Meet Michael Terani of Oakwood Legal Group in Beverly Hills

Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Terani.

Michael, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born in Stamford, Connecticut and moved to Santa Monica, California when I was 5 years old. Growing up, I witnessed my mother and father always helping their neighbors, friends and family in any way they could. When I was just 10 years old my oldest sister met her future husband, who was attending law school. Being that I don’t have a brother, he instantly became my role model. Straight out of law school he became an injury attorney. One of my first jobs was working in his office at the age of 14. Back then all legal research was performed through actual books and physical binders! So as laws changed, you would need to swap out the pages with the old laws with the new updates. That was my job in the summers. As his clients would come into the office he would introduce me and I was exposed to the attorney-client relationship at a young age. I loved it.

Needless to say, I followed in his footsteps and decided to become an injury attorney. In law school I clerked for the Santa Monica City Attorney’s office where I worked on a wide variety of personal injury cases and gained invaluable experience. It was my passion for helping people that brought me back to the plaintiff’s side of the law and I formed Oakwood Legal Group with my partner Raymond Zolekhian. He and I are first cousins and we’re the same age. We grew up together and went to college together and have made a great team ever since we were winning basketball championships at the YMCA!

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It certainly hasn’t been a smooth road! I’ve had many obstacles along the way and can proudly say that I’m thankful for them!

When I was in high school, my father lost his business. A few months later he lost his entire life savings in the stock market. Financially, I’ve been on my own ever since. In college most of my student loans would go to my parents to help with their mortgage and living expenses. While in college I worked as a bookkeeper, a math tutor, a basketball referee at nights and a sports camp counselor during the summers.

When I finished law school, I started my own practice with a $1,500 loan.

Like anything in life, there are going to be bumps in the road. I start every morning by counting my blessings and focusing on things that are within my control. I have found that with that mindset, no matter how “bumpy” the road is, you can still have a “smooth” ride. I just came up with that! Cheesy, I know.

Please tell us about Oakwood Legal Group.
Oakwood Legal Group is one of California’s premier personal injury law firms. Our lawyers are armed with sophisticated legal training from some of the nation’s top law schools, including Harvard Law School, Loyola Law School and UCLA. We specialize in personal injury cases. Basically, any time someone has been injured due to someone else’s negligence. Most of our clients have been the victim of an auto accidents, slip/trip and fall. dog bite, assault or harassment.

As a law firm we’re most proud of our attention to detail. Our mission statement is as follows: To transform each client’s experience from one of “personal injury” to one of “personal attention”. My clients have my cell phone number, they call and text me at all hours of the day and night and as long as I’m awake, I reply pretty quickly. Each client has a dedicated case manager who checks in on them during the course of their case. Our clients also have their case manager’s cell phone number and are free to ask for updates any time.

What sets us apart from others? Probably my partner’s Harvard Law Degree! Jokes aside, the answer is pretty simple. What sets us apart is the character of the people who make up Oakwood Legal Group. We hire people with good hearts. People who want to do good not because I’m forcing them to. But because they have an inner desire to WANT to do good. We WANT to work hard and WANT to provide breathtaking client service. We WANT to win every case and set records for our settlement amounts and verdicts. We’ve recovered millions for our clients and have changed thousands of lives and we will continue to do so with smiles on our faces.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I would have partnered up with Ray and formed Oakwood Legal Group earlier if the circumstances were different.

Contact Info:

• Address: 8383 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 702
  Beverly Hills, CA 90211
• Website: www.oakwoodlegal.com
• Phone: 3102052525
• Email: [email protected]

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