George H. Cate III joined Neal & Harwell in 1987 where his practice has focused on litigation, particularly civil trial practice in federal and state courts.

His experience includes complex civil litigation arising from a broad variety of commercial and business transactions, misappropriation of trade secrets and other intellectual property disputes, non-competition and related business tort litigation, employment and labor disputes, insurance litigation, banking litigation, federal tax litigation, and commercial real estate disputes. He has defended clients in investigations brought by the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office and other state agencies. During his career, Mr. Cate has also handled a broad variety of complex tort litigation including product liability and mass tort cases.

Mr. Cate graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1984 with a B.A. degree in History. He received his law degree in 1987 from Emory University Law School, where he was a member of the National Moot Court Team and inducted into the National Order of Barristers.

• Defense of Danish company Per Aarsleff A/S and its Swedish/Finnish subsidiaries in lawsuit alleging breach of international license agreements and misappropriation of intellectual property (Insituform Technologies, Inc., et ano. v. Per Aarsleff A/S et al.) (United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee)
• Representation of Ingram Industries Inc. and its subsidiaries in a variety of commercial and business disputes, including, among others, Schwartz Brothers Inc. v. Ingram Entertainment Inc. (United States District Court for District of Maryland), Ingram Book Group Inc. v. Systems Technology, Inc. (United States District Court for Middle District of Tennessee), and Southwest Acquisitions Group, Inc. v. Capital Z Management, LLC, et al. (Middle District of Tennessee)
• Defense of funeral home defendants in mass tort litigation arising from the Tri-State Crematory disaster in Noble, Georgia (Akers/Burns/Hall v. Prime Succession of Tennessee, Inc., et al.) (Circuit Court for Bradley County, Tennessee)
• Defense of helicopter manufacturer in products liability case arising from crash of helicopter carrying Kentucky Governor Brereton Jones (James Cary et ano. v. Sikorsky Aircraft Division of United Technologies Corporation) (United States District Court for Eastern District of Kentucky)
• Defense of automobile manufacturer in wrongful death case alleging defective design of seatback and seat restraint in Volkswagen Jetta (Louis v. Volkswagenwerk Aktiengesellschaft) (United States District Court for Middle District of Tennessee)
• Represented General Motors in litigation filed by residents of Brownsville, Texas against GM and other U.S. companies alleging that birth defects were caused by operation of manufacturing facilities in Matamoros, Mexico (Cameron County, Texas)
• Represented entertainer Barbara Mandrell Dudney and her husband, Ken Dudney, in insurance coverage litigation related to injuries sustained in her 1984 automobile accident (Integrity Insurance Company v. Barbara M. Dudney et al.) (United States District Court for Middle District of Tennessee)

• AV-Rated by Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review, highest rating awarded.

• Fellow, Nashville Bar Foundation
• Member, American Bar Association
• Member, Tennessee Bar Association
• Member, Nashville Bar Association

• Board Member and Executive Committee Member, Family & Children’s Service
• Member of United Way of Metropolitan Nashville 2-1-1 Advisory Committee
• Former Board Member and Executive Committee Member, Crisis Intervention Center, Inc.