Attorney Networking & Social Media for Personal Injury Lawyers
Probably until 60 days ago many Cincinnati attorneys have never heard of twitter. Or how about linkedin. Although many of you may know about facebook. But probably from you teenager or college student. These social networks are getting more and more media attention.
Everyone now seems to be jumping on the bandwagon from Oprah to Barbara Walters. Are these overhyped. I think the answer is yes. Is there value in having a presence there. I also think the answer is also yes.
However the biggest key to your presence is NOT to use them to sell yourself. Use them to engage people in intersting conversation. You can let them know what you do , but don't beat people over the head with it.
The analogy is that its like going to a party. You don't start handing out cards. You talk to people about current events, their interests , their family ; eventually the conversation gets around to what you do for a living. That's the way you should handle your twitter or facebook presnce.
However on linkedin there are multiple groups that are subjcet matter related such as the injury attorney referral group. So linkedin can be used a little differently. To me it is more of a place to make professional contacts.
Of course there still is nothing better than taking great care of your clients so that they serve as a referral source.
by Anthony Castelli Cincinnati personal injury trial attorney
Friday, April 24, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Another Example Of Why We Need Personal Injury Trial Attorneys
Personal Injury Attorney Battles Babcox and Wilcox Up until Two Days Before His Death
Attorney Fred Baron literally fought Babcock and Wilcox up to two days before he died of cancer. He literally fought with all his heart and life to right a giant wrong.
As a result Babcock & Wilcox has settled a 14-year-long lawsuit for $52.5 million for personal injury, wrongful death and property damage to 365 claimants from the Apollo and Parks area.
U.S. District Court Judge Donetta Ambrose, chief judge for the Western District of Pennsylvania, approved the settlement Friday.
The plaintiffs alleged that airborne radioactive emissions from the B&W plants in Apollo and/or Parks, caused cancer, deaths and other illness, as well as property damage.
The properties formerly were owned by Atlantic Richfield Co. and the Nuclear Materials and Equipment Corp. (NUMEC).
The companies operated the two plants in Armstrong County from 1957-86, producing nuclear fuel to power submarines and nuclear reactors, and other nuclear products.
B&W long has maintained that operations from its facilities in Armstrong County did not cause cancer, other illnesses and property damage.
The plaintiffs, though, have alleged the company and its predecessors ran sloppy operations and that its plant released radioactive emissions exceeding federal limits.
Because it was one of the longest running cases in the U.S. District Court of Western Pennsylvania, many of the plaintiffs and their lead attorney, Fred Baron, died while waiting for the case to conclude.
More than 40 percent of the 365 plaintiffs are the estates of people who died before and after the lawsuit was filed.
Paty Ameno, Leechburg environmental activist and plaintiff who contacted Baron to take on the case, was somber when speaking briefly yesterday about the settlement.
"It makes me feel sad that a lot of people who started out are not here -- including my champion and hero Fred Baron," Ameno said. "Fred literally fought on his death bed to make sure that the plaintiffs saw an end to this case."
Baron died of cancer in October. His Dallas firm, Baron and Blue -- which he shared with his wife, Lisa Blue — continued to work on the case.
Ameno yesterday declined to speak on specifics of the case, deferring to her attorneys at Baron and Blue.
Baron told the Valley News Dispatch in July 2007: "The case will never be dropped as long as I'm alive."
He took on the case for Apollo-area residents on a contingency basis. He won a landmark decision in federal court that awarded eight of the 200 plaintiffs $36.7 million in 1998.
Judge Ambrose, however, threw out the verdict and granted a new trail, citing errors in the admission of evidence.
Complicating matters, B&W declared bankruptcy, and the case was put on hold.
After the company emerged from bankruptcy, negotiations continued. Ambrose ordered two trials to examine whether uranium and plutonium caused cancer before there was a third trial addressing the plaintiffs' claims.
The additional trials ordered in 2007 likely would make the legal proceeding last for years to come, Baron said at that time.
After much negotiation, Baron hammered out a settlement with B&W co-defendant Atlantic Richfield for $27.5 million in February 2008.
