In his more than thirty-year legal career, Richard Carter has litigated many complex disputes and trials, including in the areas of patent litigation at the U.S. District Court and Federal Circuit levels, construction litigation, accounting defense, legal malpractice defense, and wrongful death. His substantial jury trial experience has equipped him to handle jury trials in both the state and federal courts.
In 1999 he was certified in Civil Trial Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He has been listed in Best Lawyers in America for many years and has been selected as one of the Best Lawyers in Tennessee in the area of Intellectual Property. He holds an AV rating with Martindale Hubbell. Richard is past Chairman of the Local Rules Committee and between 2012 and 2016 was Chairman of the Standing Local Rules Committee for the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. He remains a member of the Standing Local Rules Committee and the Local Patent Rules Committee. He previously has served as an officer of the Leo Bearman Sr. Inn of Court, a member of the Lawyer’s Journal Club, the Tennessee Bar Foundation, the Session of his church and as Chairman of its Diaconate. He has lectured extensively on patent litigation and trial practice issues including: the America Invents Act; patent litigation; patentability under 35 U.S.C. § 101; accounting defense; uses of demonstrative evidence at trial; Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations Act; wrongful death; and federal practice, to name a few.
Richard received his Bachelor of Science degree from the United States Military Academy. Richard served in various positions as an Infantry Lieutenant and Captain in Europe before attending law school under the Funded Legal Education Program. While in law school, Richard was Editor-In-Chief of the Law Review and a member of the Moot Court Board. Following graduation from law school, Richard served in the Army Judge Advocate General's Corps as a prosecutor, senior prosecutor, and senior defense counsel before leaving the service in 1984 to join Martin Tate.
Certification/Specialties
- Civil Trial Specialist, National Board of Trial Advocacy, since 1999
Published Works
- Federal Enforcement of Individual and Corporate Criminal Liability for Water Pollution, 10 Memphis State University Law Review 576, 1980
- Co-Author, Insurance Coverage Laws in Tennessee, National Business Institute, Inc., 1995
- Co-Author, Trying the Wrongful Death Cases in Tennessee: Strategies in Preparation and Valuation, National Business Institute, Inc., 1996
- Spoliation in the State and Federal Courts of Tennessee, Lawyers' Journal Club, 2009
- The Boundaries of Patentability Under Section 101, Lawyers' Journal Club, 2015
Classes/Seminars Taught
- Lecturer, How the Attorney Should Prepare for a Liability Case, Tennessee Society of Certified Public Accountants, Memphis Chapter, 1993
- Lecturer, See You In Court: Security Breach Liability, Society for Information Management, Memphis Chapter, 2002
- Lecturer, Issues in Discovery , Memphis Bench Bar Conference, 2002
- Use of Demonstrative Evidence and Trial Presentation Techniques, ATLA Roscoe Pound Institute, 2002
- Lecturer, Patent Ligation: A Brief Tour Through the Minefield, Memphis Bar Association, 2007
- Lecturer, Local Rule Changes and The Realities of E-Discovery, Federal Bar Association, 2010
- Lecturer, Patent Reform Act of 2011, US Law Network, 2011
- Lecturer, 2015 Amendments to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Tennessee Bar Association, 2014
- Lecturer, The Boundaries of Patentability Under Section 101, Memphis Lawyers' Journal Club, 2015
Professional Associations and Memberships
- Memphis Bar Association
- Tennessee Bar Association
- American Bar Association
- District of Columbia Bar
- Tennessee Bar Foundation
- Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America
