Adam Peoples is a first-chair jury trial lawyer who focuses on high-exposure disputes. He is frequently engaged by litigation teams and corporate defendants when a case is approaching trial or when settlement value depends on credible courtroom execution.
Since joining Hall Booth Smith in 2017, Adam has accumulated more than 1,800 hours of jury trial time. His trial experience is concentrated in high-exposure matters, including disputes involving eight- and nine-figure demands, with proceedings typically lasting two weeks and as long as seven weeks.
While every case presents unique facts, Adam’s experience has shown that jury outcomes are often shaped by recurring risk archetypes that appear again and again in high-exposure disputes. This volume of courtroom exposure has placed him repeatedly in the kinds of high-risk jury environments most clients hope never to face, including:
•Highly personal disputes where both sides have acted badly
•Multi-claim “shotgun” complaints designed to overwhelm
•Deeply sympathetic party narratives
•Technically complex cases requiring simplification
•Public-sentiment cases where the client is presumed to be the villain
•Hindsight-driven “if only one more thing had been done” claims
•Matters constrained by adverse pretrial rulings
•Cases involving admitted mistakes but disputed legal liability
•Multi-defendant finger-pointing cases
•Underdog cases against better-resourced opponents
Repeated exposure to these patterns allows him to identify early which issues truly matter to jurors, and which do not, shaping a focused approach to issue selection, witness preparation, and jury persuasion that centers on what actually influences verdicts. As a result, Adam’s perspective is always juror-focused, developing persuasive trial themes, preparing witnesses for live testimony, and presenting cases in court when the outcome depends on effective courtroom performance.
Before entering private practice, Adam served as a law clerk to the Honorable Martin Reidinger of the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. He later joined the Asheville office of Hall Booth Smith, where he built a practice centered on defending high-exposure professional and commercial liability claims.
Adam earned his Juris Doctor from Mercer University after graduating summa cum laude from Columbus State University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Prior to law school, he worked as a project manager in the healthcare and software development industries.
He is AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell.
Experience
Construction
Adam has experience representing contractors, subcontractors, developers, and insurance companies in various construction design and defect, delay, contract compliance, insurance coverage, personal injury, and property damage matters. His practice is focused on litigation including mediation and trials in both state and federal courts in North Carolina and Georgia.
Correctional Health Care
Adam has represented numerous medical care providers in a variety of correctional health care disputes. His extensive trial experience in both state and federal courts, handling cases of all levels of exposure, enables him to skillfully defend these matters through all stages of litigation. Moreover, his extensive contacts in medical and professional communities enables him to secure highly-qualified experts to help defeat or mitigate plaintiff claims.
Employment
Adam has defended employers in a variety of matters, including claims of sexual harassment, discrimination, hostile work environment, retaliation, and wrongful termination. He provides strategic counsel and representation in matters before state and federal courts, as well as before the United States Department of Labor, the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and other state and local agencies and authorities.
General Liability
Adam brings experience in a wide variety of general liability claims including personal injury, premises liability, and motor vehicle accidents. His extensive trial experience in both state and federal courts, handling cases of all levels of exposure, enables him to skillfully defend these matters through all stages of litigation. Moreover, his extensive contacts in medical and professional communities enables him to secure highly-qualified experts to help defeat or mitigate plaintiff claims.
Medical Malpractice
Adam defends doctors, nurses, medical staff, and health care facilities against claims ranging from negligent treatment and diagnosis to wrongful death. He handles cases from inception to trial, and all phases in between. His extensive trial experience in both state and federal courts, handling cases of all levels of exposure, enables him to skillfully defend these matters through all stages of litigation. Moreover, his extensive contacts in medical and professional communities enables him to secure highly-qualified experts to help defeat or mitigate plaintiff claims.
Professional Malpractice & Ethics
Adam has represented a variety of professionals, including lawyers, accountants, health care providers, and engineers, in matters involving allegations of negligence, breaches of duty, and unethical conduct. His extensive trial experience in both state and federal courts, handling cases of all levels of exposure, enables him to skillfully defend these matters through all stages of litigation. Moreover, his extensive contacts in medical and professional communities enables him to secure highly-qualified experts to help defeat or mitigate plaintiff claims.
Transportation
Adam defends clients in both motor vehicle accidents and common carrier incidents, beginning with the earliest notice of the Incident and continuing through to a verdict. He also advises common carriers on best practices to manage and mitigate risk. Adam is an active member of Hall Booth Smith’s Rapid Response team, allowing him to arrive at an accident scene within a moment’s notice to ensure evidence is preserved and information obtained in order to guarantee his client is provided the best defense possible.
Recognition
•The Best Lawyers in America , Personal Injury Litigation - Defendants, Best Lawyers, 2021-2026
•AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated, Martindale-Hubbell
•North Carolina Rising Star, Super Lawyers, 2022-2023
•Southeastern Legal Awards: On the Rise, Daily Report, 2023
Presentations
•Medical Malpractice: Mastering Safety, Trials, & Case Valuations
North Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys (NCADA), 47th Annual Meeting; June 15, 2024
•Mass Gatherings: 1st Amendment Issues Surrounding Public Protests
CMPD Crime Intel, MAIN Conference; April 25, 2024
•Strategies for Policing Mass Gatherings and Protests
North Carolina Law Enforcement Planners & Analysts Association, Annual Fall Conference; October 18, 2023
•Strategies for Policing Mass Gatherings and Protests
North Carolina Association of Chiefs of Police Annual Training Conference, January 2022
•Strategies for Policing Mass Gatherings and Protests
North Carolina Association of Municipal Clerks, April 2021
•Who Can Consent
Healthcare/Risk Management Webinar, June 2018
•Going Paperless, Made Simple: From Boxes to Bytes
Bankruptcy Law Institute, September 2013
Publications
•The Complications Associated with Third-Party Litigation Funding
North Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys; July 27, 2023
•Doctors vs. the Dead Man: The Problem with Application of North Carolina Rule of Evidence 601(c) in Wrongful Death Suits Arising from Alleged Medical Malpractice
North Carolina State Bar Journal, Fall 2021
•Custodial Care Issues: Minors and Custody Disputes
Medical Mutual MedNotes, March 2018
•Custodial Care Issues: Parents of Sexually Active Teens
Medical Mutual MedNotes, March 2018
•Custodial Care Issues: The Patient with Diminished Capacity
Medical Mutual MedNotes, March 2018
•Custodial Care Issues: The Geriatric Patient
Medical Mutual MedNotes, March 2018
In the Press
58 HBS Attorneys Recognized as The Best Lawyers in America Award Recipients
August 16, 2024
Hall Booth Smith, P.C. is pleased to announce that 58 lawyers have been included in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America
