Two Prominent Silicon Valley Lawyers From Alexander Hawes LLP Receive Legal Award

Business Wire, Dec 11, 2008

Richard Alexander and Jeff Rickard of the Law Firm Alexander Hawes LLP Named "Trial Lawyers of the Year" for Winning "Impossible" Personal Injury Legal Case

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- The Santa Clara County Trial Lawyers Association (SCCTLA) will announce tonight that they have named Richard Alexander and Jeff Rickard of Alexander Hawes LLP "Trial Lawyers of the Year." This legal award is conferred annually by the SCCTLA's membership on attorneys who have distinguished themselves by practicing the highest caliber of law and achieving legal justice against the odds.

Alexander and Rickard were recognized, in part, for their successful legal trial strategy in a personal injury case involving a 12-year-old who darted into the street and was hit by an SUV. The child flew over the car and sustained major brain injuries and numerous broken bones.

"Personal Injury cases like this are nearly impossible to win," said lawyer Richard Alexander, "because the police officers blamed the victim for the accident."

After making a policy limit demand on the driver's $50,000 coverage, Alexander and Rickard filed a lawsuit when the insurance company did not respond. Using sophisticated video reconstructions of the accident, as well as expert testimony from nationally recognized scientists on brain development and the behavior of 12-year-old boys, Alexander and Rickard obtained a $10 million judgment for the young injured boy.

"This personal injury case illustrates the qualities that make Richard Alexander and Jeff Rickard stellar advocates for the people," said John Shepardson of the SCCTLA. "Most often facing large corporate defense firms, they level the playing field and achieve justice with a combination of a full command of the facts, a well-honed and savvy legal strategy, and a relentless work ethic. Who wins against long odds, and in doing so protects you, our youth, and the weak and vulnerable against large and powerful companies and insurance carriers? These guys do."

A narrative of the case is available at http://www.alexanderinjury.com/blog/2008/08/10-million-judgment-for-12-yea.html

About Richard Alexander:

Rated "superb" by Avvo.com, Richard Alexander has amassed a record of recoveries for his clients unmatched by any other attorney in Silicon Valley. Alexander is rated among the nation's top 100 trial lawyers by the American Trial Lawyers Association.

Alexander, whose commitment to public legal education spans more than two decades, is the most published lawyer in private practice in the United States, with the largest collection of practical legal articles on the Internet in the personal injury field.