Jeffrey Murphy, Trial Attorney, The Yerrid Law Firm, P.A.

July 2026 — Invest: spoke with Jeffrey Murphy, trial attorney at The Yerrid Law Firm, P.A., about the firm’s trial-focused approach, Florida’s evolving legal landscape, and the importance of community engagement. “You just keep it simple, and do things the right way,” Murphy said.

What have been some of the most significant developments and accomplishments for the firm over the past year?

Our firm is led by Steve Yerrid, who is one of the most well-known and respected trial lawyers, not only in Florida, but in the country. He is part of the Inner Circle, which is the top 100 plaintiffs attorneys in the United States.

He is our leader, and he is still going strong. 2025 marked Steve’s 50th year of practicing law. He is still leading the charge and going to trial.

We handle primarily personal injury and wrongful death cases, whether it is due to a trucking accident, medical malpractice, or product liability. Steve, in particular, and the firm are known for taking cases to trial and getting significant verdicts. We have had a few of those over the last few years. Last year, he had a verdict for over $70 million on a wrongful death case arising out of a motor vehicle crash, and the year before that, he had a verdict for $30 million in a medical malpractice case.

We are continuing to take cases to trial. We settle cases when they can be settled and when they should be settled. But if the insurance companies are not willing to pay a fair value for the case, then we are ready to take them to trial and get a verdict.

What impact have recent legal changes, including tort reform, had on strategy and client expectations?

That is a hot topic right now among trial lawyers. There were tort reform laws enacted in 2023. There were a number of items in the new law, but there are a couple that we see repeating themselves over and over.

One changed the evidentiary proof that is required for collecting past medical bills and future medical bills. We are fighting weekly with defense attorneys about what these new laws mean, and there are several cases now working themselves through the appeal process. Within the next year, we may have more insight and guidance from appellate courts as to what these new laws mean. Right now, we are at the trial court level, fighting with different judges and defense attorneys all over the state, trying to build case law and precedent that will determine how these things are handled in the future.

The other law that has made things difficult in some cases is comparative negligence. It used to be that if you were 60% at fault for your own injury and a company was 40% at fault, you could get 40% of your damages. Now, if a jury finds you more than 50% responsible for your own injury, you get nothing.

We have to be very careful at the beginning of a case, when we are evaluating it and before we decide to take it on. We want to make sure our client was not primarily at fault for the accident, because if they were, they are not going to make any recovery.

What are the most important trends currently shaping the legal industry in the region?

Tampa is blowing up in terms of the number of people moving here, the growth, the building, the changes to infrastructure, and the improvements we are making.

We only focus on personal injury and wrongful death cases, but I think construction law will probably get a boost of activity because of all the building and construction going on here. It seems like every project that goes up, every commercial building that goes up, leads to lawsuits for various reasons. I would expect construction lawyers and real estate lawyers to be doing very well as Tampa continues to grow.

Of course, the more people you have, the more people there are on the road, and the more trucks there are on the road, personal injury cases are probably going to increase as well.

In terms of our day-to-day practice, one of the biggest things going on right now is AI. There are dozens of companies now providing AI products just for law firms. 2025 marked Steve’s 50th year as a lawyer, and I am in my 36th year. As you get older and more set in your ways, it is more difficult to adapt. We are learning, and we have opened ourselves up to that. We have a new AI system that we are using in the office, and I think it is imperative that all lawyers use it to some extent.

Some paralegals are worried that AI could replace their jobs, but that is not the case. We are always going to need them. AI helps our staff become more efficient and get things done more quickly.

How is AI affecting case preparation and the practice of law?

People can look at something on social media and wonder whether it is real. My kids can look at something and know it is AI, but I cannot always tell. You now have people producing photos and other materials, and you cannot be 100% sure that they are accurate anymore.

There have also been a lot of stories over the last couple of years about lawyers doing legal research on AI and getting what they think is case law. It turns out that it is a made-up case by AI, and then they submit that to the court. I can tell you that judges do not like that.

How is the firm attracting, developing, and retaining top legal talent?

Steve has, by choice, elected not to grow just for the sake of growth. We do not do advertising on television or radio. He believes in letting the results speak for themselves.

We have been fortunate enough to get very good results over the years, and that has really driven the firm. When you get good results, you have happy clients. When you have happy clients, they spread the word to their friends and family. We get a lot of referrals from former clients who tell their friends to call us when they have an incident.

We also get a lot of cases from other lawyers, either lawyers who are not equipped to take on an insurance company in a very expensive case or lawyers who do not practice personal injury. We have relationships with business lawyers and commercial litigation attorneys who do not do personal injury, and they refer cases to us.

We have been fortunate to continue getting clients and good cases because of experience and results. We have six attorneys right now, and we will probably be hiring one over the next year. Steve prefers to take high-quality cases and provide a more personal touch for our clients rather than handling a huge volume of cases.

How does the firm engage with the local community and support the Tampa Bay region beyond its legal practice?

Steve has always believed in giving back to the community, and that is something he tries to instill in every lawyer and staff member here at the office.

He established the Yerrid Foundation many years ago. The foundation has given millions of dollars over the years to various charities and causes around the Tampa Bay area. He has a special interest in pediatric cancer patients and has donated money to over 600 charities since the inception of the foundation.

Those include Tampa General Hospital Foundation, the Florida Aquarium, Ruth Eckerd Hall, Heart of Adoptions, the Tampa Bay Lightning Foundation, Boys & Girls Clubs of Tampa Bay, Ronald McDonald House, Metropolitan Ministries, and The Spring of Tampa Bay.

I think it is important when you have been successful that you enjoy the fruits of that success, but that you also share that success with your community. He has been here most of his life, as have I and a couple of the other lawyers who are here, so we have pretty deep ties with the Tampa Bay community and definitely believe in giving back.

What are your expectations and priorities for the firm over the next three to five years?

We just renewed our lease here in the Bank of America Plaza, so we are going to be here for at least a few more years, continuing to do what we do.

Our goal really is the same as it always is, and that is to get our clients the best possible result, treat our clients with respect and dignity, and help them through the difficult period they are going through, whether it is through a serious injury or the death of a loved one.

You just keep it simple, and do things the right way. We have found that success begets success. We have been fortunate enough to be here for a while, and we will continue to do the things we have been doing and hopefully be here for a little while longer.