In Shay’s fifty years of experience as a lawyer, he’s found that the most important part of his job is understanding.
When representing a victim of medical malpractice, he has to understand the medicine as well as any doctor or nurse in order to prove his client was the victim of negligence.
And in any civil litigation, he has to walk a mile in his client’s shoes in order to understand the experience they’ve been through and achieve justice in the courtroom.
Growing up in a small town east of Birmingham, Shay had little exposure to the practice of law. But one day in eighth grade, he stopped in to watch a fiery local trial lawyer arguing a case in the courtroom. Shay was captivated by the lawyer’s fierce courtroom presence and his commitment to helping his clients.
That trial lawyer, the legendary Tom Radney, took Shay under his wing. As Shay worked his way through college, Radney encouraged him to attend law school and follow in his footsteps.
While attending the Cumberland School of Law, Shay clerked for a major plaintiff’s law firm in Alabama. It was here that Shay became passionate about standing up for individuals, through representing them in the courtroom and helping them navigate trauma, tragedy, and uncertainty.
Shay’s passion for plaintiff advocacy led him to Hare Wynn in 1994, where he became a full partner. Over the course of his career, he has tried hundreds of cases across Alabama in both state and federal courts. Although he has handled cases in almost every area of civil trial litigation, his primary focus has been representing victims of medical malpractice and their families.
Through his tireless work, Shay has secured life-changing multimillion-dollar settlements for hundreds of clients, including a landmark $21 million medical malpractice verdict in 2022, one of the twenty largest in the nation that year.
For Shay, it’s not about the numbers – it’s about the people. He prides himself on forming genuine relationships with clients, trying to truly understand their pain and struggles, and using that knowledge to fuel his fight for justice. Shay believes that if a lawyer isn’t fully invested in their clients’ well-being, their success in the courtroom will never be as impactful.
Outside of his practice, Shay remains deeply committed to his community. Alongside his wife, Colleen, a fellow lawyer, he volunteers at The Red Barn, a local nonprofit providing equestrian therapy for children with special needs and disabilities. They’re both passionate about giving back, and Shay has always believed that the true measure of a person’s success is how much they lift others up.
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