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PRACTICE AREAS

Personal Injury
Traumatic Brain Injury
Wrongful Death

EDUCATION

George Mason University School of Law (J.D. 1988)
William & Mary (B.A. 1982)

Claire E. Keena

PARTNER

“I get satisfaction out of proving to insurance companies that we can and will try a case and take it to its full value, if we have to.”

Partner Claire Keena has been a core member of Nichols Zauzig’s legal team for over 25 years. With her depth of  experience in holding insurance companies to task, she spearheads our personal injury department, as well as traumatic brain injury and wrongful death cases. Motivations are clear and simple: “I get satisfaction out of helping people.”

Her commitment to advocating for our clients’ rights takes the load off when they need it most. “I like being able to prove to the insurance companies that we can and will try a case and take it to its full value, if we have to.”

As one of Virginia’s leading personal injury attorneys, Claire is a Virginia Super Lawyer® and is an active leader within the legal community. She has a long record of leadership with the Virginia Women Attorneys Association, where she is currently on the Board of Directors and was previously President. She also served as President of the Prince William Chapter, and prior to that was the CLE Chair of the Prince William Chapter.

Claire is also a member of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association (VTLA), the American Association for Justice and the Prince William County Bar Association.

Claire is admitted in the Virginia Bar; the District of Columbia Bar; the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia and Western District of Virginia; and the U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.

  • Virginia Women Attorneys Association
    • Board of Directors, since 2020
    • President, 2018
    • Chapter President, Prince William County, 2013-14​​​
  • American Association for Justice
  • Virginia Trial Lawyers Association
  • Prince William County Bar Association
  • Best Lawyers®, Personal Injury-Litigation, since 2021
  • Super Lawyer®, Virginia, since 2020
  • Million Dollar Settlements of the Year, Virginia Lawyers Weekly, 2016, 2013 – 2011, 2009, 2008
  • ​10 Best Attorneys in Virginia, American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys, 2018
  • Top 100 National Trial Lawyers, The National Trial Lawyers, 2014-15
  • Board of Editors, Law Review, George Mason University
Top 100 National Trial Lawyers

“After seven surgeries, our teenage daughter was left with a disability needing lifelong attention. Our case was highly emotional, and the care factor was there from the start; Claire really listened—we knew this wasn’t a “catch and release” kind of law firm. I knew Claire would take what I was feeling and transfer it to something meaningful for our case in the end. Claire is sympathetic to your concerns but doesn’t let emotion fracture her judgement. Her knowledge base and experience with courts, depositions and insurance companies made a real difference for our outcome. Through it all, she made our teenage daughter feel comfortable and helped prepare her for the road ahead. I can’t recommend Claire and Nichols Zauzig Sandler highly enough.”   – Mother of teenage client with life-altering injuries from a UTV accident

“Claire did a wonderful job on my personal injury case. She spoke for me when I could not speak for myself. She took action that I didn’t even realize was available to me. Claire explained the legal process in a manner easily understood by a layperson, but was not at all condescending. Because she prepared me so well for my deposition, I was able to remain calm and unflustered when the opposing counsel posed seemingly confrontational questions at a rapid-fire pace. I recommend you guys all the time.” – Former personal injury client

“I was involved in a multi-car accident on 95 caused by a tractor-trailer. I had neck and back injuries, and nerve damage. But I had to bounce around several doctors for a couple of years to find out what was wrong.Once Claire was involved, she uncovered a lot of issues by reviewing my records and talking to doctors. She got the doctors on board, which brought me a lot of relief, not just physical, but mental too. She and Rachelle did a lot of research and digging and that gave me relief—to know someone was working on it even when I was too tired to work on it myself. I can’t say enough about that team. I would recommend them to anyone.” – Former personal injury client

Claire E. Keena

PARTNER

PRACTICE AREAS

Personal Injury
Traumatic Brain Injury
Wrongful Death

EDUCATION

George Mason University School of Law (J.D. 1988)
William & Mary (B.A. 1982)

Overview

Partner Claire Keena has been a core member of Nichols Zauzig’s legal team for over 25 years. With her depth of  experience in holding insurance companies to task, she spearheads our personal injury department, as well as traumatic brain injury and wrongful death cases. Motivations are clear and simple: “I get satisfaction out of helping people.”

