Life is wonderful. You’re basking in the glow of a satisfying career, a loving family and devoted friends. Palm trees framing a sun-splashed open highway reflect the path to your future. Your world is, in a word, perfect.
Then, suddenly, that world gets turned upside down. Maybe the charge is driving while under the influence, a white-collar crime, even manslaughter. Perhaps you’re involved in a civil suit. In any instance, your once-stable world is now spinning out of control.
As you seek legal representation to guide you through this intensely stressful and uncertain period, you know precisely what qualifications you want from the law firm that will be by your side: experience, compassion, honesty, reliability, confidence, resolve and, of course, a track record of success.
Fairlie & Lippy P.C. possesses all these qualities. Since it was established at its current location in North Wales, Fairlie & Lippy has earned a reputation as one of the premier law firms in the region. Handling cases in criminal defense and personal injury, attorneys Steven F. Fairlie, Elizabeth L. Lippy, Stephen M. Geday and Anthony M. Gallo have a combined 62 years of courtroom experience.
“We have the skill and ability to deliver—that’s what makes us one of the premier law firms,” says Geday, a partner at the firm. “We’re small enough to be able to deliver tailored, individualized attention to clients. We directly address the needs of our clients. But we’re also large enough to handle sizable cases.”
Fairlie & Lippy has been recognized throughout Pennsylvania with many industry awards. Among the firm’s other honors: Top 100 “Super Lawyer” designations in personal injury and criminal defense; the National Trial Lawyers Top 100; top-rated attorneys in Philadelphia, as published by The Wall Street Journal, The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Legal Intelligencer; National Advocacy for DUI Defense Top 100 attorneys; and a 2014 Litigator Awards nomination by the Litigation Counsel of America.
“We have a reputation for getting results for our clients,” says Fairlie, a founding partner in the firm. “We are among the most highly decorated law firms in the suburbs.”
Fairlie has successfully handled numerous civil and criminal trials. Prior to entering private practice, he worked on the narcotics and major crimes teams at the Montgomery County District Attorney’s office from 1996 to 2000. He has been named a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, a designation received by less than 1 percent of judges, lawyers and scholars in America, and he has been named one of the Top 100 criminal defense and personal injury lawyers multiple times by “Super Lawyers” and other organizations.
In a recent case, Fairlie represented an aspiring Ph.D. student with a 4.0 GPA who was charged with felony theft. Although she insisted she had done nothing wrong, the police and prosecutor were convinced she was guilty. The firm obtained court orders to get the check that started the entire transaction. As a result, Fairlie learned that Verizon has a unique payment feature that permitted the alleged “victim” of the theft, who had erroneously written the client’s Verizon account number on his check, to attach his bank account to her Verizon account for payment purposes.
“Her father was paying her Verizon bill and she assumed that the bank account that had become attached to her Verizon payment screen was her father’s; it showed the last four digits of the account but no name,” Fairlie says. “She was not a thief or a criminal at all, and uncovering these facts allowed us to get the charges dismissed completely.”
“Each one of us knows it’s all about the client,” adds Lippy. “We are dedicated to succeed for the client, not for money or anything else. If that ever changes, an attorney should stop practicing. Helping our clients is our priority. That’s what drives us.”
With a focus on criminal defense and civil litigation, Lippy has also been recognized as a “Super Lawyer” and/or a “Rising Star” each year since 2007. Among her many awards is being named a Lawyer on the Fast Track, by The Legal Intelligencer, an annual award bestowed upon only 30 lawyers in Pennsylvania.
Lippy believes honesty is the cornerstone of representing a client.
“I always tell the client the truth,” she says. “I’m not going to tell them they’re going to win a million dollars if I know they’re only going to win a thousand. In matters of criminal defense, I won’t tell a client they’re going to walk out scot-free if they might spend the rest of their life in jail. I will work hard for them and always tell them the truth.”
Fairlie & Lippy handles legal cases concerning an array of matters. These include felonies, homicides and assaults, as well as DUIs, drug charges, juvenile matters, misdemeanors, Miranda rights issues, protection from abuse or domestic violence restraining orders, sex crimes, theft, traffic-related offenses, underage drinking, slip and fall cases, catastrophic injuries and wrongful death.
A major factor in Fairlie & Lippy’s success is its familiarity with members of the courts and law enforcement in Bucks and Montgomery counties.
“We have a reputation for getting results, and part of that comes from knowing the players,” Fairlie says. “Knowing the judges, the court staff, the police, the other defense attorneys all comes into play in any given case. All that helps you forecast and project the end game for your client.
“You need to have an idea of what the case is worth at the beginning in order to chart the course. If you don’t know the predilections of a court, officer or even insurance adjuster, you can’t do that. That’s partly why we focus mostly on the suburbs, where we have that familiarity.”
According to Fairlie, his firm is contacted by clients wanting it to handle cases in distant counties. Instead of always taking the case, he often refers the client to a reputable lawyer familiar with the players in that county.
“I tell them I’ll do it, but they’re better off going with a lawyer from that county who’s familiar with the judges and courts there,” Fairlie says. “We’re happy to do the initial consultation for them and do what’s best for them, even if they don’t choose our firm. … Getting the client the best outcome is always our goal, even if in some cases we’re not the firm representing them.”
Geday is a highly experienced trial attorney who has handled more than 1,000 cases before judges and juries. A former assistant district attorney in Montgomery County, he prosecuted offenses ranging from homicide, drug offenses, sex offenses and assaults, to economic crimes, retail theft and DUIs.
Geday was named to the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in 2014, and the “Top 40 Under 40” in 2012 and 2013 by the National Trial Lawyers organization. He has been named a Super Lawyers “Rising Star,” as well as one of the “Top 40 Under 40” criminal defense lawyers in Pennsylvania by the American Society of Legal Advocates.
Fairlie & Lippy is so highly respected among the legal community that fellow law firms frequently refer clients to them, and even attorneys in need of legal representation seek out their counsel.
“There’s always a vote of great confidence when a professional, another specialist, feels comfortable choosing us,” Geday says. “Let’s face it: There’s a search process in vetting a lawyer, and when another lawyer is able to distinguish us from others, that’s very telling.”
“We leave no stone unturned,” Lippy adds. “We do everything to achieve the best possible outcome for our clients. We pursue every avenue. We’re on the cutting edge of the law. For instance, we use social media. I take advantage of the information out there, investigate and research it, stay on top of the technology and what happens in 2014 in terms of new law. The firm has a daily blog with new laws that we post.
“Everything we do is for our clients,” she continues. “That’s what they’re counting on us to do.”
Fairlie & Lippy P.C.
1501 Lower State Road, Suite 304
North Wales, PA 19454
215-997-1000 | www.fairlielaw.net
Photograph by Allure West Studios
