Top Rated Personal Injury Attorney in Charleston, WV

Other Outstanding Achievements

• Former President of The West Virginia Association for Justice
• Mr. Masters received the U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd Hall of Fame Award., 2017
• Former member of Boards of West Virginia University and University of Charleston

Honors/Awards

• Million and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates, Million and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forums
• American Board of Trial Advocates, American Board of Trial Advocates
• Martindale-Hubbell Preeminent recognition for the highest level of professional excellence, Martindale-Hubbell
• Top 100 Trial Lawyers, Top 100 Trial Lawyers
• Top Litigator Award, Top Litigator Award
• Super Lawyers  , Super Lawyers
• Best Lawyers in America, Best Lawyers in America

Pro bono/Community Service

• Pro bono counsel for The West Virginia Troopers Association and its members for 30 plus years.  
• Supports various local charities.
• Provides sponsorship to the West Virginia University Alumni Golf Tournament.
• Provides support and sponsorship to Downtown Charleston Artwalk and Charleston FestivALL.
• Mr. Masters received the “Others” Award from the Salvation Army of Charleston, West Virginia offered to a volunteer, supporter, civilian.
• Provided air transportation for Special Guest, General Chuck Yeager to and from West Virginia for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources “Governor’s One Shot Hunt annual event and other public appearances for charity.
• Provided support and sponsorship to The City of South Charleston, West Virginia annual events for 26 years until 2018, including the Armed Forces Day Parade, Summerfest and the Christmas Parade.

