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Our 68 Year History of Success

In 1955, David Levin and Reubin Askew founded the law firm of Levin & Askew. The two were the sole attorneys in the firm, assisted by just one additional staff member. As did most young attorneys, David and Reubin accepted virtually every case regardless of the area of law involved.

Levin Papantonio 1971

In 1961, David's brother Fred Levin joined the firm and quickly became recognized as one of America's premier personal injury lawyers after achieving several multi-million dollar jury verdicts, including one in 1980 that was the largest compensatory damage verdict in U.S. history at the time.

During his legal career, Fred received more than 30 jury verdicts in excess of $1 million. At various points in his career, he held the national record for jury verdicts involving the wrongful death of a child, the wrongful death of a housewife, the wrongful death of a wage earner, the wrongful death of an African American, and the largest personal injury verdict in the state of Florida.

Fred was listed in every edition of the publication Best Lawyers in America; was a member of the Inner Circle of Advocates (limited to 100 of the nation’s top trial attorneys); and was inducted into the National Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame. Fred was best known, however, for rewriting Florida’s Medicaid Third-Party Recovery Act to allow the State of Florida to sue and recover billions of dollars from the tobacco industry for smoking-related illnesses.

In 2014, New York Times bestseller Josh Young published a comprehensive biography of Fred's life. It's called And Give Up Showbiz? How Fred Levin Beat Big Tobacco, Became a Chief of Ghana, Earned Boxing Manager of the Year & Transformed American Law. In 2015, Fred was named Trial Lawyer of the Year by the National Trial Lawyers.

More than forty years ago, Mike Papantonio joined the law firm and started one of the most respected mass torts departments in America. His work in complex litigation involving prescription drugs and medical devices has placed Mike at the center of the nationwide mass torts and class action legal community.

In 2004, Mike helped launch a nationwide organization called Mass Torts Made Perfect. Today, this organization holds annual conferences attended by the top personal injury attorneys across America in an effort to develop successful litigation strategies for confronting wrongdoing by multi-national corporations.

Mike is listed in the publications Best Lawyers in America and Leading American Attorney. In 2008, he was selected by the Public Justice Foundation as a finalist for its Trial Lawyer of the Year. In 2011, he was awarded the Perry Nichols Award, the highest honor given by the Florida Justice Association. In 2015, he was inducted into the National Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame. Today, he hosts the international show "America's Lawyer."

Troy Rafferty joined the firm more than thrity years ago and continues to build upon the firm’s legacy of success. He has achieved state and national recognition for his work as a trial lawyer and has been appointed to handle some of the nation's largest pharmaceutical and mass tort cases, including the national prescription opiate litigation. Troy has obtained numerous multi-million dollar jury verdicts. In 2017, Troy obtained verdicts in two pharmaceutical cases for $150 million and $140 million.

Board certified in civil trial law by The Florida Bar, Troy is also active in the Florida Justice Association, where he served as President from 2014 – 2015. He has been recognized as one of the country's top lawyers through inclusion in the publication The Best Lawyers in America, as well as The Legal 500. Additionally, Troy's professional excellence has earned him a variety of recognitions, including the Perry Nichols Award from the Florida Justice Association, the highest award given by the organization and presented to an attorney who has demonstrated an extended and distinguished commitment to the cause of justice in Florida and the nation.

 
 

Our Commitment to Our Clients

Much has changed for our law firm since it was formed more than sixty-eight years ago. Reubin Askew, one of the two founders, went on to become a two-term governor for the State of Florida and candidate for President of the United States.

The firm now has 45 lawyers; has successfully represented more than 100,000 clients throughout the country; and has received jury verdicts and settlements in excess of $40 billion.

Our accomplishments in personal injury law have been featured on CNN, Fox, ABC, CBS & NBC. Our lawyers have appeared in The Wall Street Journal; The New York Times; Forbes magazine; Time magazine; National Law Journal; and US magazine.

One or more of our attorneys are listed in Best Lawyers in America; National Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame; America's Elite Trial Lawyers; U.S. News & World Report Best Law Firms; Martindale-Hubbell Preeminent Woman Attorney; and SuperLawyers.

The one thing that has not changed with our firm, however, is that we know the importance of showing each and every client the individual attention and respect they deserve. And if you contact us, we always respond no matter how big or small your case might be.

 
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