Brenda S. McClearn

Brenda McClearn is a Partner practicing in both the Charlotte and Denver offices. For nearly three decades Brenda has skillfully defended professionals and businesses in state and federal courts, as well as in administrative proceedings before licensing boards. She focuses her practice on medical malpractice, professional malpractice and ethics, health care, dental, aging services, products liability, general liability and business litigation matters. She is also an active part of the National Trial Counsel team.

Brenda navigates complex and catastrophic cases with thoughtful expertise and offers a sophisticated approach to both trial and dispute resolution. She has decades of trial experience and has defended health care professionals in birth trauma, wrongful death, and other significant and debilitating medical claims. Her clients have included physicians, nurses, dentists, mental health professionals, veterinarians, hospitals, skilled nursing and assisted care facilities, pharmacies, health care systems, and health care associations such as the American Medical Association. Brenda’s defense of virtually every medical specialty has given her the deep knowledge necessary to deliver informed advice that best protects the careers that health care providers have spent years earning.

Brenda’s specialized practice also includes advising and representing CPAs and other attorneys. Her consultation with these learned professionals includes direction on how to better manage risk to reduce potential liability and bring better service to their own clients. She has also represented architects, engineers, contractors, and materials suppliers in a range of construction litigation cases. Her experience includes projects as small as unit buildings to county jails and city wastewater collection systems.

Furthermore, Brenda has represented large, national corporations in the chemical and energy industries. Her defense of business interests includes employment claims, noncompete contracts, sexual harassment cases, product liability, RICO, and other business torts. In addition, she has represented countless religious organizations and churches in defending liability claims, from simple disputes to more serious allegations involving sexual misconduct or excommunication of members. She is sensitive to the needs of churches and is knowledgeable of the unique laws that specifically protect our institutions of faith.

As a leader in the field of risk management, Brenda is regularly invited as a speaker share her expertise with legal, medical, dental, and risk management professionals. She has also sponsored educational programs, written policies, and closely advised legal and health care groups on risk and trial strategies.

Prior to joining HBS, Brenda was Partner and Co-Owner of a civil litigation firm in Greensboro, North Carolina. She earned her Juris Doctor, with honors, from The George Washington University Law School and holds a Bachelor of Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Colorado.