John Merrick

John Merrick always wanted to be a trial lawyer.

Well, let's back up: He originally wanted to be a charter-fishing boat captain. But early in life, he discovered that a legal profession, and litigation in particular, provided an opportunity to help others — while also satisfying his competitive spirit.

John has tried dozens of cases in courts throughout the Commonwealth, handled multiple appeals, and argued successfully before the Virginia Supreme Court. John enjoys getting out of his comfort zone and seeking new challenges.

Prior to founding Merrick Brock, he spent more than a decade as a lawyer defending insurance companies. Over time he grew weary of witnessing firsthand the games they play, the holes they try to poke, and the tactics they use to defeat individuals and settle for far less than a case is worth. John decided to take that industry insight and use it to help his clients fight back against those tactics. Today, he represents people throughout Virginia who have been injured by harmful products, neglect, or negligence.

John's experience includes a variety of personal injury cases, including products liability, premises liability, nursing home neglect, medical malpractice, dog bites, and trucking and auto accidents. In addition to personal injury cases, he has experience with commercial disputes involving consumer fraud, defamation, breach of contract, construction disputes and property issues. After graduating from Sewanee – The University of the South, and prior to law school at the University of Richmond, he worked as a professional mate on sport-fishing boats in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and in the Gulf of Mexico. When he wasn't fishing offshore, he was working in restaurants in Idaho to support his pursuit of trout and waterfowl.

John considers being an attorney part of his identity and lifelong development. He also considers his love of the outdoors, hunting and fishing in particular, part of that identity. John still holds on to that lifelong dream to have his own charter boat someday, but until then, is more than content taking his young son out on the water to catch blue crabs and small fish.

Practice Areas:

• Personal Injury
• Wrongful Death
• Brain Injury
• Truck Accidents
• Car Accidents
• Motorcycle Accidents
• Animal & Dog Bites
• Premises Liability
• Trip/Slip and Fall

Admissions:

• Virginia, 2008
• South Carolina, 2008

Memberships:

• Richmond Bar Association, President Elect 2026-2027
• Member since 2008, Positions Held:
• Executive Committee Member
• At Large Board Member
• Treasurer/Secretary
• Vice President
• Co-Chair Bench Bar Conference Committee
• Chair of Judiciary Committee
• Chair of Young Lawyers Committee
• Chair of Membership Committee
• Chair of Finance Committee
• Chair of Sponsors Committee
• Chair of Programs Committee
• Lewis F. Powell, Jr., American Inn of Court, President 2023-2025
• Virginia Trial Lawyers Association, Member since 2019.
• International Association of Defense Counsel, Past Member.
• Virginia State Bar, Conference of Local and Specialty Bar Associations - Committee Member, 2019 – 2020
• Virginia Association of Defense Attorneys, Member 2008 – 2018
• Positions Held:
• Executive Committee
• Section Chair: Auto, Products Liability

Honors and Awards:

• Richmond Bar Association Young Lawyer of the Year Award Recipient (2014)
• Legal Elite Young Lawyer (under 40), Virginia Business
• Super Lawyers, Rising Stars Personal Injury Defense (General), 2015-2018
• Super Lawyers, Super Lawyer, 2020 - 2026
• Avvo 10.0 Rating
• Elite Lawyer

Reported Cases:

• Terry v. Irish Fleet, Inc., 296 Va. 129, 818 S.E.2d 788 (2018) (prevailed on issue of first impression involving the assumption of duty doctrine).
• Kocen v. Piccadilly Restaurants, LLC, Civil Action No. 3:10CV921-HEH (E.D. Va., 2011) (summary judgment granted in premises liability case)

Representative Cases

• $1,250,000 Wrongful death involving head-on collision. Case settled for policy limits of available insurance after suit filed and depositions taken.
• $1,075,000 Consolidated cases involving personal injury and wrongful death.
• $1,050,000 Wrongful death involving crash at intersection. Case settled for limits of available insurance after suit filed.
• $1,000,000 Auto crash involving shoulder surgeries and complicated medical history. Case settled as trial approached.
• $900,000 Jury verdict in hotly contested injury case, after 4-day trial.
• $530,000 Settlement of claim against USA for auto collision. Case settled after three settlement conferences.
• $475,000 Settlement of trip and fall case after extensive litigation.
• $400,000 Premises liability settlement involving scooter crash. Case settled after two-day trial.
• $350,000 Medical malpractice settlement. No offer until nearly the eve of trial.
• $300,000 Settlement of auto v. pedestrian crash. Defendant paid $100,000 out of pocket in addition to all insurance coverage.

Representative Experience:

• Obtained a favorable outcome for an individual who was injured from cargo flying off a tractor trailer on Interstate 95, shattering her windshield and causing significant injuries and inconvenience.
• Obtained a favorable outcome for an individual who suffered nasal bone fractures after a tripping over a dangerous condition in a restaurant parking lot.
• Obtained a favorable outcome through mediation for a victim of predatory lending practices.
• Successfully mediated a products liability case involving a plaintiff who sustained a severe injury to his left hand from a shotgun blast.
• Successfully mediated cases involving nursing homes sued for abuse and neglect.
• Represented businesses and injured individuals in cases involving food poisoning or foreign items in food.
• Represented a nursing home in case involving a resident who fell while being transported by a mechanical lift who later died from his injuries.
• Represented a nursing home in cases involving residents who sustained injuries from falls due to negligent care.
• Represented local and historic properties in premises liability actions involving building code violations, dangerous lighting conditions and/or construction defects that caused guests to fall and sustain significant injuries.
• Obtained favorable outcomes in suits involving malicious prosecution.
• Represented homeowners in cases involving fraud, negligence and/or breach of contract by contractors.
• Represented real estate agents in various claims by buyers arising from alleged concealment of defects during and after sale.
• Represented Homeowner's Associations in suits by members over easement disputes.
• Represented a sub-contractor in suit by developer alleging negligence and breach of contract.
• Represented land surveyor in suit by excavation company alleging negligence.
• Successfully mediated multiple personal injury suits involving cars, tractor trailers, bicycles, pedestrians and boats in addition to nursing home abuse and neglect, dog bites, and premises liability.

