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Morgan & Morgan

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Morgan & Morgan
Company typeLimited liability partnership
IndustryLaw
FoundedNovember 22, 1988; 35 years ago (1988-11-22)
FounderJohn Morgan
Headquarters
Orlando, Florida
,
US
Number of locations
108 offices (2024)[1] in all 50 U.S. states and Washington D.C.
ServicesPersonal injury, civil rights, class actions, medical malpractice
Number of employees
3,000+ (2024),[2] including 1,000+ attorneys (2024)[3][2]
Websiteforthepeople.com

Morgan & Morgan is an American law firm. Founded in 1988 by John Morgan, it is headquartered in Orlando, Florida. While Morgan & Morgan was historically considered a firm focused on personal injury, medical malpractice and class action lawsuits, it also expanded practices to other areas of legal services. The firm has offices in all 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C.

History

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The law firm was established in Orlando, Florida, in 1988 by John Morgan and his partners Stewart Colling and Ron Gilbert.[4]

In 1989, the law firm began advertising on television and radio.[5] In 2005, Morgan bought out his partners' share of the company and renamed the firm "Morgan & Morgan", also adding his wife Ultima as partner.[6] The Orlando Sentinel cited a "fundamental difference over growth and expansion of the law firm" as the reason for the firm's break up.[7]

By the early 2000s, the firm had expanded throughout Florida with 420 employees. In 2013, the firm had 260 attorneys among 1,800 staffers in Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Kentucky, and Manhattan.[4][5]

In January 2011, Charlie Crist joined the Tampa office of Morgan & Morgan after expressing an interest in returning to the legal field during his final week in office as governor of Florida. Crist worked primarily in the firm's class-action sector as a complex-litigation attorney, serving as a "rainmaker" for the firm.[8] In November 2016, after almost six years with the firm, he was elected to represent Florida's 13th congressional district.[9] In February 2018, Brad Slager of Sunshine State News cited evidence that Morgan & Morgan was "attempting to purge all evidence" of its relationship with Crist now that he was a "rookie congressman" with "little-to-no power".[10]

In 2018, the firm received over two million phone calls and signed up 500 new cases each day. That year, the firm collected $1.5 billion in settlements and spent $130 million nationwide on advertising. John Morgan was one of the first lawyers to advertise in phone books and television commercials.[6]

In 2021, Morgan fired half of his firm's marketing department. The staffing purge came in the wake of a controversial Morgan & Morgan national advertising campaign, "Size Matters," which was meant to convey the large scale of the firm, but was criticized as an inappropriate dick joke. The staffers who were fired had criticized the ad campaign's phallic implications.[11][12]

As of 2024, the law firm had over 3,000 employees, including 1,000 lawyers in 50 states and Washington, D.C.[2][3][1]

Lawsuits

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Morgan & Morgan filed a class action lawsuit regarding the Equifax data breach that occurred in 2017.[13][14]

In 2018, a class-action lawsuit was initiated against Exactis by law firms Morgan & Morgan, DiCello Levitt & Casey, and Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, following a data breach that allegedly impacted approximately 230 million Americans and 110 million businesses.[15][16]

After Morgan & Morgan filed a lawsuit, Florida-based Healogics Inc. agreed to pay $22.51 million to settle False Claims Act allegations that it knowingly billed Medicare for unnecessary services for its patients. The case was settled in 2018.[17][18][19]

Morgan & Morgan represented several victims of the Sand Blaster roller coaster crash that occurred on June 15, 2018, on the Daytona Beach Boardwalk, when the roller coaster derailed.[20][21][22]

Morgan & Morgan was among the law firms acting on behalf of the plaintiffs in the 2015 California gas leak case.[23]

The case Bethenny Frankel vs TikTok Inc was filed on October 6, 2022, with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York[24][25] after Frankel learned that "her images and video content were being used to sell counterfeit products". The basis for the lawsuit was the technology of TikTok, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, that allowed users to create fake images and videos where Bethenny Frankel appeared promoting various goods and services in violation of Frankel's right of publicity.[26][27]

