Derek K. Burch

Derek K. Burch is a firmly rooted Oklahoman, but his reputation as a trial lawyer has taken him to courts across the country. Oftentimes, his own cases take him to other jurisdictions, but frequently he is called upon by lawyers elsewhere to assist them in their own local cases.

After receiving his J.D. from the Oklahoma City University School of Law in December, 1988, Burch began his legal career working for two law firms that handled insurance defense and commercial work, but it wasn’t the kind of law that he wanted to practice. Noted Oklahoma City plaintiff’s attorney Ed Abel gave Burch the chance to join his firm and handle personal-injury cases and Burch found what he was looking for. Burch’s old law-school friend, Kelly A. George, then also joined the Abel firm and they worked together there for several years before deciding to create their own firm, launching Burch & George in 1997.

In 2011, Kelly and Derek invited their long time associate DeeAnn L. Germany to become a named partner in the firm. Since then, the firm has operated as Burch, George & Germany. Ms. Germany has proven herself as an experienced, effective and well respected trial lawyer.

The two founding partners made a commitment to limit the firm’s practice solely to plaintiff’s work. Most of the firm’s cases involve catastrophic injury claims and liability/wrongful death litigation; including motor-vehicle cases, some medical malpractice and insurance bad faith cases.

Burch’s own practice encompasses all of those categories, but he has developed a particular interest in product liability cases. “They are very challenging,” he says. “As a trial lawyer, I enjoy all areas of our practice, but product liability cases have always piqued my interest.”