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"After three decades practicing law, veteran attorney David R.&nbsp;Jones&nbsp;is preparing for a brand-new role as president of the Madison County Bar Association.<br /><br />Jones, 59, has run his own firm in Madison County since 2008, with a majority of his practice focused on personal injury cases like railroad, barge and vehicle accidents.<br /><br />In a recent interview, Jones&nbsp;said he decided to be&nbsp;a lawyer - on a whim - when he was 25.<br /><br />&ldquo;I decided to take the LSAT. I never studied for it. I was good at tests,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I had no idea what I was getting into.&rdquo;<br /><br />Jones&nbsp;graduated with a bachelor's degree from Washington University in 1976. He earned a master&rsquo;s degree in health care along with his law degree from St. Louis University in 1982.&nbsp;Jones&nbsp;was accepted into Washington University's graduate program but said he chose SLU as a lower-cost option.<br /><br />When a potential law student asked&nbsp;Jones&nbsp;which school someone should attend, the long-time attorney said he recommends choosing the cheapest law school with accreditation.<br /><br />While in law school,&nbsp;Jones&nbsp;worked as a clerk in Belleville attorney Bruce Cook&rsquo;s East St. Louis office. After graduation, he was hired by the St. Clair County State&rsquo;s Attorney&rsquo;s Office.&nbsp;Jones&nbsp;later spent five years handling depositions and motions for Walker &amp; Williams, a law firm that defends railroads, municipalities and also focuses on construction litigation.<br /><br />Jones&nbsp;went on to work for the late Paul Pratt of East Alton, who appears on the &ldquo;100 Best Plaintiff&rsquo;s Lawyer&rsquo;s web site.&rdquo; He says Pratt&nbsp;gave him a number of cases and then told him to go to West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky.<br /><br />&ldquo;Go try them,&rdquo; Pratt told him. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what we did,&rdquo;&nbsp;Jones&nbsp;said.<br /><br />&ldquo;That&rsquo;s how you learn to practice law, when you try cases,&rdquo; he explained.<br /><br />Jones&nbsp;has tried cases in federal and state courts in Illinois, Missouri, Indiana, West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Georgia, Florida and Tennessee.<br /><br />He works with clients who have been injured working on railroads or barges. He describes the work in those industries as \"extremely dangerous.\"<br /><br />Jones&nbsp;said the industries have inherent issues that cause workers problems. They do not offer workers&rsquo; compensation, he explained. He said the railroad and barge industries also fail to treat&nbsp;injured employees with respect.<br /><br />&ldquo;Once these guys get hurt, they&rsquo;ve got a target on their backs,&rdquo;&nbsp;Jones said.&nbsp;&ldquo;If you testify for an injured worker in the barge industry, you are blackballed. You won&rsquo;t find employment.&rdquo;<br /><br />Going through court proceedings can be very difficult for his clients, the personal injury attorney said, because a plaintiff&rsquo;s life has usually been upended. He says a lawsuit, however, is often a person's only way to settle a dispute.<br /><br />Jones&nbsp;has three children, ages 29, 25 and 22. He has lived in Edwardsville for 23 years. In his spare time, he enjoys golf, fishing and reading history.<br /><br />He will assume duties as president of the Madison County Bar Association on June 1."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://madisonrecord.com/stories/510574617-jones-speaks-with-experience-of-30-years-practicing-law>