According to those close to the case, Baron worked on the Apollo lawsuit up until two days before his death.
A court-appointed mediator for the settlement, the Honorable Daniel Weinstein, a retired San Francisco Superior Court judge, characterized the settlement reached Friday as resolving "a substantial litigation risk for very reasonable amounts."
Fred Baron was a hero to Ambrose residents. Although he ddi not live to see the final reult it would have not been possible without him.
Anthony Castelli is a Cincinnati Personal Injury trial Attorney Contact Anthony for a free consultation about your case 621-2345
Attorney Fred Baron literally fought Babcock and Wilcox up to two days before he died of cancer. He literally fought with all his heart and life to right a giant wrong.
As a result Babcock & Wilcox has settled a 14-year-long lawsuit for $52.5 million for personal injury, wrongful death and property damage to 365 claimants from the Apollo and Parks area.
U.S. District Court Judge Donetta Ambrose, chief judge for the Western District of Pennsylvania, approved the settlement Friday.
The plaintiffs alleged that airborne radioactive emissions from the B&W plants in Apollo and/or Parks, caused cancer, deaths and other illness, as well as property damage.
The properties formerly were owned by Atlantic Richfield Co. and the Nuclear Materials and Equipment Corp. (NUMEC).
The companies operated the two plants in Armstrong County from 1957-86, producing nuclear fuel to power submarines and nuclear reactors, and other nuclear products.
B&W long has maintained that operations from its facilities in Armstrong County did not cause cancer, other illnesses and property damage.
The plaintiffs, though, have alleged the company and its predecessors ran sloppy operations and that its plant released radioactive emissions exceeding federal limits.
Because it was one of the longest running cases in the U.S. District Court of Western Pennsylvania, many of the plaintiffs and their lead attorney, Fred Baron, died while waiting for the case to conclude.
More than 40 percent of the 365 plaintiffs are the estates of people who died before and after the lawsuit was filed.
Paty Ameno, Leechburg environmental activist and plaintiff who contacted Baron to take on the case, was somber when speaking briefly yesterday about the settlement.
"It makes me feel sad that a lot of people who started out are not here -- including my champion and hero Fred Baron," Ameno said. "Fred literally fought on his death bed to make sure that the plaintiffs saw an end to this case."
Baron died of cancer in October. His Dallas firm, Baron and Blue -- which he shared with his wife, Lisa Blue — continued to work on the case.
Ameno yesterday declined to speak on specifics of the case, deferring to her attorneys at Baron and Blue.
Baron told the Valley News Dispatch in July 2007: "The case will never be dropped as long as I'm alive."
He took on the case for Apollo-area residents on a contingency basis. He won a landmark decision in federal court that awarded eight of the 200 plaintiffs $36.7 million in 1998.
Judge Ambrose, however, threw out the verdict and granted a new trail, citing errors in the admission of evidence.
Complicating matters, B&W declared bankruptcy, and the case was put on hold.
After the company emerged from bankruptcy, negotiations continued. Ambrose ordered two trials to examine whether uranium and plutonium caused cancer before there was a third trial addressing the plaintiffs' claims.
The additional trials ordered in 2007 likely would make the legal proceeding last for years to come, Baron said at that time.
After much negotiation, Baron hammered out a settlement with B&W co-defendant Atlantic Richfield for $27.5 million in February 2008.
According to those close to the case, Baron worked on the Apollo lawsuit up until two days before his death.
A court-appointed mediator for the settlement, the Honorable Daniel Weinstein, a retired San Francisco Superior Court judge, characterized the settlement reached Friday as resolving "a substantial litigation risk for very reasonable amounts."
Fred Baron was a hero to Ambrose residents. Although he ddi not live to see the final reult it would have not been possible without him.