Verdicts/Settlements

• The results in any legal case depend upon many factors unique to each case. Prior results obtained by the Masters Law Firm do not guarantee future results in a different case, and verdicts and settlements listed on this website are examples of the types of cases handled by the firm. Please call us with any questions you have about our experience and services.
• Landowners were awarded over $400 million in damages by a jury in Roane County, West Virginia, Circuit Court, for breach of contract and civil fraudulent conduct.Lead trial counsel: Marvin W. Masters and April Ferrebee
• Parents and child awarded $10.3 million as a consequence of medical negligence by a hospital. Child suffered anoxic brain injury; Florida.Lead trial counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Parent awarded $8 million as a consequence of California attorney and others adopting child to a Canadian couple and wrongfully terminating his parental rights of the father; Cabell County, West Virginia.Counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Local man awarded $1.125 million as consequence of medical negligence in the doctor failing to report accurate findings on an x-ray; Kanawha County, West Virginia.Counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Massey employee awarded $1.8 million against AT Massey, Don Blankenship and others for wrongfully terminating supervisor as a result of supervisor complaining about safety issues and other allegations; Mingo County, West Virginia.Lead trial counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Parent of student who drowned while a summer employee of state awarded $1.03 million; Greenbrier County, West Virginia.Lawyers: Marvin W. Masters
• Super market chain maliciously prosecuted Greenbrier County man awarded $1.4 million in Federal Court in Beckley. Counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Parents and sister of college student awarded $2.2 million against persons responsible for on-campus death of a student.Counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Plaintiff sued defendant manufacture and medical supply company for defective wheelchair causing pressure ulcers and other wound care treatment. Result: Verdict for plaintiff $850,000.00.Lawyers: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Business and its employees were awarded $5.5 million in excess health care contributions.Lawyers: Marvin W. Masters and Kim Dotson
• Individual was awarded $4.3 million verdict for injury caused by surgery negligently performed by urologist.Lawyer: Bob Welsh
• $8 million settlement of antitrust and consumer protection action for Attorney General and State of West Virginia due to allegations of wrongful insurance rates practices, Hancock County, West Virginia.Lead class counsel acting as special counsel to the Attorney General: Marvin W. Masters
• Settlement of pharmaceutical case against Serzone Pharmaceutical resulted in a $70 million settlement against the Food and Drug Administration; United States District Court.Co-Lead counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Class action against East Resources, Inc. for failing to pay royalty properly and breach of contract; $6 million; Circuit Court of Roane County, West Virginia.Lead class counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Class action against Equitable Production Company for failing to pay royalty properly and breach of contract; $34 million; United States District Court, Southern District of West Virginia.Lead class counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Plaintiff was standing beside his vehicle at an interstate exit and was catastrophically injured when he was struck by a drunk driver, who was working as a traveling salesman. Plaintiff made claims against defendant drunk driver and against the company for negligent hiring and retention and agency.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Estate asserted claim against hospital for failure to recognize an improper cut of the small bowel during surgery and failure to perform adequate follow up care resulting in death of the patient.Result: Pre-Suit. Settlement: Confidential. Lawyers: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Class action against Dominion Resources Services for failing to pay royalty properly and breach of contract; $35 million; United States District Court, Southern District of West Virginia.Lead class counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Plaintiffs were persons who purchased plots in an upscale housing development. Defendant developer failed to advise plaintiffs that the land could not have proper sewage, and failed to complete promised infrastructure. Defendant county improperly permitted the subdivision.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyers: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• In Re: West Virginia Rezulin Litigation, a class litigation, against Parke-Davis; Raleigh County, West Virginia for the drug, Rezulin, which caused serious harm to numerous West Virginia residents.Settlement: $17.1 million. Class counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• Plaintiffs were guests in different hotel rooms and were exposed to carbon monoxide from a pool heater resulting in the death of one plaintiff and injuries to other plaintiffs.Result: Settlements: Confidential. Lawyers: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiffs were workers on a strip mine who were improperly exposed to a chemical brought on to the mine site. Plaintiffs sued the entities that owned the mine, their employer, and the entities that brought the chemical on the mine site.Result: Settlements: Confidential. Lawyers: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiff was seriously injured when a defectively designed motorized wheelchair tipped forward, rendering plaintiff permanently homebound. Plaintiff asserted that the wheelchair company did not properly warn her about the lack of stability of the wheelchair.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiff sued defendant construction company and the State for creating extreme noise, lights and work at night, and dusts and chemicals which came onto plaintiff’s property while constructing an interstate bridge, ruining his use and enjoyment of his home and devaluing his property.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyers: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Defendant convenience store sold alcohol to a minor, minor then drove vehicle intoxicated. Plaintiff was a minor who was a passenger in the vehicle. Plaintiff minor sustained a serious head injury, multiple skull and facial fractures and other injuries when the intoxicated minor crashed.  Lawsuit against the convenience store.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiffs were law enforcement officers who claimed that their employer failed to pay them overtime pay for a significant period of time.Result: Settlements: Confidential. Lawyer: Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiff was seriously injured when he fell from a height on the State Capitol building because defendant employer did not enforce proper safety policies when its employees were working at heights.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiffs were father and son, who were seriously injured when a coal truck loaded with rock crossed the center line and struck the plaintiffs head on. Defendant truck driver and company blamed the plaintiff driver.Result: Settlements: Confidential. Lawyer: Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiff was injured when while riding on a motorcycle he was struck in the side, resulting in amputation of part of his leg.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyers: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiff was injured on the Beckley Turnpike when struck by a tractor trailer.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiff was injured while working for railroad, when a dump truck, driven by a minor also hired by the railroad, who was not properly trained or licensed, and backed the dump truck into the path of the front of the train, where the plaintiff was standing.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Kelly Elswick-Hall
• The City of Charleston, West Virginia was awarded $1.5 million in a settlement with a construction company. The company had agreed to clean and re-paint the city’s South Side Bridge, but the paint failed.Lawyer: Marvin W. Masters
• In Re: Diet Drug, Phentermine / Fenfluramine, “Phen Fen” Litigation against American Home Productions Corporation; Brooke County, West Virginia. Plaintiffs brought a class action for the defective diet drug, which caused numerous West Virginia residents serious heart and lung damage. Result: Confidential amounts for personal injury claims and a medical monitoring program for all West Virginia residents to be tested and compensated for their injuries. Class counsel: Marvin W. Masters
• In Re: Oxycontin against Perdue Pharma, L.P.; Putnam County, West Virginia. Plaintiffs brought a class action for injuries and damages for the addictive drug Oxycontin against Perdue Pharma, L.P.Result: Settlement: Range from $21 million to $45 million.
• Plaintiff electrocuted from unsafe power lines running through a tree, resulting in amputation of both legs and other injuries.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Plaintiff nurse anesthetist was sexually harassed by a physician and asserted claims against physician and hospital.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Man killed in a coal preparation plant.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Kelly Elswick-Hall
• Miner killed in a coal mine rib fall.Result: Settlement: Confidential. Lawyer: Marvin W. Masters and Kelly Elswick-Hall
• The results in any legal case depend upon many factors unique to each case. Prior results obtained by the Masters Law Firm do not guarantee future results in a different case, and verdicts and settlements listed on this website are examples of the types of cases handled by the firm. Please call us with any questions you have about our experience and services.

Bar/Professional Activity

• Past President, West Virginia Association for Justice
• American Board of Trial Advocates
• U.S. District Court Northern District of West Virginia
• United States Supreme Court
• Member, West Virginia State Bar
• Member, The American College of Trial Lawyers
• U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit
• Member, American Bar Association
• Member, American Association for Justice
• U.S. District Court Southern District of West Virginia
• Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia

Educational Background

• West Virginia University, B.S. in Civil Engineering, 1967
• West Virginia University College of Law, Doctor of Jurisprudence, 1972