A Singular Focus on Justice and Balance
Our firm is built on focus, discipline, and precision in correctional defense work.
Who We Are
Blackstone is a single-practice trial firm focused exclusively on defending correctional healthcare professionals and organizations. Our firm was built around one principle: cases involving correctional medicine must be understood in context to be judged fairly.
We do not divide our attention across multiple practice areas. That focus allows for sharper preparation, deeper subject-matter command, and stronger courtroom clarity.
Our Mission
Our mission is to protect correctional healthcare professionals by ensuring standards of care are accurately represented in litigation. We work to guard against excessive verdicts that can destabilize healthcare institutions, discourage qualified providers, and ultimately undermine patient care.
We believe justice requires balance, recognizing both patient rights and the real-world conditions under which correctional medical care is delivered.
Team & Expertise
Our attorneys bring extensive trial experience and a deep understanding of medical, operational, and security realities within correctional settings. We work closely with medical experts and healthcare organizations to build cases grounded in accuracy, clarity, and credibility.
Susanne Moore
Founding Attorney/CEO
Licensed in Texas, Washington, Alabama and Georgia and as a Registered Nurse, Susanne has a background in medical malpractice defense litigation and national correctional healthcare business operations. In her most recent role as healthcare Chief of Operations, she worked closely with incredible healthcare professionals for over a decade and saw how, all too often, their legal representation lacked the technical detail needed for a jury to reach the most accurate conclusion. Our goal at Blackstone Trial Group is to change that, with the right team and the right technology to fully tell the whole story.
Adrienne Scott
Trial Attorney
Drawing on more than a decade of experience in trial work and risk management, Adrienne offers both courtroom experience and clear, strategic guidance in malpractice disputes.
Before joining Blackstone, Adrienne served as an attorney in a boutique defense firm, where she defended medical malpractice, catastrophic injury, and complex business tort cases. She successfully tried and resolved dozens of matters in state and federal courts, achieving defense verdicts in multimillion-dollar actions and managing a full docket of medical malpractice suits to favorable outcomes. She also oversaw education initiatives for underrepresented students interested in legal careers.
Albert Zakarian
Trial Attorney
Albert has dedicated his career to defending businesses in commercial civil litigation matters since 1995. He has defended businesses in both State and Federal Courts including appeals for clients such as General Motors Corporation, Bank of America, Nationstar Mortgage, as well as regional and local businesses. He is licensed in New York, Connecticut and Florida, with pending applications in other States. In his own words "It's my job to get businesses out of the courtroom and back to work."
Jessica Hornbuckle
Trial Attorney
Jessica has successfully litigated insurance defense matters in State and Federal Court nationwide including personal injury, premises liability, wrongful death matters, bad faith coverage matters in the Long-Term Care insurance context, and complex products liability for large corporations. Jessica has extensive experience managing litigation nation-wide. She is ecstatic to leverage her litigation skills and serve as an advocate for medical professionals and NaphCare. She is admitted in Alabama and Florida.
Aaron Brown
Trial Attorney
Aaron Brown is passionate about defending healthcare organizations and professionals in medical malpractice lawsuits. Prior to joining Blackstone, Aaron spent nearly a decade as a prosecutor. As a prosecutor, Aaron spent a lot of his time in the courtroom honing his litigation skills. He gained valuable trial experience, trying everything from serious felony jury trials to misdemeanor bench trials. Aaron was also able to develop his negotiation skills by resolving many cases with favorable plea agreements. Aaron relishes every opportunity he has to use his litigation skills to zealously advocate for his clients and obtain favorable results.
Phillip Silvestri
Trial Attorney
Phil is a seasoned litigator with nearly two decades of experience representing clients in complex, highly regulated industries in state and federal courts throughout the country. Prior to joining Blackstone, Phil was a partner at an AM Law 200 firm, and before that managed his own practice where he was the “go to” legal expert and speaker regarding the complex financial matters he specialized in. Throughout his career, he has consistently been recognized as a “Best Lawyer” by U.S. News and World Report, and a “Rising Star” by SuperLawyers magazine, as well as numerous other accolades for his outstanding work, and the results he obtained for his clients.
Phil is excited to join the Blackstone team, and to utilize the experience he has honed litigating in highly regulated industries to assist the underserved, and highly misunderstood, correctional healthcare industry.
Melissa Massengill
Certified Paralegal
An experienced paralegal with a diverse background, including legal support at a large law firm, court administration in a municipal courtroom, and as a corporate paralegal for a large national healthcare company. She holds a Certificate in Paralegal Studies from Duke University and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from The University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Melissa’s experience includes leadership roles in office management, corporate communications for a pharmaceutical company, and grant writing for the state theater of Virginia.
Kim Skelton
Office Manager and Senior Paralegal
Kim has years of dedicated service as a large law firm paralegal AND corporate counsel paralegal, coupled with experience managing human resources and recruiting processes. Her analytical skills make her a superb process architect, a talent that will help us scale to serve our healthcare professionals across the nation.
Katie Moore
Certified Paralegal
With overtwo decades of legal experience, Katie brings a deep understanding of case management, court procedures and trial preparation, combining technical precision with proven leadership. She managed staff at the US District Court, supporting judges, staff and the public on complex procedural questions. She worked at a large law firm in federal appeals and litigation and most recently worked in-house supporting the attorney team in high volume significant litigation across the nation.
Honey Lee Walker
Legal Nurse Consultant (RN)
With 33 years of nursing experience, including 11 years working with the incarcerated population, and 7 years in the legal field, Honey Lee is an outstanding asset to provide expert medical-legal analysis in complex litigation.
Her precise, detail-oriented approach supports defense teams by translating clinical realities into clear, actionable legal insights.
Known for her professionalism and integrity, Honey Lee is dedicated to accurate, effective support of correctional healthcare providers in the legal arena.