Cole has been with Starnes since he graduated from law school in 2009. Cole’s practice involves providing counsel and solutions for clients with complex and high-risk problems. He has represented numerous Fortune 500 companies in a variety of litigation including national class actions. He has also represented clients involved in nationally publicized disputes ranging from medical research trials to intellectual property battles. He also regularly provides guidance to universities, businesses, and intellectual property owners on a variety of compliance and risk-avoidance measures.
Professional Recognition
•Rising Star in Alabama by Mid-South Super Lawyers magazine.
•Member of the committee charged with drafting the pattern jury instructions for the Alabama Trade Secrets Act.
Highlights
•Intrinsic Value, LLC v Isotope Eleven, Inc. & Laird Foret -- Obtained a plaintiff’s verdict following a 4-day jury trial in favor of tech start-up client in a fraud case arising from the defendant-software developers’ misrepresentations when they agreed to build two mobile applications for corporate client.
•William Marsh Rice University v. Unidym, Inc., et al. - Obtained a $7 million judgment in favor of Rice University in a breach of contract and fraud action against Unidym, Inc.
•Applied Surgical, et al. v. Stryker, Inc., et al. - Obtained a favorable settlement on behalf of plaintiffs, UAB and the UAB Research Foundation, in a trade secrets dispute relating to a universal control system for electrosurgical devices;
•Steyr Arms, Inc. v. Beretta USA Corp.; Steyr Arms, Inc. v. Sig Sauer, Inc. - Currently representing Steyr Arms in patent infringement actions against Beretta and Sig Sauer;
•Resource Management Services, LLC v. Shwefler - Successfully defended our client in an action by his former employer alleging trade secret misappropriation and tortious interference;
•The Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama v. New Life Art, Inc., et al. - Represented the University of Alabama in a trademark dispute with sports artist Daniel A. Moore that has been the subject of press coverage by numerous news outlets including The New York Times, NPR, and ESPN.
•Obtained partial summary judgment dismissing all trade secrets claims against a large hedge fund in a trade secrets and fraud case related to the purchase of the international energy portfolio from the Enron bankruptcy.
•Successfully represented the University of Alabama at Birmingham (“UAB”) in patent infringement actions against Medtronic and Boston Scientific relating to an electrosurgical device and CRT-D device invented at UAB.
•Successfully represented the inventors and their company against Millennium Pharmaceuticals in a patent infringement action related to a chemotherapeutic drug.
•Obtained summary judgment on behalf of employees of UAB in a class action arising out of a medical research trial that has received nationwide press coverage.
•Currently defending a Fortune 500 company in a consumer class action pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.
Presentations and Publications
•Jay M. Ezelle and Cole R. Gresham, “Big Verdicts, Limited Discovery: The Rising Importance of Trade Secrets in Alabama,” in the Cumberland Law Review, Vol. 44, pg. 55-77 (2014).
News & Insights
• Benchmark Litigation 2026 Ranks Starnes Davis Florie as a Highly Recommended Litigation Firm
•L&E Newsletter Alert- President Trump Bans DEI - January 2025
•Starnes Davis Florie Ranked as a Highly Recommended Litigation Firm in the 2025 Edition of Benchmark Litigation
•SDF Labor & Employment Newsletter Alert - April 2024
•Eleven Attorneys Selected for Mid-South Super Lawyers 2023
•16 Starnes Attorneys Listed in the 2022 Edition of Mid-South Super Lawyers
•TWENTY-TWO ATTORNEYS NAMED TO THE 2021 EDITION OF MID-SOUTH SUPER LAWYERS
•SDF Attorneys Gresham and Lasserre Obtain Plaintiff’s Verdict for Tech Start-Up Company
•Twenty-Six Attorneys Named to the 2020 Edition of Mid-South Super Lawyers
•THIRTY-ONE SDF ATTORNEYS NAMED TO THE 2019 EDITION OF MID-SOUTH SUPER LAWYERS
•THIRTY-ONE SDF ATTORNEYS NAMED TO THE 2018 EDITION OF MID-SOUTH SUPER LAWYERS
•Twenty-Eight SDF Attorneys Named to the 2017 Edition of Mid-South Super Lawyers
•Twenty-Six SDF Attorneys Named to the 2016 Edition of Mid-South Super Lawyers
•Starnes Davis Florie Announces New Partners
•Thirty SDF Attorneys Named to Alabama Super Lawyers 2014
•Starnes Attorneys Ezelle & Gresham Publish Article in the Cumberland Law Review
