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A Small Specialized Law Firm Dedicated to Each and Every Client

CASE RESULTS DEPEND UPON A VARIETY OF FACTORS UNIQUE TO EACH CASE.  PRIOR CASE RESULTS DO NOT GUARANTEE OR PREDICT A SIMILAR RESULT IN ANY FUTRUE CASE UNDERTAKEN BY OUR FIRM.

Shevlin Smith is a small, specialized law firm that restricts its practice to medical malpractice, and catastrophic injury and death cases.  The present three-attorney firm has a rich history.  The firm started in 1986 when Brian Shevlin founded Brian C. Shevlin & Associates, P.C., the predecessor firm to Shevlin Smith.  Despite having successfully represented insurance companies in defending claims involving medical malpractice and automobile accidents for 12 years, Brian felt unfulfilled in his defense-based practice.  He saw injured persons, who were deserving of compensation, lose their cases.  He saw insurance companies make low-ball settlement offers to injured persons that were inexplicably accepted.  To right these wrongs, Brian joined the ranks of plaintiffs’ lawyers under the belief that persons injured due to negligent and careless acts of others deserve compensation for their injuries -- not only fair compensation, but full compensation. 

Brian C. Shevlin & Associates, P.C. was also created under the belief that clients are best served by small law firms in which the entire staff knows and works for the client.

In the mid-1990s, Tom Smith and Michael Shevlin joined the firm.  Tom’s experience was similar to Brian’s in that he also defended doctors and hospitals before changing to the patient’s side.  Mike left a busy trial practice with the Commonwealth Attorney’s office in Fairfax County to join his father.  While the name of the firm changed to Shevlin Smith, the fundamental principles of the firm first created by Brian Shevlin have not.

Responding to client growth and demand, Shevlin Smith hired attorney Lisa Barnett and nurse paralegal Jen Sweeney in 2011.  Lisa has over 15 years of experience handling medical malpractice cases and other personal injury claims.  Like Brian and Tom, she has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in medical malpractice cases.  Jen joined the firm, after having been a paralegal for defense firms for 18 years and a registered nurse for 25 years.  Both Lisa and Jen further Shevlin Smith's unique industry advantage of understanding cases from both a plaintiff's and defendant's perspective.

To this day, Shevlin Smith prides itself on careful case selection and good results.  We understand that pursuing a lawsuit is costly for clients both financially and emotionally.   We know that our clients and family members have suffered devastating injuries and we know that a successful outcome can be a life-changing experience for a client.  As a result, we screen cases closely in order to ensure that our clients’ prospects of winning their cases are high and that their opportunity for full compensation is likely.  This means that our caseload is small so that we can devote the time necessary to develop fully each important case.  We then aggressively represent each client whose case is accepted.  Aggressive representation means searching for the best experts to support a case and trying cases in which a settlement offer is either too low to be fair or no offer is made.  Every client has an attorney in the firm with at decade of experience working on your case.  You will not be handed off to an inexperienced associate or paralegal.

The attorneys at Shevlin Smith have successfully represented clients in a wide variety of matters.  These cases have involved all types of medical malpractice claims, medical device failures, drug or pharmaceutical injuries, automobile and truck accidents, corporate medical wrongdoing, and injuries resulting from third-party criminal acts.

We have had success at all levels of the justice system.  Juries have awarded our clients some of the highest verdicts in Virginia and the District of Columbia.  Insurance companies have settled cases for millions of dollars.  Appellate courts have affirmed our victories, including verdicts that were contested because the insurance company thought that the verdict was simply too high.  We receive referrals from attorneys in both the plaintiffs’ bar and the defense bar, and have represented both local judges and attorneys in their claims for compensation.  Our inclusion in peer-reviewed publications such as Best Lawyers in America, Best Lawyers in Washington, D.C., Super Lawyers in Virginia, and the American Trial Lawyers Association's Top 100 Trial Lawyers demonstrates the high esteem with which our attorneys are held.

If you believe that you need legal representation or advice, we would welcome the opportunity to speak with you.  We offer a free consultation to prospective clients.

Do I Have A Case? A Patient's Guide to Virginia Medical Negligence Law

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