Blackman Legal, Fatal Accident Lawyers | Attorney Profiles

Clifford A. Blackman

The founder and CEO of the Blackman Legal Group is Clifford A. Blackman, a lawyer practicing in California since 1976. His skills in the courtroom and in the art of negotiation have earned him a reputation as a powerful advocate for the rights of family members.

Mr. Blackman has won several million-dollar verdicts and settlements, making him one of the elite personal injury and wrongful death attorneys in California. His expertise is fatal accident cases allow him to secure full compensation for his clients' serious injuries.

Recent wrongful death verdicts and settlements include:

$5,2
$3,100,000 settlement for paralyzed passenger in car accident - head on
$2 Million settlement for the death of a pedestrian run down by truck
$1 Million settlement for the death of a couple in a small plane crash
$1 Million verdict for 87 year old - hip fracture at Safeway

Mr. Blackman earned both his BA and MA in drama and television from Hofstra University in New York, and he puts his special theatrical training to good use as a trial lawyer. He skillfully presents his clients cases using detailed medical illustrations and the expert testimony of medical and accident specialists. He has tried cases in courts throughout California as well as in other states, including Montana in 2008 (deck collapse above).

Mr. Blackman was the founder of the Bay Area Lawyers Network, a certified provider of continuing education for lawyers in California, which hosts nine continuing educational programs for attorneys each year at the City Club of San Francisco in a wide variety of legal topics.

San Francisco, San Mateo, San Jose, Sacramento, Oakland, Newport Beach, Orange County, Los Angeles, San Diego, La Jolla

For more information about Clifford A. Blackman.

See Mr. Blackman's informative videos:

Jacob Shapiro

Jacob Shapiro is a trial attorney and litigation specialist for the Blackman Legal Group since he began practicing in 1996.He has successfully handled thousands of personal injury and wrongful death cases in California. Mr. Shapiro has an extremely high success rate in court, winning more than 95% of his cases and motions.

Recent wrongful death verdicts and settlement of his include:

$3,000,000 judgment for the family of a woman killed on the freeway by a tire which had fallen off another car coming in the other direction and which flew across the freeway into oncoming traffic striking her car on the windshield.

Mr. Shapiro majored in Political Science at U.C. Berkeley and received his degree with high honors in 1992. Attending law school at the University of Santa Clara, Mr. Shapiro received his Juris Doctorate in Law in 1996, graduating summa cum laude. Mr. Shapiro finished first in his class in both tort law and business organizations and received the highest individual award in the university’s extremely competitive Moot Court Competition. The award indicating exemplary oral advocacy skills was bestowed upon Mr. Shapiro by former California Supreme Court Justice, the honorable Edward A. Panelli. He is a member of the State Bar of California and a member of the Consumer Attorneys of California.

Mr. Shapiro has handled hundreds of cases to successful completion during his years with the Blackman Legal Group, including numerous trials in Bay Area courts

Redwood City, Oakland, San Jose, Walnut Creek

For more information about Jacob Shapiro.

Albert G. Stoll, Jr.

Mr. Stoll stands up for the rights of individuals in wrongful death cases involving nursing home neglect, elder abuse, dangerous drugs and other serious injuries. A highly respected trial lawyer, Al is the founder of Albert G. Stoll, Jr., a law corporation in San Francisco, and is of counsel to Blackman Legal Group.

Al has obtained the prestigious AV from the Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating system and in 2006 and 2007 was selected as a Northern California Super Lawyer. He has tried over fifty civil jury cases through verdict, volunteered as an instructor for the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, and is co-author of Plaintiff Lawyers Guide to Minor Impact Cervical and Lumbar Injuries, (Litigation One 2003). He received his J.D. from Golden Gate University School of Law in 1992 and B.S. in Economics from U.C. Santa Barbara in 1990. Al is on the Board of Governors for the Consumer Attorneys of California and the San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association.

San Francisco, San Mateo, San Jose, Alameda, Contra Costa, Sacramento

For more information about Albert G. Stoll.

Patrick McNicholas

He is a founding partner of McNicholas & McNicholas LLP in Los Angeles and is of counsel to Blackman Legal Group. Since his admission to the bar in 1986 Patrick McNicholas has exclusively represented plaintiffs in complex personal injury and wrongful death cases, including class actions.

A recent wrongful death settlement of Patrick McNicholas:

$6,000,000 settlement on behalf of family for death of father while working in an MTA tunnel

A partner of McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, Mr. McNicholas earned his law degree from McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific, and is admitted to California state and federal courts. He is a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, the Consumer Attorneys of California Board of Governors, and the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles. He is an Associate with the American Board of Trial Advocates. Mr. McNicholas is admitted to the California Supreme Court and all intermediate and trial courts in California, and the United States District Court for the Central District of California.

Whittier College School of Law employed Mr. McNicholas as an Adjunct Professor in Trial Advocacy, and the legal community has benefited by his publications and presentations in the areas of expert examination, trial preparation, and maritime injuries. He also serves as Judge Pro Tem for the Los Angeles Superior Court, as an Arbitrator and as a Settlement Officer for the Los Angeles Superior Court.

Mr. McNicholas has published scores of articles, including "Cross-Examination of the Defense Expert" (CAALA Law Vegas Convention, 1997); "Preparing the Employment Case for Trial" (Forum Vol. 28, No. 9, 1998); "The Danger Creation Doctrine and Section 1983: Governmental Liability for Third Party Torts" (Forum Vol. 29, No. 5, 1999); and "The Essentials of Representing the Injured Seaman" (Forum Vol. 31, No. 2, 2001).

