Baker Donelson's Rodney Dillard II has been named by the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA) as an MCCA 2023 Rising Star. The MCCA Rising Stars is an annual list featuring stellar attorneys, regardless of the stage of their careers, whose accomplishments and dedication to the legal profession and their communities, place them among a select group of "attorneys to watch." This is the second recognition for Mr. Dillard by MCCA in as many years; he was selected to participate in the 2022 Sources of Success™ Program.
An associate in Baker Donelson's Birmingham and Atlanta offices, Mr. Dillard is a litigator who concentrates his practice in a wide variety of commercial, business, complex transportation, construction, insurance, wrongful death, and complex tort matters. He represents both regional and national clients across an array of industries in all Alabama and Georgia state and federal courts.
Prior to joining Baker Donelson, Mr. Dillard served as in-house counsel for a large national insurance company, representing the company and its insureds in a variety of disputes, including first- and third-party litigation and subrogation matters, and providing opinions on coverage issues. He has obtained several defense verdicts throughout his practice in the areas of complex tort defense and construction litigation.
Mr. Dillard's experience before practicing law includes working for several years in the field of grants and contract administration for the City of Birmingham and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. As a grant administrator for the city's finance department, Mr. Dillard collaborated with the Grants Management Division of the Mayor's Office on grant policies for municipal employees, monitored the city's state and federal grants to ensure compliance, and provided grant management training. At the University of Alabama at Birmingham, he negotiated and redlined state and federal contracts and agreements between the University and federal government, other academic institutions, and health institutions.
Mr. Dillard is a member of the Birmingham Bar Association, the Magic City Bar Association, and Alabama Young Lawyers. He has been listed in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America™ in Insurance Law. Mr. Dillard was the 2019 recipient of the Birmingham Business Journal Rising Star of Law and served as a member of the Birmingham Bar's 2021 Future Leaders Forum.
Founded in 1997, to champion the hiring, retention, and promotion of diverse attorneys in corporate law departments and law firms, the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA) is the preeminent voice on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the legal industry. MCCA publishes research and provides professional development opportunities to champion diversity in the legal profession and beyond.