Guy Gruppie and Mhare Mouradian Selected Top Attorneys by Pasadena Magazine

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LOS ANGELES – Murchison & Cumming, LLP attorneys Guy R. Gruppie and Mhare O. Mouradian have been named San Gabriel Valley “Top Attorneys” in a survey of peers and judges conducted by Pasadena Magazine. Mr. Gruppie has been selected for the third consecutive year and Mr. Mouradian for a second year.

Attorneys and judges from the San Gabriel Valley and metropolitan Los Angeles area cast votes for the lawyers who, according to their peers, are well qualified in their practice specialties. Mr. Gruppie was named to the 2011 list in the category of Personal Injury Defense and Civil Litigation. He is the chair of Murchison & Cumming’s Emerging Risks & Specialty Tort Litigation practice group and is also a member of the firm’s Product Liability practice group. Mr. Mouradian was selected for the Civil Litigation category. He focuses his practice on complex civil litigation and business litigation.

A longtime resident of the San Gabriel Valley, Mr. Gruppie is active in his community through his service as a member of the Board of Directors of the Arcadia American Little League, a volunteer coach with the league and San Marino-South Pasadena YMCA, membership in the Pasadena Bar Association and participation in the City of Arcadia’s annual Law Day. He has also served as a mediator for the Pasadena branch of the Los Angeles Superior Court. Mr. Mouradian is a past San Gabriel Valley resident. Both attorneys are active members of the Pasadena Bar Association.

The list was published in Pasadena Magazine’s November issue. Attorneys named in this year’s poll will be honored at a reception hosted by the magazine and attended by members of the Pasadena-area judiciary.

About Murchison & Cumming, LLP
With a firm history dating to 1930, Murchison & Cumming, LLP is a premier, AV-rated civil litigation firm with five offices in California and Las Vegas, whose attorneys specialize in the defense of domestic and international businesses, insurers and individuals, at trial and on appeal. The firm’s attorneys also handle employment matters and business transactions. The firm is a member of the USLAW Network. For additional information, please visit our website at www.murchisonlaw.com.

Murchison & Cumming Partner Friedrich Seitz Appointed Lead Counsel for Bluebonnet in Bastrop Fire Litigation

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LOS ANGELES – Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative has appointed Murchison & Cumming’s Wildland Fire Litigation Practice Group Chair Friedrich W. Seitz as lead defense counsel in the Bastrop County Complex Fire litigation in Texas.

Mr. Seitz and the Wildland Fire team will represent the Cooperative in defending against the numerous lawsuits that have been filed relating to the September 2011 fire. The Bastrop County Complex Fire started on September 4, 2011 and eventually spread to five countries, aided by severe drought conditions and high winds. It is alleged that trees fell into the electric transmission lines owned by Bluebonnet, burning 34,068 acres and destroying 1,670 homes and commercial buildings with losses estimated at $250 million.

Murchison & Cumming regularly represents utilities in litigation and has defended Southern California Edison and Breitburn Energy Partners against litigation arising out of wildland fires for many years. A Martindale-Hubbell AV-rated attorney, Mr. Seitz is a Senior Partner and served as the firm’s Managing Partner for almost 20 years. He has extensive jury trial experience holding the rank of “Advocate” with the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), having tried more than 75 jury trials. He has held various leadership roles, including Product Liability Section Chair, within the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel. Mr. Seitz is the current Product Liability Chair for the USLAW Network and is a member of the Defense Research Institute (DRI) and the Product Liability Advisory Council (PLAC).

About Murchison & Cumming, LLP
With a firm history dating to 1930, Murchison & Cumming, LLP is a premier, AV-rated civil litigation firm with five offices in California and Las Vegas, whose attorneys specialize in the defense of domestic and international businesses, insurers and individuals, at trial and on appeal. The firm’s attorneys also handle employment matters and business transactions. The firm is a member of the USLAW Network. For additional information, please visit our website at www.murchisonlaw.com.

Article Co-Authored by Guy Gruppie Selected for Reprint by PLI

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LOS ANGELES – “Ethical Issues in the Use of Trial Consultants,” an article co-authored by M&C’s Guy R. Gruppie and Gilbert Perez of Zuber & Taillieu LLP, has been selected for reprint in the 2011 Practicing Law Institute (PLI) Trial By Jury course handbook.

The article explores the “sometimes fine line between efficacy and the ethical concerns raised by the use of jury science.” The Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel (FDCC) originally published the article in the FDCC Quarterly Winter, 2006 issue.

Trial By Jury attendees will receive the program course handbook, which will also be available for purchase through PLI. The non-profit expects program attendees to include litigators at all levels of experience, in-house counsel facing the prospect of a jury trial and litigation support professionals.

