Firm Affiliations, Organizations and Listings

Firm attorneys are proud to be leaders and members in the following prestigious organizations:

American Board of Trial Advocates

In 1958, a group of attorneys created the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) with the hopes of preserving the United States Constitution's Seventh Amendment guarantee; the right to trial by jury. There are more than 6,300 lawyers and judges spread among 93 Chapters in all 50 States and the District of Columbia. Membership in this organization is by invitation only to trial attorneys who have demonstrated excellent trial skills while maintaining the highest levels of professionalism, integrity, honor, and courtesy. Members shall have at least five years of active experience as a trial lawyer and shall have tried a minimum of twenty civil jury trials to a verdict in a court of general jurisdiction or a federal court.

American College of Trial Lawyers

The American College of Trial Lawyers is an honorary association comprised of experienced trial lawyers in the United States and Canada who have mastered the art of advocacy and those whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility, and collegiality. The College is dedicated to furthering the administration of justice and improving the ethics and standards of the trial profession. The College’s Fellowship represents all branches of trial practice, enabling the organization to speak with a balanced voice on important issues affecting the legal profession and the administration of justice.

Fellowship is extended only by invitation, after careful investigation, to those experienced trial lawyers who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility, and collegiality. Although there are currently more than 5,700 Fellows across the U.S. and Canada, membership can never be more than 1% of the total lawyer population of any state or province.

Association of Defense Trial Attorneys

ADTA invites only one defense trial attorney to be its prime member per one million in population for each city, town, or municipality across the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. An ADTA prime membership is, in essence, a statement of the high regard in which that defense trial attorney is held by his or her peers in the defense trial bar of their city and state or province. The Association of Defense Trial Attorneys has two main objectives: to provide an opportunity for the proven successful defense trial attorneys to associate with similarly qualified trial attorneys for professional, social and business purposes, and to identify the successful defense trial attorney for those persons in search of such an attorney.

Association of Southern California Defense Counsel

BORN IN 1960, at a time when several lawyers’ group were launched in California, the ASCDC was organized by small group of Los Angeles insurance defense attorneys who felt it was essential for their professional interest to be equally represented.

The ASCDC has since grown to become the nation’s preeminent regional defense organization. It now encompasses a diverse group of more than 2,200 men and women of all ages, races and religions, who practice from north of Santa Barbara to the Mexican border and from the desert of the inland empire to the shores of Santa Monica. The Association has long been a leader in providing continuing legal education. Through a series of seminars that feature top speakers from the bench and bar, lawyers get the latest, most in-depth information on topics of special interest to the defense practice.

Defense Research Institute

DRI is the international organization of attorneys defending the interests of business and individuals in civil litigation. DRI provides numerous educational and informational resources to DRI members and offers many opportunities for liaison among defense trial lawyers, Corporate America, and state and local defense organizations. DRI also has an international presence, seeking to enhance understanding of the law among members of the defense community who have reason to be concerned with the expanding globalization of litigation defense. The following are DRI's goals:

  • Education:To teach and educate and to improve the skills of the defense law practitioner
  • Justice:To strive for improvement in the civil justice system
  • Balance:To be a counterpoint to the plaintiff's bar and seek balance in the justice system in the minds of potential jurors and on all fields where disputes are resolved
  • Economics:To assist members in dealing with the economic realities of the defense law practice, including the competitive legal marketplace
  • Professionalism and Service:To urge members to practice ethically and responsibly, keeping in mind the lawyer's responsibilities that go beyond the interest of the client to the good of American society as a whole

Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel

Founded in 1936, the Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel is an international organization composed of the nation’s leaders in the legal community. Federation members have been judged by their peers to have achieved the highest in professional distinction, and are committed to promoting “Knowledge, Justice and Fellowship.” The 1400 members of the Federation include the top attorneys in private practice who specialize in civil defense litigation, as well as general counsel, risk managers and insurance claims examiners from throughout the world. For more information about the FDCC or its projects, please visit www.thefederation.org.

Lawyers Club of San Diego

The Lawyers Club of San Diego seeks to advance the status of women in the law and in society. Lawyers Club is a voluntary bar association, comprised of female and male attorneys, judges, law students and others in the San Diego community who share our interests and goals. In the early 1970's there were few women lawyers in San Diego County. However, San Diego was the focus of the movement in California to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, which was facing opposition from the President Pro Tem of the California State Senate.

Over the years, Lawyers Club has become a vital, constructive, and respected force within San Diego County. Lawyers Club's strength and credibility comes from the high quality of its members. Our membership includes Federal and State judges, U.S. Attorneys, the City Attorney of San Diego and many managing partners of San Diego's top law firms. Lawyers Club is also proud of its numerous business and student members.

Litigation Counsel of America

Is an invitation- only trial lawyer honorary society established to reflect the new face of the American bar. Membership is limited to 3,500 Fellows, representing less than one-half of one percent of American lawyers. The composition of the LCA is aggressively diverse, with recognition of excellence among American litigation and trial counsel across all segments of the bar. The purpose of the LCA is to recognize deserving, experienced, and highly qualified lawyers, to provide an outlet for scholarly authorship of legal articles on trial and litigation practice, to provide additional sources for professional development, to promote superior advocacy and ethical standards in the practice of law, to assist in community involvement by its membership, and to advance a superior judiciary, by taking relevant positions on issues or legislation affecting judicial compensation and/or benefits, as well as those affecting the American litigation processes.

San Diego Defense Lawyers

SDDL is an organization of lawyers engaged in the defense of civil litigants. The objectives of this organization are to provide a forum for mutual education through the exchange of ideas with counsel in San Diego County; to promote cordial relations among its members; to promote improved public perception of its members through service to the community and to maintain the standards of professional conduct.