Irv is an active trial lawyer, whose law practice is limited to the representation of plaintiffs in catastrophic injury and medical malpractice cases. He is President of the Richmond, Virginia law firm, Breit Cantor Grana Buckner, PLLC. Irv graduated from the University of Virginia Law School in 1978, served as a law clerk for the Supreme Court of Virginia the next year, and has been in active trial practice since 1979. He is a Past President of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association, the American Board of Trial Advocates – Va., and the Brain Injury Association of Virginia. In 2016 and 2014, Irv was voted by his peers as “Richmond Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs Lawyer of the Year” in Best Lawyers in America. In 2018, he was one of only 33 members inducted into the inaugural class of the Virginia Lawyers Hall of Fame. Irv has also been voted by his peers for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America in both personal injury and medical malpractice law (since 2007), Virginia Super Lawyers (Top 10 in Virginia – 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017), and the Virginia Legal Elite. He has obtained over 50 verdicts or settlements exceeding one million dollars for his clients.
Irv was featured on the cover of the 2015 Super Lawyers Magazine for Virginia and West Virginia. The feature article on Irv is entitled, The Brain Behind Brain Injuries, and discusses Irv’s experience and expertise in the field of brain injury litigation.
Irv has co-authored The Art and Science of Mastering the Jury Trial with Judge Samuel Johnston.
Irv began using mock trials and focus groups in the preparation of his cases in the early 1980s. Since then, he and his trial team have used mock trials and focus groups in virtually every major case – testing trial themes, case values, venue choices, witnesses, evidence and arguments. Irv and his multimedia engineer, Alan Michaelis, developed over the years an effective and cost-efficient system for conducting mock trials and focus groups. Jury Impressions was started in 2005 to make this mock trial system and consulting services available to trial lawyers. Irv has conducted hundreds of focus groups in his career.
