DONNA M.

DAVIS- EXPERIENCED CIVIL LITIGATION ATTORNEY

12067 Guerin Street; Apt 303
Studio City, California 91604
818.203.8020
dd13e7da4@westpost.net
INSURANCE COVERAGE LITIGATION a" First Party and Third Party; Bad
Faith; Equitable Contribution; Declaratory Relief for CGL
Construction Defect, Personal and Advertising Injury and Additional
Insured Issues
INSURANCE COVERAGE OPINIONS- CGL and Non-Commercial policies; Named
Insured(s), Additional Insureds, and Additional Named Insureds
INSURANCE DEFENSE- Auto Accidents; Personal Injuries; Medical
Malpractice; Elder Abuse
A truly unique attorney with six years of experience, my skills at
critical thinking and fact analysis were instrumental in establishing
new California case law regarding the proper method for calculating
plaintiffsa recovery in equitable contribution actions [see
Scottsdale Insur. Co. v. Century Surety Co. (2010) 182 Cal.App.4th
1023]. Meticulous yet flexible, I offer diverse experience including
insurance coverage, medical malpractice, elder abuse, defamation,
premises liability and auto accident liability. I recognize the
importance of developing and nurturing relationships with client
carriers and medical providers and exercise maturity, sound judgment,
proactive troubleshooting ability and initiative in challenging
high-pressure situations.
CAREER HISTORY AND SELECT ACCOMPLISHMENTS
RYAN DATOMI & MOSELY, Glendale, CA 11/2009-11/2010
Comprised of three partners and six associate attorneys, Ryan Datomi
& Mosely primarily defends healthcare providers against claims of
medical malpractice, elder abuse and premises liability. Four months
after starting part-time, I was promoted to full-time in anticipation
of an increased caseload that ultimately failed to materialize. I was
laid off for lack of work on November 19, 2010.
ASSOCIATE ATTORNEY-
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Responsible for all aspects of pre-trial litigation, including
pleadings, law and motion, written discovery, conducting and
defending depositions, retaining and preparing expert witnesses and
drafting expert declarations, and preparing trial briefs, mediation
briefs and settlement conference statements.
*
Performed legal research and medical research in addition to
reviewing and analyzing medical records, employment records and
worker's compensation claim files.
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Consistently met billing requirement of 190-200 hours per month.
HIGHLIGHTED ACHIEVEMENTS:
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Prepared motion for summary judgment for our client hospital
resulting in dismissal of our client on the eve of the hearing.
Plaintiff proceeded against co-defendant physician.
*
Prepared motion for summary judgment and mediation brief in a
potentially high damages premises liability action against our client
medical facility. At mediation, plaintiffs dismissed our client and
settled with co-defendant, and co-defendant dismissed its
cross-complaint against our client for implied indemnity.
WOOLLS & PEER, Los Angeles, CA 11/2005-6/2009
Comprised of five partners and six associate attorneys, Woolls
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Prepared and challenged initial pleadings and was responsible for
all aspects of pre-trial litigation, including discovery, discovery
motions, document analysis, depositions, and retaining and preparing
expert witnesses;
*
Conducted thorough research and fact analysis in bad faith actions
brought by purported additional insureds, frequently convincing
plaintiffs to either dismiss our client or accept a low settlement
offer;
*
Analyzed potential insurance coverage in landlord-tenant disputes,
defamation actions, patent disputes, Toxic Tort actions,
environmental cleanup claims and construction defect litigation.
Prepared detailed coverage opinions for the client carrier;
*
Defended the insured and/or pursued claims on behalf of the insured
after automobile accidents;
*
Fluent in construction terminology and knowledgeable in the
sequencing of construction and interpretation of mold testing and
remediation procedures;
*
Trained new associate attorneys and paralegals on the principles of
insurance coverage law.
HIGHLIGHTED ACHIEVEMENTS:
*
Developed a theory of how contribution toward defense, indemnity
and additional insured defense should be calculated, using a
comprehensive spreadsheet-based system to facilitate analysis of the
potential defenses to and values of each individual underlying action
in large contribution actions, minimizing the amount clients
ultimately paid in settlements. Also, by showing viable defenses to
each claim my spreadsheet system convinced opposing counsel to
dismiss large numbers of underlying actions as non-viable. The trial
court failed to comprehend the math and ordered an inequitable 50-50
split for each viable underlying action. ON APPEAL, our client
prevailed on the issue of how contribution should be calculated, and
in a detailed published opinion the Court agreed with my theory and
expanded it even further [See _Scottsdale Insurance Company v.
Century Surety Company_ (2010) 182 Cal. App.4th 1023];
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Persuaded opposing counsel to dismiss an entire contribution action
originally valued at $1+M by sharing my comprehensive spreadsheet
analysis with opposing counsel;
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Consistently surpassed annual billing expectations by averaging
over 1,900 billable hours per year.
BONNE BRIDGES MUELLER OaKEEFE LAW CLERK (SUMMERS 2001
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Reviewed and analyzed medical records to identify key factual
findings that would exonerate clients;
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Prepared and responded to written discovery. Interviewed and
prepared witnesses for trial; retained and prepared medical experts;
conducted plaintiffsa depositions;
*
Prepared and argued dispositive motions and discovery motions;
prepared trial, mediation, and arbitration briefs. Attended trials
and arbitrations.
HIGHLIGHTED ACHIEVEMENTS:
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Prepared motion for summary judgment on lack of causation in a
potentially high damages case involving an admitted medication error
by our hospital client. Plaintiffsa failed to oppose my MSJ
resulting in a dismissal with prejudice for our client.
*
Analyzed dozens of volumes of medical records on an elderly
plaintiff who developed one-sided facial paralysis after undergoing a
routine surgical procedure on her ear drums. I noticed a one-line
minor diagnosis in the plaintiffas discharge summary from a prior
hospitalization that I immediate recognized as the probable cause of
plaintiffas current facial paralysis. Working with our expert, who
was not yet aware of this prior diagnosis, we developed this defense
theory, and were rewarded with a 12-0 defense verdict at trial.
*
Performed all pre-arbitration activity in a case involving failure
to timely diagnose a ruptured appendix in a 15 year old girl,
resulting in a second surgery and 3 more small scars on plaintiffas
abdomen. I propounded and responded to written discovery, deposed the
plaintiff and her mother, retained and prepared the necessary expert
witnesses, prepared the arbitration brief, assembled all exhibits and
assisted lead counsel at the arbitration. Our client prevailed.
AVENTIS PASTEUR BIOLOGICALS, Swiftwater, PA; Greater Los Angeles
Territory 01/1993 - 06/2000
The third largest pharmaceutical company, Aventis provides
immunotherapy and vaccination products worldwide.
SENIOR PRODUCT SPECIALIST BIOLOGICAL (FIELD SALES)
*
Sold Aventis vaccines directly to physicians throughout the
territory; met or exceeded quotas every period;
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Conducted educational programs for physicians and other medical
providers;
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Translated complex medical information into lay terms for Aventis'
sales teams in Southern California;
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Trained and mentored new hires.
EDUCATION
J.D., 2003; Southwestern University School of Law; Los Angeles, CA
a Deanas List; Top Third of Class
B.S. 1984,_ with Honors,_ Northeastern University; Boston, MA a
Degree in Medical Laboratory Science
RELEVANT LAW SCHOOL ELECTIVES TAKEN
Employment Law, Forensic Evidence, CA Civil Procedure,
Administrative Law and Family Law