For three decades and counting, the Personal Injury/Mass Tort law firm DeMayo Law Offices, LLP has been guided by a simple yet powerful ethos: put the clients’ interests first, and everything else will follow.
This philosophy has helped the firm grow to three offices with more than 140 legal professionals, all dedicated to representing individuals throughout North Carolina who have been seriously injured or have died as a result of another’s negligence, as well as handling a variety of Mass Torts across the United States. In all, the firm has secured more than $1 billion in judgments and settlements for its clients.
“When people ask what I do for a living, I say I fix things for other people. As a law firm, we sue billion-dollar insurance companies and win,” says CEO & Managing Partner Michael A. DeMayo. “From my start as a lawyer, it was important to be able to equalize the playing field for our clients who were facing off with well-financed and experienced adversaries: large insurance companies and multinational corporations with hundreds or even thousands of the best defense attorneys and insurance adjusters money can buy.”
DeMayo Law Offices, LLP consistently battles large carriers and corporations for fair compensation for all its clients. In 2023, the firm handled a horrific case where the client was crushed to death by over 27 marble slabs (each slab weighing 1,000 pounds) as his wife helplessly watched him die. After litigating the case, the firm was able to secure a $12 million settlement for the estate and the negligent infliction of emotional distress for his wife. Although a significant result, DeMayo notes that it does not remotely “compensate” the family for the loss of their father, husband, friend, advisor, advocate and loved one.
“Many people have a misconception about what personal injury attorneys do for a living. We’re not preying on serious injuries and death for profit. We do not take glee or revel in the misfortune of others. A catastrophic injury or death of an individual can have life-altering consequences for an entire family. We recognize that oftentimes our law firm and the work we do is all that stands between a somewhat normal existence or the complete destruction of a family. It gives everyone at our firm tremendous satisfaction to help individuals piece their lives back together and reconstruct their existence as best they can following a catastrophic and traumatic occurrence."
As a well-resourced firm, DeMayo Law Offices, LLP also handles several different Mass Torts. Currently, the firm is working on thousands and thousands of toxic water contamination cases from Camp Lejeune. The Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 allows Marines, their families or anyone exposed to contaminated water for at least 30 days between August 1, 1953, and December 31, 1987, to file a claim against the U.S. Government.
“Camp Lejeune is the second largest Marine base for combat readiness. For nearly four decades, the individuals who lived and served there were impacted by a contaminated water supply that caused serious health conditions, certain cancers, and death,” DeMayo explains. “We are familiar with the judiciary in eastern North Carolina and have assisted veterans in the past, so we felt we were well-qualified to handle this litigation and protect those who fought for our country. What made it more egregious was the betrayal by our own government, who knew about the toxic water supply for over 35 years.”
DeMayo is quick to credit the collective efforts of his Camp Lejeune team when reflecting on the ability of his firm to handle thousands of cases of this magnitude.
“Our firm is a collection of many accomplished lawyers and legal professionals; I’m just one member of the team. Combined, we have hundreds of years of experience handling catastrophic injury cases and mass tort litigation. Additionally, we embrace innovation, use the latest technology, encourage a creative mindset and prioritize collaboration with strategic partners from some of the best law firms in the country who specialize in these areas of practice. This combination of resources and skills is meant to provide the best possible outcome, meeting the highest standards of service and results that are expected by our clients.”
Vital to the law firm’s “can’t live without us” service approach, is how it sets expectations with clients from the outset.
“When we first meet with a client, we spend a lot of time reviewing reasonable expectations and benchmarks based on past experiences in similar cases. Then, throughout the pendency of the case, we consistently try to exceed those expectations,” DeMayo says. “Some lawyers will tell clients what they want to hear to retain or even sign a case, but our job is to be transparent and honest. We need to communicate what a client needs to hear and be clear about what is possible.”
Honest and clear communication is fundamental to the firm. The processes, procedures and systems the firm has in place all work to ensure that clients can communicate with their attorney. “The main complaint clients have about attorneys is that they can’t get in touch with their lawyer. We have designed a system where there is a designated individual whose main role is to maintain active communication with the assigned client. This system ensures that each client has a reliable point of contact throughout legal proceedings, minimizing frustration and strengthening the attorney-client relationship.”
Beyond his law practice, DeMayo serves as an influential community advocate, primarily through his Arrive Alive® Scholarship Program, which, for more than 24 years, has annually awarded 15 $2,500 scholarships to graduating high school seniors to raise awareness about the dangers of drunk and distracted driving. The firm has awarded more than $850,000 in scholarships over the years. DeMayo's motivation for launching the Arrive Alive® initiative stemmed from his experience representing parents whose children were killed in drunk-driving accidents that often involved similar and avoidable fact patterns.
“Speaking with parents was so frustrating because I knew that my ‘remedy,’ money, was inadequate, and I always felt that no one was really targeting or messaging teens on the fact that one split-second decision was the difference between a catastrophic injury or death,” DeMayo notes.
Regardless of whether he is advocating in the community, courtroom or at his law firm, DeMayo remains committed to his firm’s foundational principle of prioritizing individual victims. “When you're passionate about what you do for a living and genuinely care about the people you represent, you are motivated and passionate every day because you know you are making a difference,” he says. “I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.”
