Sierra Elizabeth, P.C.

Toxic Tort/Products Liability/Personal Injury

• Serves as lead defense counsel for 3M Company in litigation concerning 3M’s allegedly defective dual-ended Combat Arms Earplugs™. Secured complete defense verdict in the second bellwether trial (Dustin McCombs v. 3M Company, et al.). The victory was profiled in The Am Law Litigation Daily’s “Litigators of the Week” feature and received extensive media coverage including in The Wall Street Journal, Reuters and the National Law Journal.
• Represented BP in multi-plaintiff litigation brought by residents alleging personal injury and property damage resulting from the Deepwater Horizon Oil spill, specifically related to source control issues.
• Represented General Motors LLC in bellwether cases in connection with its defense of thousands of personal injury and fraud cases arising from GM’s ignition switch recalls.
• Represented a third-party defendant in litigation involving the alleged release of potentially toxic substances into the soil and groundwater of a California city.
• Represented a chemical company in multiple cases involving alleged injuries resulting from asbestos-contaminated talc.
• Represented the CEO and Chairman of Scotts Miracle-Gro Company in class action litigation involving the alleged misuse of pesticides in wild bird food.
• Represented an asbestos supplier in multiple cases involving alleged injuries resulting from asbestos-containing products.
• Represented a manufacturer of corrugated steel tubing in litigation brought by home owners alleging design defect.
• Represented Warner Bros. against a water safety diver who alleged that he suffered a career ending injuries on the set of the movie “Flags of Our Fathers.” Following a four-week trial, the jury awarded a unanimous verdict in favor of Warner Bros. The plaintiff originally sought more than $10 million in damages.

Entertainment

• Represented Sydney Holland in an action brought by Sumner M. Redstone alleging elder abuse and breach of fiduciary duty.
• Represented a leading independent production company in an accounting dispute against a movie studio related to 5 of its films.
• Represented Goldcrest Film Distribution III Limited in an action to recover several million dollars from Summit Distribution, LLC in connection with the film Twilight.
• Represented a private equity fund in a breach of contract action to recover profits related to its $375 million film financing investment in films produced by Paramount Pictures Corporation. The case settled favorably before trial.
• Represented a hedge fund in a profit participation dispute against a movie studio related to its $1 billion slate financing agreement.
• Represented 19 Entertainment and dcp productions in a breach of implied-in-fact contract case regarding the television show “So You Think You Can Dance.”

Contract and Business Torts

• Represented affiliates of the Royal Bank of Scotland in multiple actions brought by institutional investors alleging federal and state securities law violations arising out of the sale of residential mortgage-backed securities.
• Represented corporate client in a several hundred million dollar suit filed against multiple foreign defendants, alleging that the client was defrauded out of purchasing an insurance company. The case settled favorably shortly before trial.

Davis Polk & Wardwell, LLP (New York), Summer Associate

Kirkland & Ellis, LLP (Los Angeles), Summer Associate

Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, Extern

Successfully defended a mother against the State of Michigan’s claims that she had mentally and emotionally abused her child. At the conclusion of the bench trial, the trial court found that the claims were unsubstantiated and rejected the state’s petition to take jurisdiction.

Achieved two misdemeanor convictions following a four day criminal jury trial as a volunteer Deputy City Prosecutor and participant in the Trial Advocacy Prosecution Program (TAPP) for the City of Hermosa Beach.

Successfully defeated an unlawful detainer action by a landlord trying to unlawfully evict a family whose property was covered by the Los Angeles Rent Stabilization Ordinance.

Partnered with the Asian Pacific American Legal Center as trial counsel in action by a group of defrauded parents and students seeking to recover damages from an art school.