History of Our Firm

The Founder

After being mentored by legendary trial lawyer B. Nathaniel Richter, Arthur G. Raynes established his own firm with John McCarty in 1969. A skilled and tenacious attorney, Mr. Raynes quickly took on the massive challenge of representing children who had suffered the devastating effects of the drug thalidomide. Even before the law of products liability had been fully developed in American courts, Mr. Raynes faced off against the drug company Richardson-Merrill and its collaborators, who were trying to bring thalidomide to the United States from Europe. Working with caring physicians in the United States, Canada, Germany, and Sweden, and after tireless investigation and preparation, Mr. Raynes won a much-needed recovery for his clients. It was the first successful thalidomide recovery. Mr. Raynes’ work inspired the book Suffer the Children: The Story of Thalidomide by the staff of London's Sunday Times.

Building the Team

As Mr. Raynes earned a worldwide reputation for creativity in the courtroom (such as when he had Isaac Stern play his violin for the court to demonstrate how a finger injury can affect a concert violinist), he simultaneously built his practice by inviting leading attorneys like James F. Mundy to join him. Mr. Mundy, a proven litigator, demonstrated both the personal passion and intellectual discipline necessary to take on the weighty responsibility of representing the severely injured.

Noted criminal prosecutor A. Roy DeCaro was invited into the Firm for his skill and acumen at trial. Mr. DeCaro has tried more than 150 cases, recovering record sums for his clients, including a $10.25 million federal court verdict for a client injured when he dove into an aboveground swimming pool.

Harold I. Goodman, the director of the Employment Rights Project of Community Legal Services, increased the Firm’s strength in the area of civil rights. On behalf of his clients, Mr. Goodman has won four victories in the United States Supreme Court, more than 10 victories in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, and more than 30 victories in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.

Eugene D. McGurk, Jr. first mastered his trade in the Philadelphia City Solicitor’s office. Stephen Raynes, after clerking for a federal judge and working at a Wall Street law firm, now contributes skills honed while managing major business cases to the Firm's catastrophic injury practice.

After spending his early years at Schnader Harrison, Charles P. Hehmeyer opened his own firm, concentrating his work on representing children with metabolic disorders, an expertise he now brings to the Firm’s clients.

Joined by Attorneys McHugh and Brigham

In 2004, the Firm grew significantly when Gerald A. McHugh, Jr., one of the most respected trial lawyers in Pennsylvania, and Martin K. Brigham, nationally renowned for representing burn survivors and victims of industrial accidents, moved their practice to Raynes McCarty after the dissolution of the Litvin firm.

Mr. McHugh learned his trial skills from S. Gerald Litvin, the consummate teacher of advocacy. Before joining Raynes McCarty with his colleagues Martina McLaughlin and Regina Foley, Mr. McHugh had co-counseled on significant cases with Arthur Raynes.

Mr. Raynes and Mr. Brigham first met through their shared belief in the power of video-tape settlement brochures to persuasively present their client cases. The Firm now has a full digital editing suite directed by Mr. Brigham. Click here to read more about our settlement videos.

The firm has continued to grow, being joined by experienced litigators Tim Lawn, a former partner of Mr. McHugh, Dan Bencivenga, a long-term colleague of Mr. Brigham, Dr. Daniel M. Finelli, a licensed physician., and Jenimae Almquist, recognized in the Legal Intelligencer as a “Rising Star” in the Philadelphia legal community.

Following a six month battle with cancer, founding partner Arthur Raynes died in July, 2006, leaving behind many legacies: a revered legal career, a thriving law firm, and a loving family. Click here to read articles about Mr. Raynes’ life.

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