James G. Stranch, III is the senior partner in the complex litigation group, which he helped start on behalf of the Firm, and has served as lead counsel in virtually every large complex and other class action in which the Firm has served as lead plaintiff. Most notably, Mr. Stranch was lead counsel in the securities litigation on behalf of the State of Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System against Worldcom ($7 million recovery), Tennessee consumer protection and antitrust action against Microsoft ($64 million recovery to the consumer class, including a $30 million cy pres to Tennessee schools), the shareholder derivative action involving Dollar General Corporation ($31.5 million recovery), and ERISA/401(k) litigations on behalf of employees and pensioners of Qwest Communications, Inc. ($57.5 million total value recovery), Xcel Energy Inc. ($8.6 million recovery), Providian Financial, Inc. ($8.6 million) and Nortel, Inc. ($21.5 million recovery).In addition to his work in complex litigation, Mr. Stranch also concentrates on Labor and Employment Law, having represented labor organizations such as pension and health plans and individual workers throughout Tennessee and the South for over 40 years. Mr. Stranch also has extensive expertise in matters arising under the National Labor Relations Act, ERISA, Title VII, and wage and hours laws such as the FLSA.Previously, Mr. Stranch had a general litigation practice that included both personal injury and medical malpractice defense.He is the current Chairman of the Tennessee Bureau of Ethics and fellow of the Nashville Bar Foundation. Mr. Stranch was formerly a secretary of the Tennessee Appellate Court Nominating Committee, as well as a member of the AFL-CIO Lawyer’s Coordinating Advisory Committee. He has also served as Chairman of Tennessee Bar Association’s Labor Law Section in the past.Mr. Stranch is married to Jane Branstetter Stranch, Judge for the Federal Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and they have four children, two of whom practice at the Firm (Gerard and Grace).News — Branstetter Attorneys Receive Important RecognitionJames G. Stranch III has been named in the Mid-South Super Lawyers Edition 2014. He has also been named in Best Lawyers in America. Mr. Stranch was listed for the Labor & Employment practice area.Super Lawyers selects attorneys using a patented multiphase selection process. Peer nominations and evaluations are combined with third party research. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement. Selections are made on an annual, state-by-state basis. The final published list represents no more than 5 percent of the lawyers in the state. The lists are published annually in state and regional editions of Super Lawyers Magazines and in inserts and special advertising sections in leading city and regional magazines and newspapers.Best Lawyers is the oldest and most respected peer-review publication in the legal profession. A listing in Best Lawyers is widely regarded by both clients and legal professionals as a significant honor, conferred on a lawyer by his or her peers. The lists of outstanding attorneys are compiled by conducting exhaustive peer-review surveys in which tens of thousands of leading lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers. If the votes for an attorney are positive enough for inclusion in Best Lawyers, that attorney must maintain those votes in subsequent polls to remain on the list for each edition.