A Scottsdale personal injury attorney has drawn national attention after rescuing seven swimmers from powerful rip currents during a two-week vacation in Belmar, New Jersey. Larry Lazzara, founding attorney of Lazzara Law Firm, was serving with the Belmar Beach Patrol when the most aggressive rip currents of the summer struck the beach. He pulled seven drowning victims to safety, while fellow lifeguards helped bring thirteen others to shore.
Lazzara, who was recognized in his late teens and early twenties as one of the top rescue swimmers along the Jersey shore, stepped away from the Belmar Beach Patrol in 2004 to begin his legal career. Twenty-one years later, during his first real vacation, the beach patrol welcomed him back to the lifeguard stand. Two days into his return, he responded immediately when swimmers began struggling in the surf. The rescues have since earned him the nickname “The Lifeguard Lawyer.”
The incident has prompted discussion in legal and community circles about the relationship between a professional’s personal character and the values they bring to their work. For Lazzara Law Firm, the swift response served as an unplanned but authentic demonstration of what the firm represents. “When you see someone in danger, you act – there is no calculation, no delay,” Lazzara said. “That same urgency is what I bring to every client who walks through the door after suffering a serious injury.”
Lazzara’s legal career has focused on representing individuals harmed through accidents, negligence, and the failures of others. He has been recognized among the leading personal injury attorneys in Arizona, with multiple “Attorney of the Year” awards and top honors in the field. He was also recently featured in the Washington Post as one of the most influential attorneys in the country. His firm operates with the understanding that clients are people navigating some of the most disorienting and painful periods of their lives.
The water rescue required composed decision-making under pressure, mirroring the daily demands of a personal injury attorney navigating complex legal battles. The nature of personal injury work requires attorneys to move quickly, gather evidence before it disappears, and build cases while clients are still recovering. That sense of urgency, Lazzara said, is the same one that carried him into the water. Learn more about the firm and its practice areas.
Protecting people who cannot fully protect themselves – whether in open water or in a legal dispute against an insurance company or a negligent party – requires a willingness to step forward when others might step back. Lazzara’s background has shaped his understanding of what it means to be seriously hurt and face an uncertain road ahead. Many of his clients have been in accidents they did not see coming, left to manage medical bills, lost income, and a legal system they were never prepared to navigate. The firm’s approach centers on removing those burdens from clients and carrying them as an advocate.
Images from the rescue and Lazzara’s return to the beach patrol are available here and here.