The program brings judges and trial lawyers together to provide the most up-to-date intelligence on proven strategies and tools to handle jury cases. It will be held on November 30, 2011 at PLI’s New York office.

About Murchison & Cumming, LLP
With a firm history dating to 1930, Murchison & Cumming, LLP is a premier civil litigation firm with five offices in California and Las Vegas, whose attorneys specialize in the defense of domestic and international businesses, insurers and individuals, at trial and on appeal. The firm’s attorneys also handle employment matters and business transactions. The firm is a member of the USLAW Network. For additional information, please visit our website at www.murchisonlaw.com.

Edmund Farrell to Speak at USLAW/Bowring Seminar

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BERMUDA – Edmund G. Farrell, III will speak at a seminar jointly sponsored by the USLAW Network and Bowring Marsh (Bermuda) Ltd., “Is Risk Getting Riskier?” The seminar will be held in Bermuda from September 12 to 13, 2011.

Mr. Farrell will speak on the “Effect of Federal Preemption in Product Cases” during a set of five-minute drills on products liability.

Mr. Farrell is Chair of the Appellate Law practice group and Co-Chair of the Professional Liability practice group. He regularly presents to USLAW Network audiences and serves as a speaker for other national and international professional organizations.

About the USLAW NETWORK
USLAW NETWORK is a national organization composed of 64 independent, defense-based law firms with over 4,000 attorneys covering the United States and Latin America. Among the firms, there are over 150 offices in 47 US states. An alliance with the Trans-European Law Firm Alliance (TELFA) gives them access to 25 European law firms each representing its own jurisdiction and a similar relationship with ALN Limited enables USLAW to partner with 10 firms in East and Central Africa. To learn more about USLAW, please visit www.uslaw.org.

M&C Adds Of Counsel and Associate Attorneys

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LOS ANGELES – Murchison & Cumming, LLP is pleased to announce that David M. Hall and Dana L. Tom have joined the firm. Mr. Hall joins as Of Counsel in the San Diego office, and Ms. Tom joins the San Francisco office as an Associate.

Mr. Hall returns to M&C after having worked at Zurich Insurance Company’s San Diego Staff Legal Office, where he specialized in the defense of subcontractors in construction defect litigation. Focusing his practice in the areas of construction law and general liability, Mr. Hall is experienced in handling matters involving vehicular and construction site accidents, premises liability and other torts. He worked as a news reporter in the Los Angeles area for nine years before becoming a lawyer.

Ms. Tom handles a variety of civil litigation matters, specializing in construction law and general liability defense. With a bachelor’s degree and background in architecture, Ms. Tom is uniquely suited to defend claims against architects, general contractors and other construction entities.

About Murchison & Cumming, LLP
With a firm history dating to 1930, Murchison & Cumming, LLP is a premier civil litigation firm with five offices in California and Las Vegas, whose attorneys specialize in the defense of domestic and international businesses, insurers and individuals, at trial and on appeal. The firm’s attorneys also handle employment matters and business transactions. The firm is a member of the USLAW Network. For additional information, please visit our website at www.murchisonlaw.com.

Steven Spronz to Teach South Africa Commercial Law Practicum

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JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA—Steven C. Spronz is slated to teach the International Senior Lawyers Program (ISLP) Commercial Law Program, teaching lawyers in South Africa who have historically been denied the opportunity to participate or grow in this practice area.

In this program ISLP volunteers, all experienced commercial law attorneys from several countries, are paired with African business lawyers. The South Africa program, created in partnership with the Black Lawyers Association of South Africa and the Senior Lawyers Division of the American Bar Association, has been presented each year since 2004 and to date has enrolled over 500 South African attorneys in Johannesburg, Durban, and Cape Town.

Mr. Spronz has served as a volunteer since the pilot program launch.

About the International Senior Lawyers Project
ISLP, a 501(c)(3) organization, was incorporated in March 2000 to create a vehicle through which senior lawyers could use their skills and expertise to promote the rule of law and human rights. Since 2001, ISLP has deployed world-class legal counsel globally on economic development, human rights, and access to justice projects. ISLP partners with developing country governments who desperately need legal services but are without resources to pay for them, as well as with non-governmental organizations and other civil society groups throughout the developing world. To learn more about ISLP, please visit http://islp.org/aboutus.html.

Edmund Farrell Certified as Appellate Specialist

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LOS ANGELES – Appellate Law Practice Group Chair Edmund G. Farrell, III was certified as an appellate specialist by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. He is one of only 285 attorneys certified as an appellate specialist in California.

