Joseph Martineau | Mesa Personal Injury Lawyer

• Member | Arizona State Bar Association

• Distinguished Martindale-Hubbell
  2020

One of my clients lost her only living son when his ventilator stopped suddenly in the middle of the night. He essentially suffocated before help could arrive. We obtained a very good settlement from five companies, two local, one national and two international. These five companies were responsible for manufacturing, selling or repairing the defective machine. This was a very difficult case legally, but we prevailed for our client in the end.

Mostly by word of mouth. I have settled more than 2,000 injury claims over the years, and helped clients with other legal problems, and many of my clients have referred their friends to me. It is my practice to spend time with each client, even if I can't resolve their legal problem, and my goal is to help them find a way to bring closure to a difficult situation.

Lawyers owe their clients complete integrity, loyalty and compassion. Beyond that, clients should look for a lawyer who can get results, even if the legal problem facing the client seems impossible to resolve. And, clients should like working with their lawyer.

Legal problems are successfully resolved based on the facts and the law. A lawyer must invest whatever time it takes to understand the facts if the case and to obtain the evidence necessary to prove those facts. A lawyer must understand how to find the law that applies to each case, and if it requires a court to win the case, he must know the judge and staff.

Every client wants to know if they have a case, and what will be required to win it. I can usually get enough facts about a case in the first interview to tell the client whether their case has merit and whether it should be pursued. Every client's time is valuable, so I try to be efficient during the first consultation. Even if a case isn't likely to turn out well, I will give any advice the client needs to decide where to go from there. I never charge for my time with a client during the first interview.

I need to hear the client's story, the facts about the case. There will always be evidence to collect after the consultation if our decision is to go forward.

I'm more interested in helping people solve problems than making money. All my clients have my mobile phone and can call me personally at any time about anything. My clients communicate directly through me and not through a staff person.

Seeing a happy client when a legal problem is successfully resolved.

Gardening, languages, history and families. My wife and I have 10 children and 34 grandchildren.

I am involved in religious and charitable organizations, with a special interest in using the law to preserve the rule of law for our children, for the next generation.