Mr. McNicholas was selected by Los Angeles Magazine and Law and Politics as a Southern California Super Lawyer in the area of personal injury for 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007, and was named “top 100” lawyer by Super Lawyers in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008.

Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County

See Patrick McNicholas's informative video

Helping Injured People Bring Claims for Injuries or Financial Losses in a Mass Tort Case

Matthew McNicholas

A partner in McNicholas & McNicholas LLP in Los Angeles, Mr. McNicholas is of counsel to Blackman Legal Group. Mr. McNicholas has extensive trial experience in personal injury, wrongful death and civil rights cases, including racial discrimination. Some of his recent wrongful death settlements and verdicts include:

$9,000,000 Settlement for 26 year old - brain damage in car accident (one car)
$8,000,000 Settlement against landlord for 27 tenants due to lack of habitability, mold and nuisance
$3,600,000 Verdict against LAPD in November, 2008
$2,600,000 Verdict against LAPD in Federal Court, March 2009
$2,250,000 Settlement against LAPD in January, 2009
$2,000,000 settlement for the family of an elderly lady run over and killed in San Francisco by a truck.

A former federal law clerk with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (Judge William J. Rea), Mr. McNicholas formerly externed with California Court of Appeals Justice Richard Aldrich and U.S. District Judge John G. Davies. Mr. McNicholas is a prolific writer, with many publications on trial advocacy, products liability, and tort law. These publications include Dismiss ERISA, published in the Los Angeles Daily Journal (September 5, 2001) and Eight Motion Tips From a Former Federal Law Clerk, 13 Trial Excellence 1 (January 2001).

He is a frequent speaker and panelist to the Consumer Attorneys Association of California and other legal organizations. He is admitted to practice in California state and federal courts. He is a graduate of Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, where he belonged to the Phi Delta Phi Honor Society and received the American Jurisprudence Award in Criminal Law.

Mr. McNicholas is a member of the Consumer Attorneys of Los Angeles, where he serves on the board; the Consumer Attorneys of California; the Irish American Bar Association; and the Malibu Bar Association, where he also serves as a board member.

Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County

Robert M. Klein

A native of Los Angeles, Robert Klein graduated from the University of Arizona in 1981 and South Western School of Law in 1983. In addition to belonging to the California bar, Mr. Klein was admitted to the US District Court in 1984. He is a member of the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles and the American Bar Association, in addition to serving as the President of the Braemoor Business Alliance.

Mr. Klein practices exclusively in plaintiff's personal injury and wrongful death cases resulting from auto accidents, falls, premises liability, bicycle accidents, motorcycle accidents, truck accidents, defective products, and medical malpractice. Mr. Klein maintains his practice in Los Angeles.

Recent wrongful death verdicts and settlements include:

$1,100,000 for the children of a mother who died in a single car rollover accident in Mexico.
$325,000 for the children of a father who died in a single car rollover accident in Mexico.

Mr. Klein prides himself on adding a personal touch to his practice. Clients always receive a call back the same day, and can expect to speak with a lawyer not a secretary. Mr. Klein is committed to giving each client personal attention.

Los Angeles, Long Beach, Anaheim

For more information about Robert M. Klein.

Robert Gibson

Robert Gibson is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, a prestigious group of accomplished trial attorneys working to protect your right to a jury trial. Mr. Gibson is also a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, an invitation-only organization consisting of the top trial lawyers in the country.

After completing his undergraduate degree at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, he graduated with honors from McGeorge School of Law in 1992. He began his legal career as an insurance defense attorney with a highly respected Century City, California, law firm.

Since 1996, his practice has handled wrongful death cases arising from automobile accidents, trucking accidents, motorcycle accidents, construction accidents, falls, medical malpractice, product liability, and swimming pool accidents.

Mr. Gibson, admitted to the State Bar of Nevada in 2004, is a veteran of more than 25 jury trials and routinely takes cases all the way to trial if needed. Because of that, he has garnered the respect of both insurance representatives and defense attorneys. In addition, he routinely finds himself called upon by other lawyers to step in and try a case when other lawyers have been unable to effect a settlement.

Santa Ana, Los Angeles, San Diego, Newport Beach, Las Vegas-Nevada

For more information about Robert Gibson.

James F. Brook

Mr. Brook has devoted his entire career to representing families who have lost a loved one to wrongful death in accidents and product liability cases. His practice is located in Phoenix, Arizona, and he is of counsel to Blackman Legal Group.

Mr. Brook has represented thousands of clients and participated in hundreds of trials in state and federal courts across the nation. He has published litigation texts and taught Continuing Legal Education seminars for trial lawyers. He is listed in Martindale-Hubbell's National Law Directory, the National Register of Preeminent Lawyers, and Who's Who in American Law.

Mr. Brook was recently included in Phoenix Magazine's Top Lawyer's, The Valley's Most Respected Law Firms.

Phoenix, Arizona

Of Counsel Lawyers

Special trial attorneys who have exceptional skills in different areas of practice are of counsel to Blackman Legal Group and handle cases on a regular basis throughout California, Arizona and Nevada. They are independent lawyers and are neither partners of the Blackman Legal Group nor contract lawyers for Blackman Legal Group. On some cases the Blackman Legal Group attorneys work together to handle cases with the of counsel attorneys, and in other cases, the of counsel attorneys handle the cases entirely.

Contact Us

We pride ourselves on providing the highest level of customer service to our clients, our special expertise in wrongful death law, and our excellent record of settlements and verdicts. Let our decades of experience as trial lawyers go to work for you on your case as soon as possible. Call our toll-free number at your first opportunity. 1-866-528-8115, extension 325 for New Case Evaluations.