Richard Dongell

Richard Dongell is Of Counsel in the Los Angeles and Irvine offices of Murchison & Cumming, LLP. He has devoted the last thirty years to pursuing and achieving client objectives in litigation and within the regulatory enforcement framework. Through a combination of hard work, determination, and regularly developing bold, creative strategies unique to each case, Mr. Dongell has been able to consistently produce favorable client results. Mr. Dongell has developed the expertise necessary to regularly defend clients in all types of environmental, toxic tort, construction, commercial dispute, real estate development, and entertainment/music industry litigation. He has compiled a substantial track record of litigation victories in these areas.

Many of these cases were high profile, hard-fought matters that were covered by the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Forbes, CNN, ABC’s Good Morning America, TMZ, all three local network news TV channels, Billboard Magazine, and the Los Angeles Daily Journal’s Verdicts & Settlements, Year-in-Review Edition. These cases are discussed in the Representative Cases section below.

Prior to joining Murchison and Cumming, Mr. Dongell was a founding partner of the thirty-lawyer firm Dongell Lawrence Finney, LLP. Mr. Dongell has been recognized as a “Southern California Super Lawyer” for six consecutive years.

Mr. Dongell has also meaningfully participated in numerous political campaigns and has served by appointment on several commissions. His political experience includes serving for Kathleen Connell for Mayor of Los Angeles (Campaign Co-Chair); Gray Davis for Governor of California (Legal Policy Advisor); the California Democratic Party Business and Finance Council (Chief Legal Counsel); John Garamendi for Governor of California (Campaign Advisor and Fundraiser); Tal Finney for State Democratic Party Controller (General Counsel); Gil Garcetti for Los Angeles District Attorney (Campaign Advisor and Fundraiser) and John Garamendi for California Insurance Commissioner (Campaign Advisor and Fundraiser).

A graduate of Temple University School of Law, Mr. Dongell was a member of the Law Review and received his undergraduate degree from Pennsylvania State University.

Representative Cases

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• Carla Clark, et al. v. The City of Santa Rosa, et al., Sonoma County Superior
  Court, Case No. SCV 227898
• 3000 E. Imperial LLC v. Robertshaw Controls Company, et al., USDC, Central
  District, Case No. CV0803985
• Rhonda Holmes v Courtney Love, Los Angeles Superior Court
• California Earth Corps v. State Lands Commission and City of Long Beach,
  Sacramento Superior Court Case No. 01CS01556
• In Rod Stewart v. American Casualty, Los Angeles Superior Court, Case No.
  BC141713
• Jack Engle & Co. v. M.H. Whittier Company Ltd., USDC, Central District, Case
  No. 96-6477
• United Alloys, Inc. v. Harold A. Baker, et al., USDC, Central District of California
  Case No. CV 93-4722 RMT (Ex)
• California Earth Corps. v. U.S. Battery Manufacturing Company, Riverside
  County Superior Court, Case No. 277313
• Accuride International Inc. et al. v. Parco, Inc. et al., San Bernardino County
  Superior Court, Case No. RCV 052978 (consolidated with RCV 053938)
• Slottow v. American Casualty Company of Reading, Pa., 10 F3d 1355 (9thCir.
  1993)
• People v. New Frontier Trading Corporation, et al., Los Angeles Superior
  Court, Case No. BA062242
• Adame, et al. v. State of California, et al., Santa Clara County Superior Court –
  Complex Division, Case No. 1-08-CV-106710
• Baykeeper, et al. v. Kaiser International, et al, USDC, Central District of
  California – Eastern Division, Case No. CV 97-07761 DDP (Crux)
• Tyco Thermal Controls v. Rowe Industries: USDC, Northern District of
  California, Case No. 3:06-07164 NC
• City of Rialto et al. v. United States Department of Defense
• Prentice, et al. v. City of Berkeley, et al., Alameda County Superior Court, Case
  No. RG 03 133031
• Orange County Water District v. Northrop Corporation, et al., Orange County
  Superior Court, Case No. 04CC00715
• United States v. El Dorado County, et al, USDC, Eastern District of California,
  Case No. S-01-1520 MCE GGH
• Courtaulds Aerospace, Inc. v. William C. Huffman, et al., USDC Eastern District of California, Case No. CV-F91-518 OWW
• State of California v. Southland Oil, Inc., et al, USDC Central District of California Case
  No. 92-6344 WJR
• USDC Eastern District of California, Case No. CIV-F-97-5016 OWW DLB