Brian Vandiver's career representing businesses in employment and labor law was inspired by reading Michael Crichton's novel "Disclosure" for a course at Hendrix College. But the accolades he has received aren't fictional.
Mid-South Super Lawyers magazine designated him a Rising Star in 2009, and he has been included in the employment and labor category in Best Lawyers in America since 2008.
In 2005, he won an American Bar Association Golden Gavel award.
Vandiver joined Mitchell Williams Selig Gates & Woodyard in January. Prior to that, he spent seven years at Cross Gunter Witherspoon & Galchus.
As a litigator, Vandiver handles cases once they're filed, but much of his work involves preventive measures such as helping employers make sure their policies and practices are current and comply with labor laws.
Since 2003, he has taught at the Bowen School of Law at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.
Vandiver has served as vice chair of the board of the Special Olympics of Arkansas for the last five years and will become chair in 2011. He also has served on the board of the Arkansas Bar Association Mock Trial Committee and is a coach to the Little Rock Central High School mock trial team.