On Dec. 12, partner Robert A. Rich, senior counsel G. Jeff Coons, and associate Mahsa Kashani Tippins of San Francisco -- members of Gordon & Rees’s Environmental/Toxic Tort Practice Group -- will speak at the HarrisMartin California Asbestos Litigation Conference at the Omni Los Angeles Hotel at California Plaza.
Jeff will participate in a panel discussion titled “Appellate Court Update – Key Decisions and Trends in California.” Among other things, he will discuss the recent Pfeiffer decision and how it impacts the sophisticated user defense in California.
Mahsa will participate in a panel discussion titled “The Use of Internet Technology in the Courtroom.” She will address various laptop, iPad and smartphone applications for use during pretrial hearings, jury selection and trial. She also will discuss how apps help attorneys quickly access and research the Evidence Code and the Code of Civil Procedure as well as assist the trial team or jury consultants to submit juror information to the trial attorney’s iPad.
Robert will present the defense perspective in a discussion titled “Trial and Evidentiary Issues.” He will speak about the art of trial and various evidentiary issues that arise when examining and cross-examining witnesses, dealing with former testimony and introducing documents into evidence.
Robert has more than 20 years of experience handling asbestos-related matters on behalf of product manufacturers, premises owners, and asbestos mining companies. Rich has tried more than 30 mesothelioma cases in California, Florida, Texas and throughout the United States. He also is experienced in defending product liability matters and he has extensive aviation law experience.
Jeff has defended environmental and toxic injury claims involving asbestos, silica, beryllium and other airborne and water-borne contaminants. His clients include multinational building materials companies, equipment manufacturers and industrial suppliers, among others.
Mahsa has experience during all phases of litigation, from intake through trial, and has defended oil companies, insulation manufacturers and chemical distributors successfully at trial in both Northern and Southern California.
For more information about the conference, please click here.