Meet the Team

WILLIAM J. JONES JR.

Partner

William J. Jones, Jr. has been a partner with Jones Fussell since its inception. Rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest legal ability and ethical rating afforded by that service, Mr. Jones has more than 50 years of experience in the legal field. His extensive legal practice includes real estate matters, business and contract matters, hospital law, successions and estates, real estate litigation, and eminent domain litigation. He has served as City Attorney and Chairman of a Planning and Zoning Commission and has represented St. Tammany Parish Hospital as its corporate general counsel since 1990.

JEFFREY D. SCHOEN

Partner

Jeffrey D. Schoen has practiced with Jones Fussell for his entire career. A partner with the Firm for more than 35 years, he has experience and expertise in numerous areas, with primary attention in the business, real estate, transaction, and regulatory arenas. Mr. Schoen also handles general matters such as corporate law, contracts, wills, collections, successions, and general business. Mr. Schoen has handled more planning and zoning cases before the Parish of St. Tammany Planning and Zoning Commissions, as well as the former Parish Police Jury and current Parish Council, than any other practitioner in St. Tammany Parish over the past nearly 40 years. He is rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest legal ability and ethical rating afforded by that service.

JOHN R. WALKER

Partner

John R. Walker has been engaged in a full-time litigation practice since 1983. His current practice focuses on helicopter and fixed wing plane crashes, vehicular accidents, premises liability, product liability, professional liability, employment, insurance coverage, commercial litigation and real estate disputes, for both plaintiffs and defendants. 

He has tried cases to verdict in all federal courts in Louisiana and many state courts throughout Louisiana, including many involving multi-million-dollar exposures. He is fully admitted to practice in all state and federal district courts in Louisiana, federal courts in Texas and Florida, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. He has also handled cases on a pro hac basis in Texas, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Illinois, Kentucky and Pennsylvania. He has been rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubble for more than 25 years. 

Mr. Walker is also active in dispute resolution, both as a mediator and an arbitrator. He is a graduate of the mediator training program at the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine Law School. He is on the mediation and arbitration panels at MAPS, the largest alternative dispute firm in Louisiana. He has been appointed as a neutral by the 24^th Judicial District Court and in that capacity is mediating dozens of Hurricane Ida related cases. 

MARGARET H. KERN

Partner

Margaret H. Kern, a family law specialist certified by the Louisiana State Bar Association Board of Legal Specialization, has been a partner with Jones Fussell since 1991. She has experience in all areas of family law, including custody, support and property division. Ms. Kern also has extensive litigation experience in the areas of medical malpractice and civil rights and has more than 30 years in trial and casualty litigation experience in state and federal courts. Since 1999, Ms. Kern has served as the general counsel for the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff in civil and tax matters. She is rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest legal ability and ethical rating afforded by that service.

CALVIN P. BRASSEAUX

Partner

Calvin P. Brasseaux has been a partner with Jones Fussell since 1999, where he concentrates his practice in the areas of corporate, securities, finance, intellectual property, employment law, and general business. He has extensive experience representing clients in public offerings and private placements of debt and equity securities and venture capital transactions, merger and acquisition transactions, sophisticated commercial and residential real estate acquisitions, development, financing, and leasing, and the formation of limited liability companies, corporations, limited partnerships and joint ventures. He also has experience in various intellectual property matters, as well as health care and employment law. He is rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell.

THOMAS H. HUVAL

Partner

A lifelong resident of the Northshore, Thomas H. Huval has represented individuals and businesses in a wide array of legal matters over his 25-year career. These matters include complex injury cases, insurance coverage and defense, construction, professional liability, property rights, civil rights, collections, business formation, contracts, sales, leases and succession litigation. His clients range from Fortune 500 companies to local businesses and individuals faced with a myriad of legal issues, and he has had the privilege of serving as counsel for a local state political subdivision for the last 10 years. He is licensed to practice law in all state and federal courts in both Louisiana and Mississippi.

PAUL J. MAYRONNE

Partner

Paul J. Mayronne has been a partner with the law firm of Jones Fussell since 2003. Paul’s practice is based in the representation of businesses of all types, from the handling of real estate and business transactions and entity formations to the procurement of entitlements, including planning and zoning approvals and regulatory work. Paul’s practice areas also include general corporate law, business litigation, contracts, wills, successions and collections. Paul is a licensed title insurance agent representing First American Title Insurance Company and Chicago Title Insurance Company, and in connection therewith he has closed a variety of complex transactions for multiple lenders.

ANDREW J. WALKER

Associate

Andrew J. Walker joined Jones Fussell in 2019 after graduating from LSU’s Paul M. Hebert Law Center, which he attended on a full tuition scholarship. While in law school, he was named a Dean’s scholar, and received CALI Awards in White Collar Criminal Law, Family Law, and Comparative Health Law. Prior to attending law school, Andrew J. Walker operated his own private investigation firm, providing services as a licensed investigator and certified fraud examiner and specializing in due diligence investigations for businesses.

Andrew is practicing commercial and casualty/personal injury litigation. He has experience representing clients in disputes involving real estate property, contracts and leases, intellectual property, employment matters, and redhibition claims. He has represented plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal courts in a variety of personal injury cases. Andrew also assists businesses with intellectual property registrations, entity formation, and drafting contracts. He is admitted to practice in all state and federal courts in Louisiana as well as the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

KATHERINE L. RIECKE

Associate

Katherine L. Riecke is an associate attorney who proudly joined the team at Jones Fussell in 2022. A native of Covington, Katherine returned to her hometown after earning her Juris Doctor and Diploma in Comparative Law from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at Louisiana State University.

Katherine's practice areas include estate planning, successions, real estate transactions, contract disputes, collections, and construction litigation. Katherine is a licensed title insurance agent for First American Title Insurance Company and Chicago Title Insurance Company.

Katherine has experience before various Planning and Zoning Commissions, including those in St. Tammany Parish, the City of Covington, the City of Mandeville, the City of Hammond, and the City of Slidell. She is admitted to practice in all state and federal courts in Louisiana.