Anthony Castelli is a Cincinnati Personal Injury trial Attorney Contact Anthony for a free consultation about your case 621-2345
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Do You Really Want To Hire A Sole Practioner Instead of a Big Firm
Do You Really Want to Hire A Cincinnati Personal Injury Sole Practitioner Attorney
The following is an article reprinted from Gerry Oginski's attorney blog with his permission. Gerry is a New York personal injury trial attorney. I have gotten to know Gerry through his articles, videos and personal emails. Based on the information he provides I would certainly seek him out to refer my clients to if I had a New York case
I do not do malpractice cases. Nor may I do every thing that Gerry talks about that he does, but his article gives you a great idea of the service a sole practioner can provide as compared to a large law firm. Do you want to be treated and cared for as an individual and have a bond with your attorney, or would you prefer to be client number 225. I think you will enjoy and learn from Gerry's article.
"How can you hire a one-man law firm?" one of her friends asked."What happens if he gets sick?" asked another."How does he have the resources that a large firm has?" said another good friend."What is it about him that made you choose him over the other law firms you looked into?"
The answers were revealing.She told her well-meaning friends that I was the only lawyer who provided information to her before she ever came into my office. None of the other law firms she spoke to would give her any information about cases like hers. In fact, out of five New York law firms she contacted, I was the only lawyer who actually got on the phone to talk to her. All the other calls were intercepted by receptionists who wanted to set up an appointment for her instead.
She explained to her friends that on my website I gave free reports about how medical malpractice cases work. This was new to her and the information was very helpful to understand how a case works. She was also grateful to learn how a lawyer actually evaluates a potential medical malpractice case in New York. Before looking at my website, she had preconceived ideas about what types of cases are accepted by injury and accident lawyers in New York. My reports helped her understand the procedure a lawyer must go through to determine whether someone has a valid case.
This woman explained to her friends that she had spoken to a paralegal at one of the big law firms in New York City about how they communicate with their clients. This is what she was told: "You'll meet an associate when you first come to us. They'll gather all the information about your case. Once we get your records and determine that you have a valid case, your matter will be assigned to a team of lawyers consisting of a senior trial lawyer, an associate and a paralegal." When she asked when she'd get to meet with the senior trial lawyer, she was told that only if her case went to trial would she meet with him. Otherwise she'd be dealing with the associate on day-to-day matters. The paralegal was very flip about how simple it was to get information from her and from the associate. "Don't worry, we know exactly what's going on with your case every day," was her comment.
When my soon-to-be client called this law firm later that day to ask the paralegal more questions, her conversation started out like this: "Thank you for calling _____ law firm. How may I direct your call?" "I'd like to speak to the paralegal I was speaking to earlier about a potential case." "Do you know her name?" "No." "Well, we have over 20 paralegals here. How do you spell your last name?""Never mind," she replied, frustrated with being unable to speak to the person she spoke to earlier.
Another law firm she spoke to refused to tell her anything over the phone. This is understandable since there are many legal dangers that arise if an attorney gives out legal advice over the telephone. First, there's no attorney-client relationship when someone calls with a question on the phone. Theoretically, anything that is discussed might be discoverable at a later time. Second, there are so many facts that may be missing that it would not be appropriate for a lawyer to give legal advice based on incomplete information. Ideally, the lawyer wants the person to come in, explain the problem, and then give the potential client an informed and educated decision based on their particular facts.
However, many attorneys refuse to discuss anything with a potential client until they walk in the door of their office. What this young woman found particularly helpful were the video tips on my video blog and my website that discuss different areas of medical malpractice, wrongful death and personal injury law. In my educational videos I offer useful general information to help a website visitor understand how the legal process works. In one video I explain in detail how a medical malpractice lawsuit works from start to finish. In another video I explain some of the interesting cases I have handled where I have obtained compensation for my clients who have been injured.
This woman also told her friends that she asked each law firm she called how often the lawyer communicates with her about updates on her case. These were the replies she received:"We send you a quarterly letter advising you what's going on with your case.""Oh, we don't send written updates. If you want to know what's happening, you have to call us. If we sent updates to all of our clients on a regular basis, we'd spend most of our day writing letters."When she came to my office, she was pleased to learn that I send written updates once a month. She also learned that I call my clients often and email them as well. She was even more surprised to learn that I answer my own phone often, and always promptly return my client's calls.
