Mission Viejo, CA

Michael S. Sutton

In practice for over 45 years, Mike possesses an extensive background in personal injury law and insurance defense. Known for his vast experience and business ethics, he is committed to attaining clients’ goals through quality service, pragmatic guidance and thoughtful planning. Mike resides in Laguna Hills with his wife, Lorrie. When he is not in the office, Mike and his family (3 sons and 1 daughter plus 1 grand-daughter and 4 grand-sons) enjoy all water sports (boating, jet skiing, water skiing, wakeboarding) and off roading activities in Glamis with their motorcycles, ATV’s and sandcar. The family are avid college football fans. They attend almost all USC Trojan games (daughter Kathryn graduated from the School of Cinematic Arts in 2001 . . . Fight On!), and attend many University of Alabama games (son Grant is a 2015 graduate and son Barrett is a 2020 graduate). Grant is a personal injury lawyer in Charleston, South Carolina. Professionally, Mike is proud of his accomplishments to include membership in the American Board of Trial Advocates (the most prestigious society for trial attorneys whose members must be invited to join) as well as his selection by the National Association of Distinguished Counsel as being one of the 1% top tier of attorneys in all of America. However, he is even more proud of the continuing relationships he has formed, and the friends he has made, with clients, Judges, and colleagues throughout his lengthy career.

Rivers J. Morrell, III

Rivers J. Morrell, III is a highly experienced personal injury attorney with over 40 years in law, including representing major insurance carriers. He is board-certified in civil trial advocacy and recognized by numerous legal organizations for his expertise and successful trial record.

Chris Russell

For over 40 years, Personal Injury Lawyer Chris Russell has represented over 10,000 clients in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Orange Counties regarding their personal injury claims. He is a highly respected and experienced attorney who puts his clients’ interests first. As a result, he has obtained over $300 million in personal injury compensation on behalf of his clients. Chris personally understands how overwhelming it is to be involved in a severe accident, as he has had several close family members suffer accident-related injuries, including his two youngest daughters, who an intoxicated boat driver seriously injured. Chris has been practicing law since 1984 and is the founder and principal partner of Russell & Lazarus APC. The firm of Russell & Lazarus was established in 1998 and is located in Newport Beach, California, with offices serving the counties of Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Sacramento, and Orange. Mr. Russell began his practice with the premise that by meeting the needs of his clients first, the needs of his firm and his employees would also be met. Mr. Russell coached high school football as a way to put himself through college. He practices law and lives by the motto of former Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz: 1. Do right by people at all times; 2. Do everything to the best of your ability; 3. Show people you care. Chris and his associates have successfully litigated over 10,000 personal injury claims to verdict or claims settled before trial or arbitration, ranging in value from $25,000 to $16.2 million. Chris belongs to the American Association of Justice (formerly the American Trial Lawyers Association), the Consumer Attorneys Of California, the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles, and the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association. Chris has also been admitted to all of the courts of the State of California and has argued cases in the Federal Courts and the California Court of Appeals. He shares strategies and communicates daily with his Plaintiff attorney colleagues across California on trial tactics, judge selection, expert witness background information, medical provider credibility, etc. These strategies help put his clients in the best position to allow them to resolve their injuries as quickly as possible and to obtain fair compensation from at-fault parties often represented by insurance companies that seem to have lost the ability even to understand the definition of “fair.” He has worked on almost every type of personal injury claim imaginable, including motor vehicle collisions, product liability claims, slip, trip, and fall claims, premises liability claims, animal-inflicted injury claims, work-related claims, sexual assault claims, and the list goes on. The common theme to all of these claims was that someone was injured and they needed help. Chris’ goal in helping people is twofold: get them better and get them fair compensation. Chris has recovered compensation on behalf of his clients 95% of the time. Chris does not shy away from taking on complex liability claims when the injuries are substantial, which is why it is not 100%. Chris has been blessed to be married to Helene for 32 years. He has four grown daughters, who, along with his wife, are the loves of his life. His current hobbies are few, as he lives a busy life practicing law, helping his clients, and keeping up with weddings and the college comings and goings of his daughters. When his girls were active in sports, he coached, sponsored, or helped coach more than 50 of their sports teams. When he has spare time, Chris enjoys giving back to the community in the context of activities or events that involve preventing injuries or honoring those injured or killed in accidents. Chris has been a primary sponsor of the Sarah DeMille annual cross-country race, which was established in memory of one of his daughters’ classmates who died tragically in a car crash. Chris is also a primary sponsor for “Swim for Life,” an organization devoted to preventing child drowning, which is still the number one cause of death for children under the age of 5 in Orange County. Chris is the third of six children, and his youngest brother, John, is heading up his affiliate office in Northern California, Russell & Philbrick.

