Joe McMonigle is honored by membership in the four leading invitation-only trial lawyer organizations. He is a Fellow in the International Academy of Trial Lawyers (2012); a Fellow in the International Society of Barristers (2011); an Associate Member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (2000); and a Fellow in...More

Joe McMonigle is honored by membership in the four leading invitation-only trial lawyer organizations. He is a Fellow in the International Academy of Trial Lawyers (2012); a Fellow in the International Society of Barristers (2011); an Associate Member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (2000); and a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers (2008). These organizations recognize superior skills, professionalism, and excellence in trial. Joe represents lawyers in professional liability cases, attorney fee disputes, partnership disputes, and state bar disciplinary matters and has done so since joining Long & Levit in 1977. Joe is certified as a Legal Malpractice Specialist by the State Bar of California. He also counsels lawyers and law firms on risk management issues.

Joe’s commitment to the legal community is demonstrated by his service in lawyers’ professional liability organizations at the local, state and national levels. He served as chair of the Legal Malpractice Committee of the San Francisco Bar Association; has been a member of the State Bar Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct; and has been a member and chair of the ABA Standing Committee on Lawyers’ Professional Liability. He is currently a member of the California State Bar Judicial Nominees Commission (JNE) and the California Judicial Counsel Advisory Committee on Civil Jury Instructions.

Joe has tried dozens of legal malpractice actions to conclusion in counties throughout California. Legal malpractice actions require an understanding of a variety of legal disciplines giving Joe experience and insight into a wide spectrum of tort, commercial, and business disputes. Because of his ability to master diverse practices areas clients frequently call upon Joe to try numerous civil cases including contract, personal injury, and complex business disputes.

California judges frequently ask Joe to represent them in proceedings before the Commission on Judicial Performance. Joe also represents retired judges who provide alternative dispute resolution services in civil actions.

Settlement skills are a critical component of contemporary legal practice. Joe has negotiated hundreds of cases to resolution short of trial, a prospect greatly enhanced by his experience trying cases to conclusion.
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P: 415-438-4534
F: 415-397-6392


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Areas of Practice

Areas of Expertise

  • Defense of lawyers and judges
  • Complex commercial and business disputes
  • Jury trials and Arbitrations

Education, Admissions & Achievements

Academic Credentials
  • Seattle University School of Law (formerly University Of Puget Sound),  Seattle, Washington, J.D., 1975, cum laude, highest 1% in graduating class
  • Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, California, B.A., History, 1972

 

Bar Admissions
  • Member of the California Bar, 1975
  • Admitted in numerous U.S. District Courts, 9th Circuit and the Supreme Court
Recent Accomplishments
  • Recently tried numerous legal malpractice jury trials to conclusion

 

Past Accomplishments & Publications

Publications

  • "A New Way to Go: Arbitration of Legal Malpractice Claims," Defense Counsel Journal, July 1997.
  • “Lawyer Liability: Can You Limit Your Personal Exposure,” ABA Standing Committee Advisory, February 1997.
  • "Immunity For Tactical Decisions”, ABA Journal, March 1995
  • "The Use of Expert Testimony in Actions Against Attorneys," Insurance Counsel Journal, 1980
  • "The Attorney's Dilemma in Defending Third Party Lawsuits: Disclosure of the Client's Confidences or Personal Liability?" Willamette Law Journal, 1978

Adjunct Professor

  • Hastings College Of The Law, Legal Writing Instructor
  • Santa Clara University – Arbitration Seminar

Featured In

  • "Every Lawyer's Nightmare - Legal Malpractice Claims Barely Succeed But That Doesn't Mean You Won't Lose Sleep Over Them", California Lawyer, February 2002
  • "Risky Business - Some corporate lawyers will opt for solo life, but attorneys unfamiliar with running their own practices may find themselves susceptible to malpractice lawsuits", California Law Business, February 2002
  • “The Lawyers’ Lawyers”, California Law Business, November 1998

Expertise & Affiliations

Special Expertise
  • Special focus on law firms and judges
  • Jury trials
Professional Affiliations
  • Member of the California State Bar Judicial Nominees Commission
  • Member of the California Judicial Counsel Advisory Committee on Civil Jury Instructions

