Attorneys
Douglas W. McDonald, Sr., Partner
Office: 706-778-7178
Fax: 706-776-6371
Email: doug@mcdonaldcodycook.com
Douglas W. McDonald, Sr., B.A., 1967, Piedmont College; J.D., 1968, John Marshall University; 1969 admitted to State Bar of Georgia; former Section Secretary/Chairman, Criminal Law Section; State Bar CLE Regional Advisory; former Committee member; member of Appellate Courts of Georgia; member of Federal Courts of Georgia; member of Eleventh Circuit of U.S. Court of Appeals; member of United States Supreme Court; Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (charter member/Board of Directors); lecturer and former Secretary of Georgia Trial Lawyer Association; National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers; American Trial Lawyers Association (lecturer/former State Committeeman).
Personal:
Born November 18, 1945, Habersham County, Georgia; airplane pilot since 1975 (single engine/multi-engine/IFR/commercial rated); pilot for burned children emergency flight care; pilot for Commissioner of Agriculture, Tommy Irvin.
Religion: Sunday School Director, teacher, deacon, Chairman of Board, church secretary, member of Level Grove Baptist Church, Cornelia, Georgia; current adult Sunday school teacher at Level Grove Baptist Church; current college & career teacher – Wednesday nights at Level Grove Baptist Church; member of the Gideon’s International.
Areas of practice: Personal injury
Bar Admissions: State Bar of Georgia, 1969
Education: John Marshall University Law School, Atlanta, Georgia, 1968; J. D. Piedmont College, Demorest, Georgia, 1967; B.A.; Habersham County Schools
Business: Former law partner of Jack N. Gunter (1969 – 1971); Law Office of Douglas W. McDonald, Sr. (1971-1982); McDonald & Cody, L.L.C. (1982-2010); McDonald, Cody & Cook LLC (2010-present)
Civic Association: Former Georgia Jaycees, Kiwanis, Chamber of Commerce, Habersham County Airport Commission (2007), Lake Burton Civic Association
P. Gerald Cody, Jr., Partner
Office: 706-778-7178
Fax: 706-776-6371
Email: Gerald@mcdonaldcodycook.com
*Over 85 Jury Trials to Verdict
Gerald is a native of Cornelia, Georgia. He attended Piedmont College graduating cum laude in 1979. He continued his education at Woodrow Wilson College of Law, graduating in 1982. Gerald was admitted to the State Bar of Georgia in 1982 and began practicing law with Douglas W. McDonald, Sr. in 1982 following his graduation from law school.
Gerald currently focuses his practice on representing individuals who has been injured as the result of the negligence of others, as well as, family members of individuals who have died as the result of the negligence of others. Gerald’s areas of practice include personal injury, motor vehicle accidents, trucking accidents and wrongful death. Gerald also continues to serve as a Guardian ad Litem for children who has been abused or removed from their home.
Gerald has been admitted as a member of the State Bar of Georgia; U.S. District Court, Northern District of Georgia; U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit; Georgia Court of Appeals; and, the Supreme Court of Georgia. Gerald has handled numerous criminal and civil jury trials and bench trials. Gerald has also handled appeals in the Georgia Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of Georgia. Gerald is a member of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association and the American Association for Justice. Gerald was selected as a member of the inaugural class of Leadership, Habersham County, Georgia.
Gerald is married to Britt Durham Cody and they have two daughters, Morgan and Sarah Beth. Gerald and Britt are active members at Bethlehem Baptist Church, Clarkesville, Georgia, where Gerald has served as trustee, teacher, mentor and deacon.
Matthew E. Cook, Partner
Office: 706-778-7178
Fax: 706-776-6371
Email: matt@mcdonaldcodycook.com
Matthew E. Cook, B.A., 1996, Piedmont College; J.D., Cum Laude, 1999; Walter F. George School of Law; Mercer University. Member: Mercer Law Review, 1997-99; Brainerd Currie Honor Society. Recipient CALI Awards for Excellence: criminal law, statutory analysis, constitutional law, legal writing II and advanced legal research. Recipient of Thomas Ryals Foundation and Mercer Law School Merit Scholarships. Author: U.S. v. Mitchell: The Fifth Amendment at Sentencing, 49 Mercer L. Rev. 865 (1998); co-author: Trial Practice & Procedure, 51 Mercer L. Rev 487 (1999); Trial Practice & Procedure, 53 Mercer L. Rev. 475 (2001). Member of American Bar Association, State Bar of Georgia, The American Association for Justice, and Georgia Trial Lawyers Association. Admitted to practice in Georgia.
