AWESOME ATTORNEYS
INDEPENDENT EDITORIAL · FIRM PROFILES · PHOENIX, ARIZONA
ATTORNEY ADVERTISING NOTICE. This profile was researched and written independently by Awesome Attorneys’ editorial team. It was not paid for, commissioned, or reviewed prior to publication by the firm profiled. All case results, recoveries, and recognitions described below are attributed to their sources. Past results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome in any future matter. This article is for general information only and is not legal advice; reading it does not create an attorney–client relationship.
The Firm an Insurance-Defense Veteran Chose to Join
Friedl Richardson has represented injured Arizonans since 1997. One of its litigation attorneys spent the first two decades of her career on the other side of the table — representing insurers and Fortune 500 companies — before crossing over.
BY THE AWESOME ATTORNEYS EDITORIAL TEAM · PHOENIX, ARIZONA · JULY 2026
FRIEDL RICHARDSON — AT A GLANCE
| FOUNDED BY | William J. Friedl (Arizona bar member since 1971) and Thomas M. Richardson, in 1997 |
| FOCUS | Plaintiff-side personal injury and wrongful death — car, truck, and motorcycle accidents, medical malpractice, premises liability, dog bites, boating accidents, birth injuries, bicycle accidents |
| OFFICE | Phoenix, with practice pages serving Flagstaff and Lake Havasu City |
| SIGNATURE RESULTS | $6M jury verdict and $1.4M and $1M wrongful-death settlements (per the firm — see Track Record) |
| DISTINCTIVE EDGE | Litigation attorney Suzie Zachar Hardy spent more than 20 years representing insurers and Fortune 500 companies before joining the firm’s plaintiff-side practice (per the firm) |
| FEE MODEL | Contingency (per the firm) |
Sources: friedlrichardson.com (firm website, including its Verdicts & Settlements pages), YouTube, attorneyatlaw.com. Compiled July 2026.
ORIGIN
Nearly Thirty Years, Two Names on the Door
Friedl Richardson was founded in 1997 by William J. Friedl, a member of the Arizona Bar since 1971 and, per the firm, a fixture on the state bar’s advocates’ panel, and Thomas M. Richardson, who has served on the Maricopa County Judicial Selection Committee after appointment by Governor Brewer and confirmation by the Arizona Senate. Between them, the firm states, the two founders have handled hundreds of trial cases.
The firm’s current litigation roster includes Suzie Zachar Hardy, who has practiced in Arizona since 1996 and, according to her firm biography, spent the first 20-plus years of her career representing insureds, insurance companies, and Fortune 500 businesses before moving to plaintiff-side work — giving her, in the firm’s words, “a unique and advantageous perspective” on how the opposing side “evaluates, thinks and operates.” Her biography states she has handled more than 200 arbitrations and trials and over 500 depositions, and has served as a mediator for other attorneys’ cases. Also on the litigation team is Raechel R. Barrios, a 2014 and 2015 Super Lawyers Rising Star who serves as a board and sustaining member of the Arizona Association for Justice (the Arizona Trial Lawyers Association), and Krista T. McCarthy, who joined the firm in 2014.
PRACTICE
Where Friedl Richardson Concentrates
The firm’s site lists dedicated practice pages for car, truck, and motorcycle accidents; bicycle accidents; dog bites; boating accidents; premises liability; medical malpractice; and birth injuries arising from medical negligence. Its wrongful death practice is a particular emphasis, with a dedicated results page separate from its general personal injury results.
TRACK RECORD
The Results Board
Friedl Richardson publishes case results by practice category. In wrongful death specifically, the firm reports:
| RESULT | TYPE | MATTER (AS REPORTED BY THE FIRM) |
|---|---|---|
| $6,000,000 | Jury verdict | Wrongful death |
| $1,400,000 | Settlement | Child wrongful death case |
| $1,000,000 | Settlement | Teenager wrongful death |
Source: friedlrichardson.com/wrongful-death-settlements, retrieved July 2026. Past results do not guarantee or predict future outcomes; every case is unique.
Beyond wrongful death, the firm’s site states it has “helped countless Arizona residents obtain compensation for personal injury and wrongful death” across cases ranging from car and truck accidents to medical malpractice and premises liability, and describes its attorneys as “trial ready” for cases requiring litigation rather than settlement alone.
