When George Stark, a successful personal injury lawyer who has been based in downtown Tampa for since 1987, moved with his wife to Saddlebrook in 2007, he opened a satellite office in Wesley Chapel, next to Saddlebrook Resort in the Brookside Professional Center off S.R. 54.
For the past 11 years, Stark Injury Law has grown locally so that now, he says he spends most of his time in his Wesley Chapel office and is as familiar with Pasco County courts as he is the courts in Hillsborough County.
Stark Injury Law helps those who are injured because of someone else’s negligence, often because of car accidents, but also because of slip-and-fall accidents, defective products, medical negligence and other causes.
“All injuries are serious,” he explains, and he says he is knowledgeable and experienced in handling a variety of cases, “from sprain and strain injuries that are not disabilities, to those that are catastrophic.”
Stark also says that anyone who has been in an accident should consult with and — if appropriate — retain the services of an experienced lawyer.
“A law firm is needed to assist in the various activities necessary to successfully pursue a claim both prior to and, if necessary, after litigation,” he explains, “including investigating, documenting, evaluating and ultimately negotiating a settlement or filing a law suit.”
Stark is a graduate of California State University and Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles.
He was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1976 and first got started in the Tampa Bay area as an assistant public defender for Hillsborough County that same year. He was assigned to the felony division and continued to work as a public defender until 1981.
He also worked in a general civil practice before opening his own firm in Tampa 31 years ago.
Stark says he is proud that his practice has grown by word of mouth.
“As a referral practice, I’ve been in business long enough that now I have three generations of people I’ve represented,” he says.
Here’s One Such Referral
Wesley Chapel resident Michael Nowe is one of Stark’s satisfied clients who is now referring his attorney to others. While Nowe says he has mostly recovered from a car accident several months ago, his case has already been fully resolved to his satisfaction.
“He is a really great guy,” Nowe says about Stark. “He and his staff explained the whole procedure, so I knew exactly what was coming. They were very detailed and specific, very knowledgeable, and for every question I had, they had an answer.”
Nowe says Stark and his wife, Maxine, who has recently taken on administrative and bookkeeping duties for the office, after retiring as a teacher several years ago, came to his house after the accident for a consultation.
“They sat with me and it was very personal,” Nowe says. “It was almost like a friend coming over.”
Stark says that’s what he wants people to understand about the difference between hiring Stark Injury Law versus some of the big advertisers you might see on TV.
“Most of those folks [who hire a large firm] never see a lawyer,” says Stark, “unless their case cannot be amicably resolved by way of settlement.”
He says that nearly all of the cases he takes on — and the vast majority of those who are taken on by all other firms, too —are resolved by settlement.
“I pride myself on my ability to be successful in trial,” says Stark, “but the reality is that personal injury cases rarely go to trial.”
He says the busiest trial lawyers, such as himself, are only in court one or two times a year.
In fact, he says, 95 percent of cases are resolved by settlement within six to nine months, often without even filing a lawsuit.
“That’s the norm,” he says, “and not just for my office.”
That’s what Nowe says he experienced, as well.
“I figured it would take at least a year to resolve my case,” Nowe says. “It turned out to be about four months. It was pretty quick and wasn’t a long, drawn-out process.”
Nowe also agrees that Stark is hands-on in maintaining a personal relationship with his clients, too.
“I advise all of my clients that they control my schedule,” says Stark. “My clients can speak with me at any time, and if I’m not available, they just schedule a telephone conference. No one is left hanging.”
In addition to being accessible to his clients, Stark says he makes no decisions without their personal involvement.
“I enjoy the dialogue with the clients,” he says. “It’s important for them to understand the process and make an informed decision. I hope they’ll listen to what I have to say, but ultimately it’s not my case, it’s their case.”
Helping You Help Yourself
Stark also says that helping people get the care they need is an important part of the role he plays.
“The average person comes in and they’ve been in an accident, they’re traumatized and they’re not sure who to seek for medical care and attention,” Stark explains. “We encourage people to maintain good relationships with their doctors. The most important thing before getting the case settled is getting good patient care.”
Stark says that, if a patient is unsure where to turn for proper care, he can refer them to physicians he has worked with before.
“We point people in the right direction, so that they get excellent care for their injuries and then, if necessary, get appropriate documentation in order to document those injuries,” he explains.
Stark adds that he welcomes calls from anyone seeking the assistance of an attorney, whether or not he is able to personally assist them.
“I’ve had a broad range of experience,” he says. “I can take questions that aren’t necessarily within my area of expertise — I know a lot of people — so I’m happy to assist in making referrals.”
Nowe says it’s worth the phone call to reach out to Stark Injury Law.
“They are super nice, too,” says Nowe. “I really want to stress how incredibly nice they are.”
Stark Injury Law is located at 29150 Chapel Park Dr. in the Brookside Professional Center. Stark’s downtown Tampa office is located at 400 N. Ashley Dr.
You can reach attorney George Stark by calling (813) 991-6161, by visiting StarkInjuryLaw.com, or see the ad on page 3 of this issue.
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