After earning his law degree from the University of San Francisco, School of Law. Matt Quinlan embarked on a career in personal injury law with a well-established law firm.  After just three years, he was made a partner and was described as “the youngest partner at an established plaintiff’s firm in [California] and one of the country’s fastest rising plaintiff attorneys.” In 2011, he established the Law Offices of Matthew J. Quinlan, where he represents injury victims in their fight to gain compensation from insurance companies.

What led you to a career in personal injury?

I enjoy helping people and lifting up the underdogs. Anytime an individual or family is going up against an insurance company or big business, they are certainly underdogs.

Has the Personal Injury landscape in San Francisco changed since 2011?

Interactions with the courts, other lawyers and my clients has become more informal over the last 10-12 years. That was already happening before COVID with increasing reliance on email, video conference, etc. and then COVID took it to a new level. That has allowed us to move faster and get more done.

How do you approach communication with your clients to help them
understand the complexities of the legal process?

Some clients want to know every detail of our thinking and the roadmap ahead. Others just want us to handle it and let them know when they are needed. We are comfortable either way and in between.

How can attorneys help raise awareness of personal injury issues?

Our society is conditioned to believe that insurance companies are their friends and person injury lawyers are something to avoid. In reality, it is the exact opposite. Trying to raise awareness around that is something I try to spread.

What are common misconceptions some clients have about their personal
injury case?

Many people think it easy to catch a windfall with their case. It is not. I have been practicing law since 2005 and have yet to be involved in a situation where we reached a resolution with their case, and it felt like it was time to throw a party. There are no windfalls and money can’t completely fix the reason they contacted me in the first place. I try to be straight with my clients about that and set their expectations.

For more information about Matt Quinlan visit his profile or if you have suffered an injury in California contact MJQ Law.