Attorney at Law Magazine First Coast publisher Thomas Brady sat down with Brian Moore of Sheftall & Associates P.A. to discuss his career and the experiences that have led to his current success.
AALM: What first drew you to your firm? Tell us about your role there.
Moore: I was first drawn to Sheftall & Associates because of the opportunity to work for and alongside Scott Sheftall. Besides being a master trial advocate with over 40 years of experience, Scott has been an outstanding mentor with a preternatural ability to convey complex subjects with clarity and ease. Over the past eight years, I have worked with Scott on every aspect of cases, from inception through trial, while guided by the firm maxim of “trust, commitment, care,” where we seek to build strong, lifetime connections with our clients starting from the first meeting. Our firm’s intense dedication to achieve a just outcome for every client is a direct reflection of the confidence that Scott has placed in each member of our staff from the very beginning.
AALM: What case most defined or redefined your practice?
Moore: Our firm continues to handle a uniquely diverse range of business litigation and personal injury cases. Recently, however, we achieved noteworthy results in the First Amendment/defamation arena while going up against some of the largest multi-national media companies in the world. In this day and age, each defamation case presents novel issues of law pertaining to mass media, social media, and technology. Our exacting research coupled with a creative eye towards problem solving has enabled us to stay on the cutting-edge of this fastc-hanging media landscape.
AALM: What experiences have taught you the most?
Moore: I think I draw most upon the human experiences when first conceptualizing my client’s case and then conveying it in front of a jury. The experience of representing an anguished mother in my first wrongful death case certainly crystallized the solemn duty that any advocate undertakes to tell a client’s most personal story with heart and precision. Most recently, I have drawn upon the experience of being a father to my two-year old son, James. Through him, I have gained a clarity of purpose that personally drives me during the most stressful and intensive moments in litigation.
AALM: What accomplishment are you most proud of achieving?
Moore: Some of our biggest results have been multi-million dollar recoveries in cases which were settled on a confidential basis, so I can’t describe them. But not all of my proudest accomplishments come from the largest or most complex cases. When I first started at Sheftall & Associates, I was tasked with a bathtub slip and fall case where the out-of-state client had been turned down by several attorneys previously. Mid-way through the case, I discovered evidence which significantly changed the dynamics of the case and resulted in one of the largest settlements the insurer had ever paid in a slip and fall case. This case taught me to trust my gut and instincts when evaluating a case, and to keep mining for those little nuggets of gold for as long as it takes.
AALM: Are there any changes coming in the future that you’re excited about?
Moore: My beautiful wife, Kate, and I are most excited about the birth of our second child this coming February!
