People often ask me what is my “speciality” within the practice of law. As with virtually everything in the law, the answer is less than simple.

First, the Bar is clear about when lawyers can use the term “specialist.” There are certain areas of the law that the Bar regulates and administers with regards to these specialties. Lawyers who want to call themselves “specialists” within these fields have to take and pass a certain exam to use that moniker. Those fields are set out below:

• Real Property Law – Section .2100
• Bankruptcy Law – Section .2200
  (Click Here for information regarding the bankruptcy specialization exams and the alliance between the NC Board and the American Board of Certification.)
• Estate Planning and Probate Law – Section .2300
• Family Law – Section .2400
• Criminal Law (including Juvenile Delinquency) – Section .2500
• Immigration Law – Section .2600
• Workers’ Compensation Law – Section .2700
• Social Security Disability Law – Section .2800
• Elder Law – Section .2900
  (Click Here for information regarding the elder law specialization exams and the alliance between the NC Board and the National Elder Law Foundation)
• Appellate Practice – Section .3000
• Trademark Law – Section .3100

If a lawyer has not passed the specialist exam in one of those fields, he cannot say he is a specialist or specializes in a certain field.

So back to the question, what is Jeff’s “specialty?” Let’s phrase it a different way: What practice areas does he focus on? That’s easier to answer…

My practice focuses on three areas, primarily: personal injury, workers’ compensation, and traffic tickets. The first two I tend to lump together as “injury law.”

You will note there is not specialist exam for “injury law” so I can’t say I specialize in it. There is an exam for worker’s compensation; I practice worker’s comp law, but I have not made the effort to take that exam. Why? I just haven’t. I am too busy working for my clients. I would rather spend my time working on my clients’ cases rather than studying for and taking an exam so I can add more titles on my website.

So back to the answer: I handle injury law cases – personal injury and workers’ compensation claims – as well as traffic tickets. That makes me an injury attorney.  Am I a specialist? The Bar says I can’t say that. But is my practice focused mostly on injury law? You betcha. I am an injury attorney because I handle injury law cases almost exclusively. So if you have an injury, no matter how it happened, and you wonder if you have a claim, call me. Maybe I can help.

Call me: 919-929-2992.

My office is in Chapel Hill, which just so happens to be the location of one of the premier teaching hospitals in North Carolina – UNC Hospital. I’m also not too far from another great hospital (at a horrible school) – Duke University Health Center.

Of course, in a situation where someone is catastrophically injured (from an auto accident, dog bite, slip and fall, or a pharmacy error), their first thoughts are going to be on their injuries and survival. As well they should be. Getting yourself back to health should always be your number one concern. But accident victims and their families ignore the need for counsel at their own peril. So how soon should you meet with an attorney? Really darn soon, in my opinion. I can even meet you in the hospital.

People are sometimes surprised how easy it is for me to meet clients in the hospital rooms. Many people don’t realize how flexible my schedule can be. I can come to clients very quickly when circumstances warrant that sort of immediate, in-person response.

For instance, let’s say you’re in an accident and you suffer catastrophic injuries that require a hospital stay. When you get to a point where you can think about it, you probably want to talk to an attorney. So you think you’ll do that when you get out.

The problem with that is you don’t know when you’ll get out. And when you get out, how mobile will you be? How painful will it be to get in a car, schlep to a downtown office, hobble into an elevator, etc?

And what about what’s happened in the meantime? The insurance company for the other driver is immediately on the defensive, preparing their case and setting things up to help avoid exposure. Is anyone doing anything for you?

Of course, not everyone can be as flexible as I am. There are thousands of associates at big firms whose days are eaten up with depositions and staff meetings and everything else while their bosses are deep-sea fishing, so it’s hard for them to be able to drop what they’re doing to take care of their clients. I have purposefully designed my practice around a flexible schedule to allow for just this sort of availability. On most occasions I can schedule an initial consultation in a hospital with as little as 4 hours notice, and sometimes less.

Don’t wait. Call me, call someone. Generally speaking, I can come to you with fairly short notice and talk to you about your particular situation. I can explain what you might expect with your case and what I can do to help.

When you’re injured, the last thing you want to think about is an insurance claim. But that’s exactly why you get an attorney early on in the process; when you have an attorney you don’t have to think about it because the claim is on the attorney’s shoulder then, not yours.

Call me if you need me. 919-929-2992.