It was, in Joe Watkins' words, a “very mundane” accident. Last October, as he rose to answer nature's call in the middle of the night, “I got up too fast and fell.”

Watkins, a founding partner of plaintiffs' boutique Watkins Lourie Roll & Chance, hit his chin on a shelf as he fell, snapping his neck back and suffering “central cord syndrome,” a whiplash-type injury that bruised his spinal cord and left him mostly paralyzed from his chest down.

After surgery to stabilize the damaged tendons in his neck, Watkins underwent months of in-patient therapy at the Shepherd Center, staying at the renowned spinal and brain injury facility until he was released in January and immediately began a regimen of “intensive outpatient therapy.”

At 65, the avid runner who completed more than 20 marathons and has coached other marathon runners was in good shape. He has responded well to treatment, regaining some use of his hands and legs, though he is still largely confined to a motorized wheelchair.

Early this summer, Watkins took another step toward his old life, returning to Henning Mediation & Arbitration Service as a neutral where—with the help of his wife, Margaret, who serves as his “hands”—he has overseen more than a dozen disputes.

“I only write down numbers and open the door,” said Margaret Watkins as her husband smiled and gently shook his head prior to a recent mediation at Henning's offices near the Galleria.

Watkins, who picked up his mediation practice last spring after letting it go dormant for a few years, said he was urged to come back by veteran Henning neutral Rex Smith, an old friend.

“Rex and I co-mediated a case, and the powers that be at Henning wanted to know if I could still do it,” he said.

Henning President Richard Colley said Watkins has proved himself fully capable of overseeing complex mediations.

“He told me back in May he was ready to start, and quite frankly I was a little surprised at how quickly word got around and people started using him again,” said Colley.

“All of the clients I've that I've spoken to have been very positive about Joe being back and working to get their cases resolved. His current disability has not hindered him at all in being able to handle his cases completely,” he said.

“Joe Watkins is very well liked and respected in the Atlanta litigation community,” Colley said.

With more than 41 years practicing law, Watkins already offered deep experience to his work at Henning, which hosts 18 neutrals.

Watkins spent 20 years, most of them as partner, at the defense firm now known as Weinberg Wheeler Hudgins Gunn & Dial. He served a term as chair of the State Bar of Georgia's Insurance Law section during that time.

He and firm colleagues Lance Lourie and Robert Roll left to start their own plaintiffs' firm in 1997, adding former Weinberg lawyer Stephen Chance two years later to complete the roster for Watkins, Lourie, Roll & Chance.

Watkins—who served as president of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association from 2007-2008—became involved in acting as a mediator in about 2006.

“I'd been to a ton of mediations but never mediated one,” he said. “I got interested, took the mediation course here, and I did several over the years.”

Watkins found his services in demand even as he handled his caseload at Watkins Lourie due to his background in handling medical malpractice and catastrophic injury cases on both the defense and plaintiffs' side.

“I didn't really do anything to promote the mediation and the practice kept me busy,” he said. “In the spring about a year ago, I started talking to some people about getting back into it, re-took the course and was invited to join the panel,” he said.

“I was mediating up until my accident.”

Watkins said he should see more improvement in his motor skills and abilities over time, during which he continues to undergo regular therapy at Shepherd.

“They tell me that, with this injury, your arms and hands are the last to come back,” he said. “I can use a cellphone, but I can't write; I can type, and I use a voice-activated computer program to go online.”

Watkins said he has tried to stay involved in his law firm's work, as well, “but there's only so much I can do. I've been blessed with some very understanding partners. I had some [cases] they took over, and some are still in the process of changing over.”

Even given his more than four decades of handling medical malpractice and personal injury cases, Watkins said his post-injury life has been an eye-opener.

“Certainly having been through this experience for the last nine or 10 months has changed a lot of perspectives regarding the nature of injury and disability, so yeah, I've got a lot of empathy and appreciation for both sides,” he said.

“I do regret that I don't get to spend a lot of time outdoors now. I really was very physically active,” Watkins said. “They talk about recovery times of maybe a few years. I've got a lot of leg strength, core strength. As to when I'll be back up walking around? We're working on it, making a lot of progress.”

“I don't think I'll ever be a runner again,” said Watkins, as he prepared to roll into his mediation session. “I'll be happy to be up walking. Running would be icing on the cake.”