Her commitment to advocating for our clients’ rights takes the load off when they need it most. “I like being able to prove to the insurance companies that we can and will try a case and take it to its full value, if we have to.”

As one of Virginia’s leading personal injury attorneys, Claire is a Virginia Super Lawyer® and is an active leader within the legal community. She has a long record of leadership with the Virginia Women Attorneys Association, where she is currently on the Board of Directors and was previously President. She also served as President of the Prince William Chapter, and prior to that was the CLE Chair of the Prince William Chapter.

Claire is also a member of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association (VTLA), the American Association for Justice and the Prince William County Bar Association. She received her law degree from George Mason University School of Law, where she also served on the Board of Editors for the GMU Law Review. She is admitted in the Virginia Bar; the District of Columbia Bar; the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia and Western District of Virginia; and the U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.

Leadership

  • Virginia Women Attorneys Association
    • President, 2018
    • Chapter President, Prince William County, 2013-14​​​
    • Chapter CLE Chair, Prince William County, 2012-13
  • Virginia Trial Lawyers Association
  • Prince William County Bar Association

Honors

  • Best Lawyers®, Personal Injury-Litigation, since 2021
  • Super Lawyer®, Virginia, since 2020
  • Million Dollar Settlements of the Year, Virginia Lawyers Weekly, 2016, 2013 – 2011, 2009, 2008
  • ​10 Best Attorneys in Virginia, American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys, 2018
  • Top 100 National Trial Lawyers, The National Trial Lawyers, 2014-15
  • Board of Editors, Law Review, George Mason University
Top 100 National Trial Lawyers

Testimonials

“Our teenage daughter spent 10 years building a dream to play sports in college and that dream was taken away in an UTV accident. After 7 surgeries, she was left with a disability needing lifelong attention. We thought we needed a D.C. law firm until NZS was referred to us. Their reputation, the warm, comfortable office environment and our initial meeting with Claire convinced us we didn’t have to go downtown. Our case was highly emotional, and the care factor was there from the start; Claire really listened—we knew this wasn’t a “catch and release” kind of law firm. No matter how emotional it became or how long my emails were, I knew Claire would take what I was feeling and transfer it to something meaningful for our case in the end. Claire is sympathetic to your concerns but doesn’t let emotion fracture her judgement. Her knowledge base and experience with courts, depositions and insurance companies made a real difference for our outcome. Through it all, Claire made our teenage daughter feel comfortable and helped prepare her for the road ahead. I can’t recommend Claire and Nichols Zauzig Sandler highly enough.”  – Mother of teenage client with life-altering injuries from a UTV accident

“I was involved in a multi-car accident on 95 caused by a tractor-trailer. I had neck and back injuries, and nerve damage. But I had to bounce around several doctors for a couple of years to find out what was wrong. Once Claire was involved, she uncovered a lot of issues by reviewing my records and talking to doctors. She got the doctors on board, which brought me a lot of relief, not just physical, but mental too. She and Rachelle did a lot of research and digging and that gave me relief—to know someone was working on it even when I was too tired to work on it myself. I can’t say enough about that team. I would recommend them to anyone.” – Former personal injury client

“Claire did a wonderful job on my personal injury case. She spoke for me when I could not speak for myself. She took action that I didn’t even realize was available to me.Claire explained the legal process in a manner easily understood by a layperson, but was not at all condescending. Because she prepared me so well for my deposition, I was able to remain calm and unflustered when the opposing counsel posed seemingly confrontational questions at a rapid-fire pace. I recommend you guys all the time.” – Former personal injury client

“I get satisfaction out of proving to insurance companies that we can and will try a case and take it to its full value, if we have to.”