Abba Harris Receives Bradley's 2020 Cameron J. Miller Award for Excellence and Community Service
Bradley is pleased to announce that Abigail B. Harris, an attorney in the firm’s Birmingham office, is the recipient of the firm’s 2020 Cameron J. Miller Award for Excellence and Community Service.
The award honors an associate who exemplifies the excellence, in and out of the law firm, of Cameron Miller, who died in June 2012 battling cancer while in his first year of practice as an attorney with Bradley. The firm established the award in conjunction with Mr. Miller’s parents, Frank and Alice Miller; his fiancée at the time of his passing, Katherine Perry; and Ms. Perry’s parents, Charlie and Sheri Perry.
“We are proud to honor Abba for demonstrating the pillars of the Cam Miller Award – excellence in the practice of law, integrity, humility, patience, and most importantly for this award, community involvement,” said Bradley Chairman of the Board and Managing Partner Jonathan M. Skeeters. “Through this award and recognizing Abba’s service, Cam’s example of community service lives on in a tangible way.”
The Cameron J. Miller Award for Excellence and Community Service includes a donation to a charity in Mr. Miller’s memory. This year, with the support of the Miller and Perry families, the firm will make a cash donation of $10,000 to the YWCA Central Alabama, which is the charitable/community service organization selected by Ms. Harris.
Ms. Harris has been actively involved with YWCA as a member of the organization’s Junior Board, serving five years–two years beyond the usual three-year term. YWCA’s mission is to eliminate racism, empower women, stand up for social justice, help families and strengthen communities. The Junior Board of YWCA is responsible for initiatives involving homeless children and families in Birmingham.
Ms. Harris also serves as vice president and president-elect of the Birmingham chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), where she is working to create a program between NAWIC and YWCA that will allow construction companies to participate in a YWCA job training program to provide homeless adults the opportunity to explore careers in the construction industry. Separately, through NAWIC, Ms. Harris participates in an outreach program with a local elementary school designed to increase interest in construction industry careers among students, particularly minority students.
At Bradley, Ms. Harris is an associate in the Construction Practice Group and represents EPC contractors, general contractors, and subcontractors on a variety of projects — from condominium towers and retail centers to water treatment plants and utility-scale solar farms — locally, nationally, and abroad. Throughout her practice, she has assisted in claim preparation and defense of government contracts, tailored contracts to meet the needs of specialty contractors, and defended a wide range of matters, including breach of contract, breach of warranty, and complex fraud claims.
Bradley was named the nation’s “Law Firm of the Year” for Construction Law in the 2020 and 2018 editions of U.S. News & World Report – Best Lawyers "Best Law Firms." The award is particularly significant since only one law firm in the United States per legal practice area receives this recognition each year. Attorneys in the firm’s Construction Practice Group counsel clients on projects in the United States, Canada and Mexico, as well as more than 35 countries across Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, the Middle East, the Caribbean, and South America. Many of the firm’s construction attorneys have degrees in engineering, building science or architecture and have previous practical experience working in the construction industry.