Published: August 08, 2008 08:20 am            

The Scales of Justice

Barbourville attorney has no qualms about taking on the corporate giants if that’s what it takes to meet the financial and emotional needs of his clients.

Click here to see the Aug. 9, 2008 Neighbors section in its entirety


By Bobbie Poynter / Community Editor

The Law Office of Samuel E. Davies in Barbourville looks nothing like a stuffy lawyer’s office. It’s just too pretty. Every room from ceiling to floor treats the eye to a panoramic vista of Barbourville’s beautiful and historic past.

That’s because attorneys Samuel E. Davies (call him the Grey Sam, not the Old Sam) and his son, Samuel G. Davies, run their law office out of the same building that houses the Towne Square Place Bed and Breakfast. Older Barbourville residents would remember it as the old Sampson B. Knuckles mansion on Knox Street.

Samuel E. Davies, 62, is the son of Bill Davies, a Welsh immigrant whose own father came to America in 1902 to work in the Kentucky coal mines, bringing with him the only thing of value he owned — a 4-6 foot harp, which is still with the family to this very day. A year later he was joined by Samuel’s father Bill (who was 6 years old then), grandmother, aunt and two uncles.

Sam’s eldest uncle, Elias, the attorney‘s namesake, was unhappy in America and opted to return to Europe. Sadly, Elias was lost at sea and never made it home.

Bill Davies was already 50 years old when he fell in love and married Alice, a local girl from Stinking Creek, who herself was then more than 30 years old.

Sam’s mom and dad ran a little country store in the blue-collar Frog Level of Barbourville (so-named because the ground was so low and marshy that the frogs stayed out both day and night).

“That old grocery store was a good place to grow up,” said Sam. “We got to hear the old men sitting outside on the porch talking politics. And we got to meet a lot of people coming and going, including those families coming back from the Korean War, who moved here and there looking for work and, like the rest of us, were living from day-to-day.”

Sam grew up an intelligent and inquisitive young man. He loved trying new things, things that would stretch his mental capacity to its fullest. However, his curiosity did occasionally get the best of him.

“Me and my brother built our own laboratory,” recalled Sam. “The college (Union) was cleaning its chemistry lab waste and we’d salvage through the pits. We built a pretty little classy laboratory in our dad’s barn. That is, until we figured out how to put chemicals together to make black gunpowder. In testing it, we blew a hole in the roof of our dad’s barn. That put us out of the chemistry business.”

Sam never lost his knack for trying new things and breaking new ground. As an attorney, Sam’s favorite cases are those that have never been tried before.

“I’ve done a lot of first impression cases,” he said. “I like it when no one else has done them — the more difficult, the more unique, the more that I identify with it.”

Sam likes the “first impression” cases because, even though they are the more difficult to try, they help break new ground in the legal community.

“If you think about it, a tire blows out all the time,” he said, “and there’s been a bunch of them, so everyone knows what to do about it. I like to see what they’ll do with something that’s never happened before.”

As a 35-year veteran attorney, Sam has had his fill of groundbreaking cases.

Sam was the lead attorney in the CTA injury and death cases. When they were resolved in the factory, CTA hired Davies to design the liability of its portion against the manufacturer of the material that blew up, resulting in a $123 million verdict. To date, he is still one of the attorneys of record.

In 1994, Sam tried a case featured on NBC with Katie Couric against a manufacturer of Parlodel, a medication used to suppress lactation after childbirth. The drug had significant side effects, and Sam stepped in when a client who had suffered a massive stroke came to him after taking the drug. The drug was eventually withdrawn from the market.

Sam went to bat against a major auto manufacturer in 1999 when a van carrying a group of young athletes from Australia and New Zealand rolled over on I-75, killing three and severing another’s arm. The group was on its way to the Kentucky Horse Park to participate in the Rolex Games. The resulting $20 million settlement was only the beginning.

Following the case, the National Highway Safety Administration tested the vehicles and agreed to their dangerous roll-over tendency. Manufacturers have since taken action to correct the problem. The fix turned out to be as simple as widening the wheel base.

“No one had ever beaten a major automotive company,” said Sam. “This was long overdue. It was information the public really needed to know. In fact, it led to public awareness all over the world.

“We knew we were doing the right thing. We tried to keep in mind that most of the jury were Toyota employees. The defense felt the jury would favor them in defense of the automotive industry. My thinking was that we were actually doing Toyota a favor by making this public, thereby affording them the chance to be heroes by coming out and building a better car.”

Just last year, Sam settled a case for a family in Clay County whose house had burned to the ground. They had an insurance agent who allegedly charged the family an excessive premium and then pocketed the money, causing their homeowner’s insurance to lapse. Sam and Senator Robert Stivers were the attorneys of record.