Subsequent to a mass shooting incident at Walmart Supercenter in Virginia, aggrieved employees brought forth two lawsuits against the retail corporation, each seeking $50 million in damages. The lawsuit was filed by Morgan & Morgan.[28][29]

Morgan & Morgan filed a lawsuit regarding the 2023 Ohio train derailment.[30][31]

Political involvement

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2016 Florida Amendment 2 was a political and legal campaign to allow use of medical marijuana. In 2013, Morgan & Morgan launched the initiative to change the Florida Constitution to allow marijuana for medical purposes. The firm spent over $15 million to support the change and organized United for Care campaign to promote the "yes" vote.[32][33][34][35]

Morgan donated to Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.[36] Morgan gave $355,000 to the Biden Victory Fund in August 2020.[37] Morgan is close to Joe Biden's younger brother, Frank Biden. Morgan flew Frank Biden to Joe Biden's inauguration in his private jet. Morgan said he talked to Frank Biden about job opportunities at Morgan & Morgan.[37]

Morgan & Morgan contributed $1.5 million toward a proposed Florida constitutional amendment to raise the hourly minimum wage to $15. Orlando Weekly reported that some employees at Morgan & Morgan made less than $15 per hour. When questioned by Orlando Weekly, Morgan said "I can tell what angle you're getting at with this story, and it's bullshit," saying that many of his call center employees start out with a $25,000 annual salary (an hourly wage of $15 an hour is equal to roughly $31,200 a year), and told a reporter "I bet you don't make $25,000 a year."[38]

