Spohrer-Dodd attorneys take on cases of epic proportions

By Susan Cushing

There are some cases in the world of high-stakes personal injury law that appear impossible, like a real life Mission Impossible. Spohrer-Dodd Personal Injury Lawyers are able to make impossible a mere word. This exceptional team’s track record reads like a Hollywood screenplay. They have not only accepted, but thrived in the most difficult cases.

Spohrer-Dodd is known for taking on difficult cases, including those involving catastrophic car accidents, medical malpractice, product liabilities, workplace accidents and international disputes. These cases are often characterized by severe injuries and life-altering effects, as well as wrongful deaths. Spohrer-Dodd clients come to us when they feel that there is no other option and the odds are against them.

Our lawyers look at facts and evidence in a different light to find a solution for our clients.

Tackling the Impossible

Robert Spohrer, President, CEO and Senior partner of Spohrer Law Firms, says that most lawyers see their firm as an organized and disciplined battleship. “Our firm is like a pirate’s ship. We are well-known for our unconventional approach to difficult cases. Our lawyers look at facts and evidence in a different way to find a solution for our clients. The majority of our cases come from very qualified co-counsel that have encountered problems they cannot solve.

Steve Browning, a partner at the firm, was the president of the Jacksonville Justice Association in 2008. His primary focus is on representing people who have been seriously injured by dangerous or defective products. A young man was severely injured by a defective shingle-shredder.

Browning says that the attitude change of the defendant corporation was one of the most interesting aspects of this case. The defendant was a large, well-run, safety-conscious company that initially was upset about being included in the lawsuit. You could see that the light bulbs were on during the deposition of the corporate executive as he answered the questions regarding the choices made by his company and how these had led to the injuries suffered by the victim. The case was settled soon after the deposition.”

The Air Challenge

The firm is known for its expertise in aviation accidents. It has handled recent cases that involved a crash of an Australian firefighting plane, a WW II B-17 crash, and the arrival of a South African wedding party to the ceremony by helicopter. The firm’s aviation expertise is demonstrated by two other recent cases.

Keith Maynard is a retired BlackHawk pilot and major who served in the Maryland Army National Guard. Maynard is a board certified aviation lawyer, so it was no surprise that he was asked to represent the victim of a military crash at the U.S. Army flight school in Alabama. This case was made more difficult by the fact that one of the unidentified defendants had an expired statute of limitations, which theoretically barred all claims against the company that overhauled a defective component. Maynard petitioned to the court in the case filed against all manufacturers and maintainers based in Delaware to apply Alabama law to extend the statutes of limitations to the primary tortfeasor. This preserved the client’s right and led to a successful resolution.

He says, “I was determined that this case would be handled correctly.” “Our client saved the lives of two Army officers by his actions in the accident. Unfortunately, he also suffered life-long injury just 10 days before his retirement. “I wanted to be sure that he was taken care of.”

Galen Bauer was one of 45 attorneys who are board-certified in aviation law. He served as the chairman of The Florida Bar’s aviation law certification panel from 2020-2021. He was given a flight-related case that was equally difficult. He represented the family a young woman killed in a crash of a private aircraft in a state that only allowed limited damages awards.

Bauer says that this case was a legal twist with an ironic and interesting twist. She was on a leisure flight which was scheduled to depart and land in Wyoming. Her family, as well as the family of pilot who crashed plane, lived in Wyoming. The plane that crashed was registered in Wyoming and had its base there. As the plane was approaching Wyoming to land, it crashed in Idaho about a half-mile from the Idaho/Wyoming boundary. “The challenge was that Wyoming, the obvious place to file a suit, was not the best venue for our client.”

It took some complex maneuvering to make sure they could apply the law that was most favorable to their client. Wyoming applies the law in the state where the harm happened (Idaho), and Idaho has a low cap on damages for grieving over the loss of a family member.

Bauer: “Wyoming had the greater contact with the parties involved and the events at issue,” Bauer says. This meant that a court in Idaho would apply Wyoming’s damages law. Ironically, we decided that filing the suit in Idaho would be the best way to avoid Idaho law. We filed suit in Idaho, and we were able quickly to resolve the case for our client.”

Prepared for the Challenge

Spohrer notes that “we bring decades of experience in handling complex cases.” “I believe our secret weapon is to think outside the box. We strategize to find novel legal theories which can help our client.

He continues, “We also have a full-time in-house doctor.” He consults our attorneys about any medical issues. She has also been a registered nurse for many years and is invaluable when it comes to reviewing medical records and helping with summaries and chronologies, as well as identifying and recruiting expert witnesses.

Spohrer-Dodd is known for its in-depth legal expertise and complexity.

David Margol says, “I joined Spohrer & Dodd about eight months ago, because I liked the way that attorneys in this firm approached cases with a deliberate attention to details.” The details of a particular case can make a huge difference. Details can turn a weak case into a highly successful one. Spohrer & Dodd attorneys carefully analyze and assess each detail to achieve the best possible outcome for their clients.

Rodney Margol, David Margol, and Robert Martinez, their co-counsel, were asked to represent Cuban American Citizens whose property had been confiscated by Castro’s government in 1960. The Margols successfully invoked an old statute requiring U.S. cruise lines and other companies that profited from the use of confiscated property, to pay damages.

Rodney Margol says that in March 2022 a federal court entered a final judgment for $451 million against four cruise companies (Carnival Norwegian Royal Caribbean MSC). The cruise lines appealed to the 11th Circuit of Appeals, located in Atlanta.

A young man shot in a nightclub had his representation withdrawn by a reputable firm when they discovered that the club did not carry insurance. After losing everything, the young victim was referred by his lawyer to the team that is known for taking on the impossible.

Howanitz says, “We immediately started looking at the case from different angles.” It became clear that the owners of the property should be held responsible for allowing a nightclub to operate in their premises. Owners allowed the night club to operate despite knowing about previous criminal activity. We settled the claim with the property owners and pursued a second claim against insurance agents and agencies who were supposed provide insurance for the nightclub to cover this type of issue. We went to trial and won an $18 million verdict against the insurance agents.”

Spohrer-Dodd’s attorneys have made it a mission to make the impossible a reality. The attorneys of Spohrer Dodd have made it their mission to turn the impossible into reality. Despite the seemingly insurmountable challenges, this team has proven time and time again that justice can be achieved, no matter what it appears to be.