Richard F. Gerry is a recognized expert in the practice areas of motor vehicle, aviation, maritime,
railroad, product defect, construction, toxic torts and other personal injury cases. Mr. Gerry has
been a successful trial lawyer for more than 45 years.
Mr. Gerry graduated from Columbia University School of General Studies in New York City,
and from the Columbia University School of Law.
In 1956 he was hired by Melvin Belli in San Francisco, and became a partner in Belli, Ashe and Gerry
in 1958. While with Belli and Ashe, he was involved in many of the early cases in the development of
products liability law. He also participated in the litigation of many aviation disaster cases.
In 1969, Mr. Gerry moved to San Diego, where he has handled class and non-class cases arising out
of ground water contamination. Mr. Gerry has also represented thousands of Marshall Islanders in
personal and property cases against the United States arising out of the atomic testing program
conducted in the Marshall Islands from 1948 to 1956. He has represented thousands of persons
who suffered death or injury from exposure to asbestos. He was appointed to and served on the
Plaintiffs' Creditors Committee of the Johns-Manville Bankruptcy. The work of the committee
resulted in the payment of hundreds of millions of dollars to victims of Manville asbestos.
Mr. Gerry is a member of the Executive Committee of the Plaintiffs' Coordinating Committee
prosecuting the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill cases in Alaska. He was a member of the trial team,
which achieved a verdict in excess of $5 billion, the largest of its kind at that time. He is chairman
of the Punitive Damages Committee and the Allocation Committee involved in that litigation.
This trial team won a Lawyer of the Year Award from Trial Lawyers for Public Justice.
Mr. Gerry is an active member of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, a life member and
President 1981-82; the Western Trial Lawyers Association, Vice President 1972-73, President
1973-74; California Trial Lawyers Association; San Diego Trial Lawyers Association; American
Board of Trial Advocates, President, Northern California, 1964; National Board of Trial
Advocacy, founding board member; Trial Lawyers for Public Justice, founder and life member;
International Academy of Trial Lawyers; Roscoe Pound/ATLA Foundation, founding fellow
and presently an honorary trustee; Consumer Attorneys of San Diego, Board of Directors, 1971-
76; Lawyers Club of San Francisco; American Trial Lawyers Foundation, Trustee, 1982-Present;
Melvin M. Belli Society, President 1982-83; and the State Bar of California.
Mr. Gerry has been recognized and one of the best lawyers of the United States by Town &
Country Magazine. He was listed in many editions of the book, Best Trial Lawyers of America.
California Western School of Law conferred an honorary Doctor of Law degree upon him. He
has lectured extensively in most states of the United States.
Mr. Gerry practices at the HermanMathis office in San Diego, California.
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 |
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| IN
BRIEF |
| Law
School |
| Columbia University, J.D., 1956 |
|
| Undergraduate |
| Columbia University, B.S., 1953
|
|
| Admitted
to Practice |
1956, California
U.S.D.C. Northern, Southern & Central Districts of California
U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
1973, U.S. Supreme Court
1983, Republic of Marshall Islands
1984, High Court of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands
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|
| Affiliations |
American Trial Lawyers Foundation
Lawyers Club of San Francisco
Member, Board of Directors
Consumer Attorneys of San Diego
American Board of Trial Advocates
Consumer Attorneys of San Diego
Consumer Attorneys of California
Western Trial Lawyers Association
Association of Trial Lawyers of America
The State Bar of California
San Diego County Bar Association |
|
| Honors |
Lawyer of the Year Award
Best Trial Lawyers of America
Honorary Doctor of Law degree
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