For more than 40 years, Mr. Merkel has personally delivered more than 400 jury presentations in the representation of personal injury victims whose cases involved complex medical and technical injury mechanisms and causation problems. After graduating magna cum laude from the University of Mississippi School of Law in June 1966, Mr. Merkel accepted an appointment under the U.S. Department of Justice Honors Program and served for 4 years in the tax division of the Department of Justice in a refund trial section, trying tax refund cases in the U.S. District Courts over a five-state area. In October 1970, Mr. Merkel returned to his native Mississippi, accepting a position with the firm of Sullivan, Dunbar & Smith. In 1973, he was involved in the formation of the firm of Holcomb, Dunbar, Connell & Merkel, where he was involved primarily in litigation until the spring of 1982, when Mr. Merkel and Mr. Cocke formed Merkel & Cocke, P.A. for the purpose of handling complex plaintiff’s litigation with emphasis in medical malpractice, product liability, toxic torts, drug reactions, brain damage cases, and in general, all catastrophic personal injury cases. Mr. Merkel has received multiple jury awards ranging from $1 million to $20 million, and many more million-dollar settlements. He is active in trial lawyer activities and is a frequent lecturer on trial technique and advocacy, appearing at seminars sponsored by the Mississippi State Bar, Mississippi Association for Justice, American Board of Trial Advocates, and others. Mr. Merkel, a former college baseball player at Ole Miss, is a sports enthusiast and lifelong Ole Miss and NY Yankees fan. He enjoys playing golf and traveling with his wife and children, and is an avid duck hunter and outdoorsman.

Area of Practice: Social Security Disability Hannalore B. Merritt, Managing Partner of Osterhout Berger Disability Law, brings years of legal expertise and knowledge to her practice, concentrating on federal court appeals in the areas of Social Security disability and ERISA. Attorneys who refer their clients to Hannalore know that her tenacity and professionalism, combined with her ability to effectively prepare and present a case, give their clients a definite advantage at the federal court level. Hannalore received her bachelor’s degree from Pennsylvania State University, after which she was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to study law and political science in Germany. She returned to earn her JD from Seattle University School of Law, magna cum laude, where she was named the Faculty Scholar of the Class of 2009. Hannalore carries bar licenses in numerous federal district courts, as well as state licenses in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Mississippi. She represents clients nationwide in all aspects of federal court proceedings.

Attorney Minkah Merritt is the managing partner of the Merritt & Merritt Law Firm. He manages all personnel and offices located across the Southeast; i.e., Atlanta; Savannah; Statesboro; and Jacksonville. Under his leadership, the firm has grown rapidly with the focus being to help those injured in car accidents or at work. Each year Attorney Merritt collects in excess of a million dollars for his clients with many verdicts and settlements in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Some notable cases have been: $725,000 settlement for car accident client, a jury verdict of $250,000 in Rockdale County; a $165,000 settlement for a client hit head-on by a sheriff’s deputy; a $135,000 settlement for back injury client, and a $100,000 settlement for a client after another attorney told the client she did not have a case. Minkah believes it is not the size of the case that matters but whether every client is satisfied after our services. If Attorney Merritt looks familiar to you, you may have seen him on Channel 2 Atlanta,11 Alive, CBS 46, or in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Born into a family of hard workers, Minkah was destined to follow in his mentor/father, Attorney Lorenzo Merritt’s, footsteps. From his many years of observing his mentor, Minkah learned the values of diligence, hard work, punctuality, and justice. For Minkah, the law is literally in his blood. Minkah’s ability to relate to people and his willingness to help others was the reason he became an attorney. Throughout his community, Minkah is profoundly active and has devoted his practice to assisting personal injury victims throughout Georgia and Florida. He contributes his time, services, and financial support to many local organizations. In addition, Minkah frequently donates free legal services to at-risk youth and veterans. Prior to his life in law, Minkah began his career as an assistant manager for an international manufacturing company before progressing to account manager where he successfully negotiated business contracts with Fortune 500 companies.

Katie M. Merwin is a partner at the firm’s West Palm Beach Offices. Ms. Merwin practices in the areas of Labor and Employment Law, Civil Rights Law, Housing and Commercial Litigation, ERISA Litigation, Directors and Officers Liability, Miscellaneous Professional Liability, and Community Association Law for the firm. She has experience handling Errors and Omissions claims, including those brought against insurance brokers and agents. Ms. Merwin earned her Juris Doctor from Barry University School of Law, where she was a member of Barry University’s Law Review. Ms. Merwin is a member of the Florida Bar and is licensed to practice law in all state courts within Florida. Ms. Merwin is currently a member of the Palm Beach County Bar Association and the Young Lawyers Division. Ms. Merwin is also admitted to practice before federal courts, including the United States District Court for the Southern, Middle and Northern Districts of Florida.