Mel L. Crawford

When I couldn't find and an attorney to take me on as a client, an angel was presented to me in the name of Mel Crawford. He is an attorney shows compassion for his clients. He takes the time to understand you as a person, and your specific health issues, in order to best represent you as his clien...t. He is honest and up front with the realities of what you can expect from him and what he can or can't do for you. I would recommend him to anyone looking for a knowledgeable, compassionate, hard working, and exceptional attorney in his field.

Mel was a Godsend when we needed a lawyer most. My husband worked for many years after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, but eventually had to stop working last year. His company’s disability insurance company denied his short-term disability claim! That’s when Mel stepped in with a firm, wel...l-written letter to the disability insurance company, and they immediately reversed their decision. Mel also assisted us with the long term disability application, which was readily approved. Mel was very quick to answer our calls and respond to emails and give wise counsel. His fee was surprisingly affordable. Mel helped us through a difficult and challenging time. I can’t imagine what we would have done without his help! Mel truly cares about people faced with disabilities; he cared for us. Mel has the experience and knowledge and dedication to take on disability companies, which are often dishonest and corrupt. Don’t go it alone! Mel is exceptional—a true Godsend. We can’t thank him enough.

I disagreed with an insurance company for months and months about their decision to terminate my benefits. I read every word of a 900+ page case file. I wrote what I thought was an incredibly strong appeal. The insurance company's tactics were transparently manipulative, stalling, and biased. Their d...ecision forced me to do things that were not in my best interest medically. I was on the verge of giving up because it was just too much when a trusted person gave me Mel's contact information. Everything changed after that. Mel was reassuring, compassionate, and empathetic. He helped me understand that it wasn't personal. It was what insurance companies did and that this one was one of the worst of the worst. It was empowering when the insurance company asked one more blatantly stalling thing of me to be able to have Mel immediately contact them telling them that from there on out everything went through him. He wrote a second letter building on my own appeal, but based in legal precedence and without my frayed emotions. Mel is a gifted and effective writer. He had a quiet and calming demeanor with me, but his communications with the insurance company were professional but with a firm tone that left no doubt that they were no longer dealing with a person they could continue their standard practices with. Mel is clearly passionate about his work and cares very much about his clients. The insurance company seemed to double down but Mel's expertise in handling these matters allowed him to walk me through the expected reactions and possible outcomes. And we were very prepared and able to respond quickly and definitively. I was battling a huge corporation solo before hiring Mel. After hiring Mel, despite that we were a small team, Mel made us so effective against the insurance company that I feel we forced them to admit (of course, without admitting) that they had made the wrong decision initially. Ultimately, Mel brought us to a conclusion that I never could have on my own despite that I had in my original appeal accurately identified several of the shortcomings of the insurance companies decision. Despite this, their tactics had completely worn me down and without Mel I would have walked away. I absolutely felt that I was being bullied by the insurance company and felt utterly powerless to do anything about it. Mel very much helped me regain that empowerment by speaking on my behalf with his years of legal expertise behind his words. It's easy to feel like you have no options as a single person against a huge insurance company, but with Mel advocating for you, even two people can face a huge corporation that has had years to perfect their tactics of breaking people down. I believe I could have spared myself a lot of anguish if I'd hired Mel earlier.

Mel is an A+++ attorney and is expertly knowledgeable in his craft. He helped me navigate very difficult situations for a year and a half with disability insurance companies so that I get the time I needed to recover from my health challenges. Mel is kind, caring, and compassionate - something that i...s very rare to find in business these days. I would recommend Mel to anyone that needs support the way I did because I don't think I would have been able to concentrate on my health recovery if it wasn't for Mel. I am very grateful for what Mel has done for me.

Mel is a dream as a lawyer, partner and human. He’s been my lawyer for 3+ years and helped me get short-term and long-term disability claims approved with two different insurance companies for both phases. He also helped me get continued coverage at the two-year mark when the definition of disability... changed. For context on my conditions, I had cancer and am disabled from long-term side effects from the surgeries, radiation, and chemotherapy. I now have chronic pain and cognitive issues. He knows his area of law inside and out - he’s incredibly smart and has been doing this kind of law exclusively for so long that his experience is also an advantage. He also knows the insurance companies well enough to know the nuances of working with each. He also knows all the tricks the disability insurance companies play. He advised me ahead of time on how they might try to decline coverage both at the onset, and at the 2 year mark when many disability insurance plans change the definition on what is required to be considered disabled. My health situation is complicated and is one they’d likely try to cut off at 2 years. And he was right. Literally every step the insurance company made Mel had predicted and we had prepared for. And we won. The insurance company continued to approve my claim and there was no interruption in my benefits. Had I not had Mel as my lawyer, this likely wouldn’t have gone my way. I knew I had a legitimate claim, but the disability insurance companies aren’t always looking at whether it’s legitimate, but instead how to minimize their payout. Mel has always billed conservatively. He never ran the bill up with unnecessary conversations or steps. His rates were more than fair for the work he did and especially for the outcomes. I plan on retaining Mel for as long as he’ll keep me as a client! I feel like he genuinely cares about me as a person and about helping me. I already have enough to worry about with my health issues and having Mel on my team makes my life easier and less stressful.