Ashlee D. Riopka

Ashlee is a Shareholder at Maynard Nexsen and focuses her practice on defending insurers, third-party administrators, plan administrators, plan sponsors, and employers in a variety of complex group insurance-related matters involving life, health, disability, and accidental death and dismemberment plans and coverages. Ashlee has extensive ERISA litigation experience and is well-versed in preemption, standard of review, scope of discovery, and ERISA remedy issues. Ashlee's practice is also defending insurers in life and disability bad faith matters. She has defended health care and insurance clients in individual and class actions nationwide, and has significant experience coordinating and managing large-scale electronic discovery productions.

In addition to her law practice, Ashlee is a member of Maynard’s Women’s Initiative Committee in which she serves as co-chair of the Women’s Forum, and coordinates internal programming focused on the retention, development, and promotion of the Firm’s female lawyers.

Ashlee received her J.D. cum laude from the University Of Alabama School Of Law and holds a B.A. summa cum laude from Auburn University.

In recognition of her achievements, Ashlee has been listed as Best Lawyer’s “Ones to Watch” in Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law (2021-2023), Insurance Law (2021-2023), and Mass Tort Litigation/Class Action Defendants (2023). She also has been listed as a Mid-South Super Lawyers “Rising Star” in Employee Benefits since 2021.

Community & Professional

• Alabama Bar Association, Young Lawyers Section, Federal Court Practice Section, and Women’s Section
• Birmingham Bar Association
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Junior Board, Alabama Chapter; Secretary
• Crisis Center Inc. Junior Board; Executive Committee, Finance Chair
• Birmingham Bar Association Scholarship Committee

• Aldridge v. Regions Bank, No. 3:21-CV-00082-DCLC-DCP, 2024 WL 2819523 (E.D. Tenn. Jun. 3, 2024)  
• Beach v. Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, No. 1:23-CV-02190 [Doc. 41] (N.D. Ga. Jan. 26, 2024) 
• Martin v. Hartford Life and Accident Ins. Co., No. 1:22-CV-115 [Doc. 31] (S.D. Ala. March 9, 2023)
• Barnett v. Sun Life Assurance Co. of Canada, 3:20-CV-01879-LCB, 2022 WL 4596567 (N.D. Ala. Jul. 18, 2022)
• Barnett v. Sun Life Assurance Co. of Canada, 3:20-CV-01879-LCB, 2022 WL 2762710 (N.D. Ala. June 21, 2022)
• Anderson v. Hartford Life & Accident Ins. Co., 4:19-CV-140-JHM, 2021 WL 5041224 (W.D. Ky. Oct. 29, 2021)
• Hodge v. Guardian Life Ins. Co., 4:20-CV-2088, 2021 WL 5142793 (S.D. Tex. Sept. 10, 2021)
• Burns v. Guardian Life Ins. Co. of Am., No. 20-1496, 2021 WL 2815980 (W.D. La. Jul. 6, 2021)
• Crump v. Aetna, No. 1:19-CV-109-SA-DAS, 2020 WL 6265072 (N.D. Miss. Oct. 23, 2020)
• Smith v. Hartford, No. 4:20-CV-00041-CLM, 2020 WL 4815143 (N.D. Ala. Aug. 19, 2020)
• Smith v. Hartford Life & Accident Ins. Co., No. CV 5:19-061-DCR, 2020 WL 4355068 (E.D. Ky. July 29, 2020)
• Crites v. Aetna Life Ins. Co., No. 4:19-CV-00098-KGB, 2020 WL 2616578 (E.D. Ark. May 21, 2020)
• Thoms v. Advanced Technology Systems Company, Inc., et al., No. 1:20-cv-235, 2020 WL 4016244 (M.D. Ala. 2020)
• Lemons v. Principal Life Ins. Co., 497 F.3d 1192 (N.D. Ala. 2020)
• Cofield v. The Hartford, No. 4:18-CV-607, 2020 WL 2218935 (N.D. Ala. 2020)
• Morse v. Life Ins. Co. of N. Am., 399 F. Supp. 3d 1236 (N.D. Ala. 2019)
• Long v. Aetna Life Ins. Co., 404 F. Supp. 3d 1012 (N.D. Tex. 2019)
• Ward v. Aetna Life Ins. Co., 1:17-CV-331-LG-RHW, 2018 WL 6706690 (S.D. Miss. Dec. 20, 2018)
• Gray v. Aetna Life Ins. Co., 1:18-CV-52-ECM-DAB, 2018 WL 6977706 (M.D. Ala. Dec. 18, 2018)
• Bales v. Hartford Life & Acc. Ins. Co., 3:15-cv-790-CWR-LRA, 2018 WL 2208151 (S.D. Miss. Jan. 24, 2018)
• Aldridge v. IDS Life Ins. Co., et al., 7:16-CV-00189-LSC, Doc. No. 96 (N.D. Ala. Nov. 9, 2017)
• Turner v. Hartford Life & Accident Ins. Co., 4:15-CV-81-DMB-JMV, 2017 WL 1017656 (N.D. Miss. March 10, 2017)
• Barry L. Smith v. Guardian Life Ins. Co. of Am., 4:16-CV-00912-VEH (N.D Ala. Sept. 6, 2016)

Recognition

• Mid-South Super Lawyers "Rising Star" in Employee Benefits (2021-present)
• Listed in Best Lawyers, "Ones to Watch" for Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law, Insurance Law (2021-present), Mass Tort Litigation/ Class Actions- Defendants (2023-present)