Williams & Piatt, LLC

Attorney Joseph N. Williams

Voted one of the Best Lawyers in America since 2017, Joe Williams is often brought in to try complex lawsuits. Joe brings a unique ability to communicate with the jury, making the complex seem simple.

His jury trial success includes recovering $112.4 million for a surgeon-inventor who was cheated by Medtronic (2nd largest verdict in Indiana history), $14.5 million for a roofer wrongfully accused of insurance fraud by State Farm (largest defamation verdict in Indiana history), and $3 million for a former school bus driver injured by a defective Cook Medical IVC filter.* Joe’s trial success has been widely reported in publications like USA Today, the Indianapolis Business Journal, Law.com, and the Indianapolis Star. In 2015, Joe was appointed liaison counsel for MDL No. 2570 (In re: Cook Medical).

Joe is one of the few lawyers that tried both bellwether trials — the second of which resulted in the only jury finding of a design defect in any IVC filter case to be tried.

Joe received his J.D. from Vanderbilt University Law School, where he was awarded the Tennessee Bar Association’s Access to Justice Law Student of the Year in 2004 for his dedication to the legal issues confronted by those in need.

He was honored with selection to the Indiana Super Lawyers’ Rising Stars in 2010, 2011, 2013 to 2019, a designation that recognizes the top up-and-coming attorneys in the state.

Joe was also awarded the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association's Max Goodwin Young Lawyer Award in 2013, which recognized his outstanding dedication to protecting the rights of the injured.

Bar Admissions:

• Indiana
• U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals 7th Circuit
• U.S. District Court Central District of Illinois
• U.S. District Court Northern District of Illinois
• U.S. District Court Northern District of Indiana
• U.S. District Court Southern District of Indiana

Professional Memberships and Achievements:

• American Association of Justice
• Indiana Trial Lawyers Association
• Indiana State Bar Association

Attorney James A. Piatt

James is a principal member of Williams & Piatt, LLC. His practice focuses on business litigation and class action and mass tort litigation. James was named an Indiana Super Lawyers’ Rising Star in the area of business litigation in 2012, 2013 and 2014. As a business litigator, James has successfully represented clients ranging from a private equity group, to a charter fishing business, to a medical device sales representative sued by his former employer. In the mass tort arena, James prepared a bellwether case for trial in the Yaz/Yasmin (Bayer Pharmaceuticals) litigation and the case was ultimately settled.

James graduated cum laude from the University of Notre Dame in 1999 and from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law in 2009. He is a member of the Indiana State Bar Association and the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association. During law school, James was inducted into the Order of the Barristers and served as Note Development Editor for the Indiana Law Review. Prior to and during law school, James worked in professional sports.

In May and June of 2011, James examined and cross-examined the majority of witnesses during a 6-week jury trial, which resulted in a $14.5 million verdict for the client. (State Farm Fire & Casualty Company v. Joseph Martin Radcliff and Coastal Property Management LLC, a/k/a CPM Construction of Indiana, Hamilton County Superior Court, No. 29D01-0810-CT-1281).

On May 4, 2012, James gave the closing argument in Daniel E. Sparks v. Vincennes University, Knox County Superior Court, No. 42D01-0705-PL-022 - the Knox County jury awarded former VU head basketball coach Dan Sparks $230,000 for his breach of contract claim against Vincennes University.

On February 25, 2013, James achieved summary judgment in the amount of $935,005.61 on behalf of a private equity client for fraud claims against a promoter (WDC Capital v. Damean Clinton, Hamilton County Superior Court, No. 19C01-1109-CT-09440).

Bar Admissions:

• Indiana, 2009
• U.S. District Court Northern District of Indiana, 2010
• U.S. District Court Southern District of Indiana, 2010

Education:

• J.D. cum laude, Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law
• B.A. cum laude, University of Notre Dame

Professional Memberships and Achievements:

• Indiana Bar Association
• Indiana Trial Lawyers Association
• Immaculate Heart of Mary parish
• International Society of Primerus Law Firms
• Notre Dame Club of Indianapolis

Attorney Anne Medlin Lowe

Anne is an associate attorney at Williams & Piatt, LLC. Anne received her J.D. from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law. During law school, Anne volunteered as a Guardian ad Litem, was named to the Order of the Barristers, and argued in the final round of the Staton Moot Court Competition. She also participated in the Evans Constitutional Law National Moot Court Competition both as an advocate and as a coach. Anne was the Executive Note Development Editor for Indiana International and Comparative Law Review and in 2013 earned the Norman Lefstein Award of Excellence for her pro bono service.

