Memphis injury Lawyer Jami Ferrell featured in the Memphis Daily News!

I’m excited to say that in today’s Memphis Daily News there is a feature article on me and my book “The 7 Deadly Mistakes That Can Kill Your Memphis Accident Case”.

The content of the article is found below, But it can also be read in it’s entirety on the Memphis Daily News’ website Here.

Ferrell Discusses Pitfalls Of Badly Litigated Injury Cases in New Book

REBEKAH HEARN | The Daily News

James “Jami” Ferrell, the founder of The Ferrell Law Firm, recently published a book titled “Seven Deadly Mistakes That Can Kill Your Memphis Accident Case.” A personal injury attorney, Ferrell provides first-time clients with his book, a CD about accidents in Memphis and other special reports.

Formerly an investment adviser, Ferrell made the transition into law soon after marrying. He attended the University of Mississippi School of Law and graduated in 2006. Ferrell first opened his firm in Olive Branch, and upon becoming licensed in Tennessee, moved his practice to Germantown in 2009.

Ferrell represents only seriously injured victims of car wrecks, animal attacks, workers’ compensation claims, medical malpractice, catastrophic injuries and wrongful death claims.

Ferrell is a member of the American Association for Justice, Tennessee Association for Justice, and the Memphis, DeSoto County, Tennessee and Mississippi bar associations. Ferrell practices with one associate, Christopher Johnson.

Q: What do you believe is different about The Ferrell Law Firm compared to other personal injury firms in the Memphis area?

A: My firm is different in many ways. I’m extremely selective in what type of cases I will handle. I have people call my office all the time and want to hire us for what I feel may be questionable injuries. I refuse to take these cases and tell them that they can call someone else and that they should be thankful to God that they are not more seriously injured. Secondly, I often tell people with minor injuries not to hire me and that they are sometimes capable of settling their case on their own. Sometimes, victims can end up with more money in their pocket when they settle on their own and don’t have to split the money with an attorney. But don’t get me wrong, anytime someone has more than a couple thousand dollars worth of damages, they are usually much better off in hiring an attorney to help them.

Q: Does The Ferrell Law Firm spend much money on advertising, or do you rely on obtaining clients through word of mouth or other means more?

A: I can say that I don’t spend anywhere close to what a lot of other lawyers here in Memphis spend on advertising. But in order to get our message out and to help as many people as possible, I do have a small advertising budget to work with. … Now we are at the point where word of mouth – about what we do and how we help people – has really begun to spread quickly here in the Memphis community.

Q: How does your book help new clients understand their personal injury case?

A: In the book, I give injury victims good, accurate information on how the claims process works and how to navigate among the real sharks out there – insurance adjusters. This book isn’t (just) for new clients. It’s for everyone, especially those who don’t have a lawyer and don’t know how miserable this whole process can be. I walk them through the entire claims process and show them the pitfalls to avoid, as well as give them information on how to find and choose a lawyer for their case if they feel they need to hire one.

Q: You practice with just one associate. Do you have plans to expand your firm in the future?

A: We will probably expand with another lawyer at some point in the not-too-distant future. But we also have a great relationship with another firm here in Memphis that we often work with on cases. This allows us the benefit of having additional attorneys to help us with some of our clients. I’ve found the key is to surround yourself with great people, and that’s what we do.

Q: On your Web site, you say that several other personal injury lawyers have never been in court, instead settling their cases out of court. Is this common?

A: It’s not necessarily a bad thing to settle cases out of court. In fact, the vast majority of cases are settled before going to trial. However, in order to keep insurance companies honest and to make sure you are getting the most for your client, you must be able and willing to go to trial if you can’t get a fair settlement for your client. … Insurance companies are smart. They keep a record of every attorney and law firm that they have worked with. And they know which ones are willing to go to trial and which ones simply want to settle as quickly as possible. If you are interviewing potential attorneys for your case, make sure that you find one that is willing to take your case all the way.

Huge verdict awarded for man crushed by a dumpster!

Last week a Tennessee jury awarded a Giles County man and his wife $3.5 million as a result of a horrible accident in which he was injured in July of 2000.

While at work, the man suffered a crushed pelvis, urethra tear, nerve damage, and a back injury when a two ton metal container fell off a hoist truck onto him. These severe injuries caused him to become bed-ridden and miss 11 months of work.

Congratulations to Ben Boston, Ryan Durham and Chris Sockwell for their fantastic work representing him in his personal injury claim on this case, as well as Greg Groth, who represented the victim in the underlying worker’s compensation action. Great job guys!

