Jonathan W. Johnson
Jonathan W. Johnson has been a practicing trial attorney responsible for hundreds of wrongful death cases around the United States and the world since he graduated from law school in 1992. A native of Georgia, Mr. Johnson attended Heritage High School in Conyers where he was the school’s Star Student, a Board of Education scholar, and starting power forward for a state final 4 basketball team. He then attended Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, where he received the Oglethorpe Cup as the most outstanding member of the graduating class and numerous other awards. Mr. Johnson graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in accounting. From 1989 to 1992 he attended Columbia University School of Law in New York City, where he passed the Certified Public Accountants examination and served as an Articles Editor for the Columbia Journal of Environmental Law.
After law school, Mr. Johnson joined an internationally known firm, Kreindler& Kreindler, to represent plaintiffs in wrongful death cases around the country and around the world. He rose to the position of Senior Associate and was responsible for many cases that resulted in settlements and verdicts worth millions of dollars. Following that, Mr. Johnson joined a major 400-attorney Southeastern law firm, Nelson Mullins Riley&Scarborough where he represented insurance carriers in the defense of numerous wrongful death cases around the country. Afterwards, he became a Senior Associate with an Atlanta-based firm, representing clients wrongful death, and personal injury lawsuits throughout the United States. In 2001, Mr. Johnson and another partner founded Johnson & Benjamin, LLP, based in Atlanta, Georgia. There, Mr. Johnson represented clients in wrongful death cases in the United States and internationally, including an airplane crash in Venezuela in which 2 Americans and 3 Canadians were killed.
When Mr. Johnson left to pursue his own practice, Mr. Johnson formed the Law Office of Jonathan W. Johnson, LLC, focusing primarily on litigation of wrongful death claims. Mr. Johnson has attained the highest possible rating of “AV” from Martindale Hubbell, the national directory of attorneys, indicating preeminent legal ability and the highest standard of ethics. Mr. Johnson is also a published author, having written “Georgia’s Law of Charitable Immunity” 26 Verdict 48 (2001). He belongs to several professional law associations, including the American Association for Justice, Georgia Trial Lawyers Association, and the Atlanta Bar Association. He is admitted to practice law in Georgia (1995) and New York (1993). Mr. Johnson was recognized in 2013 as one of Georgia’s top rated lawyers by American Lawyer publications. Presently, Mr. Johnson resides in Atlanta, Georgia with his wife and two daughters. He is a member of Oak Grove United Methodist Church in Atlanta.
John Ulmer – (Of Counsel)
Mr. Ulmer serves with Jonathan W. Johnson, LLC as Of Counsel in litigation, contracts and commercial law matters. John has 27 years experience as General Counsel for two major corporations – one a manufacturer of products sold globally, and the other an international marketing company for insurance and securities, and its affiliated Broker-Dealer. As corporate counsel, John worked with and advised corporate CEOs, Presidents, and other executives pertaining to legal, regulatory and compliance issues. Mr. Ulmer managed all claims and lawsuits; directed investigations and other fact finding; negotiated resolutions; engaged in alternate dispute resolution through arbitration and mediation; and participated in litigation in federal and state courts. In conjunction with local trial counsel, John represented the companies in jury trials throughout the United States; and he has appeared before the US Supreme Court. John handled contracts and commercial law issues, including negotiation, drafting, review, editing, execution and litigation of all types of contracts and commercial agreements. John engaged in product liability litigation and provided legal advice regarding product design, manufacture, warnings, advertising, marketing, and compliance with safety standards, laws and regulations. John handled employment law issues and counseled Human Resources; conducted investigations; resolved employee complaints; directed litigation of all unresolved matters, including disciplinary actions, terminations, claims of discrimination and sexual harassment; and responded to EEOC charges. He directed risk management and managed liability insurance, including professional liability, E&O, D&O, EPL, and comprehensive general liability; worked in conjunction with brokers and carriers of liability insurance in US and London markets; and provided advice regarding self-insurance and risk retention. John attended and graduated from the University of Georgia School of Business with honors, and from the University of Georgia Law School. Prior to Law School John served in the US Army, Military Intelligence. John is active in the community and serves with charitable organizations.
Aaron Gallardo (Of Counsel)
Aaron is originally from Mexico City, Mexico, however he was predominantly raised in San Jose, Costa Rica and Buenos Aires, Argentina. In 2001 his family moved to Alabama, where he went on to complete his undergraduate studies in Hotel and Restaurant Management at Auburn University. After graduating from Auburn he spent two years in sales working for a wine and spirits importer. In 2009 he attended Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law, where he served as a Senior Editor on the American Journal of Trial Advocacy and was a member of the school’s National Arbitration Team. In addition, he was a Caruthers Fellow and a Scholar of Merit in Legal Research and Writing. Aaron primarily practices in the areas of litigation involving product liability and mass torts, particularly those currently pending in multidistrict litigation around the country. He also practices in auto and trucking accidents, and general personal injury matters. In his spare time Aaron is actively engaged with the Hispanic community, and teaches civics classes to immigrants applying for their naturalization exam. He is also a member of the Georgia Hispanic Bar Association.
Carlos J. Torres – Associate
Carlos J. Torres joined the Law Office of Jonathan Johnson in 2012 after earning his Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School. Carlos attended Archbishop O’Hara High School in Kansas City, Missouri. He was a state champion wrestler and starter on a state finalist soccer team, as well as an All-Metro Scholar-Athlete of the year runner up and the annual Jeffrey C. Wicina Award winner, recognizing singular academic and athletic achievements in the Kansas City area. Carlos attended the University of Pennsylvania on academic scholarship. While there, he double majored in International Relations and History, was the president of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity for two years, and completed more than 1,500 hours of community service with LIFT (formerly National Student Partnerships), a community resource and adult education center. Prior to attending law school, Carlos worked in a number of positions, notably as a sales manager for an overland tool sales company, operations manager for a California family farm, and tutor supervisor with Americorps at the University of Chicago. At the University of Michigan Law School, Carlos participated in hundreds of hours of pro bono legal work, including filing divorces and protection orders, conducting research on microfinance possibilities in Mississippi, working on special education plan implementation, and researching EPA enforcement patterns in the mid-Atlantic. Carlos was also active in moot court competitions, and was on the winning team of the Navy JAG 2010 National Moot Court. He received a Student Funded Fellowship to facilitate work at the Office of the Georgia Capital Defender in the summer of 2010, worked as a fellow at Human Rights Watch in the summer of 2011, and served three years on the Central Student Judiciary, the University of Michigan’s highest student judicial body. He has worked on cases from divorces to death penalty appeals, authored internationally released letters for a prominent NGO, and written extensively on a wide variety of legal issues. Carlos lives in Atlanta with his partner of four years and their one and one half year old daughter.
Mark Peters - Paralegal
Mark has a B.A. in Political Science from Emory University (1983) and a Paralegal Certificate from Emory University (2009). He has 12 years of experience managing a small business, so he has a deep understanding of both personal and business claims. In the months following the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Mark mastered the process of filing claims through the GCCF, he has a deep understanding of all requirements and documentation that needs to be sent to file a successful claim. From small loss of income claims to multi-million company and property claims Mark has filed over 100 claims with the GCCF. Mark has attended numerous seminars regarding the claims handling of the Deepwater Horizon spill. To date, he has aided in the recovery of $600,000.00 for claims that were previously denied. Mark is originally from Atlanta, Georgia. He currently resides in Decatur with his wife and their two rescue dogs. Mark and his wife are looking forward to becoming foster parents to a special needs child in the near future.
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