Even after years of achieving groundbreaking verdicts and resolutions, Steve Yerrid feels the same energy that drove him when he entered his first trial. “I will stay in the courtroom as long as I can perform in the manner I am accustomed to, keep my edge and see justice delivered,” Yerrid says.
“Legal battles in catastrophic cases tap into my fighting spirit,” he says from The Yerrid Law Firm’s Tampa headquarters. The boxing metaphors are not hyperbole – Yerrid was known for winning in the ring prior to passing the bar, and in 2011, was voted into the Florida Boxing Hall of Fame.
That same grit has characterized his career, which includes Yerrid’s more than 300 individual verdicts and settlements in excess of $1 million in catastrophic injury, wrongful death, product liability, construction defects, medical malpractice, premises liability, vehicular accidents, commercial disputes and a broad range of civil litigation. Several of these verdicts were eight- and nine-figure results.
“I have been blessed with an ability to help people who need it most,” Yerrid says. “I am so grateful and proud of our firm’s accomplishments when I recall the large record of the successes we have achieved.” Yerrid has been named “Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers in Tampa for both Personal Injury Litigation (2014) and Medical Malpractice Law (2015 and 2025) on behalf of plaintiffs on numerous occasions. He received the latter again this year.
“People sometimes ask why I still love the courtroom, and I quickly answer, ‘It is a place where magic happens. Why would I leave it?’ I rarely consider slowing down, especially when I see a new client who has suffered unimaginable losses or irreparable harm. The need to be their warrior grabs my soul and provides the almost unlimited energy I need for trial. Of course, winning incentivizes me, and a client’s justice is my joy.”
Current Battles and Landmark Victories
Yerrid, acting as lead counsel alongside his partner, David Dickey, recently tried a case and represented the parents of a 23-year-old woman whose death was caused by the negligence of two hospitalists at an acute, long-term care facility. Their erroneous diagnosis and lack of appropriate care resulted in this young lady losing her life and her parents losing their dreams. Discharged from a large Trauma One hospital and transferred to a long-term acute care facility in order to continue her long-term recovery, she was to be treated and followed for severe erosive gastritis in the duodenum.
It was not done; the erosion continued, and her gastrointestinal wall was perforated. She went into septic shock and passed away. The defendants offered “zero” in settlement, and the case proceeded to trial. The jury awarded $15 million in damages to each parent for mental anguish, plus burial expenses of $7,502.00. The verdict total was $30,007,502.00. The case is now on appeal.
Yerrid’s effectiveness in the courtroom is reflected in the results, as The Yerrid Law Firm routinely and consistently obtains multimillion-dollar verdicts and settlements – as well as truly meaningful justice for the clients.
These accomplishments include a historic verdict for Allan Navarro, a former professional basketball player born and raised in the Philippines, who visited a Florida emergency room for an excruciating headache, double vision and some dizziness. A non-physician misdiagnosed the symptoms as sinusitis and sent him home. The symptoms were left untreated, and by the next day, the ongoing stroke caused Navarro to become a quadriplegic.
‘Everyone should have a shot at happiness, success and living the American dream…’ That mantra led to the formation of The Yerrid Foundation almost four decades ago.”
Yerrid teamed up with Tampa veteran lawyer Rich Gilbert to take the case to trial and fight for justice for Navarro. A $217 million verdict was obtained for the client and his family. The result was the largest medical malpractice verdict in Florida’s history and the top national jury verdict of its kind in 2006.
“That result was consistent with our firm’s mission and, of course, extremely satisfying to Allan and his outstanding family,” Yerrid recalls. “We not only secured justice but also enhanced the safety and welfare of patients and health care consumers elsewhere. Resultant policy changes in many hospitals now explicitly require ER medical doctors to thoroughly diagnose and treat patients before anyone can be discharged.”
One of the most lasting generational achievements occurred in the 1990s when Yerrid was selected by the late Gov. Lawton Chiles as the youngest member of the 11-member “Dream Team” of private trial lawyers. He took a leading role in Florida’s landmark lawsuit against the previously unbeaten cigarette industry. The case resulted in the biggest monetary settlement in the nation’s history at the time, ultimately topping $17 billion.
The settlement also imposed drastic advertising restrictions against the cigarette cartel as well as severe prohibitions designed to halt pandering cigarettes to America’s youth by eliminating Joe Camel, the Marlboro Man, Virginia Slims, billboards and cigarette vending machines.
The settlement also helped fund the Truth campaign and launch programs targeting nicotine addiction and treatment. For the first time, Florida’s Dream Team truly exposed the horrific costs of cigarettes to the entire country. As a result, millions of lives have been saved in the decades that have followed.
“Malicious and negligent actions have consequences that can last lifetimes,” says Yerrid, who is also the author of the heralded non-fiction legal memoir, When Justice Prevails. “It is a great feeling to be a part of America’s system of justice. Ours is a legal system capable of addressing and preventing a huge number of tragedies and injustices as well as providing an equal opportunity to fight to those who otherwise would be powerless.”
The Yerrid Foundation Achieves Goals in Florida and Beyond
Yerrid is also privileged and humbled to be recognized as one of Florida’s most well-known and popular philanthropists.
His courtroom feats have monetarily enhanced his ability to give back, and help causes that fostered his own personal growth and bolstered his understanding of the common person left too often without a voice. It brought financial support to his core belief, “…that everyone should have a shot at happiness, success and living the American dream…” That mantra led to the formation of The Yerrid Foundation almost four decades ago.
The self-funded family foundation has made significant donations to more than 700 causes and charitable organizations locally, nationally, and even internationally, emphasizing children’s issues, pediatric cancer research, and the welfare of veterans and domestic abuse victims.
Hockey fans know firsthand of The Yerrid Foundation’s impact. Its partnership with NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning for the annual Tampa Bay Fights Cancer Night has dramatically raised awareness for all those children/families who are battling or have fought that dreaded disease.
In the 24 years of this special event, the Foundation and the Lightning have treated more than 100,000 pediatric cancer patients, their families and caregivers to a night of hockey, food, special shirts and a post-game “meet and greet” with the Lightning players.
“Providing special moments for these brave, strong children and all those who are affected by cancer is incredibly gratifying,” Yerrid says.
“Every person who participates in this unique experience leaves with a smile that comes from pure happiness, a night free from struggles and memories that will last a lifetime. The work of the Foundation renews and strengthens my own faith in the unmatched joy of giving.”
