Donahoe Kearney - February 2021

Donahoe Kearney - February 2021

BRIEF

donahoekearney.com

February 2021

COMPETITION AND WHY WE NEED MORE OF IT!

How Competitive Is It at Donahoe Kearney? This might not be a popular take, but I think we need to place a greater emphasis on teaching kids how to compete. Whether through sports or other activities, kids should learn

someone at our firm, we do a competitive analysis — literally looking for people who are competitive. And our senior paralegal, Priscilla, is a great example of this. She will fight tooth and nail to get our clients the benefits they need.

how to compete in a healthy and productive way. We should teach kids how to follow the rules, give it their all in competition,

Sometimes when I overhear those calls, I almost feel sorry for that insurance adjuster or insurance lawyer on the other side who hasn’t gotten back to her or

respect their opponent and their effort, and win and lose graciously. Knowing how to compete well can prepare you for a lot in life, especially working at Donahoe Kearney. I’ve always been kind of a competitive person at heart. Whether it was when I played sports as a kid, coached sports for my kids’ teams, or advocated for my clients in the courtroom, I’ve always had an intense desire to win and to get better. Early on in my career, Keith and I started handling medical malpractice cases, and we were always up against some of the best

done what she said to do. For us, that’s what it’s all about. She looks nice, but you’d better believe she will give the insurance company a what-for if she needs to. In our line of work, being competitive is a necessary part of the job — because we’re competing for you.

Want more behind-the-scenes looks at who we are and how we operate? Stay tuned — next month we’ll go behind the scenes in our new office so you can see how we really operate when no one is looking! - Frank Kearney

lawyers in the country, with 20–30 years more experience than us. It made us better.

It’s not easy to get companies who disagree with you to see your or your client’s side of the story. But whether we’re helping someone with a work injury case, a long-term disability insurance denial, or a car accident case, knowing how to compete is critical to our success. That’s why whenever we hire

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IT’S IN THE CARDS

small (and let’s face it, if you’re over 9 years old, a homemade card is lame). But where did those folks get the idea? People of that era were likely inspired by stories that go back even further. There are legends that the originator of this holiday tradition was Saint Valentine himself. One story says that on the night before he was set to be executed, Valentine wrote a small letter to a jailer’s daughter. He ended the note with “Your Valentine.” They killed him anyway. Who knows whether that story is true, but to 18th century Europeans and Americans, it was inspiring (because there was no Netflix then) ! So inspiring, in fact, that the entire Valentine’s Day industry began to gain traction. A guidebook called “The Young Man’s Valentine” was published in 1797 to help suitors garner the attention of their love interests through the

This may be the first year in a long time that kids don’t pass out Valentine’s Day cards at school. Going into the new year, the seasonal section of most stores is lined with cards featuring fun characters from superheroes to unicorns. Handing out cards is now a well-loved (by everyone except men) tradition, but have you ever wondered how Valentine’s Day became one of the biggest card-giving holidays of the year? Or the holiday that annoys some people the most? Like many holiday traditions, handing out Valentine’s Day cards goes back centuries. During the 1700s, it became fashionable to trade Valentine’s Day

written word. Eventually, books aimed at women were also published, including “The Lady’s Own Valentine Writer,” which served much the same goal (getting you to spend $7.99 on a card) . These publications, along with young people writing notes to one another every February (or at least posting selfies), have made Valentine’s Day cards an ingrained tradition, and now people can’t get enough of them! Seriously, CVS is like totally sold out. Happy Valentine’s Day!

cards with a short poem or verse. The popularity of swapping cards

only increased throughout the 1800s. Sometimes, people would paint or draw spring-like images on the cards, much more elaborate than what we typically see today, though they were still usually very

Congratulations to Branka Sgroi! One of our clients recently had a precious baby, Nicole, to join big sister, Danielle, over the Christmas holidays. Branka had the unique experience of being pregnant while

CLIENT SUCCESS STORY: CAPRICE COLES

on workers' compensation — stay tuned for a great story on that in one of our upcoming newsletters.

I remember very clearly when Caprice was injured at work and called us. I remember thinking how difficult it would be to try to navigate a livelihood as a server after a significant

Caprice ended up needing surgery and had to work through

physical therapy, and then she changed careers. She’s a real “people person” and works at a bank now, giving great customer service. The settlement negotiations were long and difficult — the insurance company demanded lots of stuff we didn’t agree with — and Caprice stood firm. In the middle of all of this, her apartment burned down, her family moved into a hotel, and she was robbed at gunpoint — so don’t tell me how tough your life has been the last few months. But with all of that, Caprice never got down, never gave up. We were so happy to see her smiling face when she came in to pick up her check right before Christmas.