Currently in his 24th year as an appellate attorney for Murchison & Cumming, Mr. Farrell has over 75 published decisions and nearly three decades of practical experience in, and knowledge of, appellate law. He has been involved in the handling of over 200 appeals and writ petitions and has argued before the California Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and in all six districts of the California Courts of Appeal.

Mr. Farrell completed a rigorous certification process, which included passing a comprehensive written exam, demonstrating a history of experience in appellate law, and submitting positive evaluations from judges and fellow attorneys.

About Murchison & Cumming, LLP
With a firm history dating to 1930, Murchison & Cumming, LLP is a premier civil litigation firm with five offices in California and Las Vegas, whose attorneys specialize in the defense of domestic and international businesses, insurers and individuals, at trial and on appeal. The firm’s attorneys also handle employment matters and business transactions. The firm is a member of the USLAW Network. For additional information, please visit our website at www.murchisonlaw.com.

M&C Named Top 500 “Go-To Law Firm” for Second Consecutive Year

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LOS ANGELES – Corporate Counsel’s annual survey of Fortune 500 Companies has identified Murchison & Cumming, LLP as a Go-To Law Firm® in the Litigation category for the second year in a row. Nominated by Avis Budget Group, Inc. and Textron, Inc., the attorneys of Murchison & Cumming, LLP have an 80-year track record of securing excellent results for its clients.

Corporate Counsel’s parent company ALM selects Go-To Law Firms® based on polls collected from the legal departments of the top 500 companies who name their primary outside law firms. Nominated firms then undergo comprehensive review by researchers in order to produce a final list.

A listing of selected firms appeared in ALM’s Eighth Annual Edition of In-House Law Departments at the Top 500 Companies. The publication, which is distributed to senior counsel of in-house law departments and law firms nationwide, will feature Murchison & Cumming for its litigation work. The firm’s profile was also published in American Lawyer’s July/August issue (see attached PDF below).

About Murchison & Cumming, LLP
With a firm history dating to 1930, Murchison & Cumming, LLP is a premier civil litigation firm with five offices in California and Las Vegas, whose attorneys specialize in the defense of domestic and international businesses, insurers and individuals, at trial and on appeal. The firm’s attorneys also handle employment matters and business transactions. The firm is a member of the USLAW Network. For additional information, please visit our website at www.murchisonlaw.com.

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Michael Nuñez to Speak at FDCC Annual Meeting

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WILLIAMSBURG – Michael J. Nunez is slated to speak at the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel’s (FDCC) Annual Meeting on July 28, 2011 in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Mr. Nunez will present, “Strategies for Defeating ‘Crawford Claims’ and the Paradox of CH2M Hill,” for the event’s Construction Law section meeting. His presentation will focus on how to defeat or weaken contractual indemnity claims.

The Las Vegas office Partner-in-Charge, Mr. Nunez regularly defends entities in lawsuits arising out of construction accidents. Both an experienced trial lawyer and appellate lawyer, he has successfully argued dozens of cases before the California Court of Appeals and the United States Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit.

About the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel

The Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel (FDCC), composed of recognized leaders in the legal community who have achieved professional distinction, is dedicated to promoting knowledge, fellowship, and professionalism of its members as they pursue the course of a balanced justice system and represent those in need of a defense in civil lawsuits. To learn more aboutthe FDCC, please visit http://www.thefederation.org.

Jean Dalmore Co-Authors Article to be Published by DRI

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LOS ANGELES – The Defense Research Institute (DRI) has selected Murchison & Cumming partner Jean A. Dalmore’s co-authored work, “Moving from the Minors to the Majors: Catastrophic Failures,” for publication in the August 2011 issue of its quarterly magazine, For The Defense.

Focusing on the causes of catastrophic construction failures, the article discusses legal issues that need to be addressed during the various stages of litigation, including a discussion of related insurance coverage issues. The work was originally co-authored by Ms. Dalmore, Robert M. Zaralban of forensic analysis company Sea Limited and David H. Kochman of Harris Beach PLLC for DRI’s fall 2010 Construction Law Seminar.

Ms. Dalmore serves as Co-Chair of the firm’s Construction Law practice group. She also serves as Chair of the Special Litigation Group of DRI’s Construction Law Committee and is a frequent speaker and author of articles on topics related to Construction Defect claims and litigation.

About Murchison & Cumming, LLP
With a firm history dating to 1930, Murchison & Cumming, LLP is a premier civil litigation firm with five offices in California and Las Vegas, whose attorneys specialize in the defense of domestic and international businesses, insurers and individuals, at trial and on appeal. The firm’s attorneys also handle employment matters and business transactions. The firm is a member of the USLAW Network. For additional information, please visit our website at www.murchisonlaw.com.