Top Rated Personal Injury Attorney in Phoenix, AZ

Bar/Professional Activity

• 2017 Phoenix ABOTA Lawyer of the Year; 2017 Az Assoc. for Justice Lifetime Achievement Award; Past President of Arizona Trial Lawyers Association (now Arizona Association for Justice), 1991.  Past President of Phoenix Trial Lawyers Association, 1987.  American Board of Trial Advocates, 1997. Arizona Supreme Court Commission, Legal Ethics Reform, 1994 - Present. Arizona State Bar Association, Civil Practice and Procedure Committee, 1987 - 1999. Arizona State Bar Association, Committee on Recommended Arizona Jury Instructions, 1991 - 1992. Arizona State Bar Association, Judicial Evaluation Committee, 1986 - 1988. Arizona State Bar Association, Alternate Dispute Resolution Committee, 1986 - 1987. Arizona Association for Justice, Life Member, 2004 - Present. Arizona Association for Justice, President, 1991 Arizona Association for Justice, Sustaining Member, 1983 - Present. Arizona Association for Justice, Board of Directors, 1986 - Present Arizona Association for Justice, Various Committees Phoenix Trial Lawyers Association, President, 1986 - 1987 Phoenix Trial Lawyers Association, Board of Directors, 1983 - Present. American Association for Justice, Sustaining Member, 1986 - Present. American Association for Justice, Leaders' Forum, 2001 - Present. Maricopa County Bar Association, Various Committees.  State Bar of Arizona Board Certified Specialist in Injury and Wrongful Death Litigation.

Honors/Awards

• My wife and kids and clients like me. My dog likes me a lot.  Listed in Best Lawyers in America, Preeminent Attorneys, Southwest Law Dragons, Martindale Hubbell "AV" rating.

Educational Background

• Arizona State University, College of Law, Tempe, Arizona J.D. - 1977  Michigan State University, Honors College, East Lansing, Michigan B.A. (Cum Laude) - 1973. Honors: National Merit Scholar

Verdicts/Settlements

•     Malone v. Sullivan, 124 Ariz. 469, 605 P.2d 447, Ariz., January 15, 1980. A woman is not required by common law, statute or rule to assume name of her husband upon marriage.     St. Paul Property and Liability Ins. Co. v. Eymann, 166 Ariz. 344, 802 P.2d 1043, Ariz.App. Div. 1, August 23, 1990. (Judge pro tem.)  Diminished capacity and the intentional acts exclusion in homeowners insurance coverage.     Plattner v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 168 Ariz. 311, 812 P.2d 1129, Ariz.App. Div. 1, May 28, 1991.  An insurance company which uses deception to require an attorney to withdraw from representing a client on contingent fee can be sued for intentional interference with contract.     Pruett v. Farmers Ins. Co. of Arizona, 175 Ariz. 447, 857 P.2d 1301, Ariz.App. Div. 1, February 11, 1993.  The "family member" exclusion in an automobile insurance policy is invalid if it violates the reasonable expectations of the insured.     Montgomery Ward & Co., Inc. v. Superior Court In and For County of Maricopa, 176 Ariz. 619, 863 P.2d 911, Ariz.App. Div. 1, November 23, 1993. When a defendant engages in discovery abuse by hiding damaging evidence, the court must hold a hearing to determine if the fault was with the party or the attorney before throwing out the liability defenses as a sanction.     Matter of Conservatorship of Fallers, 181 Ariz. 227, 889 P.2d 20, Ariz.App. Div. 1, May 31, 1994.  A lawyer who handles an injury case for a minor child is entitled to a reasonable contingent fee.  The function of the probate court is to ensure that the fee is reasonable, not to provide the minor with a discounted fee.     Cunningham v. Goettl Air Conditioning, Inc., 194 Ariz. 236, 980 P.2d 489, 295 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 7, Ariz., May 19, 1999. (Amicus curie.)  Construction site injury and settlement; issues of indemnity and assignment of rights.     Walk v. Ring, 202 Ariz. 310, 44 P.3d 990, 378 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 61, Ariz., April 24, 2002.  The "discovery rule" regarding statutes of limitation applies in medical/dental malpractice cases  -- where a physician has concealed the cause of the patient's problems, time does not begin to run until the patient discovers or reasonably should have discovered that the cause was the physician's fault.     Safeway Ins. Co., Inc. v. Guerrero, 210 Ariz. 5, 106 P.3d 1020, 446 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 51, Ariz., February 24, 2005.  Attorneys acted properly in negotiating a settlement agreement for their clients, and thus could not be sued for interfering in the contract relationship between the defendant insured and his insurance carrier.    

Scholarly Lectures/Writings

• "Appellate Highlights," monthly column in AzTLA "Advocate," 1985- present. Principal Editor, Maricopa County Superior Court Judges, AzTLA, 1985. "Evaluation & Settlement of Personal Injury Cases in Arizona: Plaintiffs' Perspective", PESI, 1990. "ADVOCACY: The Last Bastion of Caveat Emptor", Petition to Arizona Supreme Court to Modify Arizona Ethics Rules, 1993. "Lawyering: Beyond the Adversary System", Arizona Attorney, 1994. "Locking the Courthouse Door", Trial Practice, 1995. "The Discovery Czar Approach to Limiting Litigation Abuse", Maricopa County Superior Court Civil Study Committee, August, 1997. "Discovery Disputes: How to Run the Railroad Without Railroading Anybody," MaricopaLawyer, November, 1997. Discussed: Up And Running: The Jami Goldman Story, Goldman & Cagan, Pocket Books (Simon & Schuster, Inc.), 2001

Pro bono/Community Service

• Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Phoenix Choir, Music Committee, Renovation Committee, Capital Campaign Committee, Committee on Ministry.

Special Licenses/Certifications

• State Bar of Arizona - Board Certified Specialist in Injury and Wrongful Death Litigation, 1990

Industry Groups

• AAJ
• ABOTA
• Arizona State Bar
• AzTLA/Arizona Association For Justice
• Transportation & Trucking Litigation