William V. Hearnburg, Jr.

William V. Hearnburg, Jr. is a Partner in the Litigation Practice of Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP.

Mr. Hearnburg represents individuals and companies in business disputes, antitrust cases, tax controversies, fiduciary litigation, grand jury investigations, federal criminal prosecutions and forfeiture proceedings. He has significant experience trying cases involving complex fraud. He has also represented clients in investigations conducted by the Federal Trade Commission, the Office of Foreign Assets Control and the Internal Revenue Service. Mr. Hearnburg also represents companies that provide transportation services in a variety of legal matters.

Some of Mr. Hearnburg’s representative cases include:

• Obtained dismissal of federal criminal charges of making false statements to the FBI in exchange for the client’s participation in a pretrial diversion program.
• Obtained a jury verdict for a client in a case involving fraud and breach of fiduciary duty. The Court granted a directed verdict in favor of the client on all claims against the client, and the jury awarded damages on the client’s counterclaim.
• Obtained a jury verdict for a client in a case involving fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and conversion.
• The jury awarded compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorney’s fees to the client.
• Obtained a new trial for a client who had been convicted of capital crimes on the ground that the client’s constitutional rights had been violated at trial.
• Represented a small business owner whose assets had been seized by the federal government in a case involving allegations of money laundering. The case was settled favorably to the client.
• Successfully defended school bus manufacturer in a lawsuit arising from an accident.

Mr. Hearnburg is a member of the Georgia Railroad Association and has spoken to that group on legal issues that affect railroads. He is also a member of the State Bar of Georgia and the Appellate Practice and Criminal Law Sections of the State Bar and is a Master in the Lamar Inn of Court.

Mr. Hearnburg received his B.A. and M.A. from West Georgia College. Prior to attending law school, he taught high school English and Latin. Mr. Hearnburg received his J.D. from the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University in 1999, where he was a member of the Moot Court Board and Honor Court. Mr. Hearnburg’s moot court team was a two-time winner of the John J. Gibbons National Criminal Procedure Moot Court Competition, where he received awards as the best advocate in the final rounds of both competitions. Mr. Hearnburg is admitted to practice in Georgia, the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the United States Tax Court, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, and the United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia.

Mr. Hearnburg is active in SGR’s pro bono program and has represented numerous pro bono clients in landlord-tenant disputes, Juvenile Court proceedings, adoptions and criminal cases.