Wrongful Death

Defense Verdict

Defense verdict at jury trial on behalf of a casino in a in a wrongful death matter after a six-week Trial. Plaintiffs claimed that the casino was liable and caused the death of Decedent from asphyxiation after he was restrained by security personnel due to erratic and violent behavior. Defendants disputed the claims. Plaintiffs asked for $156,000,000 in closing arguments.

Wrongful Death

Summary Judgment

Successfully obtained dismissal of gas station after the filing of a motion for summary judgment in a large wrongful death case involving an arson that occurred across the street from a Chevron station, in which the assailant used gasoline purchased at Chevron.

Slip and Fall

Summary Judgment

We asserted that as a matter of law our client did not have notice of an alleged liquid spill in a supermarket.

We asserted that it is undisputed that the video shows that the spill occurred within 7-8 minutes from the fall without any employee reasonably walking within the area with an opportunity to see or hear the spill. The Court agreed and granted the Motion for Summary Judgment.

Wrongful Death

Dismissal

Dismissal of a Southern California city for waiver of costs (i.e., no monies paid) in a wrongful death matter involving a high speed, head-on collision that resulted in multiple deaths pursuant to our aggressive discovery approach and early persuasive settlement negotiation.

Traumatic Brain Injury

Summary Judgment

Summary Judgment on behalf of a Southern California school district in a matter involving a school fight which resulted in a Traumatic Brain Injury and ongoing psychological claims with allegations of negligent supervision.

Auto Accident

Dismissal

Dismissal of a Southern California city for waiver of costs (i.e., no monies paid) in a matter involving a rollover motor vehicle collision and serious injuries pursuant to our aggressive discovery approach and motion practice.

Personal Injury

Defense Verdict

Defense verdict at jury trial on behalf of a Southern California city in a matter involving a toddler choking due to an alleged dangerous condition of public property.

Trucking

Favorable Jury Verdict

Favorable jury verdict on behalf of a commercial trucking company in an admitted liability, truck versus motorcycle collision where the plaintiffs’ attorney asked the jury for $25 million.

Wrongful Death

Summary Judgment

Summary Judgment, which was upheld on appeal, on behalf of a Southern California city in a wrongful death drowning matter with allegations of dangerous condition of public property.

Personal Injury

Summary Judgment

Summary Judgment, which was upheld on appeal, on behalf of a Southern California school district in a catastrophic injury matter with allegations of dangerous condition of public property.

Wrongful Death

Dismissal

Dismissal of a Southern California city for waiver of costs (i.e., no monies paid) in a wrongful death matter involving a bicyclist being run over by a motor vehicle pursuant to our aggressive settlement position and discovery approach.

Dangerous Condition of Public Property (School Bullying Case)

Summary Judgment

Summary Judgment on behalf of a Southern California school district in a school bullying and physical altercation matter with allegations of negligent supervision.

Dangerous Condition of Public Property (Ladder Case)

Dismissal

Dismissal of a Southern California city for waiver of costs (i.e., no monies paid) in a matter involving a fall from a ladder where the plaintiff eventually passed away, as a result of filing an early Motion for Summary Judgment that we leveraged for a favorable result.

Dangerous Condition of Public Property

Summary Judgment

Obtained summary judgment on behalf of a City in a case in which the Plaintiff alleged severe facial injuries following a trip and fall on a city sidewalk.

Premises Liability

Dismissal

We requested that the Court dismiss the case with prejudice at trial call. Leading up to the hearing for several months, we had diligently and strategically created a strong paper trail with various meet and confer correspondences for trial documents, along with serving notices to appear at trial, which were all lodged with the Court for trial. We also filed the defense joint trial documents in anticipation for Plaintiffs either appearing or not. The strategy, therefore, was to either have the Court accept only defense documents if Plaintiffs showed up at trial and proceed, or move the Court, for a dismissal if Plaintiffs did not properly work up their case based upon abandonment of the case.

We made an oral motion to dismiss the case with prejudice pursuant to CCP 581 and the eighth amended standing order. Substantively, we argued that Plaintiffs have willfully and knowingly abandoned their case despite Defendant’s best efforts to push forward with Plaintiffs for trial. As we had primed the judge for the motion in the last hearing, the judge agreed with our position and accepted all arguments. Thus, the Court dismissed the case with prejudice (instead of without prejudice which is the typical result).

Dangerous Condition of Public Property

Summary Judgment

We asserted in a defense of a public entity that a City client did not owe a duty of care to a pedestrian. Under Huckey and its progeny, a trivial defect as a matter of law establishes whether the City owes this Plaintiff a duty for the condition.

The Huckey test evaluates whether there is a trivial defect from the totality of the circumstances, one strongly assessing the size and type of the defect, and two assessing whether there are any exacerbating circumstances. We asserted that there is no evidence to dispute that the defect was a 1 and ½ inch uplift in the sidewalk. We also asserted that there is no evidence that there are any surrounding circumstances that worsened the condition, such as shadows, jagged edges, obstructions, or otherwise. The Court agreed and granted the Motion for Summary Judgement.