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Trial and Appellate Work

Taking cases through trial is rarely the goal of businesses involved in litigation, and the majority of civil cases successfully resolve short of a verdict. However, retaining counsel with both the ability to try cases and who have a history of successful trial results is a must.

Walsworth not only has the knowledge and ability to deftly navigate litigation through trial, but also has the data to support our prowess in the courtroom, a feat that truly sets us apart. We have begun in nearly 900 jury trials and 250 nonjury trials, tried over 300 trials to verdict, and handled over 275 arbitrations.

Our team of highly successful trial lawyers also includes members of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), one of the preeminent national organizations for experienced trial lawyers.

We advocate tirelessly for our clients and are pleased to have been included in the Daily Journal’s “Top Defense Verdicts” list on multiple occasions.

As a result of our diverse practice areas, we litigate a wide variety of cases, including:

  • Product Liability
  • Premises Liability
  • Construction Defect
  • Medical Negligence
  • Fraud
  • Employment
  • Partnership and Corporate Disputes
  • Breach of Contract Claims
  • Insurance Claims
  • Toxic Tort

Trial Ready

We are proud to have developed a reputation for being ready, willing and able to try cases in state and federal courts.

For over 25 years, we have represented clients in trial across a full spectrum of industries. Because we dive deeply into your business from the outset of representation to fully understand all of the intricacies, we can develop strategies and defenses that resonate in the courtroom. Our experience, creativity and collaboration are the keys to successful outcomes.

Pre-Trial Litigation

Our extensive experience before judges and juries is valuable not only when in trial, but is also of immense benefit before the case gets to that point. Our comprehensive knowledge of what it takes to succeed in trial is carefully applied to the strategic work-up of each case – be it through challenges to jurisdiction, managing discovery, excluding evidence, or motion practice to limit claims.

Third-Party Experts

Success at trial often includes persuasive testimony by third-party professionals such as engineers, scientists and medical professionals. We regularly utilize experts in numerous specialties across the country and know how to most effectively present their testimony both prior to and at trial to help achieve the most desirable results.

Representative Successes

  • Plaintiff v. Commercial Real Estate Brokerage – Secured a defense verdict and award of costs in favor of a commercial real estate brokerage accused of professional negligence and breach of fiduciary duties. Plaintiff alleged a commercial real estate transaction involving the purchase of country club and complicated liquor license was thwarted when escrow instructions were not properly completed. Due to thorough cross examination of witnesses and  expert testimony, the judge entered judgment in favor of our client immediately after closing arguments and without taking the matter under submission.
  • Employees v. Large Automobile Group – Obtained a favorable ruling in a published decision from Division Four of the First District Court of Appeal for the State of California in a complex employment matter on behalf of a large automobile group with dealerships in California, Nevada, and Arizona.  Plaintiffs sued our client for alleged race, national origin, and disability discrimination and harassment, retaliation for seeking leave under the Family Medical Leave Act and California Family Rights Act, and allegations of wage and hour violations.  The trial court denied our motion to compel arbitration, and awarded plaintiffs attorneys’ fees, on the grounds that plaintiffs did not recall signing the arbitration agreement. However, we appealed the ruling, and the Court of Appeal ultimately reversed the trial court’s ruling in its entirety and held that plaintiffs’ failure to remember signing the agreement was of no consequence since the plaintiffs admitted the agreement contained their personal handwritten signatures as opposed to electronic/digital signatures.
  • Cardinal Collection Educational Foundation v. Museum of Global Antiquities Represented plaintiffs in a case where the defendants induced them to loan $4.8 million, and to then invest an additional $2.225 million, in classic violins. At trial, we convinced the jury the investment scheme was a ruse and the main violin at issue never existed. The jury awarded our clients $27 million in damages against the defendants, the Museum of Global Antiquities and its president.
  • City of Pomona v. John Michael Faull, et al. Successfully secured a defense verdict in an environmental contamination case involving numerous chemicals where we were asked to represent the defendant less than two months before trial. The City of Pomona alleged that the defendant’s operation of a bulk storage and distribution facility containing hazardous chemicals for 50 years resulted in the contamination of soil and groundwater on its site and adjacent areas. Soil borings and groundwater logs detected significant concentrations of hazardous chemicals in each and every sample. With only three defendants remaining at the conclusion of trial, our client was the plaintiff’s target defendant. However, after a hard-fought bench trial, the judge ruled that plaintiff did not prove a single cause of action against our client.
  • LaMonica v. Consumer Products Company – Secured a defense verdict for a worldwide consumer products company in a personal injury mesothelioma case alleging exposure from a personal care product allegedly tainted with asbestos and asbestos-containing joint compound products used on the job. After more than three months of trial, the jury returned a resounding 12-0 decision for our client.
  • Macpherson v. Pace Secured a defense verdict after an 8 week jury trial in favor of a small Bakersfield oil producer who was sued by one of the largest California onshore oil producers, and others, for subsurface trespass and nuisance. Plaintiffs sought $35+ million in damages relating to an alleged decrease in oil production. The jury deliberated for less than 5 hours before returning a verdict in favor of our client.
  • Harkin v. Refinery Labor Company Successfully secured a defense verdict for a refinery labor company in a personal injury mesothelioma case alleging exposure to asbestos during work at a San Francisco Bay area refinery. Following four weeks of trial, the jury found that no asbestos exposure was attributable to the defendant company.
  • Rowberg v. Plumbing Supply Company – Secured a defense verdict for a plumbing supply company and its alleged predecessor entity in a wrongful death case following 17 days of trial. The plaintiff alleged the company supplied asbestos cement pipe to the plaintiff’s worksites, thereby exposing his wife to asbestos dust via his clothing. The wife subsequently contracted mesothelioma and passed away. Plaintiffs’ attorneys had asked the jury for $18 million.
  • Childress v. Various Defendants – Dismissal with prejudice on behalf of a general contractor defendant on the day of closing argument in a case involving fatal asbestos-related lung cancer.
  • Vivas v. Southern Counties Express Secured a defense verdict in a case involving an accident between a small car and a tractor-trailer. It was suspected that this was a fraudulent lawsuit and, during trial, we proved that two of the plaintiffs had lied under oath about critical aspects of the case.
  • Secured a defense verdict and award of costs in favor of a commercial real estate brokerage accused of professional negligence and breach of fiduciary duties. Plaintiff alleged a commercial real estate transaction involving the purchase of country club and complicated liquor license was thwarted when escrow instructions were not properly completed. Due to thorough cross examination of witnesses and  expert testimony, the judge entered judgment in favor of our client immediately after closing arguments and without taking the matter under submission.