There's no paralegal in my office who asks "How do you spell your last name?" My paralegal knows who my clients are, and gets to know them well. There's no associate who has to ask another attorney, "What happened on that case the last time you went on a conference in court?" There's no running to the file or checking the computer to find out what last happened on your case, because in my office, I am the only one who handles your case, start to finish. I know exactly what is going on with your case at any time, because I am the only one who handles it. Not a paralegal. Not an associate. Not a junior partner. Just me; a solo practitioner who has been in practice in New York for twenty years.
This woman asked me during our first meeting "How can you compete with the big law firms in terms of legal research?" My answer shocked her. I told her I don't need a big law library with musty old law books. Everything I need is on my computer. Legal research is all computerized now. The solo practitioner has the same legal research capability as the largest law firm. I told her that if a case was beyond my reach and required resources that I simply did not have, I would never accept it and would refer the potential client to another law firm that did have the ability to handle it.
Importantly, I mentioned that if she felt the need to go to a large law firm in New York City and help pay for their fancy offices and beautiful mahogany furnishings and gorgeous floor-to-ceiling windows with offices looking out over the city, then by all means she should go there. However, I also told her that those beautiful offices don't win lawsuits. It is the attorney who occupies a particular office that wins cases. Regardless of whether that office is in Manhattan or Long Island.
"If you want to be another fish in the ocean, I'm sure you will be very happy with that law firm. If however you want to have personal attention every step of the way, then a small law firm is the one for you."I am pleased to say that this woman was extremely happy with her choice of attorneys. After she finished explaining her reasoning to her friends, you didn't hear any more laughing over her choice of attorney for her case. The only comments she heard were "You know, you're right." "I'm sorry I doubted your choice of lawyers." "I didn't realize there was such a difference between law firms.
Antony Castelli Cincinnati Personal Injury trial Attorney offers free consultations. He has educational videos that can be found at youtube at castellilaw. He offers a free Ohio Injury Victims Conumer Guide and free educational tips and articles on his web site http://www.castellilaw.com/ Call Tony at 621-2345. He will gladly take your call.
The following is an article reprinted from Gerry Oginski's attorney blog with his permission. Gerry is a New York personal injury trial attorney. I have gotten to know Gerry through his articles, videos and personal emails. Based on the information he provides I would certainly seek him out to refer my clients to if I had a New York case
I do not do malpractice cases. Nor may I do every thing that Gerry talks about that he does, but his article gives you a great idea of the service a sole practioner can provide as compared to a large law firm. Do you want to be treated and cared for as an individual and have a bond with your attorney, or would you prefer to be client number 225. I think you will enjoy and learn from Gerry's article.
THEY LAUGHED WHEN I TOLD THEM I WAS USING A SOLO PRACTITIONER
"How can you hire a one-man law firm?" one of her friends asked."What happens if he gets sick?" asked another."How does he have the resources that a large firm has?" said another good friend."What is it about him that made you choose him over the other law firms you looked into?"
The answers were revealing.She told her well-meaning friends that I was the only lawyer who provided information to her before she ever came into my office. None of the other law firms she spoke to would give her any information about cases like hers. In fact, out of five New York law firms she contacted, I was the only lawyer who actually got on the phone to talk to her. All the other calls were intercepted by receptionists who wanted to set up an appointment for her instead.
She explained to her friends that on my website I gave free reports about how medical malpractice cases work. This was new to her and the information was very helpful to understand how a case works. She was also grateful to learn how a lawyer actually evaluates a potential medical malpractice case in New York. Before looking at my website, she had preconceived ideas about what types of cases are accepted by injury and accident lawyers in New York. My reports helped her understand the procedure a lawyer must go through to determine whether someone has a valid case.
This woman explained to her friends that she had spoken to a paralegal at one of the big law firms in New York City about how they communicate with their clients. This is what she was told: "You'll meet an associate when you first come to us. They'll gather all the information about your case. Once we get your records and determine that you have a valid case, your matter will be assigned to a team of lawyers consisting of a senior trial lawyer, an associate and a paralegal." When she asked when she'd get to meet with the senior trial lawyer, she was told that only if her case went to trial would she meet with him. Otherwise she'd be dealing with the associate on day-to-day matters. The paralegal was very flip about how simple it was to get information from her and from the associate. "Don't worry, we know exactly what's going on with your case every day," was her comment.
