Kimberly and I met in 1992 as kindred spirits, both drawn to the idea of building something larger than ourselves—an extension of our family committed to serving others. We married in 1994, while I was practicing law, and Kimberly worked in healthcare consulting. We thought we understood how the legal system worked. Then September 19, 1995 changed everything.
It’s the worst possible situation to be in after a serious injury. I’m sitting across from a guy who’s supposed to be one of the better traumatic brain injury lawyers, but I’m realizing he doesn’t understand what Kimberly and I are going through!
What makes it all worse is the fact that I am a lawyer with years of experience, and yet even I can’t get the kind of representation we desperately need. It’s a scary situation.
I grew up in Charlotte. My mother was a teacher, my father a manager working with blue-collar contractors. My parents instilled in me a simple principle: stand up for people who can’t stand up for themselves. Becoming an Eagle Scout reinforced it.
Kimberly grew up in Rockingham, a small North Carolina community. Her parents, a nurse and a salesman, also instilled the importance of community service. Sunday mornings singing in youth prison ministry, working with rehabilitation centers, partnering with local organizations – all part of Kimberly’s youth and what shaped her heart.
My brain injury accident showed us that even being on the inside of the legal profession didn’t protect us from getting poor representation. Our lawyer didn’t really serve us well because he couldn’t put himself in our shoes.
After my personal injury, I knew exactly what kind of lawyer I wanted to be:
Today we’ve been in business for 35 years and we’ve recovered billions of dollars for our clients, but more importantly, we’ve advanced our services to what we call “whole person legal care.” We don’t just fight for financial recovery—we address the physical, emotional, and mental needs that make up a whole person. We prepare people before accidents happen through safety education. We stand beside them during their recovery. And we help them figure out where to go when their time with us is done.
What drives us is knowing that if you know better, you have to do better. Through our Roberts Center, we give away thousands of bicycle helmets, teach CPR, provide scholarships, and run safety programs in schools because we’d rather prevent accidents happening to your family than litigate them.