About Stewart & Murphy
New Hampshire Personal Injury Lawyers

Stewart & Murphy began in 1975 in Manchester, New Hampshire with just three personal injury attorneys, and has since grown to become one of the most respected law firms in the region. Despite many years and many changes, our practice has always remained true to the ideals of professional excellence and commitment to service. With over 150 years of combined trial experience, our personal injury lawyers have been recognized for outstanding legal work in medical negligence litigation, personal injury, and workers' compensation. Among their awards, achievements, and service to the community. Attorney Ed Stewart has been listed every year since 1995 in Best Lawyers in America, the preeminent referral guide to the legal profession in the United States. Attorney Ed Stewart has served as president of the New Hampshire Trial Lawyers Association. Find out if you have a case.

Recent Personal Injury Settlements & Verdicts

Together with an accomplished team of lawyers and litigation paralegals focusing exclusively on New Hampshire personal injury cases, Stewart & Murphy has successfully represented scores of individuals seriously injured as a result of defective products, medical malpractice, dental malpractice, car accidents, negligent security, and worker's compensation. Members of Stewart & Murphy include many of the New Hampshire's top personal injury lawyers.

New Hampshire Personal Injury Lawyer Francis G. Murphy to speak at NBI One-Day Seminar, March 31, 2009 – Manchester, NH

Personal Injury Lawyer Francis G. Murphy will be speaking at a one day seminar entitled “Evidence and Expert Testimony Best Practices: Supporting Your Case” in Manchester, NH on March 31, 2009. The focus of the program is how to effectively use expert’s testimony, evidence and other supporting information in a convincing and persuasive manner. Along with listening to lectures, attendees will examine case studies and participate in mock trial exercises. They will also learn how to discredit the opposition’s evidence and challenge the opposition’s expert testimony.

Francis G. Murphy is a successful Personal Injury Lawyer in New Hampshire and is a frequent speaker at legal seminars focusing on personal injury practice, the rules of evidence and insurance law. He will be presenting two of the sections throughout the one-day seminar and also participate in the mock trial.

For further information about the seminar or to register, please visit the page for the seminar Evidence and Expert Testimony Best Practices: Supporting Your Case on the National Business Institute website.

Ed Stewart Named Best Lawyer for 2008

Edward W. Stewart, Jr. was recently selected by his peers for inclusion in “The Best Lawyers in America 2008" in the specialty of Workers’ Compensation Law. He has earned this designation every year since 1995.

Since its inception in 1983, “Best Lawyers” has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Selection is based on an exhaustive and rigorous peer-review survey in which more that 25,000 leading attorneys cast almost two million votes on the legal abilities of other lawyers in their specialties. Because lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed, inclusion in “Best Lawyers” is considered a singular honor.

Ed Stewart Appears Before New Hampshire House Labor Committee

On April 8, 2008, Attorney Edward Stewart appeared before the House Labor Committee and provided extensive testimony on an amendment to Senate Bill 501 relating to workers' compensation permanent impairment awards. Presently, RSA 281-A:32 requires that impairment ratings be calculated in accordance with the most recent edition of Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment published by the American Medical Association. The Sixth Edition of the Guides, effective on January 1, 2008, has resulted in impairment percentages substantially lower than those assessed under the Fifth Edition. Subsequent to Attorney Stewart's presentation on the amendment which replaces "the most recent edition" with "Fifth Edition", the committee passed it by a 17-1 vote. The bill goes on to a vote before the full New Hampshire House of Representatives. When this measure is enacted, injured workers will benefit by having their permanent impairments calculated under the Fifth Edition, rather than the more conservative Sixth Edition.

Francis Murphy reelected as Board member and chair of Audit Committee of DWS Trust Company

At the annual meeting of DWS Trust Company in Salem, New Hampshire on April 29, 2008, Francis Murphy was reelected to the bank’s Board of Directors and Chairman of the Board’s Audit Committee. DWS Trust Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deutsche Bank. Mr. Murphy has served as an independent director since 1989 when the bank was incorporated in New Hampshire and charted as a limited purpose trust company. The bank conducts business only in a trust or fiduciary capacity and currently serves as the trustee and custodian of individual retirement accounts, Keogh, and other retirement plans , totaling approximately $9 billion, that are primarily invested in mutual funds managed and administrated by Deutsche Investment Management Americas, Inc.. The bank also serves as trustee to certain New Hampshire investment trusts and collective investment trusts with over $1 billion in assets under management.

