The boutique litigation firm Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen was founded by two eminent personal injury attorneys, Stuart Grossman and Neal Roth.

Grossman was named Trial Lawyer of the Year by the American Board of Trial Advocates of Florida, and Roth is a former president of the Florida Justice Association, the leading plaintiffs bar group in the state.

Some of the law firm's latest cases involve the deadly Florida International University pedestrian bridge collapse, a doctor's death in a burning Tesla and nursing home deaths during a Hurricane Irma power outage.

Automakers, doctors and insurers are frequent targets of high-stakes Grossman Roth lawsuits, and eight-figure settlements and verdicts are commonplace for the firm.

In a question-and-answer format, the firm offers some insight into its practice and thinking.

Firm: Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen

Firm leader: Neal Roth, co-founder

Head count: 11

Locations: Coral Gables and Boca Raton

Practice areas: Personal injury, medical malpractice, complex litigation and appellate law

Governance structure and compensation model: Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen has an equity partner structure with a managing partner responsible for the day-to-day operation of the firm. Each attorney receives a base salary and bonuses as additional payment based on their performance.

Do you offer alternative fee arrangements? We are a results-oriented team that aims to secure justice for every client through hard work and innovative, thoughtful strategy. GRYC primarily operates under contingency fee arrangements for this reason. However, we can offer other payment structures on a case-by-case basis if the situation requires that and not detract from fully funding our clients' cases.

What do you view as the two biggest opportunities for your firm, and what are the two biggest threats? Our website and social channels provide us the best opportunities to grow GRYC's client base and referral network. We are working to accomplish that by creating content on our website that is informative to others and optimized for search engines to ultimately enhance the firm's digital presence.

It's crucial for us to produce thoughtful, well-crafted material so potential clients have a good first impression. Our social pages follow the same approach and serve as a means for us to build a more personal connection with anyone who needs GRYC's services.

Our biggest threat is the onslaught of commercial advertising some other firms employ. This threat is not exclusive to us, but the practice as a whole. We generally believe the level of capital a paid marketing campaign requires detracts from the ability to invest in more sustainable growth opportunities.

In spaces like ours, such as medical malpractice and personal injury, these campaigns do little to educate individuals that are often in particularly dire situations. This type of advertising can lead people to hire legal teams that may not be equipped with the experience nor resources to handle their cases.

The legal market is so competitive now — what trends do you see, and has anything, including alternative service providers, altered your approach? Is your chief competition other midmarket firms, or is your firm competing against big firms for the same work? The legal market has grown increasingly competitive. However, we do not see many firms within our area of law as true competitors. As a firm specializing in high-stakes medical malpractice, personal injury and complex litigation, our team of award-winning trial attorneys has secured countless successful verdicts throughout Florida — and even throughout the nation. While GRYC is a relatively small firm and extremely selective about the cases we take, we have collectively secured over $1 billion in verdicts and settlements throughout the 30 years we've been in business.

Beyond litigation, we advocate for victims and communities while making a conscious effort to aid their needs. Our work has resulted in legislative changes and new laws that protect consumers and communities. Throughout the years, we've noticed that more and more clients and potential clients are looking to work with businesses with a conscience, and we believe our work showcases our commitment to help victims during a dire time in their lives.

There is much debate around how law firms can foster the next generation of legal talent. What advantages and disadvantages do midsize and small firms have in attracting and retaining young lawyers, particularly millennials? A major advantage for firms our size is the degree of mentoring that occurs between equity and younger partners. GRYC is structured so that the senior partners and other attorneys work very closely with each other to establish close professional relationships.

Moreover, this dynamic also means that attorneys new to our team are provided the opportunity to take on significant matters almost immediately. It can be years before they have the same experience at larger firms.

Both of these factors are some of the most substantial draws for young lawyers to join small and midsized firms. We don't believe there are any disadvantages that would outweigh these.

Does your firm employ any nonlawyer professionals in high-level positions (e.g., COO, business development officer, chief strategy officer, etc.)? If so, why is it advantageous to have a nonlawyer in that role? If not, have you considered hiring any? By virtue of GRYC's structure, we don't need to hire nonlawyer employees for high-level positions. However, after operating at our level in this region for over 30 years, we do have access to exceptionally well-qualified professionals who work externally with me and our finance director to run the firm's day-to-day business.

What would you say is the most innovative thing your firm has done recently, whether it be technology advancements, internal operations, how you work with clients, etc.? We're very big believers in using technology to more effectively tell our client's story and ultimately succeed in a case. Examples include the use of high-quality renderings, graphics and video clips during trials to better illustrate how a relevant series of events transpired. Similarly, we have used state-of-the-art equipment, such as drones, during the discovery process to recapture what happened at the scene of an incident.

Does your firm have a succession plan in place?  If so, what challenges do you face in trying to execute that plan? If you don't currently have a plan, is it an issue your firm is thinking about? GRYC does not have a succession plan in place, and I'm confident one is not needed to ensure this firm continues after its founders move on.

Every attorney here shares the singular goal of providing clients with exceptional service, and they each have a unique role in accomplishing that. Furthermore, our mentorship system ensures this approach is practiced across all teams, no matter the position or age of the employee.

For these reasons, we know any transition that occurs will be smooth, organic and performed with our principles at heart.