A partner and attorney at Gentle, Turner, Sexton & Harbison, LLC, in Alabama, Edgar “Ed” Gentle serves as a neutral settlement administrator and special master for the courts. Possessing more than three decades of legal experience, Ed Gentle also writes and speaks about topics relating to mass torts and serves as the president of the Academy of Court Appointed Masters (ACAM).
Special masters are attorneys who are appointed by a court to carry out specific actions on its behalf. In many situations, these professionals compile evidence and documents to inform the court’s actions; however, they can also administer compensation, advise judges about technical issues, and assist with criminal and class action cases.
The ACAM, the only national organization for special masters, focuses on educating the bench and bar on how to use such professionals. This is done in part through the ACAM Benchbook, a publication that provides lawyers and judges with information about using special masters.
Consisting of six sections, the book explains how special masters provide the civil justice system with inexpensive, just, and quick determinations for disputes. The first section focuses on types of appointments and provides professionals with a summary of the different roles filled by judicial adjuncts. Professionals then can read about the rules governing appointment orders in section two and look at sample appointment order forms. Section three covers ethical issues and practical concerns, section four discusses state and federal master rules and authorities, and sections five and six discuss federal and state cases involving masters.
The ACAM Benchbook is available for free to download on the organization’s website. Lawyers and judges are encouraged to print out the book and keep it in a binder for review.
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