Bollinger Law Firm PC Oct 2017

Workers’ Compensation Lawyers

OCT 2017

601 East 5th Street, Suite 250, Charlotte, NC 28202 • 704-377-7677 • Toll-free: 1-866-326-3090 • www.BollingerLawFirmNC.com

4 Decades in the Business Why I’m Glad I Joined Up With Bob 20 Years Ago

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S ome say that Bob and I are like an old married couple. I see where they’re coming from. I’ve worked for him for 20 years; we’ve been through many ups and downs together. Our work relationship reflects that. I think it’s safe to say I know him pretty darn well, and he knows me too. We first met when I was hired on as a temp at Knox Law Center. I came with 20 years of legal experience (to save you the math, that’s 40 total).We worked together, and not long after, he told me he was forming his own firm and wanted me to go with him. It’s wasn’t a difficult decision. I felt like Bob and I hit it off from the beginning. He seemed like a good old country lawyer to me. He grew up in Newton, which is where my husband was originally from, and he acted like it. He treated people with respect, from his paralegals to his working class clients. I’ve worked for many large firms, and I can tell you right now that’s not always the case. I wanted to work for the type of clients Bob took on. In addition, I wasn’t excited about switching law firms all the time with my temp agency and wanted a steady job. I had no doubt that Bob would succeed on his own, so it felt like a safe bet. He took me on as a paralegal at his new firm, Bollinger & Piemonte (he had a partner in those days), and the rest is history. I can’t imagine having spent the bulk of my career anywhere else. In my experience, I’ve worked on both sides of the courtroom— plaintiff and defendant. I enjoy being on this side because I feel like we’re really helping everyday people, whereas the defendant side usually has you representing big companies.

• Speeding ticket?

• Child support problem?

• Criminal charge?

• Buying a house?

If you need a lawyer for anything, anywhere in the world, call us first. We have these nifty lawyer directories, and we know a lot of lawyers anyway. We can help you choose a good lawyer in North Carolina, South Carolina, California, or anywhere else. We do this at no charge to our clients, former clients, friends, and anyone who reads this offer. So if you need a referral for another good lawyer, contact Bob Bollinger, and he will find you one. Call 704-377-7677 or email [email protected] Where to Find Us Online ...

getting my associate’s degree in secretarial science, my husband, Gerald, and I moved around enough to figure out what we liked.We met and got married in Texas, where I worked for different departments all around the state.After that, we traded the warm climate for Salt Lake City, where we nearly froze to death.Then we braved the Plains states in Davenport, Iowa, and nearly froze again. Finally we moved to Memphis, and it felt wonderful to be back in the South.We moved to Charlotte in 1996 and have been here ever since, loving it for the culture, weather, and the Great Smoky Mountains. In my spare time, I spend most Friday nights in the fall bowling on a team with my good friends.After that, my energy is pretty well spent, and I like to relax for the weekend.At my age, after working 40–50 hours a week, I’m ready to chill by the time Saturday rolls around. Overall, I feel like I’m getting older by the minute. But as I get older, it’s a pleasure to work with Bob. I come from a generation where you find one job you love and stick to it. Despite our firm’s ups and downs over the years, Bob hasn’t made it too difficult to stick around.

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That’s my professional opinion. On a personal note, I’m glad I get to spend most of my career in Charlotte.After

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– Janice Craig

704-377-7677 • Toll-free: 1-866-326-3090 • 1

to Make With Your Kids Simple and Creative Halloween Treats

Creating decked-out, bespoke costumes for your kids takes a lot of planning and hard work. If you want an easier way to make Halloween more creative this year, try creating some holiday-themed treats the whole family can participate in making.The results will be a lot more exciting than the standard fun-sized candy bars that you’ll have more than enough of after the holiday.

Donut Monsters

What you’ll need: glazed or plain donuts, M&M’s, plastic fangs

These monsters require only brief assembly, and the effect is awesome. Simply buy your favorite glazed donuts, or make them yourself if you’re feeling adventurous, buy some cheap, plastic fangs, and decorate.You can use red food coloring for a blood effect and candy for eyes.You’re only limited by your imagination.

soft, stick an almond fingernail at the tip. If you want extra details, use a toothpick to make knuckles in the frosting.

Witch Finger Pretzels

“The results will be a lot more exciting than the standard fun-sized candy bars that you’ll have more than enough of after the holiday.

Spooky Oreos

What you’ll need: large pretzel sticks, frosting, green and black food dye, almond slivers To start, dye the almond slivers black to make “fingernails.” Cut the pretzel rods down to finger- length and dip them in frosting dyed the pale green of witches’ skin.While the frosting is still

What you’ll need: Oreos, melting chocolate (white or bittersweet), decorations

Melt your chocolate, dip America’s favorite cookies in it, and let them set.Ta-da! You’re left with the perfect blank canvas for your children (and you!). Run wild — from spider webs and ghosts to vampires and werewolves, you’ll have a unique treat for everyone at your party. Follow these simple instructions (don’t be afraid to get creative!), and you’ll delight kids of all ages this year.. When you refer us, we want you to be the “hero” in the story.We want that person you referred to come back to you months later and say, “I am so glad you referred me to the Bollinger Law Firm! They were so nice to me, and they took great care of me and my case. They got me a better outcome than I imagined possible! Thank you so much for telling me to call the Bollinger Law Firm!” I worked in blue-collar jobs as a young man, before I graduated from college. These jobs included tailing a ripsaw in a furniture factory and cutting carpet cushion in a foam rubber factory. It makes me furious to see honest, hardworking people being mistreated after getting hurt at work. I get a lot of satisfaction from helping working people get a fair outcome on their workers’ comp claims. Everyone’s case is different, so these results are not indicative of future results. Your Referrals Are Very Important to Us

