Maurice Abarr | Santa Ana Accident & Injury Lawyer

• Member, California State Bar Association
• Member, California Applicant Attorneys' Association,
  1992-2013
• Member, Orange County Trial Lawyers Association,
  1975-2013
• Member, Orange County Trial Lawyers Association,
  1981-2011

(1) Truck driver was parked on shoulder in chain-up area in Northern California, putting chains on his front trailer, and his rear rear trailer was rear-ended by another semi truck that lost control on icy road. My client was thrown in roadway. No complaints at scene -- or for several weeks after -- of head complaints. Head symptoms developed about 2 months later. My team was able to prove mild traumatic and case resolved for 4 million. (2) Truck driver was stabbed multiple times while "off-duty" but near his rig while parked overnight. He is now a near quadriplegic. Employer denied responsibility saying he was not in course of employment. I tried case and won. Defendants appealed to full WCAB -- they lost. Defendants appealed to District Court of Appeals -- they lost. We are now in process for forcing employer to pay for very expensive rehabilitation efforts for our client.

Spending time with the client at the time of first contact with office to make certain that he or she understands the parameters of what I can and cannot do for them. Then I work hard to provide top-shelf customer service which includes preparing them for each critical event in the case (depositions, medical appointments, hearings, trial) and then taking the case to trial when confronted with unreasonable defendants. Finally, keeping your reputation elevated and your office respected by both opposing counsel and the judges who rule on our cases.

Someone they like and trust.

Knowing the "players" is important. Every judge is different. Every Workers' Compensation district office and every VA Regional Office is different with their own interpretations of rules of practice. Some defense attorneys are more reasonable than others. The doctors define much of the outcome so we do need to do our background research on the doctors that are, or may become, involved in giving medical opinions in the case.

I do not do phone consultations. There is simply too many subject areas to cover in order to get a clear picture of what the possibilities are for a particular case -- every case is different also. My staff will ask some screening questions by telephone and if it sounds like something I can help with, a face to face appointment is set for a more in-depth interview. Then we can decide if we can work together.

[saves both parties time] If it is a Workers' Compensation case: name, address, phone numbers, email address, date of injury, nature of injury, current treating doctor, name of the insurance company or third-party administrator, and what the injured worker's most immediate problems are. If it is a Veteran who wants to appeal a Rating Decision issued by a VA Regional Office: name, address, phone numbers, email address, where he or she is at in the claim / appeal process, what is the date of the most recent decision or Statement of Case from the VA, can they fax or scan and send as email attachment the most recent decision or Statement of Case for my review. We explain that the majority of the time we will not represent the Veteran until they have obtained their complete Claims file [called ""C file""] from the VA and this can take from a few to several months. This is ordinarily the first thing we request the Veteran to do: Request their C file. Without any charge to the Veteran, we can provide them with a Freedom of Information Act [FOIA] letter which they can sign and send to their VA Regional Office and this will provide their quickest access to their C file. Once they get their C file, we ask they immediately forward it to us for our review. It can take up to 90 days for us to complete our review of the C file. Depending on the case, we will then personally conduct a more in-depth interview of the Veteran and soon thereafter make a decision about whether we will represent the Veteran at that time.

40 years of practice, representing disabled persons in California. I am a Certified Specialist in Workers' Compensation and I am Certified to appear at all levels of the VA appellate process, and I am admitted to the Court of Veterans Claims in Washington, D.C. I also work very hard for my clients.

Seeing that I have made a positive difference in a client's life.

Reading, self-development, strength training, jazz and blues music, travel (especially in Italy)

I have been a long time member of the California Applicants Attorneys Association, an organization dedicated to advocating the rights of injured workers in California and I have been a member of the National Organization of Veterans Advocates since 2008.