The “Best Lawyer” May be Embellishing, Even Using Fraud to Sign Cases

This is my final “staring into the abyss” blog - a collection of reflections on things that trouble me about the legal profession and the insurance industry today. Unfortunately, one of the byproducts of having the worst car accident law in the nation is that some Michigan personal injury lawyers have become increasingly desperate to sign new clients. They will say things - and put things on their web sites - to sign a case that would make the worst used car salesman or politician blush with shame.

On Sept. 16, the Adrian Daily Telegram wrote an article about my partner David E. Christensen’s trial in Lenawee County Circuit Court for a car accident case. The case resulted in a $2,091,500 jury verdict for our clients Douglas and Tammy Mayher.

In October 2005, Douglas Mayher, his pregnant wife Tammy and her 9-year-old son were stopped at a stop sign on Palmer Highway at M-50, when a negligent teenage driver with a car full of girlfriends passed a truck on the right gravel shoulder, lost control and crashed into the family’s Yukon. The Yukon flipped over and Douglas Mayher had to be removed by the Jaws of Life. He was taken to University of Michigan hospital by helicopter to treat his traumatic brain injury and shoulder injuries.

Robert M. Raitt, a Michigan Auto Law partner, obtained a $1.15 million settlement for a client who sustained a traumatic brain injury and hand injuries when he was hit by a truck’s wayward crane arm.  Bob’s recent settlement is one of the top 2008 Michigan truck accident settlements (Steven Gursten’s Nunez settlement was the largest reported settlement in Michigan in 2008, involving a fatal truck crash). Bob’s award shows how a truck accident lawyer’s specialized knowledge of trucking laws can lead to better settlements to protect people when truck companies break safety laws.

Steve Gursten was recently interviewed by ABC News for its nationally syndicated radio show, The Law Business Insider. The show is hosted by Steve Murphy and features America’s premier lawyers. Here is a link to the radio interview with Steve, where he spoke extensively about egregious truck driver negligence that occurred in Michigan’s largest reported settlement case, Nunez v. Utica Transit Mix et. al.

In addition to achieving some of the highest car and truck accident settlements each year for injury victims in Michigan, Steve Gursten has received the largest reported jury verdict for four of the past seven years.