Message from Managing Partner Ron Karp

Simple justice:

2011 will mark my forth decade since graduating from law school. During that time I have been honored to represent judges, lawyers, mayors, police chiefs, people in the media, professional athletes and most importantly, thousands of people without titles and who are not famous, and who get up every morning and do the best they can to get through the day and support members of their family and loved ones. Sometimes their cases resolved quietly and sometimes the cases were reported on the front page of the Washington Post, or in the Wall Street Journal, People Magazine and even the London Times. Some cases were covered on local radio and television and others were on the Today Show or the network news. There was always one common factor: I was representing a victim.

All of these people looked forward to another normal day and then, suddenly their lives turned on a dime. They became victimized by someone's negligence: an errant truck driver, a careless landlord, a drunk driver, a doctor or surgeon who simply wasn't paying careful attention to a patient. Sometimes as simple (and outrageous) an act as driving on the wrong side of the road or not paying attention to the rules of the road created a catastrophic injury to an innocent victim who had no idea when he left home that morning that he would be airlifted to a shock trauma unit. Sometimes the injury was beyond a physical injury as when I was honored to represent Police Chief Charles Moose in his First Amendment fight to get his book published (it became a New York Times bestseller), or when I represented a group of women who took on a Fortune 500 company for sexual harassment.

I have sat with parents who lost children, children who lost parents, good people who lost loved ones or who were suddenly thrust from a normal life into a life of just trying to survive with a serious brain injury or other catastrophic disability. I long ago gave up trying to supply easy clichés and catch phrases that pass for temporary comforting answers. I realized that what these clients really want from our system of justice is fair compensation for their losses. Even after successful jury verdicts or substantial settlements, I have never had a single client in all of my years at the bar who would not have given back the funds in a heartbeat if they could go back and erase the tragic incident from their lives.

Clients do not come to lawyers for sympathy or solace. They try to get that from their family and clergy. What they want from their lawyer is simple justice.

When I have been able to secure that for them it has been my greatest satisfaction. I met them in the worst period of their lives, when they were tragically deprived of a normal day, left behind and virtually helpless. Regardless of their station in life, all were equally vulnerable. I have saved the kind notes and letters these clients sent to me. When I run into them or simply hear from them on the phone to catch up on the years, the greatest satisfaction I have is hearing how funds secured by my law firm really changed their lives.

I have tried to instill this principle in every case the firm takes. I have been blessed to be surrounded by partners who for decades have shared this ideal and by bright young associates who every day aspire to make this ideal a reality. It is also quite gratifying that my peers at the bar have recognized this work ethic and I am proud to have been selected by them in numerous professional rating services that list me amongst the top one percent of the lawyers in the country. In May of 2011 the Washington Post magazine published a list in the Super Lawyers section called: Washington DC: THE TOP 100. I was listed amongst the top 100 lawyers who received the highest point totals in the nomination and blue ribbon review process. There are over 100,000 lawyers in the tri-state area (DC/Maryland/Virginia) and getting to see my name on a relatively short list of lawyers I have so admired for decades was gratification I am unable to fully describe. This does not happen without the support of a loving wife of 41 years and a supportive family at home and at the law firm.

All of this was quite unimaginable when I left my beloved Washington College of Law 40 years ago. The firm has full-time offices in three jurisdictions (DC, Maryland and Virginia). Over the years I have had the opportunity and honor to appear in courthouses all over the region, from small rural courthouses to large federal courthouses, and I have learned that judges and jurors really try to be fair and that access to the justice system is the most sacred legal right victims have. Whether the case results in a jury verdict or a settlement, nothing would be possible without our time-honored system of justice.

The day lawyers pass the bar someone should whisper in their ears: "You have just been given the key to the courthouse and you really do have the power to change lives."

Yours sincerely,
Ronald A. Karp
Managing Partner
Karp, Frosh, Lapidus, Wigodsky & Norwind, P.A.
301-948-3800