The Martinez-Odom Law Group is a law firm that takes great pride in fighting for victims and families of victims who have been civilly wronged. Our firm started out as a small firm and has grown tremendously over the years. Our philosophy has always been that in order to successfully prosecute any wrongdoing a firm requires a strong knowledge of science and medicine in addition to the nuances of insurances that may apply. Virtually every civil lawsuit involves complicated issues of science and medicine. Whether the case is a medical malpractice, product liability, aviation accident, tractor trailer crash or simple car crash case you can expect a multitude a forensic experts to be hired by the defense. A trial lawyer has to battle those experts and eventually expose their bias through cross examination. For that reason we have made it a point to ensure that every lawyer that works for our firm has some background in science or medicine. Our lawyers have backgrounds in Engineering (Civil and Mechanical), Biomedical Engineering (Biomechanics), Medicine (MD), Nursing (RN), etc.

To further complicate matters most defendants lack adequate insurance to fully compensate a victim of wrongdoing. When defendants purchase inadequate insurance coverage a financial void is created between that victim's damages and what can be collected. The application of specific insurance coverage is a specialty in law in and of itself. Insurance polices are contracts that are wrought with nuances and exclusions that can completely eliminate coverage. We understand that winning is only half the battle and that the only way a client will receive full justice is to receive full compensation. The reality is that an insurance company is the driving force behind the defense of any case. The insurance carrier has a financial interest in avoiding paying the full value of claims. To ensure the collection of the full and complete value of your case, we have developed a separate practice area within our firm that deal specifically with the area of insurance litigation.

Our firm is structured so that every lawyer has additional training and education in a specific area of science or medicine. In addition to having a strong background in medicine and science, we recognize the critical importance of having experience and success in the Courtroom. The law firm’s partner, Gene Odom, is the chief trial lawyer who oversees and manages the litigation of all of our major cases. Gene plays a lead role in most of the cases that go to trial. We have tried multiple cases to verdict and attained numerous successful results. The firm’s other partner, Nick Martinez, is the chief case manager and evaluator. With his Medical Degree and unique insight in the merits of any case gives us the unique ability ensures that we only take on truly meritorious and non-frivolous causes. With the overwhelming public perception that all lawyers bring frivolous lawsuits, it is essentially important that we fight that perception by exposing the justice behind our cases.

We recognize that the public perception of trial lawyers has been tarnished by lawyers who take a predatory approach to suffering. Lawyer TV ads and aggressive marketing campaigns have made the legal profession appear purely money motivated and greedy. That is not our view and we hope that Judges and Juries recognize that not all lawyers can be judged by the few that appear so routinely during daytime TV. The truth is that the Constitution of the United States has been in operation since 1789. It is the world’s longest living charter of government. The first three words “We the People” affirm that the system of government is set up to serve and promote the interests of its citizens. That is why the Declaration of Independence affirms the inherent American right to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. Amendment VII, enacted in 1791 ratified the Civil Jury Trial system. Since then, that system has been in operation and defining the standards by which communities in America believe should exist.

Juries serve two very important roles: one is to generally define the standards of safety; the other is to appraise the value of life and of the quality of life. It is easy to state that corporations should make safe products and that people should not drive drunk and truck drivers should obey the rules of the road, etc. The most valuable role that juries play is to define is the value of life and the value of quality of life. When a loss occurs, through the recklessness of some person or corporation, human suffering is the byproduct. The loss is felt throughout an entire network of family, friends and associates. The American guaranteed rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are forever taken from that victim. The only civilized way to account for such tremendous losses is through the civil Jury system. There is no “civil police department” to force a wrongdoer, or their insurance company to pay fair restitution to a victim for recklessness.
Juries, through their constitutionally granted Duty, are bestowed the honor to evaluate a loss and appraise the value of human life and suffering. In essence, a jury is defining what they believe the value of life and quality of life means to them personally. The Jury, through their verdict, then sets that standard for the entirety of their community. The reason that this is such a precious and solemn obligation is because the value of life and quality of life could never be appraised before a loss occurs. A Jury who personally treasures happiness and the safety and security of their loved ones, can appraise the value of those treasures through their verdict. A Jury’s verdict is a portrayal of their perception of the value of those human treasures. That is why they should be appraised at a very high level – usually high into the millions of dollars.

Insurance is the driving force behind virtually every civil case.  The law in most cases is that the jury cannot know that there is insurance available or how much is available.  The insurance system conceptually provides a good way for injury claims get compensated; however, the power inherent within insurance companies, and their principal owners, results in their yielding financial power and an unfair attempt to delay recovery.  Insurance companies know that they can force low settlements by claiming defenses that have no merit.  In doing so, they try to force victims to needlessly waste time and money fighting against these frivolous defenses.  While the public is very aware of frivolous lawsuits, they do not get exposed to frivolous defenses unless they are the victim.  Insurance companies, all too often, make cruel business decisions to force a defendant to deny responsibility in a clear liability case simply to avoid paying a claim.  In the mean time a human being is needlessly suffering financially and physically.  This type of defense strategy has become the industry standard for defending lawsuits.  Because very few lawyers actually take cases to trial, this strategy pays off for the insurance industry.  We believe that it is important to educate the public and expose these tactics so that insurance carriers are less likely to continue this type of cruelty.