Meet Travis L. Russell
Travis Russell is a Fort Myers personal injury attorney at the Farah & Farah office just off College Parkway. Having spent time in the Public Defender’s Office, several years as a pre-suit manager, and even in insurance defense as a paralegal, Travis has more frontline experience in different areas of the law than most. That experience is powerful when you’re a victim relying on fair and above-board representation from your accident attorney.Â
With Travis Russell, you have a highly-experienced attorney in Fort Myers who is genuinely invested in helping clients turn their lives around after an accident.
Working My Way Up from Paralegal to Seasoned Trial Attorney
Before taking the bar exam, I gained several years of experience first at a small personal injury firm and then at a huge corporate firm as a personal injury pre-suit manager. While I was still waiting for my acceptance into the bar, I even went to the insurance defense side as a paralegal for a few years.Â
All of this time before actually becoming a Florida-barred attorney was invaluable. I got to see how the backgrounds of cases on both sides of the aisle are built from the ground up. I learned how to effectively manage a personal injury case, how to keep organized files, and a thousand other skills I get to employ every day.Â
Once I did get admitted to the bar, I decided to start my career in the Public Defender’s Office. As public defenders, we are court-appointed to defend criminals that can’t otherwise afford legal counsel. When you’re accused of a crime and can’t hire an attorney, the law says you can have an attorney to help protect your constitutional rights. My job was to provide fair, balanced, and above-board representation no matter what crimes my clients were accused of. It was a tremendous experience where I spent as many as four days a week in the courtroom and I had plenty of successful trial verdicts for my clients.Â
Coming on board with Farah and Farah, my experience is being put to use on personal injury cases. Once you call Farah and Farah and go through our talented intake folks, you’ll be assigned to an attorney like me who can start your case on solid footing from the very beginning. Having extensive litigation experience, I can also be called upon to move a case through trial if that’s what’s necessary to get the best results possible.
Every Client Has a Story
Something that gets me out of bed each morning is that each and every one of my clients has their own story. The accident wasn’t just a car crash, it was a singular event with widespread ramifications throughout someone’s life. Personal injury is just that—extremely personal. As their counsel, I am building a personal relationship with my clients.Â
Our clients are coming to an accident attorney because they need help. It’s humbling that I’m the one that can provide the help they need to be made whole again.
I’ve Taken on Complex and Difficult Cases with Passion
A case I’ll never forget happened when I was representing a client who had been caught with drugs on his person. Taking the case all the way to trial, I was part of the team to plan his defense and help pick the jury.Â
In the end, we were able to get our client a favorable verdict which accounted for the time he’d already served. Being a public defender means you have to help protect your client’s constitutional rights, the chief of which is to get a fair trial. With even-handed representation, we were able to do just that and ensure he wasn’t sentenced to a harsher prison term than his actions warranted.Â
The legal process is full of complex issues, and communicating these in an easy-to-understand format is definitely a skill every attorney needs. I find that practicing law for so long and in many different capacities has helped me be able to boil down complex legal issues in ways that are simple and easy to communicate. This skill helps both our clients and my team, as I can speak from experience to my paralegal and case managers because I’ve done both of those positions myself.
Organization Is Everything
I learned early in my law career to stay organized and have a plan each week. I’ll block off certain portions of my week to perform given tasks. That way, I can devote all of my energy and focus to getting a certain action completed. Whether it’s blocking off a few hours strictly for client contact in the afternoon or making sure I have time set aside for research and motion drafting, keeping organized helps me stay on top of things.
I Love Having My Homestead Near Fort Myers
My wife and I have three kids and enjoy life outside of work on a small 10-acre farm. Taking care of a few rescues and various cows, horses, goats, ducks, and even a German Shepherd, requires a lot of my spare time, but these moments are crucial to helping me recharge. If we do happen to find ourselves with some extra time, we love getting to any of the local beaches nearby for some fun in the sun. If it happens to be baseball season, I’m a lifelong Braves fan, but will genuinely watch just about any team that might be playing.
As a U.S. Coast Guard vet, I’m excited to see all the good that Farah and Farah does in the community. I’ve spent so many hours volunteering with the Lee County Legal Aid Society and the Lee County Bar Association, for which I have been recognized locally. Investing in our communities in tangible ways is simply what it means to be a good steward to me.
