Researching whether an injury lawyer violated Virginia State Bar rules is important. You need an ethical and respected attorney. That's why you should call our office right away. Our firm enjoys a Martindale Hubbell rating of AV which means we have a reputation for the highest ethical standards and have over 100 years of combined legal experience.

Picking the right personal injury lawyer to represent you in an accident case is a big decision which should not be taken lightly. One top reason not to hire a particular attorney for your accident case is prior sanction for an ethical violation by the Virginia State Bar, which regulates lawyers on their licenses.

As a lawyer who has been doing this kind of work for over two decades I cannot overemphasize the importance of performing research in order to pick the best lawyer before a case. Among other research you should do, is to take a look at the Virginia State Bar's attorney search website where you can type in the name of a prospective attorney and make sure that they aren't ethically challenged. All you have to do is type in the last name of the attorney that you are thinking about hiring and you can see whether they have been disciplined by the Virginia State Bar which has the power to discipline all attorneys in the commonwealth.

Only public reprimands, or worse, are listed on the website. This means that it will tell you if the attorney is a professional who has previously had his or her license suspended, revoked, or who violated state ethics laws and was sanctioned as a result.

I urge you to not hire an attorney who has been sanctioned by the State Bar. A big reason is that other lawyers, and especially judges, know the people who have gotten in trouble in the past with the State Bar. Reputation matters!

So, before you hire an attorney to handle your serious injury case in Virginia, take this simple step to be sure you're getting the right person for the job. Even if the lawyer bought the most expensive sponsored link on Google AdWords making them first on the page, or has the loudest TV advertisement, you should make this simple inquiry into their ethics. Lawyers are not required to mention a State Bar sanction in their advertisements, so research on your part is necessary.

How can you identify a top Virginia injury lawyer for your case? Look no further.

Our VA personal injury lawyers have been selected for many accolades.

Two of the attorneys with our Virginia Beach accident injury law firm, James Lewis and Rick Shapiro, have been named the Best Lawyers in America since 2008. Two of our VA injury lawyers -- Lewis and Shapiro - have been named to Virginia Super Lawyers for Personal Injury since 2010. In addition, Lewis and Shapiro have been selected for inclusion in the National Million Dollar Advocates Forum since 2009. 

Our VA accident injury law firm was the first in the commonwealth nvited to join Primerus, a select group of highly ethical and respected law firms. Rick Shapiro was named as one of the Top 100 Injury Lawyers in Virginia by the National Trial Lawyers Association.

In October, 2000 our law firm and co-counsel obtained what was then the largest verdict in Virginia's history for an injured person. Our brain damaged client received an initial award of $46 million that rose to $60 million with interest when the defendant abandoned an appeal and agreed to settle. 

Geographical Areas

Our personal injury lawyers handle personal injury cases throughout the eastern USA, and work closely with lawyers in other states on signficant injury cases.

In Virginia, this includes Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Hampton, Newport News, Suffolk, Richmond, Petersburg, Roanoke, Salem, Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax, Fredericksburg, Charlottesville, Ashland, Big Stone Gap, and every community on the Eastern Shore, including Accomack, Onancock, Chincoteauge, Wachapreague, and Cape Charles, Bloxom, Eastville, Exmore, Greenbackville, Machipongo, Mappsville, Melfa, Nassawadox, Onley, Tangier, Temperanceville, Wachapreague and Wallops Island.

In West Virginia, we can handle personal injury claims in Bluefield, Beckley, Bridgeport, Charles Town, Charleston, Fairmont, Huntington, Lewisburg, Madison, Martinsburg, Morgantown, Moundsville, Parkersburg, Ripley, Sutton, Weirton, Wheeling and any other town or county.

Injury Lawyers licensed in VA, WV, North Carolina (NC), South Carolina (SC), Kentucky (KY), Florida (FL) and Washington, DC.