Michael D. Van Loy Ph.D.

Jason Dawson is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs and Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs. Jason, who practices law in San Diego, California, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Jason is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Catherine M. McBain is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs and Product Liability Litigation - Plaintiffs. Catherine M., who practices law in San Diego, California, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Catherine M. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Roland Achtel is a trust and estate attorney with extensive litigation experience. In his practice, Mr. Achtel prioritizes establishing clear expectations with his clients and maintaining close contact with them throughout each case. Though his legal expertise is highly specialized – trust and probate litigation, trust and probate-related elder abuse, probate conservatorships, trust administration, and general probate matters – his cases are highly diverse. His typical clients inc...

Michael J. Gleason is an AV-rated trial and appellate lawyer with over 20 years of experience handling key areas of business litigation, including consumer class action defense, California’s Proposition 65, product liability, fraud, real estate, escrow, and title insurance. He serves as Partner-in-Charge of Hahn Loeser’s San Diego office, is founder of the firm’s Proposition 65 defense group, and a member of the San Diego Litigation Team, which is ranked among the Top Tier P...

Paul Leeds is a Commercial Litigation attorney with over 20 years of experience navigating the minefields of bankruptcy and insolvency proceedings for clients in state and federal courts. He frequently represents court appointed fiduciaries, creditors, and business owners looking to maximize recovery from distressed assets.Mr. Leeds first goal- always- is to find a cost-effective business solution to a complex dispute. When a business solution isn’t available, his in-depth knowledge of ...

Ed Chapin is the Managing Partner in the San Diego office of Sanford Heisler Sharp, LLP, a national law firm with offices in the District of Columbia, New York, California, Tennessee, and Maryland. Ed received his J.D. from the University of Missouri School of Law and his B.S. from Southwest Missouri State University. Ed is a veteran litigator whose practice spans class actions, unfair business practices, professional negligence, insurance coverage, bad faith, toxic torts, serious personal in...

Charles G. La Bella is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Criminal Defense: White-Collar. Charles G., who practices law in San Diego, California, has been recognized since 2007. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Charles G. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Nicholas D. Brauns is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Commercial Litigation. Nicholas D., who practices law in San Diego, California, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Nicholas D. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Dick Semerdjian is a founding partner of Schwartz Semerdjian and heads up the firm’s litigation department. Dick’s clients range from Fortune 100 and 500 publicly traded companies to small businesses and individuals. Dick is also experienced in both plaintiff and defense side work which lends to his unique ability to formulate creative and effective legal and resolution strategies in even the most complex of litigation matters. Over the span of his over 31 year career, Dick has be...

Robert Wright is a founding partner of the firm and has a long history of successfully representing corporate, governmental, and individual clients in a wide range of cases involving unfair competition, product liability, antitrust, securities, corporate, banking, fidelity bond, real estate, trust and estate, and employment, constitutional, and admiralty law. He has considerable experience with complex procedural matters, including mass tort, coordinated, and class actions. In addition to rep...