CapriceandFranksafelymeeting inaCOVIDworldandsmilingunder theirmasks. Caprice and Frank safely meeting in a COVID world and smiling under their masks.

knee injury. I wondered how it would feel to know you can’t go back to work, even though you want to. And we see that all the time with our clients. But what Caprice went through was something. Caprice was working on site at the National Zoo in Northwest D.C. last year — and was hustling, just like she always did. She fell hard while she was working and injured her knee but was also busted up all along her right side: bruises, busted lip, and a knot near her eye. She was in pain but concerned about her job. Just like most of our clients, she was concerned about when she would be able to go back to work.

- Brooke Birkey

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HARTFORD PAYS UP

Let’s say you have long-term disability insurance through your job or through an insurance policy you purchased (most of us don’t even know it’s there — until we need it), and you have an injury or medical condition that prevents you from working. They should pay up, right? I mean that’s the way insurance works, isn’t it? Let me tell you about one of our cases. A longtime employee was hurt and couldn’t work, so he applied for long-term disability benefits through his job, with Hartford — filling out the application forms, sending in his medical records, giving them everything they asked for. And they approved his benefits ... for three whole weeks! After three weeks, Hartford said he was no longer disabled because a doctor they hired had reviewed his medical records (but had never seen him or spoken with any of his treating physicians), so they terminated his benefits. Hartford was “allowed” to do this, of course — both long-term disability insurance law and the insurance policies favor them, big

time. Most people just leave it at that or think the system isn’t fair and just take it. Not our guy — a single father with four kids. He fought back. Fighting back is a lot more than filling out forms — our approach combines our experience in workers’ comp, medical malpractice and insurance litigation, working with doctors and experts to create the evidence to overturn that decision, and filing an extensive 20-plus page appeal. There is a reason so many lawyers don’t touch long-term disability denial cases: They are a ton of work and require a high-level understanding of medicine, law, and insurance all rolled into one. Just before Christmas we got the good news — we won the appeal and he was awarded $75,000 in past due benefits plus ongoing monthly benefits. That’s fighting back!

WE’RE MOVED IN AND READY TO SEE YOU! We’re officially up and running at our new office space in Old Town Alexandria, and it’s going fantastic so far. We’re right off the GW Parkway, close to 495 and the Woodrow Wilson Bridge — ready

LOVEBUG COCKTAIL

INGREDIENTS: •

2 oz simple syrup

• • • •

3 oz white cranberry juice

•

2 tbsp granulated red sprinkles

1 oz vodka

to help you in person or virtually. There is free off-street parking just to the left of this picture, just steps from the door, quick and easy

2 oz lemon-lime soda

•

Ice

1 oz grenadine

DIRECTIONS: 1. Into a plate bigger than the serving glass for the cocktail, pour the simple syrup. On a separate plate, place sprinkles. Dip the rim of the serving glass in the simple syrup and then in the sprinkles until the rim is lined. 2. Fill the glass with ice and then pour in the white cranberry juice, vodka, lemon-lime soda, and grenadine. 3. Serve immediately.

if you need to stop by and sign something or pick something up. Our NEW ADDRESS is 708 Pendleton Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. Come by and check it out!

Source: SnacksAndSips.com/lovebug-cocktail/

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Donahoe Kearney, LLP 708 Pendleton Street First Floor Alexandria, VA 22314 202.393.3320 DonahoeKearney.com

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

1 How Competitive Is It at Donahoe Kearney?

2 What’s the Deal With Valentine’s Day Cards?

Client Success Story: Caprice Coles

3

Hartford Pays Up

We’ve Moved In and Ready to See You!

Lovebug Cocktail

4

Frank’s Column: Change It Up!

FRANK’S COLUMN Change It Up!

I don’t know about you, but sometimes it feels like change is constant (probably because it is), and so many people seem to be afraid of changing things up. Personally, I love it. People change (hopefully for the better), cases change, businesses change — I just enjoy the challenge of adapting to changes and making change work for me, my family, and the people we help every day. An exciting change for me is getting a new client — someone you refer to us — I love meeting new people, working to earn their trust, and helping them solve a serious problem. It’s awesome — so thanks. Let’s make 2021 the Year of Change! (After last year, what do we have to lose?)

"We heard the post office forgot about some of you in November and you didn't get our Veterans Day edition. If that's you, scan this QR code to catch up!"

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