About the Firm
Caminez & Yeary, P.A. was originally founded in 1972 by attorney Jon Caminez. Mr. Caminez earned his law degree from the University of North Carolina. He began his legal career working for the United States Department of Justice. After gaining trial experience working for the Department of Justice, Mr. Caminez entered private practice.
When Mr. Caminez first founded the firm it was headquartered in Tallahassee, Florida. Like many young lawyers beginning their own law practice, Mr. Caminez would accept any client that could walk in the door. This allowed him to practice in many different areas of law including criminal, business litigation, and personal injury. It was during these early years that Mr. Caminez grew an affinity for representing injured people that needed help. As he would often say, he was “in the business of helping people.”
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1941-2016
Jon Caminez
Mr. Caminez quickly grew a reputation for taking cases to trial when his clients were not offered a fair settlement. He took on large corporations including the Buckeye Plant in Perry, Florida, Walmart, Lowe’s, and many other Fortune 500 companies. Despite gaining notoriety throughout north Florida for his success in the courtroom, he continued to put forth the same effort on every case – whether big or small – that he did when he first started. He understood that each case is important to the client involved and that he, as their attorney, should treat it that way. This is a standard that the firm still adheres to today.
By the early 1980s Mr. Caminez was expanding his practice into the counties surrounding Tallahassee. It began with people in need of an attorney coming to his residence in Monticello, Florida, for legal advice. He decided to open an office in Monticello to better service clients in Jefferson, Madison and Taylor county. As the practice expanded in these areas, the firm’s headquarters migrated to Monticello. The firm now operates two offices – one in Monticello and one in Tallahassee – allowing accident victims throughout the Big Bend easier access to legal representation.
Ryan Yeary was invited to join the firm in 2016. Mr. Caminez first met Mr. Yeary while he was working for a Tallahassee firm representing insurance companies. The two litigated many cases against one another over the years including one that ended in a jury trial. The addition brought something new to the law firm that it never had in its 44-year history – an insider’s view of how insurance companies evaluate and defend claims. This new insight allowed the firm to further enhance its representation of injury victims.
Mr. Caminez passed away in September 2016. He left behind a legacy of providing diligent legal representation to injury victims through hard work and focusing on the client’s needs, not those of the attorney. The current members of the firm work every day to continue the legacy left by Mr. Caminez.