At Callahan & Blaine, our talent pool is deep. Each month, we will be publishing an “Attorney Spotlight” where we look past the briefcases to see what makes the men and women of Callahan & Blaine tick. How have we won over $2 billion in verdicts and settlements? It’s a team effort of hard work, dedication, experience and savvy litigation. Today, meet Senior Attorney, Laura Morris!
The Basics:
Attorney Q&A:
Q: What attracted you to the legal field?
A: The idea of being an advocate for a person or a cause. As a competitive person I was drawn to the challenges that provided as well as the reward for you and your client when you come out on top.
Q: Was there anyone along the way who mentored or influenced your work?
A: A great trial lawyer mentored me right out of law school. I worked on high value personal injury cases and was given a tremendous amount of opportunity from the start. Attending depositions and meetings with him and sitting second chair at trial my first few years in practice molded me into the lawyer I am today. I saw how he analyzed cases and he taught me the medicine. In addition, I am grateful to work alongside Brian McCormack and Ed Susolik at Callahan & Blaine as they always have time for strategizing and I have learned a great deal from them since I started at the firm.
Q: What do you think sets Callahan & Blaine apart from the rest?
A: We practice law at a high level and the firm only hires experienced litigators. My focus is on plaintiff catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death cases. We take these cases on a contingency basis and advance all costs so there is risk involved. Some firms that do personal injury cases cut corners to save costs or time and do not maximize the case value because they are afraid to take cases to trial. We litigate every case aggressively from the beginning, hire the best experts and make it clear we are prepared to go to trial. That is the firm’s reputation and why we can confidently tell clients we will get them the best result possible.
Q: Tell us about a case you are particularly proud of.
A: The first case I was assigned at Callahan & Blaine involved a physician who was shot and killed in his medical office by a man posing as a patient. We represented the physician’s widow and two young children. As this was an intentional act there was no insurance available to satisfy any settlement or judgment. However, the shooter owned millions in real estate which he transferred to relatives shortly after the incident in an attempt to hide his assets. We filed a wrongful death action and an action for fraudulent conveyance. We aggressively prosecuted the case and settled it within 6 months of filing. We forced the sale of the properties to satisfy the settlement and obtained a significant amount of cash. This is not the biggest settlement I have recovered but I was extremely proud of the way we prosecuted the case. This is the only wrongful death case I have heard of where a defendant personally paid the settlement and it was in excess of seven figures. In addition, very few personal injury firms would have been able to get this result because they would not have thought about filing an action for fraudulent conveyance in addition to the wrongful death action. We were able to skillfully prosecute both actions because of our experience in business litigation and personal injury cases.
Fun Facts:
Stay tuned for next month’s Attorney Spotlight, where we will meet another talented Callahan & Blaine attorney! Our law firm represents corporate, professional and entrepreneurial clients of all sizes. To find out more about our distinctive approach to advocacy and dispute resolution in complex litigation, contact us at the Callahan & Blaine offices in Santa Ana.
A man was tragically killed in a motorcycle accident on Hamilton Avenue at Magnolia Street…
One person was tragically killed and three others injured when a motor vehicle struck a…
A devastating crash occurred on the Interstate 5 Freeway in Orange County, leaving one person…
A bicyclist with a small dog in his basket was struck and killed by a…
A fatal multi-vehicle crash in Irvine happened early Monday on the northbound Interstate 5 Freeway,…
In an incident near Tustin in Orange County, a pedestrian lost their life on Monday…
This website uses cookies.