Girardi

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Tom Girardi

Girardi & Keese

Specialty: Class-action suits

Law School: Loyola, 1964

Tom Girardi likes to think of his success as a wake-up call to polluters.

Girardi has made a name for himself as a successful “toxic litigator” usually involving class-action lawsuits. Two years ago, he waged a toxic tort case against Pacific Gas & Electric that eventually resulted in a settlement of $333 million for the 40 plaintiffs involved. Another large suit, Orozco vs. Lockheed/Exxon/Shell, has, to date, resulted in jury verdicts and settlements totaling $900 million. The case is currently being appealed.

Girardi is a crusader for the class-action suit, which he says gives victims who would otherwise be unable to afford legal counsel the ability to wrest damages from giant corporations. His belief that everyone has a right to be heard extends to his own staff.

“I love to surround myself with young graduates they are so much smarter than (many) senior lawyers,” Girardi said. “These people coming out of law school are brilliant in their analysis of situations, whereas so many lawyers have become stale and unimaginative. They come up with great stuff all the time that I use and take credit for.”

To Girardi, the rewards of his line of work are greatest when he actually sees the results of it in front of him.

“This week, I bought a can of stuff whose owners had previously denied their product caused any harm, and the warning (on the can) listed everything that we had started saying back in 1985,” he said. “That is very exciting. For some small law firm in California to have had an imprint on these companies that is very important.”

Karen Teitelman

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