Steven Zwick

Steven Zwick is passionate about attaining justice for his clients and has spent his entire career representing people in need throughout the State of California. He has tried an abundance of cases during his 40 years as an attorney and settled many claims resulting in millions of dollars in recovery. Steven’s commitment to providing value is demonstrated by his willingness to always be accessible to his clients while delivering expertise, integrity, and tenacity. As a member of the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, one of the most prestigious groups of trial lawyers in the United States, he devotes his practice to fighting for those who are inexperienced in the system, the language, and the rules insurance companies use. Steven is admitted to practice in the State of California, and he obtained his Juris Doctor degree from Pepperdine University School of Law. He is a member of the Orange County Bar Association, the American Bar Association, and the Consumer Attorneys of California. Steven is admitted and qualified to represent clients in all the Federal District Courts, every Superior Court within the State of California, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal, and the United States Supreme Court. He is active in his local community and supports a number of charities devoted to human rights and our military veterans, including volunteering at Camp Pendleton by distributing food and supplies to active military and their families. When he is not in the office or volunteering in the community, Steven enjoys scuba diving, traveling, dining, as well as going to the movies and attending sporting events with his family.

Kevin Crockett

Meet Kevin Crockett, the esteemed managing attorney and founder of Crockett Law Group located in Irvine, California. With a steadfast dedication to securing justice for the injured, Kevin is a seasoned professional well-versed in the complexities of personal injury law, with a focus on car accident claims. Kevin graduated summa cum laude from the University of California, Irvine, with a degree in criminology, law and society. Continuing his academic journey at the University of California, Irvine School of Law, he earned his Juris Doctor. Throughout his career, Kevin has exclusively focused on personal injury cases, honing his expertise in the field. Renowned for his professionalism, personable demeanor, and prompt responsiveness, Kevin provides thorough explanations, proactive communication, and tenacious pursuit of fair settlements. His qualities inspire confidence during challenging times, fostering strong attorney-client relationships grounded in trust and effective advocacy. Prior to founding Crockett Law Group, Kevin served as a senior attorney at a leading Southern California personal injury firm, where he assisted over a thousand accident victims and secured millions in compensation statewide. Driven by a passion for personalized client attention, he established his own firm to offer hands-on representation to clients. Outside of his legal work, Kevin extends his knowledge through articles and press releases, enriching the legal community’s understanding. His contributions have been published in Plaintiff’s Magazine and Advocate Magazine. He’s also appeared on television programs like Desert Chat, hosted by Coachella Valley’s Sandie Newton. Additionally, Kevin actively supports the LGBT community through sponsorships and involvement, being a part of it himself.

Marc Lazarus

Mr. Lazarus has served as lead counsel on hundreds of litigated actions in which he has taken and/or defended over a thousand depositions of parties, witnesses, and experts. He has also represented clients as lead counsel on approximately five bench trials, approximately twenty jury trials, approximately one hundred binding arbitrations, more than a hundred judicial arbitrations, and over two hundred mediations, mandatory settlement conferences, and voluntary settlement conferences. As proof of success, Marc has received recognition as a 2022 Southern California Super Lawyer, and a Clients’ Choice Award from Avvo. For more than twelve years prior to becoming a plaintiff personal injury attorney, Mr. Lazarus worked as a paralegal with several plaintiff personal injury law firms, and he has extensive experience in working with individuals who have been injured in automobile collisions, motorcycle collisions, bus accidents, slip and falls, trip and falls, falls from ladders, product-related injuries, medical malpractice claims, and work-related claims. He specializes in cases resulting in traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, shoulder injuries, wrist and hand injuries, knee injuries, and ankle injuries. Mr. Lazarus’ knowledge in the area of medicine has served to greatly improve the value of his clients’ cases throughout his career. Mr. Lazarus has had the privilege of giving back some of his experience to the legal community including his work as an instructor at the University of California at Irvine and at Southern California College of Business and Law in their American Bar Association-approved paralegal certification programs. Mr. Lazarus has offered his services as a pro bono arbitrator through the Los Angeles Superior Court and is still an active member of the panel of arbitrators. He has also served as a pro bono mediator in resolving disputes in several limited jurisdiction civil actions in Orange County. Mr. Lazarus has been married to his wife Cathy for 19 years. He has enjoyed the privilege of serving as a Boy Scout Den Leader for Pack 632 for three consecutive years, and on weekends he has volunteered as an AYSO Assistant Soccer Coach in Regional 1422 for the past five years. Mr. Lazarus is currently a member of Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles and spoke at the Arbitration: Procedure & Practice conference when invited to the CAALA convention as a featured speaker. He is also a member of Consumer Attorneys of California, and the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association, and Mr. Lazarus enjoys attending classes at Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyers’ College offered on a regular basis throughout the United States.

Thomas M. Murphy

Tom has been practicing law in Orange County for over 38 years. Tom’s practice focuses on personal injury and consumer warranty claims. He strives to meet his clients’ expectations by aggressively and ethically litigating their claims. Tom lives in Coto de Caza with his wife, Lynne. They have three children, Kelly, Megan, and Matthew, and are blessed with 8 grand-children. For the last 25 years, the Murphys have spent time with family and friends house boating at Lake Powell. Tom and his family are big sports fans, attending baseball games and local high school games on a regular basis.