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Mark V. Berry

Mark V. Berry

Of Counsel
Phone:310-380-6505

Mark Berry is a highly sought after trial lawyer focusing his practice on defense of complex cases, including product liability and product-related class actions, primarily for motor vehicle and component manufacturers. Since joining Bowman and Brooke, Mark has had over 30 jury trials, many of them involving rollover crashes and catastrophic injuries. He has tried product liability cases for companies including Ford, GM, Isuzu, Kia, Nissan and Toyota, in Alaska, California, Idaho, Missouri, New York, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. He is national coordinating counsel for rollover cases for one motor vehicle manufacturer, and directs a national discovery counsel program for another. He has extensive experience defending complex matters, including class actions involving product claims. Mark was co-counsel in Uno v. Toyota, the first "bellwether" unintended acceleration trial in the California coordinated proceedings that resulted in a defense verdict in 2013, and was on the trial team for the Zavala v. Takata unfair competition class action, tried to a defense verdict in Los Angeles Superior Court in 2009.

Mark opened the firm's Los Angeles office in 1991. Prior to joining Bowman and Brooke, Mark served as Associate General Counsel at Honda North America, Inc., where he was responsible for the supervision of all Honda product liability litigation in the United States. Before joining Honda, Mark was General Counsel at Bridgestone Tire Company of America, Inc., where he was responsible for the company's legal affairs on a national basis. He was elected a Firm Managing Partner in 2002 and served as the firm's Vice Chair from 2008 until 2014.

He is a sustaining member of the prestigious Product Liability Advisory Council (PLAC).

Bar Admissions

  • California, 1976
  • Texas, 2004

Court Admissions

  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court, Central District of California
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of California

Education

  • Stanford Law School, J.D., 1976
  • University of California, B.A., 1973
    —summa cum laude
    —Phi Beta Kappa

Professional Associations

    • Product Liability Advisory Council
      —Sustaining Member
    • American Bar Association
    • State Bar of California

Distinctions

    • The Legal 500
      —Named in 2008 - 2011 in which his clients describe him as “perhaps the most knowledgeable rollover lawyer in America” and is praised for his “attention to detail and level of preparation.
    • Who's Who Legal
      —International Who's Who of Product Liability Defense Lawyers, 2008 – 2010, 2013 – 2024
    • The Daily Journal
      —Top 10 California Defense Verdicts of 2002
    • Super Lawyers Magazine
      —Southern California Super Lawyers, 2004, 2006 – 2020

Recent Verdicts & Case Studies


CASE RESULTS DEPEND UPON A VARIETY OF FACTORS UNIQUE TO EACH CASE. CASE RESULTS DO NOT GUARANTEE OR PREDICT A SIMILAR RESULT IN ANY FUTURE CASE.

Recent News, Events and Blogs


Speaking Engagements

  • "Trying the Modern Roof Crush Case (Defense Perspective)," 2013 Emerging Issues in Motor Vehicle Product Liability Litigation, American Bar Association TIPS, April 2013
  • "Choice of Law," Product Liability Advisory Counsel, October 2005
  • "Defendant's Closing Statement, American Bar Association - Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section (TIPS), March 2004
  • "The Rise of Junk Peer Review and What to do About It," ABA Emerging Issues in Motor Vehicle Product Liability Litigation, Phoenix, AZ, March 2003
  • "Experience from ATV Litigation (Or, Defending Your Product When Your Company - and the Industry - Abandons It)," Texas General Counsel Forum, Dallas, TX, November 2001
  • "Technology on Trial Part I: Bells & Whistles in the Courtroom: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly," ABA Section of Litigation Annual Meeting, Phoenix, AZ, May 2001
  • Numerous presentations to clients and within firm on technical and legal issues relating to product liability defense throughout his career

Publications

  • "Surviving" Claims for Punitive Damages in Wrongful Death Cases, " Verdict Magazine, Volume 3, p. 23, Co-Author, 2014
  • "Express Warranty Claims Based on Product Safety Ads: The Admissibility of Trade Usage and Comparative Product Performance Evidence in California, " ABA TIPS Products Liability Committee Newsletter, Co-Author, Summer 2014
  • "Express Warranty Claims Based on Product Safety Ads: The Admissibility of Trade Usage and Comparative Product Performance Evidence,"Verdict Magazine, Volume 1, p. 2, Co-Author, 2014
  • "Collateral Evidence," (with Joyce M. Peim), Los Angeles Lawyer, Summer 2012
  • "Negotiated Rate Differential Meets Collateral Source Rule," Los Angeles Lawyer, Co-Author, July/August 2012
  • "Time to Take Action, The Erosion of the Statute of Limitations in Product Liability Design Defect Cases," Verdict Magazine , Co-Author, 3rd/4th Quarter, 2010
  • "The New CACI Jury Instructions - A View from the Trenches," Verdict Magazine, Co-Author, 3rd Quarter, 2005
  • "Admissibility of Testing Evidence to Demonstrate Scientific Principles," BNA Product Safety and Liability Reporter, Co-Author, December 1994