HarrisMartin's California Asbestos Litigation Conference Speaker Profiles

Mike Armitage is a partner at Waters, Kraus & Paul and is the managing attorney for the Los Angeles office. Admitted to practice in both California and Louisiana, Mike began his career practicing maritime transportation and commercial law, but has focused on personal injury and product liability cases since joining the firm in 2000. Mike oversees the firm's asbestos practice in both Los Angeles and San Francisco, and his work on asbestos-related cancer cases has resulted in some of the firm's most notable verdicts. He serves as a liaison counsel on a Bench-Bar Committee for asbestos litigation issues before the Los Angeles County Superior Court, as well as a co-chair of the AAJ Asbestos Litigation Group, and he is invited several times each year to serve as a co-chair or speaker at national seminars and conferences on asbestos and mass tort litigation. Mike earned his bachelor's degree from Tulane University, where he graduated magna cum laude. He went on to graduate cum laude from Tulane Law School as well, where he was selected to the Order of The Coif, served as a member of the Moot Court Board, and participated as a senior fellow in the university’s legal research and writing program. Born in Surrey, England, Mike is a member of the American Association for Justice, Public Justice Foundation Board, Consumer Attorneys of Los Angeles Board of Governors, Consumer Attorneys of California, he is also a proctor member of the Maritime Law Association of the United States. Mike is also active in the local community and was recently appointed to the Board of Trustees of Vistamar School. Mike has been selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® from 2006 to 2010 (Copyright 2009 by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, S.C.) that appeared in Los Angeles magazine. He has also been recognized on the Thomson Reuters Southern California Super Lawyers® list in the Los Angeles Times 2006 to 2012.

Stephen M. Nichols is a partner in the Los Angeles office of McKenna Long & Aldridge. His practice primarily involves the defense of corporations in matters involving toxic torts including asbestos exposure, premises liability and product liability cases. In addition to his work in California, Mr. Nichols has tried cases to verdict in Oregon and Missouri and has represented clients in trials held in Washington, Texas and New York.

As a result of his trial experience, he was elected as a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), an invitation-only organization of attorneys with significant active experience as trial lawyers. Mr. Nichols has also been listed in Southern California Super Lawyers Magazine in 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012.

On March 10, 2012, Mr. Nichols was inducted as a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, one of the premier legal associations in America. The College includes the best of the trial bar from the United States and Canada. Fellowship is by invitation only and follows a lengthy and careful investigation of nominees. Less than one percent of attorneys in any given state are admitted to the College.

James N. Sinunu specializes in toxic tort and environmental matters, and has tried a variety of cases throughout the state of California. His clients have ranged from computer manufacturers, chemical distributors, and foreign mining corporations to dairy farmers, local contractors and public entities. His practice includes product liability, insurance coverage, residential and nursing home care litigation, hospitality practice, construction defect, and commercial law. He regularly serves as an arbitrator, mediator, and judge pro tem.

Mr. Sinunu is a regular lecturer with recent topics including “Defending Dissolved Corporations,” presented to the Association of Defense Counsel of North California and Nevada (ADCNC); “Staying Within Yourself and Your Area of Expertise,” presented to the Forensic Expert Witness Association; “Settlement Analysis in California” (describing California’s method of calculating damages), presented to the ADCNC; and “Distinguishing Between Malignancies in Asbestos Cases,” presented to the American Conference Institute. When elected to the Board of Directors of the ADCNC in 2002, he formed the Toxic Tort Substantive Law committee and organized an annual lecture series for Northern California defense attorneys which continues to the present time. He is the author of “Mesothelioma v. Lung Cancer: The Diagnosis and its Effect on Juror Perceptions,” Harris Martin Columns.

Mr. Sinunu is a founding member of the Asbestos Risk Analysis Group, an organization providing counsel to companies and forecasting the future of asbestos litigation. The group recently authored a white paper, “Asbestos Claims and Litigation: Update and Review: 2009 New Case Filing: Summary and Analysis.” The paper describes the current state of asbestos litigation and provides trend and projection information.

Mr. Sinunu is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, the Association of Defense Counsel of Northern California and Nevada (Board of Directors 2002 – 2005), and the Defense Research Institute. He is a member of the California, San Francisco, Santa Clara, and Los Angeles County Bar Associations. He is admitted to practice law in California, and in the US District Courts for the Northern and Eastern Districts of California and the District of Arizona.

Mr. Sinunu has been named a Northern California Super Lawyer since 2005 and is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell.

Mr. Sinunu received his J.D. from Hastings College of the Law and his A.B. in Economics from Stanford University. He served as an officer in the U.S. Navy from 1968 to 1971 and as Planning Commissioner for the town of Los Altos Hills from 1992 to 1994.

Mr. Tigerman is certified as a trial specialist by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), which is the most prestigious trial lawyers group in the nation. He has for many years been a member of the faculty of both the University of San Francisco School of Law's Intensive Advocacy program and the Stanford University Law School Advocacy program. He was a member of the Board of Governors for the Consumer Attorneys of California and is currently a long-standing member of the Board of Governors of the San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association. He is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and he has an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale Hubbell—which is the highest rating available from that organization. He lectures on trial practice and seminars across the nation. Since 2004, he has consistently been selected as a Northern California Super Lawyer.

Mr. Tigerman has obtained many multi-million dollar verdicts. He has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for his clients. He has successfully tried cases involving defective products, premises liability, auto accidents, medical malpractice, and of course asbestos-related injuries.