Plaxen Adler Muncy, P.A.
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I think making Partner at any firm is something to be proud of, but it carries extra weight when you genuinely respect and admire the colleagues that elevated you to Partner.
Santos credits MSBA for facilitating connections across practice areas, sharing "MSBA has given me a home in the legal profession that allows me to connect with attorneys in different practice areas."
SAMANTHA DOS SANTOS, a Partner at Plaxen Adler Muncy, P.A., has quickly distinguished herself in personal injury law. Dos Santos, who joined the firm in 2019, has achieved notable success in her relatively short career, including securing a $2 million verdict for a client tased at a grocery store for wearing a mask during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Her proudest professional accomplishment, however, is her elevation to Partner at Plaxen Adler Muncy, P.A., at age 30. She shared, “I think making Partner at any firm is something to be proud of, but it carries extra weight when you genuinely respect and admire the colleagues that elevated you to Partner.” She noted that her three partners, Bruce Plaxen, David Muncy, and Joshua Plaxen, have given her the opportunity to be successful and taught her many lessons about practicing law.
Dos Santos’s successes can be attributed, in part, to strategic career choices: "The best advice I have ever received was to chase the right experiences," she explained. This guided her decision to pursue a judicial clerkship in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City after law school, to ensure she had experience in the courtroom before joining private practice. Dos Santos continued to prioritize strategic experience by joining Plaxen Adler Muncy, P.A. She chose a smaller firm so that she could quickly gain experience and have unfettered access to the firm’s partners so that she could learn from them.
Dos Santos’s practice primarily focuses on cases involving motor vehicle collisions, premises liability, and sexual abuse. In addition to managing her caseload, Dos Santos drafts complex pleadings for the firm, including complaints, special discovery requests, deposition notices, and dispositive motions. The writing component of her role allows her to be involved in nearly every complex litigation case in the office, which, as she noted, is “something that I really enjoy.”
Although Dos Santos enjoys her practice, particularly “being creative and advancing arguments that get my clients one step closer to justice in their cases,” it is not without its challenges. She shared, "I face the same challenge each and every day when I speak to insurance adjusters that are dismissive of my clients’ experiences and injuries. I have to choose to focus on the merits of each case rather than be distracted or deterred by nonsensical arguments made by insurance adjusters."
While many attorneys strive to maintain a work-life balance, Dos Santos takes a pragmatic approach: "I’ve never been interested in the term 'balance' because most days in this profession are unbalanced. When I am in trial or preparing for hearings or depositions,
my time and energy are going to be focused on my performance. Otherwise, my time and energy are going to be focused on ensuring my pre-litigation cases are moving at the right pace. I can also direct my attention to my responsibility with MSBA and business development, generally, to ensure that my role in the profession is never stagnant and always developing."
Dos Santos has been involved with MSBA throughout her career, including being a member of the Leadership Academy (20212022), Leadership Academy Committee (2022-Present), and Board of Governors (2024-2026). She credits MSBA for facilitating connections across practice areas, sharing "MSBA has given me a home in the legal profession that allows me to connect with attorneys in different practice areas. When you practice personal injury, it can be easy to spend the vast majority of your time conversing with others who practice Personal Injury. My MSBA involvement keeps me engaged with the profession as a whole and allows me to have a pulse on the practice of law throughout the state of Maryland."
She found her time with the Leadership Academy to be particularly rewarding, noting, "[p]rior to Leadership Academy, I wasn’t sure how I was going to fit into MSBA. Oftentimes, when you attend Bar events, it feels that everyone already has a relationship somehow. I was hoping to build relationships with other members of MSBA, and Leadership Academy was a fantastic way to do so and familiarize myself with the organization."
She also highlighted the lasting value of Leadership Academy relationships, sharing, "the relationships built during MSBA Leadership Academy are everlasting. Our cohort (2021-2022) continues to have an active group chat where we send each other referrals, and we continue to celebrate our successes."
Dos Santos's decision to join MSBA's Board of Governors was motivated by her positive Leadership Academy experience and the desire to offer her perspective: "After being a part of the Leadership Academy and serving on the Committee for a few years after my Fellow year, I was hoping to take on an additional leadership role with MSBA. I believed that my experiences in the profession were unique, and I could offer a different perspective to the Board of Governors."
Looking ahead, Dos Santos hopes to expand the reach of Plaxen Adler Muncy, P.A. throughout the state of Maryland. With her strategic approach to her career and dedication to both her clients and the broader legal profession, it is clear her future will be bright.