‘Texas Hammer’ truck wreck lawyer sues ‘Alabama Hammer’ for stealing his shtick

A personal injury lawyer from Texas famous for wild TV ads featuring himself wielding a hammer against big rigs has sued another lawyer from Alabama for copying his commercials.

Attorney Jim Adler, also known by his trademark the “Texas Hammer,” has filed suit against lawyer Mike Slocumb, who goes by the moniker the “Alabama Hammer,” for copyright infringement, trademark infringement, and unfair competition, according to AL.com.

The lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Texas argues that Slocumb copied Adler’s TV commercial “virtually shot-by-shot and line-by-line.”

The suit seeks damages and would require Slocumb to cease running the TV ads.

Slocumb has denied the allegations.

Adler says that he’s spent more than $100 million on advertising since 2000, claiming to run 45,000 to 85,000 TV commercials per year in Texas markets in order to establish his public persona and reputation.

Adler specializes in truck crash litigation and has made a name for himself for decades for his outlandish ads. In the commercial below, Adler takes on not one, not two, but five commercial vehicles at once, armed with his trusty hammer.

The legal dispute was recently featured on HBO’s “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” which breaks down the two commercials side by side to show how similar they really are.