Francis Murphy on Going The Extra Mile for Personal Injury Clients

At Murphy and Stewart we care about our clients and the results we get for them. We are presently working on a case that arose out of a work injury. We were able to get an injured worker his comp benefits and his permanent impairment but we are looking in detail at the third party claims. The occasion for the injury was that a man worked for a construction company that was doing a large housing complex. The construction company had bought trusses that were to be used for the roof. A separate subcontractor was doing some work with the trusses putting additional framing and sheeting on it..

Going The Extra Mile for Personal Injury Clients

Cases We Handle

• Car Accidents
• Worker's Compensation
• Workplace Injuries
• Product Liability
• Medical Malpractice
• Sexual Harassment

Do I Have A Case?
The only way to know whether you have a case is to review the facts and circumstances surrounding your injury with one of our experienced personal injury attorneys. There is never a charge to review your case, and all information provided will be kept strictly confidential. For your free confidential case review click here and receive a response from one of our attorneys within hours. If you prefer, you can also telephone our offices in Manchester, New Hampshire, seven days a week at toll free 866-414-0400.

What Will I Have To Pay?
Stewart & Murphy handles every personal injury case on a “contingent fee” basis. This means that you pay nothing until the firm recovers for you. The legal fee typically charged in personal injury cases in New Hampshire is equal to one third (1/3) of the amount recovered, however, New Hampshire state law regulates fees on certain personal injury cases such as those involving minors. Your attorney will advise you as to the specific contingent fee percentage applicable to your personal injury case.

What If I Don’t Recover Anything?
Although the great majority of personal injury cases handled by Stewart & Murphy do result in a financial recovery on the part of its clients, there are rare instances where no recovery is obtained. In that case, no legal fee will be charged to you, unless otherwise specified in your contingent fee agreement.

Will I Have To Go To Court?
Stewart & Murphy prepares every injury case assuming it will proceed to trial. However, in reality, better than 90% of the cases handled by Stewart & Murphy result in a settlement with the defendant or the defendant’s insurance company. In some cases the defendant or his insurer may refuse to voluntarily compensate you and the trial of your case may be adventageous. Stewart & Murphy attorneys have significant experience trying personal injury cases to a successful conclusion in State and Federal courts located throughout the state of New Hampshire.

Are There Other Ways To Resolve My Personal Injury Case Other Than By Going to Court?
In recent years, the use of private forums, commonly referred to as “Alternative Dispute Resolution” (ADR) services has grown dramatically. Cases submitted to ADR can be resolved by way of non-binding “mediation”, where a disinterested “neutral” listens to each party, and works to achieve a mutually acceptable settlement of the plaintiff’s case. In the event the case can not be resolved by mutual agreement, the case proceeds to trial without consequence to any participant. If a settlement is reached following mediation, payment is usually received by our client within thirty (30) days. In addition to “mediation”, the parties to a case can also elect to have a private party determine the outcome of a case. This process, known as “arbitration”, is similar to a trial before a judge, but is conducted outside of the courthouse, in a more informal and relaxed environment, and the decision rendered by the arbitrator is just as enforceable as the decision issued by a judge or jury. Because ADR typically involves less formality than court administered trials, and because the costs involved in resolving disputes are often lower than those incurred in preparation for a full jury trial, ADR has become an increasingly attractive forum for resolving civil disputes.

How Long Will My Case Take To Complete?
It is impossible for any attorney to accurately predict how long a case will take to resolve. Certain personal injury cases typically take longer than others due to their nature and complexity. Complex personal injury cases such as medical malpractice cases, dental malpractice cases, and product liability cases which often involve numerious expert witnesses and highly technical analysis take longer than less complicated cases such as motor vehicle related claims. Your Stewart & Murphy personal injury attorney is in the best position to estimate the anticipated duration of your case.

Choosing a New Hampshire Workers Compensation Lawyer or Personal Injury Lawyer

Don't rely on advertising only. Anyone can come up with a tag line, a bumper sticker phrase, try to attract business and not have the personal credentials that would be the best suited to represent a client who is injured. You want someone who is experienced, someone who is seasoned, someone who has brought the type of claims the person who is looking for an attorney has got. Of course, you want to feel comfortable after meeting that attorney. Some attorneys like some doctors don't have good bedside manners. Attorneys are notorious for not returning phone calls or sometimes not corresponding regularly with the client. Even the client is in the dark as to what is happening. We pride ourselves with having frequent contact with the client. Always copying the client on any correspondence that comes into the office or that goes out of the office related to the claim, always returning phone calls, available by email, by cell phone, and by voice mail so that any issues or concerns that client has can be addressed and keep the client well-informed. I think it shows the attorney has an interest in the client, not just the claim.

New Hampshire Personal Injury Case Evaluation

For a free confidential case review click here and receive a response within hours, or call our attorneys toll free 866-414-0400.

toll free 866-414-0400