Transcript

Mr. Laird: here at our firm, we handle all types of serious personal injury and wrongful death cases, whether they involve 18-wheeler collisions, product liability cases, very serious car-wreck cases or other types of personal injury or wrongful death situations. We handle those cases across the board. That's what we have been doing for decades. We have a lot of experience in handling these particular types of cases, and that's what we have chosen to focus on.

Mr. Barrow: we represent people, not insurance companies or fortune 500 companies. We take immense pride in representing little people in big fights.

Mr. Laird: we have the experience and knowledge to know that it takes early preparation and investigation to make all of the difference in a case.

Mr. Barrow: the corporations and insurance companies recognize the strength of their adversaries, and our reputation as experienced trial layers precedes us into the courtroom. Our clients benefit from our reputation of being well-prepared and aggressive trial attorneys. Experience matters at every step of the way in a personal injury case.

Mr. Laird: any person looking for a lawyer to represent them in a serious personal injury or wrongful death case should make sure that the lawyer is board-certified in personal injury trial law.

Mr. Barrow: being board-certified means that the attorney has demonstrated expertise in personal injury trial law. Attorneys must show a respected body of work to obtain this honor, which is the highest standard for personal injury trial lawyers in the state of Texas.

Mr. Laird: all of the lawyers in our law firm are board-certified in personal injury trial law by the state bar of Texas.

Mr. Laird: every case that we undertake, we assume is going to go into the courtroom in front of a judge and a jury. We prepare that case from day one that way. Not every lawyer does that. We take pride in the fact that we try to do early investigations. We contact experts early. We try to put together the case from day one for the courtroom, not just for settlement. And that's what makes us different.

Mr. Barrow: we leave no stone unturned to find all of the evidence that is going to benefit our client's case.

Mr. Laird: and then we go beyond and do something that many lawyers don't do: we do focus groups on a regular basis. A focus group is putting the case in front of individuals, in front of people before you go to trial to see what type of reaction that the case presents.

Mr. Barrow: our experience gives us a unique perspective of the types of strategies and defenses to expect in the courtroom. This greatly enhances our clients' chances of obtaining justice.

Mr. Laird: we have a lot of trial experience. Insurance companies, trucking companies, they know that. We are familiar with the courthouses. We are familiar with the defense lawyers because we try a lot of cases.

Mr. Laird: there are well over 4,000 deaths a year nationwide caused by 18-wheeler collisions. These types of cases are unique cases because they are governed by a different set of federal laws in

Mr. Barrow: make no mistake: insurance companies and large corporations will be very aggressive in protecting their interests. Their goal is to minimize your claim. It is imperative that you have someone on your side fighting for you with the experience that matters in taking on the large legal defense teams of large corporations and insurance companies.

Mr. Laird: what a lot of people don't appreciate is that from the moment a collision happens with an 18-wheeler, the trucking company and their insurance company will have a team of investigators and experts and lawyers on the scene, very often the very same day or the next day after the collision.

Mr. Barrow: while the client can't have the same response time as the defendants, getting representation quickly to find and preserve the evidence is in the client's best interests.

Mr. Laird: getting evidence quickly, contacting witnesses early will often make all of the difference in the world.

Mr. Laird: we get the vast majority of our cases from other lawyers who know us by experience and by reputation and by results.

Mr. Barrow: the highest compliment an attorney can pay to a peer is that they trust you with someone who trusts them. Our repeat referral business suggests we continue to earn that trust.

Mr. Laird: we also get clients from our past clients. We are privileged to have our name passed along by people that we have previously represented.

Mr. Laird: we handle all of our personal injury and wrongful death cases on a contingency fee. What that means is that you don't owe us anything unless we get a recovery for you.

Mr. Barrow: contingency-fee arrangements allow a victim to obtain an attorney just as qualified as the defense attorneys of the big corporation they are taking on.

Mr. Laird: it gives us a built-in incentive to do the very best job we can. It also means that we share the risk with you. We handle cases for people, not for corporations, not for insurance companies. And to know that we can help level the playing field and bring justice to a situation and get answers for families, for individuals in their time of need gives us the purpose and the motivation for doing what we do every day.