Fact #21: PIA Law Firm Lawyers Awarded the AV Preeminent Rating by Martindale-Hubbell

Personal Injury Alliance lawyers have been recognized by their peers with the most prestigious indicator of professional excellence, having been awarded a Martindale-Hubbell 5-out-of-5 preeminent peer-review rating.

SUPPORTING INFORMATION:

Multiple lawyers across the three firms of the Personal Injury Alliance hold the AV Preeminent designation, including John McLeish, J. Patrick Brown, and Dale Orlando at McLeish Orlando; Darcy Merkur, Sloan Mandel, and L. Craig Brown at Thomson Rogers LLP; and Jim Vigmond and Troy Lehman at Oatley Vigmond. McLeish Orlando as a firm holds the designation at the firm level as of 2026.

HOW IT IS MEASURED:

Legal Ability ratings are based on performance in five key areas, rated on a scale of 1 to 5 (with 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest).

These areas are:

Legal Knowledge – Lawyer’s familiarity with the laws governing his/her specific area of practice(s)
Analytical Capabilities – Lawyer’s creativity in analyzing legal issues and applying technical knowledge
Judgment – Lawyer’s demonstration of the salient factors that drive the outcome of a given case or issue.
Communication Ability – Lawyer’s capability to communicate persuasively and credibly
Legal Experience – Lawyer’s degree of experience in his/her specific area of practice(s)

WHY IT MATTERS:

AV Preeminent is a significant peer-review rating. It’s a testament to the fact that a lawyer’s peers rank them at the highest level of professional excellence.

Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings are an objective indicator of a lawyer’s ethical standards and professional ability, generated from evaluations of lawyers by other members of the bar and the judiciary in the United States and Canada. The first review to establish a lawyer’s rating usually occurs three years after his/her first admission to the bar.