Picture of Sharon Zinns

Sharon Zinns

Owner  

Sharon has dedicated her practice to helping clients affected by asbestos-related illnesses including mesothelioma and lung cancer.  

For over 15 years, Sharon has represented clients across the country in a wide range of occupations who developed mesothelioma or other cancers after being exposed to the toxic substance, asbestos. She has also represented individuals diagnosed with mesothelioma after household exposures to asbestos from the work clothes of their spouses or parents, or exposure to cosmetic talc products. And, she has handled wrongful death litigation on behalf of the surviving family members of people who have died from such diseases.

Sharon received her law degree from Emory University School of Law where she was a Robert W. Woodruff Scholar, which is “the highest accolade an incoming student can receive.” She was also a member of the Emory International Law Review, Student Bar Association President and a law clerk for the American Cancer Society Office of Corporation Counsel. Prior to law school, Sharon attended Columbia University and Emory University, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts with high honors in interdisciplinary studies. While earning her undergraduate degree, she interned for the American Civil Liberties Union and the DeKalb County Juvenile Court.

Sharon is a regular speaker at conferences around the country, presenting on topics relating to asbestos exposure, disease, and litigation. Sharon has appeared on Atlanta Legal Experts Radio to discuss her work in asbestos litigation. She has also appeared on the LawCall television show as an expert on asbestos litigation.

Sharon is the proud mom to daughter Max. In her free time, she enjoys yoga, running, and volunteering in the community.

AWARDS
  • Super Lawyers Rising Star  2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
  • Elizabeth Cady Stanton Award, Women of PALS  (Plaintiffs Asbestos Litigation Seminar) 2019 – The award recognizes a lawyer who supports, initiates and sustains the advancement and progress of women in our field; contributes to materially altering the structural barriers to the success of women in our field within his or her firm or practice area; provides leadership in his or her firm and the wider legal community on issues related to gender equity; and effectively and consistently speaks truth to power.
  • Robert W. Woodruff Scholarship, Emory University
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

Georgia Trial Lawyers Association

Verdict Magazine
           – Committee Chair 2019-present
           – Committee Member, 2017-2019
  Women’s Caucus
           –  Committee Member, 2016-2017
 Membership Committee
           – Committee Member, 2017-2018
 Leadership Education & Advanced Direction, graduate 2016

Georgia Association for Women Lawyers

           – Special Events Committee, Member 2015-2017        
           – Membership Committee, Co-Chair 2017-2018
           –  Public Affairs Committee
                   – Co-Chair, 2018-2019
                   – Member, 2019-2020

Southern Trial Lawyers Association 

           – Board of Governors, 2020-present

American Association for Justice

            – Women’s Trial Lawyer Caucus, member
            – Asbestos Litigation Group, member

Lawyers Club of Atlanta

LICENSES

  • California
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • New York
  • New Jersey
  • Washington, D.C.
  • United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
  • United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia
  • United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia
  • United States District Court for the Central District of California
  • United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
  • United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York

PRESENTATIONS

February 24, 2011 – “Ok, So Whose Big Idea Was It To Remove this Case to be Tried in Federal Court?”: Federal Rules of Evidence in Trial, Harris Martin National Asbestos Conference: Litigation and Trial of MDL Asbestos Claims in Federal Court, Miami, FL


February 24, 2017 – Asbestos: When The Past Comes Calling…Techniques For Identifying Exposures 20 to 50 Years Ago, Southern Trial Lawyers Association, New Orleans, LA


April 13, 2018 – Dodging Daubert: Lessons from a 3 Day Daubert Hearing, Handling Big Cases CLE, State Bar of Georgia, Atlanta, GA


May 14-15, 2018- Founder and Moderator, Women of PALS, Las Vegas, NV


October 11, 2018 – Asbestos and Mesothelioma, Beasley Allen Co-Counsel Retreat, Atlanta, GA


November 2, 2018 -When Do You Really Have A Talc Case?: Identifying and Evaluating Alternative Exposures to Asbestos, HarrisMartin’s Talc, Asbestos, and the Cancer-Causing Properties of Talcum Powder Conference, Miami, FL


November 15, 2018, Asbestos and Mesothelioma, Beasley Allen Alabama Law Conference, Montgomery, AL


January 23, 2019 – Personal Branding/Marketing/Networking, Seneca Group Annual Conference (Founder and Moderator), Napa, CA


February 16, 2019 – Ethics in the Age of Swiping: Dos and Don’ts For Interacting With Other Lawyers On- and Off-Line, Southern Trial Lawyers Association, New Orleans, LA


April 30, 2019 – Johnson & Johnson Wins Losses & Settlements – Harris Martin Talcum Powder Ovarian Cancer Litigation Conference, Charleston, SC


May 14, 2019 – Women of PALS – Organizer and Moderator, Las Vegas, NV


May 15, 2019 – Substance Abuse Among Attorneys, Plaintiffs Asbestos Litigation Seminar, Las Vegas, NV


September 6, 2019 – Winning at Trial with Expert Witnesses: Defending Your Expert Before and During Trial, Cobb County Trial Lawyers CLE, Marietta, GA


September 10, 2019 – Update on Southern States, Perrin Asbestos Litigation Conference, San Francisco, CA


September 20, 2019 – Asbestos: What It Is, How It Kills, and How to Protect Your Clients, Tennessee Personal Injury Lawyers Conference, Nashville, TN


October 25, 2019 – Mesothelioma and Cosmetic Talc, Southern Trial Lawyers Association Fall Conference, Nassau, Bahamas


January 20-23 2020 – Seneca Group – Founder and Moderator, Austin, TX