Facing a false advertising lawsuit from a competitor involving claims that it has no significant presence in Pennsylvania, Orlando-based personal injury law firm Morgan & Morgan has hired a lawyer to handle cases in Philadelphia.

The firm hired Kevin Clancy Boylan as the managing attorney of its one-person Philadelphia office. Boylan, who was admitted to the bar in 2012, formerly worked at the truck accident injury firm of Fellerman & Ciarimboli, located in Kingston.

A Morgan & Morgan spokesperson said Tuesday, “The hire is part of Morgan's growth plan for Philadelphia,” in response to the question of whether Boylan's hiring had anything to do with Philadelphia injury lawyer Jeffrey Rosenbaum's lawsuit against the firm, alleging Morgan & Morgan falsely advertises that it has a substantial Pennsylvania practice.

“I'm proud to have an attorney like Clancy in our Philadelphia office,” Morgan & Morgan founder John Morgan said in a statement released Tuesday. “He's had a legal career filled with millions of dollars' worth of courtroom victories that have helped change people's lives.”

Boylan is a graduate of the Duquesne University School of Law and Saint Joseph's University, and in addition to his practice, serves as an attorney adviser to Drexel University's trial advocacy program. He could not be reached for comment.

Recently, U.S. District Judge Mark Kearney of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania denied the Morgan firm's motion to dismiss Rosenbaum's claim that his firm lost money allegedly because the Morgan firm falsely portrayed itself as having a presence in Pennsylvania when, prior to Boylan joining, it had only one licensed attorney in-state.

“In essence, Morgan & Morgan and the individuals are asking us to examine each statement in a vacuum and strike Rosenbaum's allegations about certain statements because those statements are not misleading in isolation,” Kearney said in his opinion. “We decline this exercise at the motion to dismiss stage because it is not clear from Rosenbaum's allegations whether certain statements also appear in an advertisement with the allegedly misleading disclaimer.”

Rosenbaum also sought an injunction requiring Morgan & Morgan to pull its ads off television for the duration of the case, though he later withdrew that filing.

Previously, Kearney denied Morgan & Morgan's motion to dismiss the false advertising claims, allowing them to move forward against the Morgan firm, John Morgan, and attorney Scott Weinstein in relation to several statements made in commercials: “I'm your lawyer”; “We're all here for you” and “Our family is here for your family”; “You don't pay us unless we're successful”; and that the firm is “not a referral service.”

The judge said Rosenbaum has made plausible claims that the statements could mislead prospective clients in Pennsylvania into thinking that the Orlando-based firm and its lawyers—only one of which is licensed to practice in Pennsylvania—will get individual attention from members of the Morgan family.

Kearney dismissed claims related to Morgan & Morgan's billboard and internet advertising.