Whit Drake
Owner and Attorney
Recently voted by his peers as a top Birmingham personal injury attorney in the Birmingham Magazine’s March 2019 edition, Whit Drake strives to provide his clients with the best legal representation possible. Mr. Drake has obtained over $100 million in settlement and recoveries, including being one of the lead counsel in the largest wrongful death settlement in the history of Alabama. Mr. Drake has authored several publications for The Alabama Lawyer, the Alabama Bar Association’s quarterly publication. Whit Drake was born in Decatur, Alabama. He graduated from the University of Alabama School of Law in 1989. Hired by a prestigious Birmingham Personal Injury Law Firm, he has practiced as an accident and injury attorney for 29 years throughout the State of Alabama. Drake Injury Lawyers was founded in 1998 by Whit Drake. Mr. Drake comes from a long line of lawyers. There are a total of 12 lawyers in his family, including several judges and former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tom Drake. Christine Mckoy Drake, Mr. Drake’s mother, served on the Alabama State Board of Education and was also an attorney. Coming from a tradition of personal injury lawyers in his family, Mr. Drake continues to represent victims in personal injury matters throughout Alabama.
Practice Areas
Published Works
- Employer’s Subrogation: Does Anyone Really Understand It?, The Alabama Lawyer, November, 2007
- Effective Case Resolution, The Alabama Lawyer, July, 2013
Representative Cases
Selected Verdicts and Settlements
- $15 Million Dollar Verdict in Auto Crash in Chilton County
- $5 Million Dollar Verdict in Wrongful Death Case in Etowah County
- $2.2 Million Dollar Verdict for Industrial Accident in Limestone County
- $65 Million Dollar Settlement in Workplace Accident Involving Multiple Claimants
- $2.5 Million Dollar Verdict for Arm Amputation Caused by Medical Malpractice
- $3 Million Settlement for Car Accident for Cullman Clients
- $1 Million Settlement for Gadsden Funeral Home Negligence
- $700,000 Verdict For Cullman Farmer
- $1.2 Million Verdict for Hospital Negligence / Wrongful Death in Jefferson County
- $2.75 Settlement In Calhoun County
- $1.2 Million Dollar Verdict for Wrongful Death at Local Hospital
- $350,000 Verdict for Car Accident
- $400,000 Verdict for On-the-Job Finger Amputation
Reported and Published Cases
- Hill v. General Motors (Wrongful Death), Southern Reporter (1997)
- Haddock V. Multivac (hand crush) Southern Reporter (1996)
- Oliver v. Medical Center East, Southern Reporter (2001)
- Trippe v. Baptist Medical Center(Wrongful Death), Southern Reporter (1993)
- Whisenant v. Gulf States Steel, (hand amputation in machine) Southern Reporter (1996)
- Young v. Huntsville Hospital, Southern Reporter (1993)
- Adams v. Douglas Battery, Inc.(Wrongful Death), Southern Reporter (2006)
Classes and Seminars
- “Preparing The Nursing Home Case – Plaintiffs Perspective”, 1999“
- Retaliatory Discharge”, 1998 Workers’ Compensation Seminar, Cumberland Law School 1997
- “On-the-Job Injuries and Negligent Third Parties” Alabama 1996
- “Medical Malpractice Litigation- Plaintiff’s Perspective”, 1999
- “Employer’s Subrogation in Third Party Cases: Does Anyone Really Understand It?,” The Alabama Lawyer, 2007
- “Effective Cross-Examination of Experts at Trial”, AIM Seminar, 2008
- “Using Evidence at Trial”, Alabama Bar Institute Seminar, 2009
- “Personal Injury Practice: How To Do It Right!”, AIM Seminar 2015
- “Car Accident Claims 101”, Alabama Young Lawyers Section 2015
Past Employment Positions
- Emord & Vines, Partner, 1989 – 1998
