Credentials

Special Licenses/Certifications

  • Criminal Law, State Bar of California, Board of Legal Specialization

Bar/Professional Activities

  • Member of the State Bar of California (active status), 1985
  • Member of the State Bar of Nevada (inactive status), 2001
  • Member of the Bar of the United States Supreme Court
  • Member of the Bar of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • Member of the Bar of the United States District Court, Northern District of California
  • Member of the Bar of the United States District Court, Central District of California
  • Member of the Bar of the United States District Court, Eastern District of California
  • Member of the Bar of the United States District Court, Southern District of California
  • Member, State Bar of California’s Criminal Law Advisory Commission (Chairman for the 2009 – 2010 term and Vice Chairman for the 2008 – 2009 term)
  • Member of the Rules Subcommittee of the State Bar of California’s Board of Legal Specialization (2009 – 2010 term)
  • Master Member, Los Angeles Criminal Justice American Inn of Court

Scholarly Lectures and Writings

  • Criminal Law News, State Bar of California, 1995
  • Identity Conservation and Equivalence Conservation: A Question of Developmental Priority, Child Development, 1982
  • Performance of Downs Syndrome Individuals on the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, American Journal of Mental Deficiency, 1982

Trial Verdicts

  • United States v. Means – obtained not guilty verdict for client charged with bribing an IRS Revenue Agent based on defense of “entrapment.”
  • Kleinman v. American States Insurance Company – obtained $7.96 million verdict against insurance company.
  • United States v. Lawson – obtained guilty verdicts against tax preparer for tax crimes.
  • United States v. Pratte – obtained guilty verdicts against owner of retirement facility for loan fraud.
  • United States v. Tyler – obtained guilty verdicts against officer of company engaging in securities fraud and ponzi scheme.
  • United States v. Akin – obtained verdicts of guilty in nationwide insurance fraud case. Led task force of more than fifty personnel from Internal Revenue Service, Postal Inspection
  • Service, Interstate Commerce Commission and Department of Transportation.

Reported Decisions

United States Supreme Court

  • Douglas v. Independent Living Center of Southern California, 565 U.S. __, 132 S. Ct. 1204, 182 L. Ed. 2d 101 (2012)

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

  • Moore v. Kayport Package Express, Inc., 885 F.2d 531 (9th Cir. 1989)
  • Commodities Futures Trading Commission v. Topworth International, 205 F.3d 1107 (9th Cir. 1999)
  • United States v. Hagege, 437 F.3d 943 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 549 U.S. 818 (2006)
  •  Independent Living Center of Southern California v. Shewry, 543 F.3d 1047 (9th Cir. 2008)
  • Independent Living Center of Southern California v. Shewry, 543 F.3d 1050 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 129 S. Ct. 2828 (2009)
  • Independent Living Center of Southern California v. Shewry, 590 F.3d 725 (9th Cir. 2009), vacated on other grounds sub. nom. Douglas v. Independent Living Center of Southern California., Inc., 132 S. Ct. 1204 (2012)
  • Independent Living Center of Southern California v. Maxwell-Jolly, 572 F.3d 644 (9th Cir. 2009)
  • Managed Pharmacy Care v. Sebelius, 705 F.3d 934 (9th Cir. 2012)
  • Managed Pharmacy Care v. Sebelius, 716 F.3d 1235 (9th Cir. 2013)

United States District Courts

  • Managed Pharmacy Care v. Maxwell-Jolly, 603 F. Supp. 2d 1230 (C.D. Cal. 2009)
  • In Re: Medi-Cal Reimbursement Rate Reduction Litigation, 652 F. Supp. 2d 1378 (J.P.M.L. 2009)

California Court of Appeals

  • Best Products, Inc. v. Superior Court, 119 Cal. App. 4th 1181, 15 Cal. Rptr. 3d 154 (2004)
  • People ex rel. Harris v. Rizzo, 214 Cal.App.4th 921, 154 Cal.Rptr.3d 443 (2013)

Representative Clients

  • Governments of France and Hong Kong (as a magistrate).
  • United States Government
  • Pacific Mutual Life Insurance Company
  • General American Life Insurance Co.
  • Metropolitan Insurance Company
  • Fireman’s Fund Insurance Companies
  • St. Ives Laboratories, Inc.
  • E.F. Hutton and Company, Inc.
  • American Express
  • Prudential-Bache Securities, Inc.
  • Makar Properties, Inc.
  • Chubb Insurance Group
  • Pan American World Airlines, Inc.
  • American Airlines, Inc.
  • The Flying Tiger Line, Inc.
  • Daimler-Benz Aktiengesellschaft
  • Mercedes Benz of North America
  • Koch Industries
  • Goldrich & Kest Industries, LLC
  • British Petroleum
  • California Pharmacists Association
  • ARCO
  • Synod of Southern California and Hawaii

Other Outstanding Achievements

  • Los Angeles Business Journal’s Healthcare Leadership Award (finalist) for “Lifetime Achievement,” 2012
  • Super Lawyer by Thomson Reuters – 2012-2014
  • AV Preeminent® by Martindale-Hubbell® – 2006-2014
  • Top Attorneys in California – The Legal Network
  • Top 100 Lawyers by The National Trial Lawyers

Pro Bono/Community Service

  • Scoutmaster, Boy Scouts of America
  • Officer and Director, Or HaChaim Hebrew Academy
  • Shofar Award, Jewish Committee on Scouting
  • Eagle Scout, Boy Scouts of America

Educational Background

Law School: University of Southern California Gould School of Law; 1985

Undergraduate: University of California at Los Angeles, cum laude, and Dean’s List; Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology; 1981

Honors and Awards

  • USC Representative, Cardozo National Moot Court Competition, 1985
  • Finalist, Moot Court Honors Program, 1984
  • First Place, Client Counseling Competition, 1983
  • Honors Program, Pi Gamma Mu Honor Society, Psi Chi Honor Society
  • Participant, Cardozo National Moot Court Competition

Educational Background

  • Law School: University of Southern California Law Center, Juris Doctor, 1985.
  • College: University of California, Los Angeles, B.A., Cum Laude & Dean’s List, 1981