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Dick A.
Semerdjian specializes in civil litigation and trial practice. He leads the
Litigation Department of his law firm. Currently, he is Vice Chairman of the
Business Litigation Committee of the American Bar Association and in that
capacity, works with attorneys and clients throughout the United States on
complex litigation matters. He was an appointed Member by the California
State Bar Board of Governors to the prestigious American Bar Association
House of Delegates for nine years.
Mr. Semerdjian is licensed to practice
before the United States Supreme Court, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and
all California and Federal Courts, including Northern, Central, Eastern and
Southern Federal District Courts.
 Named by
American Lawyer Media and Martindale-Hubbell™: '2013 Top Rated Lawyer in
Labor & Employment'.
2013-2014:
Chair of the American Bar Association Commission on the American Jury
Project
2012-2013:
Chair of the American Bar Association Tort Trial and Insurance Practice
Section.
2011-2012:
Chair Elect of the American Bar Association Tort Trial and Insurance
Practice Section.
2012-2013:
Selected by San Diego Magazine as one of the San Diego's best lawyer in the
practice areas of Labor & Employment and Personal Injury.
2010-2013:
Named in Best Lawyers of America in the practice areas of Labor & Employment
and Personal Injury. Selection to Best Lawyers is based on an exhaustive and
rigorous peer review comprising of more than 2.8 million confidential
evaluations by top attorneys in the Country.
2010-2013:
Named as a Top Attorney in San Diego County by the San Diego Magazine.
2009-2013:
Semi-finalist as a top Civil Litigator in San Diego County by the San Diego
Daily Transcript.
2008-2013:
Named as top Business Litigator in San Diego in the Super Lawyers Magazine:
Corporate Counsel Edition.
2007-2013:
Named a Southern California Super Lawyer in the practice area of Business
Litigation and recognized as among the top 5% of all San Diego area
practicing attorneys after an extensive peer review and evaluation conducted
by Law & Politics published in Southern California Super Lawyers Magazine -
San Diego Edition.
In September of
2006 and 2008, nominated as one of the San Diego Daily Transcripts Top
Influentials.
In July of
2006, named one of the Ten Best Attorneys in San Diego by the San Diego
Daily Transcript.
Business
& Commercial Litigation
Employment
Litigation
Personal
Injury & Wrongful Death
Product
Liability
Unfair
Competition Litigation
University of
California at San Diego (B.A., with provost honors, 1981)
University of
San Diego School of Law (J.D., 1985)
Member:
American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA): The American Civil Trial Bar
Roundtable (2012-2013)
Chair: American
Bar Association - Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section (2012-2013)
Chair: American
Bar Association - Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section (2012-2013)
Chair-Elect:
American Bar Association Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section
(2011-2012)
Member and
Liaison: American Bar Association Standing Committee on Judicial
Independence (2008-2012)
Member and
Liaison: American Bar Association American Jury Project (2011-2012)
ABA/TIPS -
National Trial Academy - Instructor and Board Member
Board of
Governors - San Diego County Bar Association (2003-2006)
Board of
Directors (Council) - American Bar Association Tort Trial and Insurance
Practice Section (2006-2009)
2007 Chairman -
San Diego International Sports Council and Foundation
San Diego
County Bar Association (Member, Client Assistance and Arbitration/Client
Relations and Bench and Bar Committees)
American Bar
Association (Member, Sections of: Tort Trial and Insurance Practice; Vice
Chairman, Business Litigation Section)
State Bar of
California since 1986
Defense
Research Institute (Member: Products Liability and Commercial Litigation
Sections)
Board of
Directors San Diego Trial Lawyers Association and Consumer Attorneys of San
Diego (Sustaining Member) and Co-Chairman - Trial Awards Committee
(1989-1991)
San Diego
Defense Lawyers Association
The Association
of Trial Lawyers of America and American Association for Justice
Association of
Business Trial Lawyers
California
Consumer Attorneys Association
Master, William
B. Enright Inn of Court
Board of
Managers, San Diego County YMCA, Human Development Department and Board
Emeritus Member 1984-1993
Board of
Directors and Executive Committee and Chairman, San Diego Sports Council and
San Diego Sports Commission
Board of
Directors, Torrey Pines High School Foundation, Torrey Pines Pop Warner
Football and Solana Beach Little League
University of
California San Diego Chancellor Associate and Alumni Association
Alumni Advisor,
University of San Diego School of Law
San Diego
County Bar Association Delegate and Floor Leader of the Conference
Delegates, 1992-1994
San Diego Inn
of Court, Workshop Leader on Evidence (1998)
Million Dollar
Advocates Forum (recognition for verdicts, awards and settlements achieved
for clients in excess of one million dollars)
April 2013
Speaker: The Importance of Civility in the Courtroom (read
more)
September 2012
- Speaker: Civility as an Art Form in Diplomacy and the Law: Lawyer2Lawyer
hosts Bob Ambrogi and Craig Williams join Mr. Semerdjian Chair of the ABA
Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section (TIPS), to discuss the status of
civility in the legal profession. (read
more)
August 3, 2012
- Discussion Leader/Speaker on Juries - National Conference of State Trial
Judges - Commission on the American Jury Project, Town Hall Meeting, Chicago
Illinois.
April 2012 -
Speaker: Litigation in the United States: What You Need to Know about
Investing, Product Liability and Dispute Resolution (China Council for the
Promotion of International Trade, Beijing China) (read
more)
January 2011 -
Co-speaker: California State Bar Association Public Law Section :
Identifying Jurisdiction in the Internet Age.
January 2011 -
Speaker - New Labor and Employment Laws for 2011 - American Subcontractors
Association.
Speaker:
Fundamentals of Employment Law (January 2010 Steerling Education Services,
Inc.)
Speaker: Legal
Challenges to Chinese Companies doing business in the United States
(September 2009 -ABA International Law Committee, Tsinghua University
Beijing, China)
Program Chair-
2008 “Masters of the Courtroom: A Display of Innovative and Proven Trial
Techniques” (March 2005- American Bar Association, Phoenix, Arizona)
Faculty Member
- 2008 National Trial Academy (April 2008- The National Judicial College,
Reno, Nevada)
“Expert
Witnesses” (CEB April 2004-2005)
“Fundamentals
of Pre-Trial Practice: (CEB April 2002)
“Discovery
Plans in Civil Litigation” (CEB July 2001)
“Preparing for,
Taking and Using Depositions” (CEB February 2000)
“Discovery:
Strategies and Tactics for Success” (CEB July 1998 and March 1999)
“Strategic Tips
for Successfully Propounding and Opposing Written Discovery” (CEB July 1999)
“Effective
Advocacy for Plaintiff and Defense Attorneys” (CEB September 1995)
Premises
Liability, Landowner Liability for Criminal Acts, San Diego Trial Lawyers
Association (May 1994)
Reported Cases:
(Federal) Palomar Medical Center v. Kathleen Sebelius, 2012 DJDAR 12790
(Sept. 2012); Upper Deck Authenticated Ltd. v. CGP Direct et al. 931 F.
Supp. 1337 (So. Dist. Cal. 1997); (California) Lynch v. Warwick, 95
Cal.App.4th, 115 Cal. Rptr. 2d 391 (4th Dist. 2002)
Mr. Semerdjian
is also a lecturer for Continuing Education of the Bar in areas of civil
discovery, trial practice and trial techniques. He has been the Discovery
Law Editor of the Trial Bar News since 1996.
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