Tupelo car wreck victim blessed “that the doctors and nurses were able to preserve my life”

My friends and family know that I’m not just a some crazy personal injury lawyer on a mission to help my clients. I’m also a really big Mississippi State University fan. And recently one of my favorite beat writers, Brad Locke, who cover the Bulldogs was involved in an extremely bad accident in Tupelo.

As Brad writes on his blog, his injuries were pretty severe and life threatening. But what I found inspiring was how he viewed this accident and how he actually felt that it was a “blessing”. His posts, which can be read in their entirety here and here, offered insight into his feelings and how he and his family dealt with this terrible accident.

I found his posts both heart warming and genuine. I wish Brad all the best in his recovery and hope that he is enjoying his time back with his family and friends after his stint in the hospital. And I hope that those of you who have been injured may find a little glimmer of hope in what Brad has written.

Going through a car wreck and suffering a major injury is difficult. But when you work with people who are similar to Brad it makes all the difference. And it reaffirms my feelings on why I don’t take small cases from people just looking to make a quick buck when they should be counting their blessings that they weren’t seriously injured. I’d much rather work with someone who truly needs my help and who understands a life that is “blessed”.

If you have been hurt in any type of accident anywhere in Mississippi or Tennessee call me at 901-754-1340. Or get your free copy of my book by clicking here. I guarantee it will be worth your time.

Major Accident on I-55 in Memphis today

If you’ve even thought about driving in Memphis today you probably already know about the major accident that’s blocking I-55 in south Memphis near Stateline Road.

According to the Commercial Appeal a tanker truck carrying highly flammable material was caught up in a wreck with a Chevy Illumina and Jeep Liberty a little past midnight last night.

Unfortunately there were injuries with this car wreck. Both a man and a woman who have yet to be identified were taken to the Med in critical condition. Let’s all pray that their injuries were minor and they will fully recover.

As always if you have any questions about an accident or car wreck that you have been involved in please call our law office here in Memphis. My team of lawyers and I will be happy to help you in any way that we can. Just call us at 901-754-1340.

Are we the best personal injury lawyers in Memphis?

I don’t know – But our clients seem to love us. And here are a couple of the reasons why.

The message that I send is very different from each and every one of the personal injury law firms who you see advertising on television or billboards around Memphis. First of all I don’t want thousands of clients a year, that’s not the way I work.

My ideal and normal client is someone that’s a good person who works hard and who has unfortunately had something terrible happen to them. Most of my clients don’t even want to “sue” anyone. They just want to feel better and make sure that the insurance companies and their adjusters don’t take advantage of them. That’s where we step in and help.

Secondly, I try to give away as much information as possible to accident and injury victims so that they understand what’s going on. I give every person who calls my office the tools to try to handle their case themself. You can get this package, my Memphis Accident Book, by clicking here. I want you to be informed as well as you possibly can.  Other injury lawyers and accident law firms here in Memphis don’t do this. They simply want to sign you up immediately so that they can begin making money off you and your injuries.

But do you want to know a little secret? Many times you don’t even need a lawyer for your case. Especially if your case is relatively minor with only a couple of thousand dollars worth of medical bills or less.  I’ve had countless potential clients who I have told “Don’t hire me – you can do just as well on your own without paying my fee”. Try finding another lawyer in Memphis who will tell you this!

But sometimes you really do need a good injury or accident lawyer. This is especially true for major injuries with lot’s of medical bills and damage. You need to hire someone to make sure that you are taken care of properly and receive every dime you should receive, because the insurance companies will absolutely eat you up and spit you out if you don’t have the absolute best lawyer in Memphis that you can find.

That’s when we step in to help you. And the insurance companies know that when they deal with me and my team of lawyers that they are in for a fight. That’s because we don’t take frivolous and questionable lawsuits. They know that when we’re involved it’s a major case.

These are just a few of the things that make us different, and it’s why some of our clients have told us that they thought we are the best lawyers in Memphis.

Call me today at 901-754-1340 and I’ll help you determine what’s best for your accident, injury or worker’s comp case. Even if that means telling you NOT to hire me!

How much do lawyers spend to advertise on TV

Have you ever wondered how much it costs for personal injury lawyers to advertise on TV?

Here is a list of the top 10 TV advertising law firms in the country for 2009, along with how much they spent.