“We sued the company he worked for alleging they hadn’t done a proper background on the guy and qualified him,” explained Sam.

It took a couple of years, but the company finally settled the case. During the two-year period, the family had been living in half-way houses and hotels. The couple had four foster children and no money to pay the lawyers. There wasn’t enough money for the family to buy a house and fill it with furniture, and the attorneys felt it was more important to get the children back into a home, so the men bypassed their attorney’s fees and added it to the family‘s settlement.

“It breaks your heart for it happen,” said Sam. “But, as I get older, I see it happen more and more.

“This couple was special. How many people will take in four children and adopt them? In fact, these two adopted the children even after they lost their home. Today, they have one in college and the others in high school.”

The family still keeps in touch with the Barbourville attorney and sends him pictures of their growing family.

Sam credits his success to his loyal and dedicated staff. Both his office manager, Alene Foley, and his legal assistant, Boyd Richardson, have been with him since he first opened his business 35 years ago in a small, two-room office hidden away in an alley on the Barbourville courthouse square.

Now that his son, attorney Samuel G. Davies, works with him, Sam said the office has finally joined the technology age. Sam explained the workings of a modern lawyer’s office requires extensive organization, both in the office and in the courtroom, and Samuel G. has brought his substantial knowledge of the computer with him.

“It’s such a joy working with my son,” said Sam. “We have a good working relationship. Samuel (G.) is very technologically savvy. In the last few cases alone, he’s organized us such that it made all the difference in trying the case and settling it.

“Me? I missed the technology revolution.”

Sam’s son is just as happy to be working side-by-side with his father.

“It’s an honor to work with my dad,” said Samuel (G.). “I’ve learned from him all my life, and now I get the privilege of working with him. It’s not a sweat shop here. We do it because we like it. If I’m to establish a reputation, I’d rather be associated with him than any other attorney I know.”

Sam works long hours and does a lot of traveling, depending on the cases he is working on. However, Samuel E. Davies is, and always has been, a family man first. He and Linda, his wife of 38 years, were their sons’ greatest supporters throughout the boys’ school years. Both sons, Logan and Samuel G., attended St. Camillus Academy, and each excelled in his own right. Logan was one of Knox County Piranhas’ top swimmers for many years (with Dad as club representative), and later became a volunteer assistant for the Piranhas after he moved on to college. Samuel, on the other hand, became an Eagle Scout, with his mom serving as den mother and both parents helping with the many Boy Scout activities and camp outs. Once the boys were grown, Sam and Linda spent several years as caregivers for their own parents.

“No matter how busy things get, Dad always take time for family,” said Samuel G. “If Mom calls, everything stops, regardless of who he’s talking to on the phone or who might be in the office. He’s always been like that. Family has always come first.”

Sam’s life is definitely not all work and no play. Sam and Linda have been members of the Cumberland Valley USA Ballroom Dance Club for many years. Although family obligations slowed their dancing for a while, the couple is now back in the swing of things. Sam is the club president, and with Linda’s help, schedules dances and sends out monthly newsletters. Oftentimes, they join the other 65 members from across Bell, Whitley, Pulaski, Knox, Laurel and Clay counties for group tours and cruises. Through their association with the dance club, the couple has visited many picturesque locations over the years including Hawaii, Alaska, Denmark, Russia, Norway, Germany and most recently, China.

Professionally, Samuel E. Davies, has been recognized by his peers as one of the top attorneys in the state of Kentucky.

In 2003, Sam was inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers, an international recognition of attorneys in America, Canada and other countries. This was a particularly special honor as it is restricted to less than one percent of the lawyers in any given state and the vote must be unanimous.

In 2007, Sam was honored at the outstanding trial layer in the Kentucky Trial Lawyers Association (now known as the Kentucky Justice Association).

This past year Sam was honored as the 2007 Kentucky Trial Lawyer of the Year and presented with an Abraham Lincoln bust, which he proudly displays in his office.

In the August 2008 issue of “Kentucky Monthly Magazine” Sam was named as one of the Super Lawyers of 2008, which lists the top 50 attorneys in the state.

After 35 years as a trial lawyer, Sam said he has never even considered retiring. Why would he when he has the best of both worlds?

“I like what I do,” he said. “If I were to retire, I’d do exactly what I do now, go to work and dance. When I’m working, I’m traveling. So I can’t see any reason to retire.”

For now, Sam will continue to do the two things he enjoys most, dance with his wife and help those who can’t help themselves.

“This trial practice is like a gambler that plays Texas Hold ‘Em all the time,” he said. “If you don’t win, you don’t get paid. Very exciting.”

        

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