Anne is a 2008 graduate of DePauw University, where she was a Media Fellow, Honor Scholar, award-winning student journalist and on-air personality, and interned with media organizations such as Clear Channel Radio and MTV Networks. Prior to law school, Anne worked as an associate producer at an Indianapolis video production firm specializing in legal video.  In 2019 Anne was recognized on the Super Lawyers "Rising Stars" list.

Before joining Williams & Piatt, Anne served as a two-year judicial clerk for the Honorable Paul D. Mathias of the Indiana Court of Appeals

Bar Admissions:

• Indiana, 2013
• U.S. District Court Southern District of Indiana, 2013

Education:

• J.D., Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law, 2013
• B.A., DePauw University, 2008

Professional Memberships and Achievements:

• Indiana State Bar Association
• Indianapolis Bar Association
• Indiana Trial Lawyers Association

Attorney Ronald Waicukauski

Ronald Waicukauski is an active trial lawyer at the Indianapolis-based plaintiffs’ litigation firm, Williams & Piatt, LLC. His practice focuses on plaintiffs’ complex litigation including matters involving business disputes, property rights, professional malpractice, and class actions. He has tried more than seventy jury cases to verdict as lead counsel in both state and federal courts. He has also argued numerous appellate cases in the Indiana Court of Appeals, the Indiana Supreme Court, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

Ron formerly served as a JAG and Captain in the U.S. Marine Corps and as the elected Prosecuting Attorney in Monroe County, Indiana. He graduated with a B.S in Communication, cum laude, from Northwestern University in 1970, a J.D. from Harvard University in 1973, and a LL.M. degree, summa cum laude, from George Washington University in 1976. He has taught trial and appellate advocacy at the Indiana University Schools of Law in Bloomington and Indianapolis, and served on the faculty of the National Institute of Trial Advocacy and the Defense Counsel Trial Academy.

Since 2004, Ron has been a regular speaker at the Indianapolis Law Club on recent developments in Indiana law. In addition, Ron has made numerous CLE presentations at meetings of the American Bar Association, the Indiana State Bar Association, and many other legal organizations. 

Bar Admissions:

• Indiana State Bar Association
• U.S. Court of Appeals 7th Circuit
• U.S. District Court Northern District of Indiana
• U.S. District Court Southern District of Indiana
• U.S. Supreme Court

Education:

• J.D., Harvard University
• LL.M. summa cum laude, George Washington University
• B.S., cum laude, Northwestern University

Professional Memberships and Achievements:

• Indianapolis American Inn of Court (President 1997-1999)
• American Bar Association, Litigation Section (Co-Chair, Training the Advocate Committee 1996-1999)
• Indiana State Bar Association (Chair, Pre-Suit Mediation Committee 1994-1997)
• Indianapolis Bar Association
• Indiana Trial Lawyers Association
• Indianapolis Law Club

Attorney Carol Nemeth Joven

Carol Nemeth Joven has extensive experience as a litigator, having tried cases and argued appeals in state and federal courts. Her current practice focuses on plaintiffs’ complex civil litigation, including antitrust and other business disputes, professional malpractice, civil rights, and personal injury.

Carol formerly served as a Deputy Attorney General in the Office of the Attorney General of Indiana, where she represented the state, its agencies and employees in trial and appellate litigation, including over two hundred appeals. Carol also previously served as a Judicial Law Clerk for Judge John Baker of the Indiana Court of Appeals. Carol graduated cum laude from Indiana University School of Law where she was the recipient of several honors, including the American Jurisprudence Award for Civil Procedure.

