Area of Practice: Employment Law J.K. Simms is a Partner at Thompson Burton and leads the firm’s employment law practice. J.K.’s practice is devoted to serving his clients both from a litigation avoidance and litigation defense standpoint. J.K. has extensive experience representing companies and individuals at the state level throughout Tennessee and in every federal court district in the State of Tennessee.

Ronald Simon, Attorney at Simon Trial Firm, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Lawyers for dedication, achievements, and leadership in personal injury and liability law. Mr. Simon’s area of expertise is working with plaintiffs, only. He specializes in personal injury and liability cases. He attributes his success to remaining professional, ethical, friendly and by staying away from the business aspect of law. He plans on continuing at his law firm as he loves the field of law. As a testament to his success, he has been requested as a guest speaker by those hosting seminars for personal injury trial lawyers, has published articles on trial practice and has appeared on NBC Nightly News in regards to cases he has handled. Mr. Simon became involved in his profession because he was an athlete on scholarship at the University of Bridgeport, Connecticut, and, when he was injured, his scholarship was removed. The only way for him to stay in school was to join the debate team and wound up loving it. He earned a Juris Doctorate from the University of Miami School of Law and has been admitted to practice law by the Florida Bar. Furthermore, Mr. Simon has practiced under the Supreme Court of Florida, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Judicial District and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Judicial District. He is a certified instructor and lecturer on personal injury trial practice and is the founder and senior partner of Simon Trial Firm. In recognition of his success, Mr. Simon has been recognized for Excellence in Personal Injury Law for displaying an extra dedication to the civil justice system by the Association of Trial Lawyers of America. He has also been recognized by the ACLA Stalwart, received the Pro Bono Service Award in Recognition of his support of the Put Something Back Project and has been included in the list of Lawyers of Distinction. Mr. Simon has been a keynote guest speaker at the American Trial Lawyers conventions and at the University of Miami School of Law, as well as various Florida Bar and Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers CLE functions. He was elected to and served on the Florida Bar Judicial Nominating Procedures Committee and was elected to and honored as a Lawyer of Distinction in the US News and World Report and Time Magazine. Mr. Simon is a founding member of the Civil Justice Foundation and a founding sponsor of the National Campaign for Tolerance. Mr. Simon grew up in the Bronx with little to no money and helping people was a major part of his life. He could relate to people who needed help as other people helped him and he wanted to do the same. What also attracted him to become a lawyer is that he had to fight his way through oppression and champion the rights of the people who need help, which is highly rewarding. Mr. Simon finds his career in law exciting and considers being a part of the justice system to be an honor. Due to his prominence in the field, he has been inducted into organizations such as the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers, Dade County Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. He is also a founding sponsor of the National Campaign for Tolerance. Mr. Simon was also recently invited to and is now a Platinum Member of The Verdict Club for Premium Trial Lawyers, as a result of numerous trial verdicts and settlements in excess of one million dollars.

From an early age, Joel wanted to be one thing - a lawyer. In law school, he won virtually every award and achieved almost every honor possible. After graduating, Joel worked for an elite international law firm in Houston, Texas. For the next several years, he repeatedly defended large corporations in multiple high-stakes and high-profile lawsuits. In 2010, he started a new law firm with two of his former colleagues. In 2013, he started representing individuals who had suffered catastrophic personal injuries or lost a loved one due to the wrongful conduct of companies. Between 2013 and 2022, Joel moved away from defending companies and focused, instead, on suing them. In August 2022, Joel founded Simon Perdue for one purpose: fight for those who cannot fight for themselves. To get the Justice his clients deserve, Joel uses a combination of hard work, intelligence, and grit. He has used these skills to take on everyone from the Boy Scouts of America to some of the country’s largest oil and trucking companies. In addition to recovering millions of dollars for clients, Joel takes his commitment and relationship with each client seriously. He gives every client his personal cell number so they may reach him 24/7. Further, no client owes Joel a dime unless and until he fights and gets money for his clients. Simon Perdue’s other legal professionals share Joel’s commitment to fight and be there for each of the firm’s clients. Joel is a member of the New Mexico Trial Lawyers Association, the Texas Trial Lawyers Association, New Mexico’s 1st Judicial District Bar Association, and the Houston Bar Association. Since 2014, Joel has as received numerous awards and been repeatedly recognized for his passionate representation of his clients, including from America’s Best Advocates, Texas Monthly, Best of the Best and the American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys.

Area of Practice: Land Use Robert Simon’s practice includes land use regulation before local zoning and planning boards; real estate-related litigation including land use, tenancy, tax appeal, condemnation, and title actions; and commercial and residential real estate transactions. With over 33 years of experience, Rob Simon has established a reputation for zealous and diligent advocacy in representing clients in a variety of land use and real estate matters before local zoning and planning boards and in State and Federal Court. He also represents clients in commercial and residential real estate transactions. A shareholder and director at Herold Law, P.A., in Warren, NJ, he serves clients throughout New Jersey. Mr. Simon is currently Vice Chairman of the Land Use Section of the New Jersey State Bar Association; Attorney for the Township of Tewksbury Land Use Board; Special Land Use Counsel for the Borough of Wallington as to Affordable Housing and Redevelopment matters; Attorney for the Township of Millburn Board of Adjustment; and Special Counsel to the Township of Readington. He has previously served as Secretary and member of the Board of Directors of the Land Use Section of the New Jersey State Bar Association; District Chair for the Office of Attorney Ethics, District XIII Fee Arbitration Committee; Panel Chair, District V-B Fee Arbitration Committee; and Chairman of the Borough of Peapack-Gladstone Land Use Board. He is a frequent panelist at land use seminars sponsored by ICLE and Lorman Education Services. Mr. Simon was recognized on the 2025 New Jersey Super Lawyers list by Thomson Reuters in the field of land use law, and in 2023 received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the New Jersey Highlands Coalition. He has also been qualified as an expert witness by the Superior Court of New Jersey and the District Court of New Jersey. Mr. Simon received his B.A. from Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, and his J.D. from Yeshiva University, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, New York, New York, where he served as a member of the Editorial Board of the New Europe Law Review. He was a judicial law clerk to the Honorable R. Benjamin Cohen, J.S.C. He has been admitted to practice law in New Jersey and New York, including U.S. District Court (District of New Jersey; Southern and Eastern District of New York) and U.S. Court of Appeals (Second and Third Circuit). He is a member of the Real Estate Law Section and the Land Use Law Section of the New Jersey State Bar Association.