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“Hot Coffee” – documentary

Tuesday, June 28th, 2011

Everyone knows the McDonald’s Hot Coffee case – or at least everyone thinks they know about the case. The truth is, most of America still doesn’t know what actually happened in the case, other than to mock the “greedy plaintiff”, “the greedy lawyer” and the epidemic of “frivolous lawsuits” clogging up our court system. This documentary reveals the truth and also examines the realities of “tort reform” and its threat to our civil justice system.

The documentary is extraordinarily compelling and I ask all of you to watch it. It is currently on HBO on Demand and will be replaying throughout the month as a part of HBO’s summer documentary series.

Hot Coffee has been selected for numerous film festivals, including the prestigious Sundance Film Festival . It has also been awarded “Best Documentary” at the Seattle Film Festival and Tampa Gasparilla Film Festival. The trailer can be viewed using the following link: http://hotcoffeethemovie.com/

Tags: civil justice system, hot coffee, tort reform
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Reza Torkzadeh Named 2011 Super Lawyers Rising Star

Monday, June 27th, 2011

Los Angeles, CA – June 27, 2011 (PR Web) – For the second year in a row, attorney Reza Torkzadeh has been named a Rising Star by California Super Lawyers magazine as one of the top attorneys in California for 2011. This distinction recognizes the best young lawyers in the country.

The selection of Mr. Torkzadeh once again highlights the level of dedication and commitment he has made not only to his profession and his clients but to the community as well.

Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a lawyer rating service that recognizes outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.

The selection of Rising Star by Super Lawyers reinforces a level of accomplishment by Mr. Torkzadeh as one of California’s leading attorneys, putting him in the top 2.5 percent of up-and-coming lawyers under the age of 40.

Mr. Torkzadeh’s practice is dedicated exclusively to handling serious personal injury and wrongful death cases throughout California. He has successfully represented victims and families of those who have been catastrophically injured by someone else’s wrongdoing in both State and Federal Courts. He is the co-author of the book Accidents Happen But Who’s Going to Pay the Bills? A Consumer’s Guide to the California Personal Injury & Wrongful Death System and has published numerous articles on the topics of consumer advocacy and tort law.

Mr. Torkzadeh prosecutes criminal cases for the City of Los Angeles through the Fellowship Program of the prestigious Trial Advocacy Project (TAP), where he is a graduate.

The annual selections are made using a rigorous multi-phased process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, and independent research evaluation of candidates, and peer reviews by practice area.

The Super Lawyers lists are published nationwide in Super Lawyers magazines and in leading city and regional magazines across the country. Super Lawyers magazines also feature editorial profiles of attorneys who embody excellence in the practice of law. For more information about Super Lawyers, go to superlawyers.com

The first Super Lawyers list was published in 1991 and by 2009 the rating service had expanded nationwide. In February 2010 Super Lawyers was acquired by Thomson Reuters the world’s leading source of intelligent information for business and professionals.

For more information on Mr. Torkzadeh, please go to rezatorkzadeh.com

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Published by Forum Magazine – Maximizing Damages for Emotional Distress

Monday, February 28th, 2011

Below is a excerpt of an article published in the Forum Magazine by the Consumer Attorneys of California

By Allen P. Wilkinson & Reza Torkzadeh

In most if not all personal injury cases, the complaint will allege that the plaintiff suffered “severe emotional distress” and “mental anguish” as a result of the negligence or other wrongful conduct of the defendant. In most personal injury cases damages for pain and suffering (non-economic damages) will be greater (often significantly so) than economic damages for such things as medical bills and lost wages, with the sole exception of medical malpractice cases where non-economic damages are statutorily limited to $250,000. Code of Civil Procedure section 3333.2(b).

In the landmark decision of Molien v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals (1980) 27 Cal.3d 916, the California Supreme Court ruled that a plaintiff could recover for “serious” emotional injuries without having suffered any physical injury. The high court therein stated that serious emotional distress “’may be found where a reasonable man, normally constituted, would be unable to adequately cope with the mental stress
engendered by the circumstances of the case.’”Molien v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, supra, 27 Cal.3d at pp. 927-928, quoting Rodrigues v. State (1970) 52 Haw. 156, 173.

Download and read the entire article here Maximizing Damages for Emotional Distress

Tags: damages in personal injury case, emotional distress, emotional distress damages, maximizing damages, severe emotional distress damages
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Book Review of “Accidents Happen”

Monday, July 12th, 2010

Today, I received an email about our first book review for Accidents Happen But Who’s Going to Pay the Bills? This was an excellent review by Michael Jones of BookReview.com, who put a practical tone to his review of the book. I am extremely proud of Accidents Happen and am encouraged by the support and response that it has received so far. Here are a few quotes from the BookReview of Accidents Happen by Michael Jones:

It is this type of pragmatic approach that makes ‘Accidents Happen’ a clear approach for anyone who wants to be responsibly informed in the area of personal injury law.

‘Accidents Happen’ is a clear and concise playbook, an extremely well-organized and accessible guide that will serve as an invaluable companion when faced with the realities if you ever need to enter the legal arena in a case of a civil matter.

Reza Torkzadeh and Allen P. Wilkinson, a pair of prominent and awarded California personal injury lawyers, have presented a comprehensive, organized, easy to access guide

You can read the entire review of Accidents Happen But Who’s Going to Pay the Bills? If you have been involved in an accident in California, click here to get your free copy of Accidents Happen. For all others, if you wish to purchase a copy of Accidents Happen you can do so at Amazon.com.