Law Offices of James Sokolove	$10,980,281
Morgan & Morgan	$8,642,112
Binder & Binder	$6,652,815
Cochran Firm	$4,978,741
Phillips & Associates	$4,707,837
Weitz & Luxenberg	$4,533,001
Goldwater Law Firm	$4,284,684
Law Firm of Bernstein	$3,664,566
Jim S. Adler	$3,344,117
Pulaski & Middleman	$2,156,248

Maybe you’ve seen some of my television ads on here in Memphis and wonder how much I spend each year. Well, I can tell you that I don’t spend even a fraction of the amount that the number 10 firm on this list spends!

Comings and Goings – Changes in local Memphis Personal Injury Law Firms

It’s beginning to become hard to keep up with just who and what personal injury and accident lawyers and law firms are in Memphis these days.

Case in Point: Here in Memphis the personal injury, accident and worker’s comp lawyers who used to be with the Cochran Firm seem to now be part of Morgan and Morgan.

Morgan and Morgan is a large national personal injury law firm “mill” with offices primarily located not in the Memphis, Tennessee area but in Florida.

So when you’re out looking to find the best personal injury lawyer or law firm for your case here in Memphis be careful. It seems that these days you never know when the law firm or lawyers you were using will suddenly change names or jump ship to another firm. You should think long and hard about this before you decide to become  a client.

Toyota Recalls Continue to Increase

It’s not as often that product recalls intersect with potential car wreck issues, but this past week brought one to our attention: Toyota has now recalled 5.3 million vehicles due to issues with their gas pedals.  The recalls are two separate issues: one deals with a gas pedal that can become caught on the edge of the removable floormat, leading to uncontrollable acceleration, while the other deals with accelerator pedals that can stick independently.  The following vehicles are affected by this recall:

2005-2010 Avalon
2007-2010 Camry
2009-2010 Corolla
2008-2010 Highlander
2007-2010 Lexus ES350
2006-2010 Lexus IS250
2006-2010 Lexus IS350
2009-2010 Matrix
2009-2010 Pontiac Vibe
2004-2010 Prius
2009-2010 RAV4
2008-2010 Sequoia
2010 Tacoma
2007-2010 Tundra
2009-2010 Venza

Toyota has informed its car owners that this is a gradually developing issue for these cars, so that by and large the cars are still safe to drive.  If you feel, for any reason, that your gas pedal is becoming sticky, stop driving immediately and call a dealer for assistance.  When the company has arrived at a solution for the gas pedal issue, it will inform all owners for replacement.  If you are concerned with your vehicle, take it to a Toyota dealer to get a status check on your gas pedal.  Read this helpful article from CNN Money for more advice on how to handle issues with your recalled Toyota vehicle, and drive safe!

New Texting Guidelines Announced

CNN alerted us today of new federal guidelines announced Tuesday of this week by U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood that prohibit commercial truck and bus drivers from texting while driving.  These new rules are effective immediately and come with stiff penalties of up to $2,750 fines.  LaHood has been on a campaign to decrease the often deadly effects of distracted driving during his tenure, including a summit in Washington on the topic, the launch of distraction.gov, and the creation of advocacy group FocusDriven.  These regulations are in addition to 19 states banning texting while driving and the 6 states who have banned the use of handheld devices while driving altogether.  We’re in full support of these new regulations and guidelines – as the article notes, when you’re texting you take your eyes off of the road for 4.6 out of 6 seconds.  That’s 77% of the time, meaning you’re only looking at the road 23% of what you should be!  Horrifying, if you think about it.

My Car is Wrecked! What Now? (Part 3)

Let’s wrap up our series on property damage with a final few bits of information about the last stages of dealing with either a totaled vehicle or obtaining repairs on a still-drivable car:

9.  Keep in mind that sometimes it’s better to have your car repaired rather than totaled. For example, if you owe $10,000 on your loan but the car is only worth $7,000, it is not the insurance company’s responsibility to pay off your loan.

10.  Find out if you have bought GAP insurance when you purchased your car. GAP insurance can help you fill in the difference if you owe more on your car than what it’s worth.  There are a lot of stipulations with GAP insurance, so we recommend that if you are in an accident and your vehicle is totaled, go ahead and file your GAP claim immediately – it can take up to three months to process.

11.  If your car is a total loss, you have the option to “retain salvage.” This means the insurance company will pay you the Fair Market Value of your car minus a salvage amount.  Salvaging a car means you can keep your vehicle, but the title will change to “salvaged-rebuilt.”  This can be a good option if you own an older car that are already paid for and didn’t sustain much damage.

Hopefully that answered some of your initial questions about dealing with property damage after a car wreck.  If you are having difficulties at any part of this process, we urge you to contact an attorney that may be able to ease the way for you!

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