Accident & Injury

Roger (R.J.) Hudson has been practicing law in Iowa for over 2 decades. After graduating from Drake University, R.J. spent 15 years at Hudson Mallaney, P.C., practicing as a trial lawyer for Iowa Domestic Relation and Iowa Divorce Law, Iowa Personal Injury Law, and Iowa Criminal Defense Law. In June of 2010, R.J. founded R.J. Hudson Law Firm P.C., where he continues unmatched legal service for his clients.

Paul Thomas is an experienced lawyer proudly serving Virginia Beach, Virginia and the neighboring communities. He practices law in the following areas: Personal Injury, Traffic law including DUI, Domestic Law and Condo Association Law.

George Allen Burke is a practicing lawyer in the state of Hawaii handling personal injury matters.

Joseph L. Haley, Attorney at Law Associate Attorney Joseph (“Joe”) Haley was born in Marietta, Ga. Joseph’s entire adult working life was devoted to the practice of law, culminating with over 20 years at the Texas Attorney General serving the needs of Texas children. Joseph has a deep passion for serving the legal needs of those unable to help themselves. Educational Background: • Vanderbilt University; B.A. in Political Science and Business Administration. • SMU Dedman School of Law; and first passed the bar in the State of Texas in 1979. He is still licensed in Texas on retired status and admitted in northern, southern & western districts of Texas & US Court of claims. Mr. Haley moved to Oregon for love. He has been a member of the Oregon Bar since 2020. His current Practice Areas for Portland clients: • Personal Injury law • Auto Accidents • Dog Bites • Premises Liability • Landlord/Tenant law • Unfair Trade Practices • Probate • Police misconduct While not practicing law, Joseph enjoys reading; movies (particularly classics); music; loving cats and dogs; traveling the Oregon coast, and enjoying Oregon’s beautiful parks.

Mr. Segal thrives on the practice of law and his arena of choice is the courtroom. He concentrates on representing catastrophically injured people or the estates of those killed due to the negligence of others. Some of the types of cases he handles involve industrial accidents, aviation tragedies, tractor trailer crashes, train wrecks, mining accidents, electrocutions, workplace injuries, and injuries from defective products. Mr. Segal also has a major practice emphasis on class action litigation and complex mass litigation. The types of class and complex cases he has handled includes asbestos litigation, pharmaceuticals, insurance practices, and a wide range of consumer matters. A few catastrophic injuries are the result of fate. Law, engineering, science and medicine are the tools with which we stop the irresponsible. Education Mr. Segal earned his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Vermont in 1977. He earned his J.D. in 1981 from the West Virginia University College of Law. Mr. Segal excelled in trial and advocacy skills during law school. He was a member of the Moot Court Board, the National Appellate Competition Team and the National Trial Competition Team. He achieved recognition with the award of the prestigious Order of the Barristers and the Marlyn E. Lugar best advocate award. He has been an avid supporter of both the University of Vermont where he received the Alumni of Achievement Award and West Virginia University, where he was honored with the Most Loyal Alumni Mountaineer Award. Significant Cases Mr. Segal has many significant accomplishments for his clients. For instance, he recently obtained a $25 million jury verdict for a physician who had been treated improperly by a hospital. Mr. Segal was co-trial counsel in litigation regarding the improper payment of gas royalties to thousands of West Virginians. The jury awarded $405 million to the plaintiffs. Mr. Segal was co-lead class counsel in the West Virginia diet drug litigation, which was successfully resolved. He was co-lead class counsel in the West Virginia litigation involving the diabetes drug Rezulin, which is one of the few such cases in the country to overcome legal challenges and reach resolution. Mr. Segal was co-lead class counsel in OxyContin litigation in West Virginia. Mr. Segal was in the forefront of asbestos litigation and has successfully tried and resolved over 15,000 asbestos and/or mesothelioma cases. Professional Associations Mr. Segal is a member of and involved in numerous professional associations. In 1998, Mr. Segal was inducted into the Inner Circle of Advocates, which has a limited membership of one hundred of the best plaintiffs’ trial lawyers in the United States. Some of his other associations include: the American College of Trial Lawyers, the American Association for Justice – Leader’s Forum, the American Board of Trial Advocates, the West Virginia Association for Justice – Board of Governors, and The Fourth Circuit Judicial Conference. He was the co-chair of the Legal Aid of West Virginia’s Campaign for Legal Aid. He teaches continuing legal education seminars regularly in West Virginia and throughout the country. Community Service Mr. Segal believes that commitment to community service is a vital part of honoring the responsibility of being a lawyer. He has been engaged in community service activities since the beginning of his law practice. He is currently serving or has served on numerous boards providing philanthropic guidance, including the United Way Board of Directors, West Virginia Symphony Board of Directors, Thomas Memorial Hospital Foundation, Make-A-Wish Foundation of Western Pennsylvania and Southern West Virginia Board of Directors, and the National Youth Science Foundation Board of Trustees. Mr. Segal and his wife, West Virginia Supreme Court Justice, Robin Jean Davis, are the founders of the Segal & Davis Family Foundation, which supports charitable causes benefiting children and animals. Personal Mr. Segal and his wife, West Virginia Supreme Court Justice, Robin Jean Davis, live in Charleston, West Virginia, with their young son and golden retrievers. Mr. Segal enjoys architecture and photography and used his skills from these interests to guide the design and building of their home. Mr. Segal is an avid skier and has loved the sport since childhood. He and his family enjoy regular ski trips to Colorado. Mr. Segal and his young son have succeeded in conquering the ski mountains of Colorado together and have earned the Talon Challenge Medal. Mr. Segal and his family also enjoy biking and hiking throughout the mountains of West Virginia.