Carol is an active member of the Executive Committee of the Appellate Practice Section of the Indianapolis Bar Association, and was the Chair of that Committee in 2017. She has presented at continuing legal education seminars on topics including ethics and appeals. Carol was awarded an AV Rating from Martindale-Hubbell, which designates the highest rating for legal ability and ethical standards by that organization. 

Bar Admissions:

• Indiana, 1994
• Ohio, 1995 (license inactive)
• U.S. District Court Northern District of Indiana, 1994
• U.S. District Court Southern District of Indiana, 1994
• U.S. Court of Appeals 7th Circuit, 2003
• United States Supreme Court, 2012
• U.S. Supreme Court

Education:

• J.D. cum laude, Indiana University School of Law-Bloomington
• B.A. – Economics with high distinction, Indiana University
• Certificate, Liberal Arts & Management Program, Indiana University

Professional Memberships and Achievements:

• Indianapolis Law Club
• Indianapolis Bar Association
  • Member of Executive Committee of Appellate Practice Section (and Former Chair)
  • Member of the Indianapolis Bar Foundation Board of Directors
  • Former Member Executive Committee of Women and the Law Division
• Indiana State Bar Association
• Indiana Trial Lawyers Association

Attorney Brad Catlin

Brad Catlin has a broad range of experience representing individuals and businesses seeking compensation in complex litigation. Brad has obtained multiple jury verdicts in excess of $10 million, including one in excess of $130 million, and is licensed to practice in the States of Indiana and Ohio.

One of Brad’s primary practice areas is prosecuting legal malpractice claims. He represents individuals, small businesses, and multinational corporations in situations where their prior attorneys made mistakes and must be held accountable. These cases can be complex and require an attorney who is well-informed about many areas of law. Brad does this by regularly educating Indiana attorneys on recent developments in Indiana and federal law.

Brad also represents businesses in other forms of litigation, pursuing antitrust claims, trade secret claims, property disputes, and claims of wrongful interference with contracts or business relationships. Brad’s technical proficiency and project management experience allows him to advise businesses, which are considering litigation about their obligations to preserve relevant information.

Brad’s individual clients have included people who have been the victims of an abuse of power. That could be in civil rights cases against government employees from, for example, the Indiana Departments of Revenue or Child Services. Or it could be against companies who damage a large group of people as part of our class action practice, such as the class of people Brad represented against State Farm for a breach of its duty to treat its insured with good faith and a group of landowners he represented in Missouri against electric companies who operated a telecommunications business across the landowners’ land without permission. Other attorneys also regularly hire Brad to act as local counsel in their complex cases, to help guide them through Indiana law and procedure to achieve a favorable outcome for their clients.

In addition to representing clients in lawsuits, Brad teaches other attorneys both locally, state-wide, and nationally, about legal matters on a variety of topics. Brad is a regular speaker at the monthly meeting of the Indianapolis Law Club, has spoken on a number of occasions at classes hosted by the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association and the Indianapolis Bar Association, and has given presentations on legal technology in nation-wide webinars. Brad has also had a number of articles published by various legal publications, including a regular column in the Verdict, published by the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association.

Brad is a native of Westfield, Indiana and attended Wabash College as an Honor Scholar. He graduated from Wabash cum laude with an B.A. in Political Science and obtained his law degree from the University of Notre Dame School of Law. Brad served as a law clerk to Hon. Mary DeGenaro of Ohio’s Seventh District Court of Appeals. While working at the Court of Appeals, Brad helped prepare material for the Ohio exam governing certification as a specialist in Appellate Law.

Brad has enjoyed the honor of having his peers name him as a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers and as one of the “Best Lawyers” for his work in Commercial Litigation and Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions – Plaintiffs.

Bar Admissions:

• Indiana, 1999
• Northern District of Indiana
• Southern District of Indiana
• Northern District of Ohio
• Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals
• Ohio, 2008

Education:

• J.D., University of Notre Dame School of Law
• A.B cum laude, Wabash College

Professional Memberships and Achievements:

• Indianapolis Bar Association
• Indiana Trial Lawyers Association
• Indiana State Bar Association
• Indianapolis Law Club
• American Bar Association