When my soon-to-be client called this law firm later that day to ask the paralegal more questions, her conversation started out like this: "Thank you for calling _____ law firm. How may I direct your call?" "I'd like to speak to the paralegal I was speaking to earlier about a potential case." "Do you know her name?" "No." "Well, we have over 20 paralegals here. How do you spell your last name?""Never mind," she replied, frustrated with being unable to speak to the person she spoke to earlier.
Another law firm she spoke to refused to tell her anything over the phone. This is understandable since there are many legal dangers that arise if an attorney gives out legal advice over the telephone. First, there's no attorney-client relationship when someone calls with a question on the phone. Theoretically, anything that is discussed might be discoverable at a later time. Second, there are so many facts that may be missing that it would not be appropriate for a lawyer to give legal advice based on incomplete information. Ideally, the lawyer wants the person to come in, explain the problem, and then give the potential client an informed and educated decision based on their particular facts.
However, many attorneys refuse to discuss anything with a potential client until they walk in the door of their office. What this young woman found particularly helpful were the video tips on my video blog and my website that discuss different areas of medical malpractice, wrongful death and personal injury law. In my educational videos I offer useful general information to help a website visitor understand how the legal process works. In one video I explain in detail how a medical malpractice lawsuit works from start to finish. In another video I explain some of the interesting cases I have handled where I have obtained compensation for my clients who have been injured.
This woman also told her friends that she asked each law firm she called how often the lawyer communicates with her about updates on her case. These were the replies she received:"We send you a quarterly letter advising you what's going on with your case.""Oh, we don't send written updates. If you want to know what's happening, you have to call us. If we sent updates to all of our clients on a regular basis, we'd spend most of our day writing letters."When she came to my office, she was pleased to learn that I send written updates once a month. She also learned that I call my clients often and email them as well. She was even more surprised to learn that I answer my own phone often, and always promptly return my client's calls.
There's no paralegal in my office who asks "How do you spell your last name?" My paralegal knows who my clients are, and gets to know them well. There's no associate who has to ask another attorney, "What happened on that case the last time you went on a conference in court?" There's no running to the file or checking the computer to find out what last happened on your case, because in my office, I am the only one who handles your case, start to finish. I know exactly what is going on with your case at any time, because I am the only one who handles it. Not a paralegal. Not an associate. Not a junior partner. Just me; a solo practitioner who has been in practice in New York for twenty years.
This woman asked me during our first meeting "How can you compete with the big law firms in terms of legal research?" My answer shocked her. I told her I don't need a big law library with musty old law books. Everything I need is on my computer. Legal research is all computerized now. The solo practitioner has the same legal research capability as the largest law firm. I told her that if a case was beyond my reach and required resources that I simply did not have, I would never accept it and would refer the potential client to another law firm that did have the ability to handle it.
Importantly, I mentioned that if she felt the need to go to a large law firm in New York City and help pay for their fancy offices and beautiful mahogany furnishings and gorgeous floor-to-ceiling windows with offices looking out over the city, then by all means she should go there. However, I also told her that those beautiful offices don't win lawsuits. It is the attorney who occupies a particular office that wins cases. Regardless of whether that office is in Manhattan or Long Island.
"If you want to be another fish in the ocean, I'm sure you will be very happy with that law firm. If however you want to have personal attention every step of the way, then a small law firm is the one for you."I am pleased to say that this woman was extremely happy with her choice of attorneys. After she finished explaining her reasoning to her friends, you didn't hear any more laughing over her choice of attorney for her case. The only comments she heard were "You know, you're right." "I'm sorry I doubted your choice of lawyers." "I didn't realize there was such a difference between law firms.
Antony Castelli Cincinnati Personal Injury trial Attorney offers free consultations. He has educational videos that can be found at youtube at castellilaw. He offers a free Ohio Injury Victims Conumer Guide and free educational tips and articles on his web site http://www.castellilaw.com/ Call Tony at 621-2345. He will gladly take your call.
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