Bill Hopkins was born and raised in Bishopville, South Carolina. He attended North Carolina State University where he received his B.S. degree in Textile Chemistry in 1988. After graduation, Bill worked for nearly three years for Springs Industries, Inc., a large textile company, at a dyeing and finishing plant in Lancaster, South Carolina. Bill was working as a third shift superintendent at the time he was accepted into law school at the University of South Carolina. During law school, Bill served as the Research Editor for the South Carolina Environmental Law Journal. It was also during law school that he began clerking for the law firm of Whaley, McCutchen, Blanton & Rhodes, LLP, one of the oldest and most prestigious litigation firms in South Carolina, which had originally been founded in 1936. Bill continued to work at the firm after graduation and ultimately became a partner in the firm and then was elected Managing Partner in 2005. Bill and the firm were selected by South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster to represent the State of South Carolina in lawsuits brought against several pharmaceutical companies regarding their reporting of false and inflated prices for drugs which resulted in overpayments by the State Medicaid and State Health Plan programs, known as the AWP litigation. Bill remained as the Managing Partner until December 31, 2007 when the firm dissolved after 71 years of continuous practice. Bill founded and started a new law firm called McCutchen Blanton Hopkins & Campbell, LLP, where he continued to practice with Thomas McCutchen and Hoover Blanton, two of the most well known leaders and stewards of the South Carolina Bar. Bill ran this law firm until November 1, 2010, when he joined the national law firm Beasley Allen Crow Methvin Portis & Miles, P.C. in Mongomery, Alabama in the Consumer Fraud section with an emphasis and focus on class action litigation. Bill has been active in various bar associations and organizations, including the South Carolina Bar. At the time he joined Beasley Allen, Bill was serving on the Professional Responsibility Committee and the Conventions Committee of the South Carolina Bar. Bill is currently serving as the Co-Chairman of the Class Action Litigation Group of the American Association for Justice. Bill served as the Chairman of the Employment Rights Section of the South Carolina Association for Justice for three years. In 2010 Bill Hopkins was elected to the South Carolina Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), which is a distinct recognition and privilege. ABOTA is a national organization of both plaintiff and defense trial attorneys which is committed to the preservation of trial by jury. To be eligible for consideration, an attorney must have tried at least 20 civil jury trials to jury verdict as lead counsel. Bill has tried over 70 civil cases to jury verdict as sole or lead counsel, in areas such as personal injury, business torts, fraud, products liability, trade secrets, unfair trade practices, insurance matters and employment. Bill has also had an active appellate practice and has argued 8 cases before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, including an en banc argument in the case of Ocheltree v. Scollon Productions, Inc., a seminal case regarding the law of sexual harassment, in which many organizations (including the EEOC) made appearances and submitted amicus briefs, and which case was the subject of numerous articles, including an article in the New York Times. Bill has also argued several cases before the South Carolina Court of Appeals and the South Carolina Supreme Court. Bill has also developed a successful class action practice, being appointed by several different courts as lead counsel or liaison counsel in many different class action cases.

