Elizabeth has been in practice for over 17 years, first practicing alongside her father and
founding partner, J. Thomas West, for nearly 15 years before his retirement in 2020. She is
now the managing partner of the firm and focuses her practice on personal injury law
primarily. She feels that her knowledge of the law started very early when she watched
her father in action, even before she became a lawyer.
Elizabeth has been practicing personal injury law for most of her career and enjoys the
practice. She says it gives her the ability to fight for people who are injured when they
can’t stand up for themselves at a time in their lives when they really need someone to
help them.
Elizabeth values each client and tries to really help each one at an individual level, paying
attention to the details of each case. Her years of experience and working with her father
have taught her how to document a case to get the highest value possible. She knows
most of her clients are trying to recover what they lost, due to no fault of their own, and
she tries to do as much as she can to help each one to do just that. She says some lawyers
miss the opportunity to really help because they are too busy and overlook important
aspects of each case that can really make a difference.
“It’s like the starfish story. An older man was walking along the shore after a storm had
washed up many starfish and he was bending and picking up the starfish and throwing
them back into the ocean. He was approached by a young man who said, ‘Sir, why are you
throwing the starfish back into the ocean?’ To which the older man replied, “Because the
sun is up and the tide is going out, and if I don’t throw them back, they will die.’ To that,
the young man says, ‘But, old man, don’t you know there are miles and miles of beach, and
you can’t possibly save them all. In fact, if you work all day, you will not even save one-
tenth of them.’ The old man listened calmly and then stooped to pick up another starfish
and threw it back into the ocean. He said, ‘It made a difference to that one.’
I love that story, and I think it paints the perfect picture of what it is that we here at Kelly
& West and that I, as a lawyer, try to do every day. We can’t possibly solve all the world’s
problems, but we can stop and help each client, one at a time, find the best solution for
their situation. We find often clients want real solutions, not litigation, and are so happy
when we are able to offer a solution that maybe they haven’t thought of yet.”
Elizabeth is thankful for her husband and high school sweetheart of over 20 years,
Jonathan Murphy, also of Dunn. They attend Divine Street United Methodist Church in
Dunn, and together they have two children, Will and Addison.
To speak with a compassionate and seasoned attorney, please call Elizabeth at 910-893-
8183. She looks forward to talking with you.