Jury Trials Throughout the Commonwealth:

• Resident of nursing home died as a result of neck injuries sustained from a fall during transfer. (Rockingham Co.)
• Resident of nursing home fell due to negligence of the nursing home, causing significant injuries. (City of Lynchburg)
• Pedestrian struck by automobile in grocery store parking lot, causing leg injuries. (Lee Co.)
• Bicyclist (going full speed down a hill near UVA) struck a trailer pulled by a work truck after the truck pulled in front of the bicyclist's path and stopped, causing a wreck and significant neck and back injuries. (City of Charlottesville)
• Bicyclist struck by beer distribution truck after the driver opened his door into the path of the bicycle causing shoulder injuries and a permanent deformity. (City of Charlottesville)
• Visitor fell over a hazardous single step that resulted in a broken wrist that required surgery. (City of Richmond)
• Tractor trailer pulled out in front of a small auto, causing a wreck and a significant ankle injury to the driver. (King George Co.)
• Plaintiff fell in a deep pit in an auto repair shop causing significant leg injuries. (Chesterfield Co.)
• Restaurant visitor fell over a step in dimly lit restaurant causing severe hamstring injury and leg injury that required surgery. (City of Richmond)
• Guest at apartment complex fell over a damaged brick step that caused a broken ankle that required surgery. (City of Norfolk)
• Plaintiff fell in a car wash and sustained a severe knee injury that required surgery. (Spotsylvania Co.)
• Plaintiff fell in hole created by a missing water meter cover causing severe ankle injury. (City of Petersburg)
• Auto accident causing shoulder injury that required surgery. (Nottoway Co.)
• Auto accident causing severe neck and back injuries. (Powhatan Co.)
• Auto accident causing soft tissue injuries. (Henrico Co.)
• Auto accident causing soft tissue injuries. (City of Richmond)
• Three personal injury cases arising from a single accident, consolidated and tried together. (Loudon Co.)
• Auto accident causing soft tissue injuries. (Culpeper Co.)
• Auto accident causing hip, neck and back injuries. (Chesterfield Co.)
• The cases referenced above do not represent the lawyer's entire record. Each case must be evaluated on its own facts. The outcome of a particular case cannot be based on past results.

Presentation & Publications:

• Panelist: Not Just Posters Anymore: Effective Use of Exhibits, Videos, & Charts at Trial (VADA Spring Meeting 2016)
• Panelist: Cases in the 21st Century – Impact of Generational Differences (VADA Annual Meeting 2016)
• Ins & Outs of Jury Instructions for Auto & Premises Liability Cases (VADA Spring Meeting 2017)
• Terry v. Irish Fleet, Inc. Marks a New Development in The Assumption of Duty Doctrine, While Serving as a Reminder About the Viability of a Demurrer (VADA Journal of Civil Litigation, Vol. XXX, No. 4)

Relevant Past Employment:

• Harman, Claytor, Corrigan, Wellman (Associate / Partner), 2008 - 2019

Education:

• Law School: TC Williams School of Law, University of Richmond, cum laude
• College/University: Sewanee, University of the South, 2001 B.A. US History, Order of Gownsmen

Favorite Movies:

• Big Lebowski and Raising Arizona.

Favorite Books:

• Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follet. A Land Remembered, by Patrick D. Smith.

What are you doing when you are not practicing law?:

• I am most often on the water with family and friends. From sitting on the beach, to offshore fishing, to hunting in muddy creeks and everything in between.
• Brock is also an assistant coach of the Tuckahoe Little League ad of 6-7 yo coach pitch.

If you were not practicing law, what would you be doing?:

• Working as a charter boat captain, preferably where the fishing is great and the seas are calm.

When did you decide to pursue a career as a lawyer?:

• In grade school I played Benjamin Franklin in a musical called 1776, which is about the events surrounding the signing of the Declaration of Independence. I looked around and noticed that many of the key characters were lawyers. Knowing nothing about the practice of law, I thought "there must be something good about this profession." In middle school I read the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, and decided that I wanted to be like the lead character, Atticus Finch, in order to help others.

What are the three things that make you different than many other personal injury lawyers?:

• (1) I spent over ten years of my career defending insurance companies and their insured, which gives me a unique insight into their perspective; (2) I have a strong desire to take cases to trial, because I truly enjoy it and want to win; (3) I have walked in many shoes, and with that life experience I am able to connect with a variety of people.

What do you think is your best asset as a trial lawyer?:

• I am fiercely competitive, and my desire to win translates into a commitment to prepare. Preparing is neither easy nor glamorous, but I think it is the most important component of any trial.