsored by Consumers Attorneys of California, San Francisco Trial Lawyers, Marin County Trial Lawyers, the Association of California Highway Patrol officers and the California State Fire Fighters' Association.

Diane Peacock

DP@physiciansadvocates.com

Diane Peacock is a senior level litigation and business attorney with an extensive management, consulting and business background unique to attorneys. She understands the business aspect of practicing medicine, as well as the strategy for defending physicians in litigation and administrative matters.

Ms. Peacock has over twenty years experience in defense litigation and business law from private practice, management of adjusters and outside legal counsel, and ownership of a 100+ employee company. She has defended physicians in numerous medical malpractice cases and hearings and has served as National Coordinating Counsel for a medical device manufacturer. She has argued successfully before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

As Casualty Claims Manager for a major national grocery/pharmacy chain, she earned the highest award bestowed by the company. As owner of a prominent restoration franchise and serving as its General Counsel, she earned Franchise-of-the-Year for the Western U.S. for four consecutive years.

Ms. Peacock serves as co-trial counsel for physicians in their litigation and administrative matters from pleading phase to trial. She also assists physicians with their transactional and business needs.

Todd Vollmerhausen

TV@physiciansadvocates.com

Todd Vollmerhausen serves as counsel for physicians facing the complex array of legal, regulatory, and business challenges inherent in today's practice of medicine. He has over 10 years of law practice experience representing health care professionals, medical staff committees and other business entities throughout the State of California. Mr. Vollmerhausen has successfully defended his clients in professional liability litigation, medical staff hearings, and Medical Board disciplinary cases. He is also an expert in medical staff operations and private practice transactions such as employment contracts, partnerships and group formation. He regularly advises physicians on issues such as, non-profit exemptions, fraud and abuse avoidance, HIPAA compliance, and disability rights.

In addition to his Jurisdoctorate, Mr. Vollmerhausen holds a Master of Laws in Intellectual Property. He is a member of the State Bar of California admitted to practice in all courts of the State of California and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California.