DiPiero Simmons McGinley & Bastress, PLLC, is proud to announce that Lonnie Simmons has been presented with the 2025 Stanley E. Preiser Member of the Year Award.
This award is presented annually and is named in honor of Stanley Preiser, who founded the West Virginia Association for Justice (WVAJ) in 1959. In 2018, Tim DiPiero was also presented with this prestigious award.
The WVAJ represents nearly 500 attorneys who practice in West Virginia and surrounding states. They are committed to providing West Virginians with quality legal representation, and that has been the guiding principle of Lonnie Simmons’ illustrious legal career.
Throughout his career, Mr. Simmons has been dedicated to finding justice for his clients, including many who were the victims of police misconduct and civil rights violations.
Mr. Simmons was one of the first attorneys in the country to bring DNA testing into evidence to free an innocent person from jail. Mr. Simmons’ tireless efforts on behalf of his wrongfully convicted client, Glen Dale Woodall, triggered further investigations into the work performed by the then-chief serologist for the West Virginia State Police.
Those investigations led to the release of several other innocent people.
That is just one of many examples of the impact of Lonnie Simmons’ dedication to the law and justice. Mr. Simmons has represented clients who were wrongfully fired from their jobs and others who were denied retirement benefits.
He’s also successfully represented individuals who were harmed by someone else’s negligence and surviving families contending with the wrongful death of a loved one.
Whether the issue involves a contract dispute, negotiating a settlement with an insurance carrier, or presenting evidence to a jury, he’s proven time and again that he is the exact type of attorney you want on your side.
This most recent award will add to a long list of recognitions for Mr. Simmons, who has also been named Lawyer of the Year for Litigation – Labor and Employment and recipient of the Public Defender Services Award for Outstanding Scholarship in Criminal Law.
The entire legal team at DiPiero Simmons McGinley & Bastress, PLLC, is honored to work alongside Lonnie Simmons to help the hardworking men and women of West Virginia find justice.
