Courts Presently Admitted to Practice:
| State Bar of Michigan | November 24, 1986 |
| State Bar of California | December 7, 1988 |
| 6th Cir. Court of Appeals | August 23, 1989 |
| 9th Cir. Court of Appeals | December 11, 1989 |
| United States Supreme Court | May 14, 1990 |
| United States District Court Western District Michigan | November 24, 1986 |
| United States District Court Eastern District Michigan | November 26, 2019 |
| United States District Court Northern District California | August 2, 1990 |
| United States District Court Central District California | July 15, 2005 |
| United States District Court Eastern District California | March 5, 2008 |
| United States District Court Southern District California | September 19, 2013 |
| United States District Court Colorado | October 29, 2008 |
| Washoe Tribal Court | 2022 |
Prior Quasi-Judicial Service:
El Dorado County Superior Court Settlement Conference Judge
El Dorado County Superior Court Settlement Conference Judge
Name of agency: El Dorado County Superior Court
Position held: Temporary Settlement Judge/volunteer settlement attorney
Hearings on civil cases involving breach of business contracts, property/water rights, fence and boundary claims, and drain water and sewage damage by a public utility company
Dates of service: 2014 to 2020
Representative Published Cases:
Robertson v. Principal Life Insurance Co., Case No. 3:17-cv-03890-RS, United States District Court Northern District of California (Granting Plaintiff’s Motion for Summary Judgement)Leight v. Union Security Insurance Co., 189 F. Supp. 3d 1039 (D. Or. 2016) (Granting Plaintiff’s Motion for Summary Judgement)Hegarty v. AT&T Umbrella Benefit Plan No. 1, 109 F. Supp. 3d 1250 (N.D. Cal. 2015) (Granting Plaintiff’s Motion for Summary Judgement)May v. AT&T Umbrella Benefit Plan No. 1, 2012 WL 1997810, (N.D.Cal.2012); 584 Fed. Appx. 674 (United States Court of Appeals for The Ninth Circuit, Memorandum Decision Aug. 25, 2014) (Granting Plaintiff’s Motion for Summary Judgement)
I have been practicing civil litigation continuously since 1986 (criminal defense also from 1986 – 1988), having represented both individuals and insurance companies until 1993, and exclusively representing individuals since 1994. I have represented hundreds of individuals in personal injury claims, employment matters, workers’ compensation cases, and breach of insurance contract disputes in all phases of litigation through trials and appeals in state, federal, workers’ compensation, and tribal courts, presently focusing on denials of health and disability insurance benefits and breaches of ERISA laws and regulations. I have been AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell since 2003.
Throughout my entire career, I have represented people of all backgrounds and socioeconomic groups to whom I could offer effective legal assistance and/or advice, with the past fifteen years more focused on working with the disabled to enforce disability insurance contracts. I have always spent a portion of every work week simply advising and counseling individuals, without charge, with regard to working within the legal system to resolve their issues. I believe listening and counseling to be two of my primary functions as an attorney. Allowing everyone the opportunity to be heard, and have their opinions and point of view respected, has been critical to successfully working with people from a wide range of backgrounds in both rural and urban settings. I extend this professional belief and courtesy to all dealings with opposing counsel and courts, including all court staff.
