A message from Managing Partner Ira Sherman
The earliest record I have of the beginnings of this law firm is Mr. Chaikin’s handwritten ledger that set forth, on a monthly basis, the settlements of all of our clients’ cases.
The first page of this ledger is dated January 1973, and it contains a list of eight settlements ranging from $150 to $900. Yes, the biggest settlement was $900! Although I did not join Don Chaikin’s law firm until April 1980, I know that a case that settled for $10,000 would be considered a very significant settlement. Indeed, Mr. Chaikin’s ledger reveals that the largest settlement the law firm had in 1973 was $4,200. How far we have come! Now, this law firm often resolves cases through settlement or verdict for hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars. Just this year alone, Allan Siegel tried a medical malpractice case in the District of Columbia, which resulted in a verdict of $17.1 Million Dollars. That is approximately ten thousand times more than the average settlement in 1973!!!
When my career at the law firm began in 1980, Mr. Chaikin had already been President of the DC Trial Lawyers’ Association, and we were a locally prominent firm that was often selected by leaders of the DC government to represent family members who were injured as a result of the carelessness of others. In 1994, I was elected to be President of the DC Trial Lawyers’ Association. In 2008 Allan Siegel, and in 2015 Joseph Cammarata, were each elected to be President of the DC Trial Lawyers’ Association. Thereafter, Joseph Cammarata and I founded the DC Brain Injury Association, an affiliate of the Brain Injury Association of America. Joseph Cammarata, Allan Siegel, and I have also all been selected to be “Super Lawyers,” Washingtonian Magazine “Top Lawyers,” NorthernVirginiaMagazine“TopLawyers,”and“AV Preeminent” lawyers (the highest rating available by Martindale-Hubble one of the oldest and most respected lawyer rating services).
Over the years, this local reputation, has led to the law firm, and its individual partners, being recognized by publications, organizations, and our peers on a national level. I was requested to serve on the Board of Directors of the Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA), and I served as the Treasurer of BIAA for two of the seven years that I was on the Board.
Joseph Cammarata and Allan Siegel have expanded our national reach and the recognition we have received by our peers. Many of you know that CSCS has represented individuals with traumatic brain injuries for decades. Allan, Joe, and I have been members of the Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, a group established by the American Association for Justice for lawyers who have a particular interest in understanding and representing individuals with brain injuries. I cannot be prouder of Joseph Cammarata, who will become Chairman of the Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, this summer. Allan Siegel has also distinguished himself on a national level and will become Chairman-Elect of the American Association for Justice’s Bus Litigation Group this summer. Undoubtedly, the outstanding success of the law firm and the individual partners have also been factors that resulted in US News and World Report naming Chaikin, Sherman, Cammarata & Siegel, P.C. as one of its “Best Law Firms” for Personal Injury in the Washington, DC geographic region.
I am filled with pride that we have the historical record of our humble beginnings, which makes our current stature so much more meaningful. We were not “born” with the proverbial “silver spoon,” but instead, as a result of our dedication to each of the thousands of clients we have represented over five decades, we earned a special place in the local and national community of plaintiffs’ personal injury lawyers. Through hard work and good fortune, we have achieved the American dream. Thank you all for the trust and confidence you placed in us.
We wish you a safe and healthy summer.