Attorney John Akwuba has built a strong reputation for listening to his clients and providing competent and effective solutions crafted to fit their specific needs. Attorney Akwuba provides sound legal analysis, advice and solutions in what is often a very difficult and emotionally charged time. Mr. Akwuba is known for his unwavering integrity, honesty and passion for his clients and their family members. Attorney Akwuba is very approachable, and clients appreciate his easy-going demeanor with them while remaining a tough and no-nonsense advocate. Mr. Akwuba represents men and women in cases involving Personal Injury, Immigration, Family Law and Criminal Defense. Mr. Akwuba also provides pro bono legal work to low income and indigent individuals who are not able to afford often expensive private legal representation. Prior to becoming a lawyer, Mr. Akwuba earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Winston Salem State University and worked at the North Carolina Baptist Hospital for several years. In 1996, Mr. Akwuba graduated from William Mitchell College of Law where he began developing his courtroom skills in the moot court competition. Mr. Akwuba participated in the regional level of the Frederick Douglas Moot Court Competition. Also at William Mitchell College of Law, Mr. Akwuba was a member of the Student Governing Board, and was very active in the law school community. While in Law School, Mr. Akwuba clerked with the Minneapolis City Attorney’s Office so he could hit the ground running upon graduation. After graduating from law school, Mr. Akwuba clerked for the Honorable Harry Seymour Crump, before teaming up with a private law practice. As such, he is uniquely qualified to understand the intricacies often involved in the diverse areas of law that he practices.

Edward Pritchard was born in Columbia, South Carolina, on March 17, 1962. Edward graduated from the University of South Carolina (B.S. 1984), and the University of South Carolina School of Law (J.D. 1987). While in law school, Edward was on the National Dean’s Honor List and was a member of the Order of Wig and Robe. He was a law clerk for the Honorable Randall T. Bell, South Carolina Court of Appeals. In August of 1988, Edward joined the law firm of Sinkler & Boyd, P.A., where he remained nearly twelve years, the last six of which he was a partner. In 2002, Edward formed The Pritchard Law Firm, which has expanded and become Pritchard & Elliott, Attorneys And Counselors At Law, LLC. Edward is admitted to the South Carolina Supreme Court, the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, as well as the South Carolina Bar Association. He is currently a member of the S.C. Bar Association Nominating Committee, a member of the Charleston County Bar Association Executive Committee, as well as a member of the S.C. Bar Association House of Delegates. Edward also serves on the board of the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority and is a former member of the City of Charleston Board of Zoning Appeals – Zoning and former chairman of the City of Charleston Board of Zoning Appeals – Site Design. Edward is the co-author of the S.C. chapter of Defense Research Institute Bad Faith Compendium. Edward has extensive experience in civil and administrative trial practice and appellate practice. His practice area includes Insurance Coverage and Extra-Contractual Litigation Defense, Commercial and Business Litigation, Commercial Transactions, Insurance Defense, Workers’ Compensation and Appellate Practice.

As a former prosecutor in Charleston, Attorney Michael C. Sahn and his partners have over 25 years of experience in courtrooms, working side by side with current prosecutors and court workers, establishing respect and rapport. We will put that reputation to work for you, advocating for the best possible outcome on your behalf. Looking for criminal defense advice? Michael Sahn is the Charleston criminal defense attorney you should go for. We prepare each case thoroughly, fully investigating all details, always ready for whatever the opposition may try to throw your way.

Ms. Burnett is a trial attorney who concentrates her practice in representing people who have been injured as a result of professional negligence, including nursing home abuse and medical malpractice. She is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and was named a Partner in the firm in 2012. Ms. Burnett received a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and French in 1996 from the College of Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina. She graduated magna cum laude. She received a Juris Doctor degree in 2001 from the University of South Carolina in Columbia, South Carolina, receiving multiple academic honors and distinctions. After law school, Ms. Burnett served as a law clerk to the Honorable G. Ross Anderson, Jr. in United States District Court in Anderson, South Carolina. Ms. Burnett began her private practice handling the defense of a variety of claims in both federal and state court, focusing her practice in the defense of nursing home abuse claims. In 2007, Ms. Burnett left her practice to join our firm to represent victims of nursing home abuse and medical malpractice.