CLIENT VOICE
What Clients Report
Published client accounts on the firm’s site and on attorneyatlaw.com consistently name individual attorneys rather than speaking of “the firm” generically. One client describes being rear-ended by an Arizona state vehicle and initially trying to handle the claim alone before the state’s adjuster refused to compensate for pain and suffering; the client writes that attorney Raechel Barrios then “got me a fair settlement.” Another client credits attorney Krista McCarthy and her assistant, writing that “the help received was very caring and fantastic prompt results” and that “I feel very lucky.” A third account, describing a stalled claim against an uncooperative adjuster, credits attorney Tommy Richardson with obtaining “a settlement that significantly exceeded the at-fault party’s insurance policy,” writing “I believe Tommy knows the law and the policies better than anyone.”
COMMUNITY
Beyond the Courtroom
The firm states it actively supports local youth sports (little league teams), law enforcement, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), and the Arizona Bike Club, framing this alongside its stated mission of educating residents about accident prevention and safety — a combination of victim advocacy and prevention-focused community work.
RECOGNITION
Peer Standing
The firm states it has earned Super Lawyers recognition, and Raechel Barrios was named a Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2014 and 2015 — both peer-influenced, research-driven selections. The firm’s site also states a 5.0 AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the directory’s highest peer-review rating standard, awarded when a substantial number of an attorney’s peers rank their legal knowledge, communication, and ethics at the highest level. Awesome Attorneys did not independently re-verify the current AV Preeminent status at the individual-attorney level and recommends confirming directly with Martindale-Hubbell before republication.
THE LAW
The Arizona Backdrop, in Plain English
Readers considering a serious injury or wrongful death claim in Arizona should understand a few ground rules. What follows is general information, not legal advice.
The two-year clock. Arizona’s statute of limitations for personal injury and wrongful death claims is generally two years (A.R.S. § 12-542).
Suing the government is faster and stricter. Claims against Arizona public entities — relevant here, given one published client’s claim involved a state-owned vehicle — require a formal notice of claim within 180 days (A.R.S. § 12-821.01) and suit within one year (A.R.S. § 12-821).
Fault is shared, not all-or-nothing. Arizona follows pure comparative negligence (A.R.S. § 12-2505).
Minors get more time. The limitations clock is generally paused for minors until the disability ends (A.R.S. § 12-502) — relevant to the firm’s child and teenager wrongful-death matters.
ASSESSMENT
The Awesome Attorneys View
Friedl Richardson’s nearly three-decade track record and its litigation bench — particularly an attorney who spent two decades on the insurance-defense side before switching — give the firm a credible claim to trial readiness that goes beyond marketing language. Its published wrongful-death results, while limited to three entries, are substantial, and its client accounts consistently credit specific named attorneys rather than a generic “team,” a pattern that suggests real attorney-client contact rather than a call-center model.
The honest trade-off: the firm’s publicly available results page is thinner than some larger competitors’ — three wrongful-death entries and general statements elsewhere, rather than a comprehensive itemized results table. Readers should ask the firm directly for a fuller results history relevant to their specific type of claim. For families facing a wrongful death or catastrophic injury claim in the Phoenix area, Friedl Richardson’s combination of tenure, litigation depth, and a documented defense-side-to-plaintiff-side attorney is worth an initial consultation.
METHODOLOGY & INDEPENDENCE
This profile was researched and written independently by Awesome Attorneys’ editorial team in July 2026. Primary source: the firm’s own published website (friedlrichardson.com), including its attorney biography and wrongful-death results pages. Secondary sources: the firm’s YouTube channel and attorneyatlaw.com. Friedl Richardson did not commission, pay for, or pre-approve this article. All case results are attributed to the firm’s own reporting; past results do not guarantee or predict future outcomes. This article is general information, not legal advice.
© 2026 Awesome Attorneys. Independent editorial. Sponsored placements on Awesome Attorneys are always clearly labeled; this is not one.
Publisher Disclosure & Independence Notice
This profile is an independent editorial article published by Awesome Attorneys. Awesome Attorneys does not endorse, recommend, or warrant any lawyer or law firm profiled on this site, and inclusion in this series is not paid placement. “Awesome Attorneys” is a brand name only; it is not a rating, ranking, or claim that any profiled firm is superior in any legal category.
Awesome Attorneys maintains a separate attorney directory. Only listings there marked “Sponsored” or “Ad” reflect a paid or sponsored relationship with Awesome Attorneys; this editorial profile is not such a listing.
Facts, figures, and claims in this profile were independently researched from public sources as described in the Methodology & Independence section and are current only as of the research date; they are subject to change without notice, and readers should confirm any detail directly with the firm before relying on it. This notice supplements, and does not replace, the Attorney Advertising Notice at the top of this profile.