Pete Leehey | Cedar Rapids Motorcycle Accident Lawyer

• Iowa Trial Lawyers Association Former Officer
  1998 - 2005
• Iowa Association of Workers Compensation Lawyers Former Board of Governors
  1998 - 2005
• Iowa State Bar Association, Workers' Compensation Section Past Chairman
  1997 - 1999
• Iowa Trial Lawyers Association Former Board of Governors
  1991 - 1998

• AV Preeminent 5.0 out of 5 Peer Review Rated Martindale-Hubbell
  2016
• Super Lawyer Great Plains Super Lawyers
  2010
• Super Lawyer Great Plains Super Lawyers
  2009
• Meritorious Achievement Award Iowa Trial Lawyers Association
  2000
• Outstanding Member Award Iowa Trial Lawyers Association
  1999

A new client came to us who had been in a serious motorcycle crash. Everybody was pointing the finger at him, including the police, even though the other driver turned left in front of him. We took the case on because we believed that even if the client was speeding, that does not excuse another motorist for failing to see the biker and turning left in front of him. The insurance company for the left-turning motorist denied the claim and never offered any settlement at all. After a hard-fought trial, we received a jury verdict in favor of our client that paid him for his losses.

I believe the most important ingredients in building a successful practice are to always be honest, even when you have to say things people don't want to hear, and to treat people with genuine respect.

The most important thing in selecting a lawyer is to find somebody you are comfortable with. If you talk about your case to a lawyer that you don't feel comfortable with, move on.

To me, "local knowledge" is knowledge of the motorcycling community, of which our firm is a part. I believe being a part of the motorcycling community gives us perspective that others lack. We take that perspective, and apply it to helping our clients make the trip to the Road to Recovery.

The first and most important thing is to establish whether a possible client even needs a lawyer. That can usually be accomplished by a short phone conversation. If a lawyer is needed for an injury case, we work for a contingent fee (only pay if you win). If the case is not something we handle, we can usually point the client to a lawyer who does handle the type of issue they are facing.

This depends on the type of case it is, but in general we need a short description of what happened to cause the crash, the names of people or companies involved, and the losses caused by the crash. Once we have this information, we can dig in and figure out if the legal problem is something we can help out with, or if a referral should be made.

We are bikers. We are a part of the motorcycling community. We are the only firm that requires not only a law degree, but also a motorcycle license.

Balancing the playing field for people who are finding it difficult to deal with insurance companies.

Motorcycling, motorcycle rallies, listening to live music.

Absolutely. We are heavily involved in ABATE of Iowa and Minnesota, the Confederation of Clubs of Iowa and Minnesota, and are members of the Motorcycle Riders Foundation. During riding season, you will regularly find us at motorcycle rallies in Iowa and Minnesota.