Myles L. Epperson

Attorney Myles Epperson joined Simmons Hanly Conroy in 2002 and has dedicated his practice to representing victims of mesothelioma and asbestos-related diseases, recovering millions of dollars on their behalf.

With more than 26 years of legal experience, Myles is a shareholder at the firm. He is personally involved in every case he handles and attributes much of the firm's success for clients to the structure of the trial teams.

"It's as if every family gets the personal attention of working with a small, local law firm, but also the extra benefit of the muscle and resources of a large national law firm, which is critical in cases where you're taking on major corporations," Myles said.

Myles has litigated asbestos cases for clients throughout the country, from Maine to California. In 2012, Myles represented the family of Gerald Suttner, a pipefitter who died from mesothelioma in New York. He secured a $3 million verdict on their behalf.* Suttner was exposed to asbestos during his 36-year career as a pipefitter at a manufacturing plant.

Myles and his team presented expert testimony on the dangers of asbestos exposure, as well as documentation that the hazards of asbestos have been known since the early 1900s. The attorneys also showed that Crane Co., who manufactured asbestos-containing products, was aware of the risks as early as the 1930s, but the company continued to use asbestos into the late 1980s without placing warnings on its products.

"Jerry was a good man who worked hard his entire life to take care of his family and make his community a better place," Epperson said.

Before joining the firm, Myles worked as an attorney focusing on personal injury cases in Madison and St. Clair counties in Illinois. He graduated cum laude from Illinois Wesleyan University in 1992 with a double major in political science and business administration. He graduated cum laude from Southern Illinois University School of Law in Carbondale, Illinois in 1996. In law school, he was an editor of the law journal and captain of the Trial Advocacy Moot Court Team. He also worked in the Alternative Dispute Resolution Clinic and tutored for first-year law students.

Myles admires his father, a blue-collar worker who instilled a strong work ethic in him growing up.

"I see myself and my family in many of my clients. I know how hard they've worked and what they've been through trying to provide for their families," Myles said. "They can rest easy knowing I will work just as hard for them."