2020 Florida Amendment 2 was an initiative to promote an amendment to the Constitution of Florida that passed on November 3, 2020, via a statewide referendum. Morgan & Morgan was a major donor to the political committee Florida for a Fair Wage, donating the bulk of the $4.15 million raised by the campaign. The amendment required 60% of the popular vote to pass. As a result, hourly minimum wage in the state of Florida is set to increase to $15 by 2026.[39][40][41][42]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Office locations". Official website.
  2. ^ a b c Kennedy Wynne, Sharon (October 21, 2021). "5 questions for John Morgan on law firm's jingle contest". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Morgan & Morgan lawyers". Morgan & Morgan.
  4. ^ a b "John Morgan: The bombastic, omnipresent lawyer fueling Florida's 2014 election". Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  5. ^ a b Barnett, Cynthia. "Profile: John Morgan Unplugged". Florida Trend.
  6. ^ a b "50 Most Powerful People – John Morgan". Orlando Magazine. July 2, 2019.
  7. ^ Boyd, Christopher (February 23, 2005). "MORGAN, COLLING & GILBERT BREAKS UP". Orlando Sentinel.
  8. ^ Matt Dixon, Charlie Crist: Touted as attorney for Morgan & Morgan, but hasn't been in court, Naples Daily News (July 21, 2014).
  9. ^ "New Member: Democrat Charlie Crist Elected in Florida's 13th District". Roll Call. November 9, 2016. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
  10. ^ Slager, Brad. "Is Morgan & Morgan Trying to Memory-Hole Charlie Crist?". Sunshine State News. Retrieved September 1, 2018.
  11. ^ Wolf, Colin (May 27, 2021). "John Morgan's marketing department argued over a nationwide dick joke. Half of them were later fired". Orlando Weekly. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  12. ^ Varn, Kathryn (October 7, 2021). "St. Petersburg billboards battle over whether bigger is better". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  13. ^ Egan, John. "Five Years After The Equifax Data Breach, How Safe Is Your Data?". Bankrate. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  14. ^ "Yanchunis Named to Equifax Plaintiffs' Steering Committee". classaction.com. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  15. ^ "Legal firms file lawsuit over data breach that allegedly compromised personal data of 230 million US citizens". Indivigital. July 10, 2018. Archived from the original on July 10, 2018. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  16. ^ "Inside one company's damaging data-security lawsuit". Florida Trend. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  17. ^ Reddan, Darcy (June 18, 2018). "Wound Care Center Operator Pays $22.5M To Settle FCA Suit". Law360.
  18. ^ Hayes Tucker, Katheryn (June 18, 2018). "False Claims Case vs. Florida Wound Care Center Operator Settles for $22.5M". Law.com.
  19. ^ Scanlan, Dan (June 20, 2018). "Healogics agrees to pay multimillion-dollar settlement". Jacksonville.com.
  20. ^ Ganley, Michelle (June 15, 2018). "Roller coaster derails in Daytona Beach, throws 2 riders 34 feet to the ground". Click Orlando.
  21. ^ Tutten, James (June 18, 2018). "Local attorney launches investigation into Daytona Beach roller coaster derailment". WFTV.
  22. ^ Smith, Harley (June 18, 2018). "Attorney: Daytona Beach roller coaster victims may have lifelong injuries". Clickorlando.
  23. ^ Lobet, Ingrid (December 11, 2015). "New Videos Reveal Southern California Methane Leak". Inside Energy. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
  24. ^ Cho, Winston (October 6, 2022). "Bethenny Frankel Sues TikTok Over Scam Ads Hijacking Her Likeness". The Hollywood Reporter.
  25. ^ "BETHENNY FRANKEL, on behalf of herself and all others similarly situated, Plaintiff, v.TIKTOK, INC., Defendant". Bloomberg Law - Court dockets. October 6, 2022.
  26. ^ Brittain, Blake (October 6, 2022). "TikTok sued by former 'Real Housewife' over unauthorized ads". Reuters. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  27. ^ Steinberg, Julie (October 6, 2022). "TikTok Sued for Unlawful Use of Bethenny Frankel's Persona". Bloomberg Law.
  28. ^ Frolo, Caitlyn (November 29, 2022). "Walmart employee files $50M lawsuit following shooting, details prior complaints of killer". WSET. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  29. ^ "Employee files lawsuit against Walmart seeking $50M after mass shooting in Chesapeake". News 3 WTKR Norfolk. November 29, 2022. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  30. ^ Robertson, Campbell (February 24, 2023). "In Town Where Train Derailed, Lawyers Are Signing Up Clients in Droves". The New York Times. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  31. ^ Duer, Benjamin. "Norfolk Southern released 1.1M pounds of vinyl chloride after derailment, lawsuit alleges". USA Today. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  32. ^ Leusner, Jim (July 2, 2019). "50 Most Powerful People – John Morgan". Orlando Magazine.
  33. ^ "Florida medical marijuana amendment debate". FOX 13 News – Tampa Bay. October 13, 2014.
  34. ^ "Florida medical marijuana debate (Part 1)". WESH 2 News. October 22, 2014.
  35. ^ Richardson, Matthew (November 9, 2016). "John Morgan shares details, timeline for medical marijuana businesses". Orlando Business Journal.
  36. ^ Chozick, Amy; Martin, Jonathan (September 3, 2016). "Where Has Hillary Clinton Been? Ask the Ultrarich". The New York Times. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  37. ^ a b Korecki, Natasha (January 28, 2021). "'For Christ's sake, watch yourself': Biden warns family over business dealings". Politico. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  38. ^ Wolf, Colin (November 2, 2017). "John Morgan is pushing for a $15 minimum wage in Florida, but some employees at his companies make less". Orlando Weekly. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  39. ^ Caputo, Marc (October 18, 2017). "Morgan pledges $1M for 'living wage' fight". Politico.
  40. ^ "John Morgan contributes another $154,000 in minimum wage campaign". Tampa Bay Times. May 11, 2018.
  41. ^ "Orlando attorney John Morgan spent $1 million in July on Florida's fight for minimum wage".
  42. ^ "John Morgan says he has enough signatures to get $15 minimum wage on the 2020 ballot". October 29, 2019.
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