Hinshaw & Culbertson Expands in California
Six Attorneys Bolster Firm's Strength in ERISA and Healthcare Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Product Liability and Insurance Coverage
Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP today announced that six attorneys have joined the firm's Los Angeles and San Francisco offices. The group, previously with Sedgwick LLP, includes five partners and an associate. The new arrivals add depth to the firm's California and national capabilities in a number of key litigation areas, including healthcare, ERISA, product liability, and commercial litigation.
Joining the firm in San Francisco are partners Eugene Brown, Jr., Amee A. Mikacich, and Dennis G. Rolstad; and, in Los Angeles, partners Edward A. Stumpp and Robert C. Bohner and associate Jenna Nguyen.
Currently, Hinshaw has five offices in California with a total of 90 lawyers in the Golden State.
"Our approach to growth is to seek lawyers who have distinguished themselves as highly regarded in the strategic areas where we have an established brand," said Hinshaw Chairman Kevin Burke. "Each of these attorneys brings tremendous talent, experience, value, and a commitment to excellent client service. They are also terrific people and we look forward to practicing with them."
Hinshaw is nationally recognized for its preeminent insurance services practice and the firm has significant experience across its national platform in the areas of healthcare, life, and disability insurance, and ERISA matters. Stumpp, Rolstad, Bohner, and Nguyen have extensive experience representing national clients in those areas.
"Healthcare litigation is on the rise, particularly in the State of California," said Daniel Ryan, Hinshaw's Business Litigation Practice Group leader. "This is a core practice for us, where we are already nationally known and respected, and this group enhances our capabilities as we continue to build upon our strength in this area."
"We were attracted to Hinshaw because of the firm's national reputation as a leading insurance firm with a marquee practice in the healthcare litigation and ERISA sector," said Edward A. Stumpp. "The combination of our team and Hinshaw is a winning proposition for all our clients who need these services and will benefit from a deep bench of experienced attorneys."
Eugene Brown, Jr., a well-known and highly regarded senior trial lawyer, and Amee Mikacich bring additional partner-level support to Hinshaw's product liability group, which consists of nearly 100 lawyers nationwide. Their first-chair trial experience also enhances the firm's commercial litigation practice.
"Hinshaw has an established presence in California, and we know we're going from strength to strength by joining this team. We talked to many firms and were really impressed with both the culture and the management at Hinshaw," said Eugene Brown, Jr., who formerly served as chair of Sedgwick's Complex Division. "We appreciate and share Hinshaw's commitment to diversity, which we know is not only a moral imperative but also a smart business strategy. Time and time again, we see that diverse perspectives achieve better outcomes for our clients."
The group joining Hinshaw are:
San Francisco
Eugene Brown, Jr. – Partner
A skilled commercial litigator and experienced trial attorney, Mr. Brown has successfully tried to verdict more than 100 complex actions in California and other jurisdictions throughout the United States. He focuses his practice on complex civil litigation involving products and premises liability, labor and employment, environmental and toxic torts and other commercial disputes.
Mr. Brown has also represented public entities in actions alleging civil rights violations, such as excessive police force, age and race discrimination, and sexual harassment. His clients include automobile manufacturers, contractors, medical providers and consumable products manufacturers.
Brown is past president of the San Francisco chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), has achieved ABOTA Diplomate status and is an active faculty member of the ABOTA National Trial Academy. He is a member of the American Bar Association's Standing Committee for the TIPS Trial Academy, among other organizations. He earned his J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law and a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley.
Amee A. Mikacich – Partner
A former partner in Sedgwick's San Francisco office, Ms. Mikacich is a successful trial lawyer with an emphasis on product liability, labor and employment, and commercial litigation. Her experience includes environmental and toxic tort, life sciences, and product liability claims.
Ms. Mikacich serves as the President-Elect on the Board of California Women Lawyers, is a fellow in the Litigation Counsel of America, and is active with the American Board of Trial Advocates and the International Association of Defense Counsel, among other organizations. She earned her J.D. from San Francisco Law School and her B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley.
Dennis G. Rolstad – Partner
Mr. Rolstad was a partner in Sedgwick's San Francisco office; he concentrates his practice on healthcare, insurance, and ERISA litigation, particularly including managed care, payor/provider disputes, and coverage litigation. He has more than 25 years of experience representing, counseling, and defending insurers, fiduciaries, and others before federal and state courts. His practice includes construction coverage and defects litigation, class actions, and other complex and commercial litigation.
In addition to his trial work, Rolstad has successfully argued multiple times before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and other appellate courts is a proponent of alternative dispute resolution and is adept at creatively resolving matters of all sizes and complexities. He has published and presented extensively. He earned his J.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, and his B.A. from Stanford University.
Los Angeles
Edward A. Stumpp – Partner
A former partner in Sedgwick's Los Angeles office, Mr. Stumpp is a leading trial attorney with deep healthcare experience, including health plan liability, healthcare service contracts, medical claims, and ERISA litigation.
Stumpp represents clients in jury trials, administrative hearings, arbitrations, and appellate matters involving specialized healthcare issues, including commercial health plan network disputes, managed care liability, and related matters. Much of his work focuses on payor-provider disputes, and also includes defense of elder abuse and bankruptcy-related commercial litigation.
Stumpp is a frequent speaker and commentator on healthcare issues and trial strategy. Earlier in his career, he served as a captain in the United States Marine Corps, where he worked under the Staff Judge Advocate's office as a trial attorney in criminal defense. He earned his J.D. from the University of Kentucky College of Law and a B.A. from Centre College.
Robert C. Bohner – Partner
Mr. Bohner was Counsel in Sedgwick's Los Angeles office; he represents healthcare providers, service and other managed care entities in complex commercial, civil and business litigation and alternative dispute resolution. His experience extends to a wide range of healthcare and business issues, such as those related to managed care, ERISA, hospital-physician risk pools and medical provider hiring and termination. He represents clients in negligent medical care, unfair business practices, Medicare, Medicaid, HIPAA and other claims.
Bohner also has extensive experience representing clients in complex business litigation involving bankruptcy matters, insurance bad faith claims, insurance coverage and other matters. He earned his J.D. from Indiana University School of Law and a B.A. from Purdue University.
Jenna U. Nguyen – Associate
Ms. Nguyen was an associate at Sedgwick, where she represented insurers and healthcare clients. Before joining Sedgwick, she worked in Washington, D.C. as a general intern at the Department of Justice for the Office of the Solicitor General. Nguyen also clerked for the Office of the Attorney General at the California Department of Justice in the Civil Law Division of Tort and Condemnation. Nguyen earned her J.D. from the University of Southern California, Gould School of Law and a B.A. from the University of California, Santa Barbara.