Danica Crittenden is a partner in the Claremont office of Shernoff Bidart Echeverria LLP. Ms. Crittenden’s litigation practice includes insurance-bad faith and personal injury cases.
After joining the firm in 2010, Ms. Crittenden worked on a number of high-profile cases and trials, including:
Achieving a $28.2 million medical malpractice jury verdict against Kaiser in Los Angeles Superior Court for a teenager who had her right leg, half of her pelvis, and a portion of her spine removed as a result of a four-month delay in diagnosis of a bone cancer (Rahm v. Kaiser)
Obtaining a $3.3 million jury verdict against an insurance company for mishandling a fire claim for victims of the 2007 San Diego wildfires (Van Zee v. Homesite)
Obtaining nearly $12 million in an arbitration on behalf of clients in an insurance-bad-faith case
Representing a couple in a catastrophic injury lawsuit against CALTRANS. After trial, the jury awarded the couple $31.5 million, which is one of the ten largest verdicts in California for 2012. (Evans v. State of California)
Obtaining a $15 million jury verdict in a wrongful death case involving the mother of two young children who was killed in a hit-and-run accident in Bakersfield, CA (Paregien v Perez dba E&M Trucking)
Obtaining a $20 million settlement following an arbitration on behalf of clients in an insurance-bad-faith case
Representing a family in a wrongful death action against BNSF Railway and obtaining a $1.5 million jury verdict (net $454,000) (Kruger-Small v. BNSF)
Representing a client in a personal injury action and obtaining a $1.28 million jury verdict (Berry v. Hicks)
Obtaining a $3.99 million verdict on behalf of an historic Orange County hotel in an insurance bad faith lawsuit against Lloyd’s of London (Saddleback Inn, LLC v. Lloyd’s of London)
Ms. Crittenden received her B.A., magna cum laude, from Seattle University in 2007, and her J.D., cum laude, from the University of La Verne College of Law in 2010.
EDUCATION
University of La Verne College of Law, Ontario, California, 2010, J.D.
Honors: Cum Laude
Chief Managing Editor, University of La Verne Law Review
Seattle University, Seattle, Washington, 2007, B.A.
Honors: Magna Cum Laude
NCAA Division II Athlete
PUBLISHED WORKS
“Is Demolition Delayed, Demolition Denied? The Effectiveness of Demolition Delay Ordinances in Preserving Historic Structures,” 38 Real Est. L. J. 33 (June 2009)
AWARDS AND HONORS
CAALA Rising Star Award, 2015, 2016
Southern California Super Lawyers Rising Star 2012-2015
Southern California Special Section, Super Lawyers 2013
Nominated for the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles Rising Star Award in 2013 and 2014
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND MEMBERSHIPS
American Bar Association
State Bar of California
Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA) Board Member
CAALA Education Committee Member
Consumer Attorneys of California (CAOC)
Los Angeles County Bar Association
Consumer Attorneys of the Inland Empire
Consumer Attorneys of San Diego
Orange County Trial Lawyers Association (OCTLA)
Western San Bernardino County Bar Association
University of La Verne College of Law, Board of Visitors Member
BAR ADMISSIONS
California State Bar, 2010
U.S. District Court, Central District, 2010
U.S. District Court, Eastern District, 2014
SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
Rutter Group Insurance Bad Faith Seminar, 2012 and 2014
“How corporations (and other insureds) can avoid missing coverage for defense costs” (panel in 2012 with Michael J. Bidart and Jennifer Keller)
“Cracking open a policy: How to open an insurance policy and collect the excess verdict” (panel in 2014 with Michael J. Bidart and Peter Klee)
