Best Lawyers Near You in Santa Monica, California for Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs
Paul Kiesel received his Juris Doctorate from the Whittier College School of Law in Los Angeles in 1985. In 2005, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Law from Whittier Law School. His practice is devoted to representing consumers in personal injury, class action, environmental, and toxic tort litigation. Mr. Kiesel has repeatedly been selected as one of the top plaintiff attorneys in the State of California and the country. The Los Angeles Business Journal recognized Mr. Kiesel as one of ...
Spencer Lucas is a partner and trial lawyer at Panish | Shea | Ravipudi LLP where he specializes in litigating complex catastrophic personal injury, products liability and wrongful death cases. He has extensive experience in cases involving traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries and prides himself on helping injured people and their families. Mr. Lucas has successfully recovered over $600 million for his clients and has obtained numerous eight-figure verdicts and settlements in cas...
Bijan Esfandiari is a pharmaceutical product liability litigation attorney and senior partner at Wisner Baum in Los Angeles, where he focuses his practice on complex and multi-district litigation, including defective medical devices, pharmaceutical drug product liability, and consumer fraud. Since joining the firm in 2007, Bijan has worked as lead counsel on several cutting-edge pharmaceutical and medical device cases. His legal work has helped thousands of clients secure compensation for the...
Paul A. Traina 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. Paul A., who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2018. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Paul A. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Michael L. Baum is a senior partner of Wisner Baum (formerly Baum Hedlund Aristei & Goldman) based in Los Angeles. For 29 years, Michael was the managing partner of Baum Hedlund until he turned over the reins to R. Brent Wisner at the beginning of 2023. Under Michael’s stewardship, our firm grew from a small boutique law firm to one of the nation’s leading plaintiffs’ litigation firms that is now known for its cutting-edge, superior legal work. While running Baum Hedlund...
Jeffrey R. Lamb 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. Jeffrey R., who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Jeffrey R. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Alfredo Lorenzo is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs. Alfredo, who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Alfredo is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Wyatt Vespermann is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs, Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs and Product Liability Litigation - Plaintiffs. Wyatt, who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Wyatt is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Benjamin Haber is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs. Benjamin, who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Benjamin is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Melody Saadian 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. Melody, who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2022. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Melody is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Elizabeth Smiley joined Baron & Budd’s Los Angeles office in 2018 as an associate in the Firm’s Class Action Litigation Group. There she helps bring nationwide, multi-million-dollar lawsuits to successful conclusion on behalf of our clients. In her work at Baron & Budd, Ms. Smiley is a trial attorney protecting the rights of consumers from corporate fraud. In 2020, she was part of the trial team that won the largest verdict in the State of Hawaii against a pair of pharmace...
Brandon Castor is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs. Brandon, who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Brandon is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Lauren Kiesel 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. Lauren, who practices law in Beverly Hills, California, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Lauren is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Cherisse H. Cleofe is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs. Cherisse H., who practices law in Beverly Hills, California, has been recognized since 2024. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Cherisse H. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Usawin Maneewongwathana 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. Usawin, who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Usawin is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Pedram Esfandiary is a partner at Wisner Baum's Los Angeles office, where he focuses his practice on toxic tort injuries, pharmaceutical drug liability, class actions, and consumer fraud litigation. He was promoted to partner in March 2023 , and is the youngest lawyer to earn this distinction at the firm. He is currently leading the firm’s legal team handling the toxic baby food litigation. Pedram was also appointed by a federal judge in May of 2024 to oversee the Baby Food Products Lia...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.