Areas of Practice:
Wrongful death and personal injury litigation representing injured victims and their families in cases arising from tractor-trailer wrecks, commercial vehicle collisions, car wrecks, workplace and construction accidents, premises liability, nursing home abuse/neglect, railroad accidents involving vehicles and pedestrians and defective products. Matt has secured more than $70 million for clients in just the past 5 years for clients including a $5.47 million verdict in October, 2009, in Dekalb County, Georgia.
Bar Admissions: Georgia 1999, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Georgia 2000
Education: Mercer University, Walter F. George School of Law, Macon, Georgia 1999; J.D.
Honors: Cum Laude
Honors: Brainerd Currie Honor Society
Law Review: Mercer Law Review, member 1997-1999
Piedmont College, Demorest, Georgia 1996; B.A.
Published Works: Trial Practice & Procedure (co-author), 51 Mercer L. Rev. 487, 1999; U.S. v. Mitchell: The Fifth Amendment at Sentencing, 49 Mercer L. Rev. 865, 1998; Trial Practice & Procedure (co-author), 52 Mercer L. Rev. 447, 2000; Trial Practice & Procedure (co-author), 53 Mercer L. Rev. 475, 2001
Honors and Awards: Recipient of CALI Awards for Excellence: Criminal Law, Statutory Analysis, Constitutional Law, Legal Writing II & Advance Legal Research, 1996-1999. Recipient of Thomas Ryals Foundation and Mercer Law School Merit Scholarships.
Professional Associations and Memberships: American Bar Association, State Bar of Georgia, The American Association for Justice, and Georgia Trial Lawyers Association.
Gus McDonald, Partner
Office: 706-778-7178
Fax: 706-776-6371
Email: gus@mcdonaldcodycook.com
*Over 65 jury trials to verdict
Gus McDonald, B.A., 1993, Mercer University; J.D. 1996 John Marshall Law School; 1998 admitted to the State Bar of Georgia; Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers; 2001 National College for Driving Defense, Cambridge, MA; 1999 American Legal Education Intoxilyzer 5000, Decatur, GA; board member of DUI Advocacy Committee of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers; Vice President of Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Atlanta, GA; Committee Chair for Administrative Procedures for Approving the Georgia Intoxilyzer 5000 and 5000N; SFST Instructor.
Personal: Born April 22, 1971, Habersham County, Georgia.
Son, Jackson “Elvis” McDonald
Board Member of NACDL, Advocacy Section, ranked top 30 speakers for National Association of Criminal Defense
Areas of Practice: Criminal Defense/Personal Injury
Bar Admissions: State Bar of Georgia 1998
Education: John Marshall University Law School, Atlanta, Georgia 1997; J.D. Mercer University, Atlanta, Georgia 1992; B.A. Habersham County Schools
Speaking Engagements: “Chemical Evidence”, 1st Annual DUI Training Super Symposium, Atlanta, Georgia, 2010; “Affect on Violators in Home State”, New World DUI Seminar, South Carolina, 2009; “Cross Examination of the Blood Tech”, NACDL & NCDD’S DUI Seminar, Las Vegas, 2009; “How to Pick a Winning Jury for Your Client”, Defense of Drivers Institute, Atlanta, Georgia, 2008; “Blood Test”, NACDL, NCDD, ICLE, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Kansas, 2008; “Attacking the Crime Lab Results”, Trial Practice Update, Savannah, Georgia, 2007; “Blood Testing”, NACDL & NCDD, 10th Annual DUI Seminar, Las Vegas, NV, 2006; “Blood”, Boston, MA, KS, SC, GA, TN, 2006; “Cross-Examining the Chemical Expert in Blood”, Defense of Drivers Institute, San Diego, CA, 2006; “Case Preparation & Courtroom Presentation”, GA State Patrol, 2005; “Blood Tests Revisited”, NACDL & NCDD’s 8th Annual DUI Seminar, Las Vega, 2004; “Reasonable Suspicion v. Probable Cause”, License Revocation & Suspension, Atlanta, 2004; “DUI Case Preparation & Courtroom Presentation”, Georgia State Patrol, Forsyth, Georgia, 2004; “Trouble at the Crime Lab”, GACDL Winter Seminar, Atlanta, 2004; “Punishment”, National College Driving Defense, Cambridge, MA, 2003; “Mitigating Punishment in Sentencing”, NACDL & NCDD’s 7th Annual DUI Seminar. Las Vegas, NV, 2003; “Sentencing & Punishment: Effective Techniques for Entering a Plea”, Miami, FL, 2003; “DUI Case Preparation & Courtroom Presentation”, Georgia Public Safety Training Center, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999.