“Mr. Bollinger is the most competent attorney you can get for your workers’ comp case. I fired my original big firm attorney after being treated like a case number rather than a person, and I’m so happy that I did! Bob is super friendly and down-to-earth outside of the courtroom, but he will fight for you against the insurance companies with all of his knowledge of the law. Bob will treat you with respect, and he cares! He will answer your questions and be in touch with you, day or night! “I would absolutely recommend his help. He is knowledgeable, ethical, sharp as a tack, and has a great sense of humor, too. He is easy to talk to and, most of all, will fight for you. I have not settled my case yet, but I trust Bob and highly recommend him. You can’t hire anyone better, and his staff is super helpful, too. Thank you, Bob, Janice, and Nick, for all of your expert advice so far!” –Jeff Bob Bollinger is a board-certified specialist in workers’ compensation law with over 25 years of experience. Here are comments from a client that Bob recently helped.

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When Choosing a Lawyer for Your One and Only Case ‘Food for Thought’ Y ou only have one case, and you need to take good care of it. You may need a good lawyer to help you. Should you choose a small law firm that has a low profile or a big law firm that advertises extensively on TV and on billboards?

Beef ‘N Bottle Steakhouse “Famous for Steaks Since 1958” Address: 4538 South Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28209 Phone: (704) 523-9977 beefandbottle.net Allow me to make a food analogy. Do you want to eat steak or hamburger? Those firms that advertise extensively on TV remind me of the fast-food restaurants that also advertise on TV. McDonalds and Burger King don’t serve you steak. They make their money by serving assembly-line hamburgers to a whole lot of people. Instead of operating like, say, the Beef and Bottle Restaurant here in Charlotte, which has one location that has served great steaks “cooked to order just like you want it” for the past 58 years. Those fast-food restaurants spend a lot of money on advertising, serve everyone the same quickly-made hamburger, and rely upon a whole lot of people to come in and buy an assembly-line burger in order to make (a lot of) money. Now, if you are hurt at work, do you deserve a legal steak or a legal hamburger? At our small firm, we operate sort of like the Beef and Bottle. We aim to serve each of our clients a thick, juicy, perfectly-

cooked-to-order “steak” by maximizing the legal outcome for each individual client based upon the specific facts and laws of that person’s case. We are not interested in serving mass-produced legal “hamburgers” to our clients. We think our clients deserve a better legal meal than that. So, we don’t take every possible client that calls us, because we would not be able to serve everyone a legal steak if we did. Our goal is to serve nothing but steak — and never, ever serve burgers.

So, before you choose a lawyer for your workers’ compensation case, ask yourself: Do I deserve a steak or should I just accept a hamburger and move along? If you prefer the legal equivalent of a steak, call and “reserve a table” with us. We will be glad to talk with you and discuss how we will go about fixing your steak!

BOB’S BEST BITES

Photo of the Month

Sunrise on Sugar Mountain, NC

If you would like a copy of this photo, suitable for framing, let me know, and I will send you a free copy of it — up to an 8-by-10.

– Bob Bollinger

704-377-7677 • Toll-free: 1-866-326-3090 • 3

601 East 5th Street, Suite 250 Charlotte, NC 28202 704-377-7677 Toll-free: 1-866-326-3090 www.BollingerLawFirmNC.com

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INSIDE This Issue

Why I’m Glad I Joined Up With Bob

Creative Halloween Treats Testimonial

‘Food for Thought’ When Choosing a Lawyer for Your One and Only Case Bob’s Best Bites

Is This the Most Bizarre Tragedy in History?

History’s Most Bizarre Tragedy? Is the Great Chicago Fire

By the time the last flame of the Great Chicago Fire fizzled out on October 10, 1871, 300 people were dead, a third of Chicago’s population were homeless, and 4 square miles of city were destroyed. Reflecting on the disaster begs the question:Was it the most bizarre tragedy ever? By October, 1871, Chicago only had 1 inch of rain all year, which is far less than the annual average of 35 inches.While the exact cause is unclear, historians commonly accept that a cow belonging to a Mrs. O’Leary started the fire in a barn on DeKoven Street by kicking over a lantern. Firemen responded immediately, but a watchman sent them to the wrong place by mistake, giving the unusual Southwest winds time to send the fire roaring toward the heart of the city. Most of Chicago’s buildings were made of wood, and the

newly developed tar on the rooftops was incredibly flammable. As the fire grew, the firefighters hoped the Chicago River would be a natural firebreak, but the city’s riverside had recently gained more lumber and coal yards, causing the fire to jump the river.As the air over the city overheated, it came into contact with cooler air, and a spinning fire tornado developed. After the fire jumped the river, a burning piece of timber lodged on the roof of the city’s waterworks building, destroying it and halting the city’s water supply. By the time the fire died over a day later, 73 miles of roads and $4 billion (in 2017 dollars) of property were destroyed. All this came about because of a cow, a drought, a bad watchman, some short-lived building materials,

and a literal fire tornado. Modern safeguards wouldn’t allow this to happen today, which is very fortunate. If the disaster happened the same way today, it wouldn’t displace 1,000 people; it would displace 1 million.

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