Tapping into a thriving South Jersey market, Hill Wallack opened its sixth office this week in Cherry Hill and added four attorneys with extensive experience in community association law and plaintiffs asbestos litigation matters.

The firm announced Tuesday—the same day the Cherry Hill office debuted—that attorneys Gregg Shivers, George Greatrex Jr., Donald Gosnay and Jennifer Webb have come on board.

Shivers, Greatrex and Gosnay were partners of The Law Offices of Shivers, Gosnay & Greatrex in Cherry Hill and will staff the new Hill Wallack Cherry Hill office, while Webb, who was their associate at the previous firm, will work mostly out of the Princeton office.

"They bring a wealth of experience in not only the community associations practice, but also in plaintiff asbestos litigation matters and litigation that's transactional," said Hill Wallack managing partner Michael Kahme. "George and Gregg have been around for a long time and are highly experienced in the South Jersey area and they fit very well with the culture of the firm."

The firm now spans the state with offices covering northern, central and southern New Jersey, as well as New York and eastern Pennsylvania. Kahme said a significant percentage of the firm's business involves community associations, such as condominium and homeowners associations.

"We enable the condo associations to be able to recover the required receipts to make the expenditures for the betterment of the community members," Kahme said. "If one [owner] doesn't pay, the others could end subsidizing to make up for the money that isn't received. It is a fairness issue. We work on behalf of the condo associations."

The Cherry Hill office, located in Cherry Hill Plaza at 1415 Route 70 East, is the firm's third new location in the past 13 months. It sits about 90 seconds off busy Interstate-295.

"The Cherry Hill office gives us a strong presence in South jersey and also allows us to recruit attorneys in other practice areas," said Kahme, who added that he goes after "vibrant and opportunistic areas" to expand.

The firm began in Princeton 40 years ago in 1978. It opened its second office in Yardley, in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, in 2004. It moved its Morristown office two years ago to Cedar Knolls.

In August 2018, Hill Wallack opened in Red Bank, followed by a new midtown Manhattan office in April of this year, and now Cherry Hill.

Now a midsize, full-service firm with approximately 75 attorneys in six offices, Hill Wallack offers services to those in banking, business and commercial, community associations, creditors' rights, employment and labor law, family law, insurance, land use, litigation and real estate.

And just like in real estate, location becomes a key selling factor in attracting new clients, as well as legal talent, Kahme said. The firm encourages and accommodates a work-life balance.

"We are known for high-quality services and an environment that affords people to have balance in their lives," Kahme said. "People have their work lives and their personal lives. There has to be a balance and it can't be all or nothing.

"With telecommuting, you don't have to be in a tall building to service your clients and be available for them for wherever they may be," Kahme added. "The whole firm is entirely integrated and wired together so it really doesn't matter where you sit. It is very efficient. We would rather have people in the office than on the road."

It's better for the clients, too, he said.

"A lot of times our clients want to feel their lawyers are in close proximity to their businesses even in this electronic age," Kahme said. "They want to feel like their lawyers are nearby if they need to speak to them in person."

Kahme said Shivers and Greatrex came to Hill Wallack after having represented over 230 community associations, while Gosnay brings expertise in asbestos exposure, a new area of law for the firm.

Greatrex, a Temple University School of Law grad, has 30 years of experience, with a vast portion of his practice in community association law in New Jersey. He has represented common interest communities, including condominiums, townhomes and single-family detached homes, and is a member of the Community Associations Institute (CAI). Greatrex is also current chair of the CAI Legislative Action Committee – NJ.

Shivers, a certified civil trial attorney, will also focus primarily on representing community associations and continue to handle complex litigation matters including asbestos litigation, wrongful death and catastrophic injury cases on behalf of injured individuals. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from Rutgers Law School-Camden.

Gosnay has represented individuals with asbestos-related diseases and their families over the last 34 years. A Temple University Law School grad, he also has significant experience representing injured railroad workers under the Federal Employers Liability Act, and individuals who have suffered serious injury and/or death due to accidents or exposure to hazardous, toxic substances.

Like her previous job, Webb will maintain her focus on representing community associations, collections, daily operations, the creation and enforcement of restrictive covenants and regulations, among other areas. She received her Juris Doctor degree from Rutgers University-Camden. She will work with Greatrex and Shivers on the community associations practice group from the firm's Princeton office.