The firm was founded by Robert Spohrer and Norwood “Woody” Wilner in 1990. Recognized as the first law firm in the nation to collect on a jury verdict for a smoking related illness, they continue to tackle other class action and personal injury suits. Daily Record staff writer Michele Newbern Gillis sat down recently with Managing Partner Robert Spohrer and Associate Chad Roberts to discuss the firm.
FIRST EVER?
“Woody Wilner obtained the first jury verdict against a tobacco company for smoking related illness,” said Roberts. “It’s an important footnote of history because it was the first time that it happened. It really opened the floodgates and it happened right here in Jacksonville.”
WHAT KIND OF CASES DO THEY HANDLE?
Serious personal injuries or class actions involving mass torts. “Traditionally, these have been procedurally complex or technically challenging tort claims arising from aviation accidents, medical malpractice, defective products that injure people, nursing home abuse or general negligence claims,” said Spohrer.
WHAT MADE YOU START YOUR OWN FIRM?
“We thought there was a need for a firm to handle complex personal injury litigation on behalf of individuals and had an interest in doing that,” said Spohrer.
SIGNATURE WORK?
“We do jury trials, usually difficult ones where the stakes are very, very high,” said Spohrer. “Our signature work usually has us in the role of giant killers, whether it’s against big tobacco, big corporations or big government.
WHAT MAKES
YOUR FIRM DIFFERENT?
“What we offer our clients and what distinguishes us is our special expertise in scientific and complex areas and considerable trial experience,” said Spohrer. “We have tried cases in state and federal courts throughout the Southeast for 25 plus years.”
WHO WORKS THERE?
There are 35 employees including 14 attorneys, several paralegals and other staff. Spohrer is the managing partner. Steven Browning, Stephanie Hartley, Floyd Matthews Jr., Gregory Maxwell and Wilner are partners and Edward Booth Jr., Sean Cronin, Robert Guild, Barry Newman, Chad Roberts, Helen Spohrer and Gretchen VanLiere are associates.
“By attorney profile, it is a very young firm with a great deal of smart, creative and aggressive legal talent,” said Spohrer.
PARTNER VS. ASSOCIATE?
“We are trying to get away from that, they are just titles,” said Spohrer. “We surround ourselves with smart, hardworking people who work hard for our clients and everyone benefits from that hard work. I think the distinction between partners, associates and senior associates is really kind of an artificial one that is really an anachronism in the law. We treat our paralegals as professionals, because they are our colleagues. The work just as hard as the lawyers do.”
MORE RELAXED?
“There are many law firms which are rigidly organized and structured and ours is not in that category. We don’t have rigid boundaries between partners, associates and senior associates.”
BIG CASES?
“Woody Wilner and Stephanie Hartley are currently leading the class action case to compel the AT&T cable company to live up to their obligations to the citizens of Duval County,” said Spohrer. “Chad Roberts began the Florida class action suit involving the product recall of defective hip implants manufactured by Sulzer Orthopedics. After that recall evolved into a national class action, Roberts was appointed by the Federal Multi-District Litigation Court to be a class liaison council for all of the other state court claimants. That difficult litigation has just recently been resolved on terms very favorable to the many injured victims of that product.”
DO YOU STILL HANDLE CASES AGAINST BIG TOBACCO?
“As a matter of fact, in October we will be trying a case for a young baseball player who contracted cancer of the tongue after using spit tobacco. For years, this industry promoted a culture among young athletes that smokeless tobacco was a safe and cool alternative to cigarettes. Nationally, this will only be the second such smokeless tobacco claim to have gone to trial and we plan on making our the first successful one.”
AVIATION CASES?
“It’s been a practice area for our attorneys for nearly 25 years, and it’s based upon a shared personal interest,” said Spohrer. “About half of the firm’s attorney’s are active pilots with a lifelong involvement in aviation, but we also share an interest in both the technical and human factors that cause aviation mishaps.”
LOCATION?
Their office, at 444 Duval St. for 10 years, relocated a year ago to 701 W. Adams St. in the Elkins Building. Not to mention it will be very close to the new Duval County Courthouse when it is completed. “We are delighted to be a part of the renaissance of LaVilla and we are delighted to be in this building. We’ve been here for about a year.”
DO YOU PLAN
TO GROW THE FIRM?
“Traditionally, plaintiff law firms are lean and mean and we have a great group of hardworking lawyers and paralegals now which seems to be sufficient for the work we are doing.”
WHERE DO YOUR CLIENTS COME FROM?
“Our clients are often referred to us by other attorneys who now what we do and know what we’re about,” said Spohrer. “We don’t really advertise in the traditional sense. It seems to work for us.”
PRO BONO WORK?
“The need for serious pro bono commitments in this community is great, and the most satisfying work we do involves our cases with Jacksonville Area Legal Aid,” said Spohrer. “Those cases make you feel great about being a lawyer. We are currently litigating in Federal Court again St. Johns County on behalf of the National Association for Mentally Ill, we represent a number of young people who have been physically and emotionally abused in a so-called boot camp program.”