Atlanta Man Wins $4.3 Million in Arbitration Against Morgan & Morgan

Robert Wyrosdick, a 73-year-old resident of Marietta, Georgia, has been awarded $4.3 million in an arbitration dispute against Morgan & Morgan after alleging that the national personal injury firm closed his vehicle accident case without his consent, according to local reporting from WSB-TV.

The legal dispute began following a serious vehicle accident that occurred in March 2023. Wyrosdick hired Morgan & Morgan to represent him in the matter, but later discovered the firm had accepted a $45,000 settlement on his behalf in 2024 without obtaining his approval. During the handling of his claim, Wyrosdick stated that he spoke to an attorney initially but subsequently dealt only with a paralegal until the case was finalized.

Arbitration Details and Financial Breakdown

To challenge the firm’s actions, Wyrosdick retained attorneys Michael Flint and Mary Ellen Lighthiser of McClure & Kornheiser and took his claims of a breached fiduciary duty to arbitration.

In its defense during the arbitration proceedings, Morgan & Morgan argued that Wyrosdick had not proven his claims or suffered actionable harm, while also seeking to reject any punitive damages. However, the arbitrator ultimately ruled in favor of Wyrosdick, issuing an award totaling $4.3 million.

According to case records detailed by WSB-TV, the financial award was divided into specific categories:

• $450,000 in compensatory damages
• $250,000 in emotional distress damages
• $413,180.33 in attorney’s fees
• $3,150,000 in punitive damages

Legal Arguments Regarding Firm Business Practices

Wyrosdick’s legal representation argued during the proceedings that the unapproved settlement was not an isolated incident. Attorney Michael Flint stated that his team introduced evidence of other complaints to demonstrate that the firm’s operational model treated clients as commodities.

After being involved in a serious car accident, Robert Wyrosdick reached out to Morgan & Morgan because he believed their promise that the largest personal injury firm in the United States was ‘For the People,’ Wyrosdick’s legal team said in a statement shared with WSB-TV. Morgan & Morgan broke that promise when they elevated their own interests above his, settled his case without his input, and then lied about it.

Flint noted that the outcome effectively multiplier-tested the original dispute. Morgan & Morgan settled Mr. Wyrosdick’s case for $45,000, Flint said. By putting Morgan & Morgan on trial in the arbitration, we were able to get 10 times, 100 times that amount.

Morgan & Morgan Response and Firm Statistics

In response to the arbitrator’s ruling, Alexander Clem, CEO of Morgan & Morgan, provided a statement to WSB-TV defending the firm’s operational record.

Our attorneys live and breathe our mission of fighting for the people, and transparency and communication with our clients are core values we take very seriously, Clem said. Since 2019, Morgan & Morgan has recovered over $30 billion for our clients nationally, and anyone who wants to understand our track record of verdicts and settlements can see it for themselves at forthepeople.com.

The firm’s executive added that disputes leading to formal claims represent an extremely small fraction of their overall caseload. In Georgia, an infinitesimal .0002% of our cases lead to a claim against us, Clem stated. More than 99.999% of our cases proceed without issue. Whether you are a one-attorney shop or a 1,200-lawyer firm, mistakes can occasionally happen.

With the arbitration resolved and the multimillion-dollar award secured, Flint confirmed that the financial outcome has provided Wyrosdick with enough funds to retire.