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Mark V. Berry 
Los Angeles, California
Vice Chairman/Managing Partner
phone 310.380.6505
fax 310.719.1019
email mark.berry@lax.bowmanandbrooke.com

One of our firm managing partners, Mark practices principally in the area of product liability defense, primarily for motor vehicle and component manufacturers. He directs a national discovery counsel program for one motor vehicle manufacturer, and is national coordinating counsel for rollover cases for another manufacturer.  He also has extensive experience in defense of complex matters, with particular knowledge in defending rollover stability and crashworthiness cases.  Since joining Bowman and Brooke he has had over 30 jury trials, many of them involving rollover crashes and catastrophic injuries.  He has tried motor vehicle product liability cases in California, Idaho, Alaska, Wisconsin, Washington and Texas.  He was co-counsel in Toledo v. Isuzu Motors, listed as one of the Top 10 Defense Verdicts of 2002 in California.

After graduating from Stanford Law School, Mark practiced with a Los Angeles firm until 1982, when he became General Counsel of Bridgestone Tire Company of America, Inc., where he was responsible for the company's legal affairs on a national basis.  In 1987 he joined Honda North America, Inc. as Associate General Counsel, responsible for the supervision of all Honda product liability litigation in the United States.  He opened Bowman and Brooke's Southern California office in 1991, as the resident managing partner.  He was elected a managing partner of the firm in 2002 and Vice Chairman in 2008.

Areas of Practice:
Automotive
Aviation Litigation
Business, Commercial and Financial Litigation
Complex Litigation
Dealer and Franchise Litigation
Discovery and Document Management Litigation
Motor Vehicle Warranty
Motorcycles, ATVs and Other Wheeled Vehicles
Product Liability
Trucking and Bus Company Litigation
Bar Admissions:
Texas, 2004
California, 1976
U.S. Supreme Court, 1980
U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1980
U.S. District Court Central District of California, 1977
U.S. District Court Northern District of California, 1980
Education:
Stanford Law School, Stanford, California, 1976
J.D.


University of California, Santa Barbara, California, 1973
B.A.
Honors: Summa Cum Laude
Honors: Phi Beta Kappa


Published Works:
The New CACI Jury Instructions - A View from the Trenches, Co-Authored with Jenny A. Covington, Verdict Magazine, 3rd Quarter, 2005


Admissibility of Testing Evidence to Demonstrate Scientific Principles, Co-Authored with Jill Goldsmith, BNA Product Safety and Liability Reporter, December 16, 1994


Representative Cases:
Beck-Ruiz v. Kia Motors America, Inc., SCBV-219965 (Superior Court for the State of California, County of Sonoma 2003)
Elpidia Toledo v. Isuzu, BC 221457 (Los Angeles Superior Court, Central District, Dept 39 2002)
Isuzu Motors Limited v. Consumers Union of United States, Inc., 12 F.Supp.2d 1035 (U.S.D.C., Central District of California (L.A.) 1998)
General Motors v. Farnsworth, 965 P.2d 1209 (Alaska 1998)
Maneely v. General Motors Corporation, 108 F.3d 1176 (9th Cir. 1997)
Bigbee v. Pacific Telephone, 34 Cal.3d 49, 665 P.2d 947, 192 Cal.Rptr. 857 (Cal. 1983)
Bruno v. Superior Court, 127 Cal.App.3d 120, 179 Cal. Rptr. 342 (Cal.App. 4 Dist. 1981)
Toledo v. Isuzu, 32096155 (  2002)
Representative Clients:
Dana Corporation
Ford Motor Company
General Motors Corporation
Isuzu Motors Limited
Nissan North America
Kia Motors America, Inc.
Classes/Seminars Taught:
Choice of Law, Product Liability Advisory Counsel, October 26, 2005 - October 28, 2005


Defendant's Closing Statement, American Bar Association - Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section (TIPS), March 18, 2004 - March 19, 2004


The Rise of Junk Peer Review and What to do About It, ABA Emerging Issues in Motor Vehicle Product Liability Litigation, Phoenix, Arizona, March 20, 2003 - March 21, 2003


Experience from ATV Litigation (Or, Defending Your Product When Your Company - and the Industry - Abandons It, Texas General Counsel Forum, Dallas, TX, November 16, 2001


Technology on Trial Part I: Bells & Whistles in the Courtroom: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly, ABA Section of Litigation Annual Meeting, Phoenix, May 9, 2001 - May 12, 2001


Numerous presentations to clients and within firm on technical and legal issues relating to product liability defense throughout his career


Honors and Awards:
Named in the Legal 500 United States 2008 Edition


Selected by Super Lawyers Magazine as a SuperLawyer(R) in 2004, 2006-2008


Professional Associations and Memberships:
American Bar Association


Product Liability Advisory Council
Sustaining Member


State Bar of California


Los Angeles County Bar Association


Past Employment Positions:
Honda North America, Inc., Associate General Counsel


Bridgestone Tire Company of America, Inc., General Counsel


Birth Information:
1951, Oakland, California

From boardroom to courtroom