12989 Occidental Road
Sebastopol, California 95472
tel (707) 874-1860
fax (707) 634-1407

email:

Trial Attorney in California

For more than thirty years, I have tried cases and handled appeals for individuals and small businesses who have been harmed by unsafe drivers, dangerous roads, defective products, unreasonable insurers, professional errors and broken contracts.

Many of my clients have won settlements for more than $ 1 million. Brief summaries of some of those settlements are here.

My clients have also won important verdicts and judgments involving unsafe blood transfusions, HMO bad faith, unsafe products, professional negligence and dangerous road conditions.

Recent cases

In October 2010, after five days of trial before a San Francisco jury, my client (a 26-year old man) settled his claim for future knee replacement caused by a golf cart which struck his leg five months after a prior knee surgery. The case settled for a six-figure sum -- three times the amount defendant offered weeks before trial started.

In July 2010, my client (an attorney) received an arbitration award of $75,000 under a law firm separation agreement.

In March 2010, my client (25 year-old woman) won a $293,000 uninsured motorist arbitration award for post-traumatic stress from a collision with loose tire on the San Diego freeway.

In May 2008, my client (the estate of 78 year-old resident of Missoula) settled a claim that airlines failed to provide wheelchair assistance causing her to fall in a jetway. A federal jury found the airlines negligent but could not reach a unanimous verdict that a mild concussion caused her death. Settlement was reached after five years of litigation that included a successful appeal to the Ninth Circuit. A copy of that opinion is posted here.

In March 2003, the United States Supreme Court denied review of the decision of the Montana Supreme Court that affirmed my client’s right to jury trial. In Kloss v Edward D. Jones, the Montana Supreme Court held that the arbitration provisions in Ms. Kloss’ agreement with her securities broker were unenforceable because the effects of those provisions on her rights were not properly explained to her. Ms. Kloss was a 93 year-old resident of Montana. A copy of the Montana Supreme Court’s opinion is posted here.

In April 2003, the California Supreme Court affirmed a nearly $3.9 million verdict for my client (a resident of Martinez). That decision followed nearly sixteen years of litigation in which I represented two neighbors who in 1986 and 1993 were catastrophically injured crossing a busy street in morning commute traffic to get to the same bus stop. We filed suits against the drivers involved in those accidents, public entities responsible for the location of the bus stop and unsafe conditions for pedestrians crossing during the morning commute and a hospital which provided negligent care. My clients won settlements and a judgment that should pay more than $10 million over their expected lifetimes. Summaries of the verdict and the opinion of the Supreme Court are posted here.

In April 2003, my client (an 83 year-old resident of Sacramento) settled her claim for insurance bad faith for $1.1 million in cash. Her claim for long term care in a residential care facility had been unreasonably denied for about nine months. During that time, she was required to move and suffered a heart attack. The settlement was reached about eight months after filing.