American Bar Association

Standing Committee on Lawyers’ Professional Liability
Chair: August 1997-August 2000
Member: 1994-2000

Tort and Insurance Practice Section
Council Member: 1991-1994

Professional Officers’ and Directors’ Liability Law
Committee Chair: 1987-1988
Member: 1983-1990

Committee on Professionalism
Chair: 1993-1994
Member: 1991-1994

Member of ABA Special Coordinating Committee on Professionalism: 1993-1994

Task Force on the Improvement of the Civil Justice System
Member: 1991-1994

California State Bar

Member since 1975

State Bar Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct
Member 1982-1985

State Bar Judicial Nominees Commission
Member 2010-present

State Bar Judicial Council Advisory Committee on Civil Jury Instructions
Member 2010-present

Bar Association of San Francisco

Legal Malpractice Committee
Member: 1980 to the present

Member of Consumer Attorneys of California

Civic Affiliations
  • Serves as Panelist for ADR programs in San Francisco, Contra Costa and Alameda Counties
  • Board of Directors of 7 TePees Nonprofit Youth Guidance Organization, 2005 – present.
Honors & Awards
  • Inducted as an Associate into the American College of Trial Lawyers, 2008
  • Elected to the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), 1998
  • Listed in “The Best Lawyers in America”, 2002 to the present, Legal Malpractice
Recent Experience

Program Panelist

  • “Civility Matters” presented by the American Board of Trial Advocates and JAMS, The Resolution Experts to Bay Area Law Schools, 2010-2011
  • “Smart Practice Not Malpractice”, program presented to lawyers throughout California including Irvine, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento and Salinas/Monterey, 2003-2004
  • “A Defense Lawyer’s Perspective on Lawyers’ Professional Liability Insurance”, presented at the First Annual WSBA Conference on the Law of Lawyering, Seattle, Washington, December 2003
  • “Coming Soon to a State Rules Committee Near You: How Will Ethics 2000 Affect Lawyer Liability?”, presented at the ABA Standing Committee on Lawyers’ Professional Liability National Legal Malpractice Conference, New Orleans, Louisiana, April 2003
  • “Steering a Safer Path: Risk Management for Lawyers”, presented to lawyers throughout California including Monterey, Sacramento, San Francisco and Los Angeles, 2000-2002
  • “Where is the Insurance Industry Going?”, presented at the ABA National Legal Malpractice Conference, Washington, D.C., April 2001
  • “Ethics for Business and Intellectual Property Lawyers”, presented jointly by the Business Law Section and the Intellectual Property Law Section of the State Bar of California, La Jolla, California, April 2001
  • “The Live Mock Trial of a Legal Malpractice Action”, presented to the ABA Standing Committee on Lawyers’ Professional Liability, New Orleans, Louisiana, March 2000
  • “For Whom Do Lawyers Really Work?” presented at the ABA National Conference on Professional Responsibility and 15th National Forum on Client Protection, June 1999
  • “The Trial Of A Legal Malpractice Action”, presented at the joint session of the ABA Standing Committee on Lawyers’ Professional Liability and the ABA Section of Tort and Insurance Practice, New Orleans, Louisiana, March 1997
  • “Trial Tips from Top Trial Lawyers”, presented at the 36th Annual Convention for the Consumer Attorneys of California, November 1997
  • “Emerging Trends in Lawyers’ Vicarious Liability”, presented at the ABA National Legal Malpractice Conference, Colorado Springs, Colorado, April 1997
  • “Making the Most of Your Expert Witness”, presented at the ABA National Legal Malpractice Conference, Tempe, Arizona, April 1995
  • “Malpractice Claims Against Litigation Lawyers”, presented at the Professional Issues Committee of the Tort and Insurance Practice Section of ABA, February 199“Admissibility of Evidence in Attorney Malpractice Trials:  A Trial Within a Trial”, presented at the ABA/TIPS National Institute on Legal Malpractice in Litigation, San Francisco, California, November 1989
  • “The Attorney-Client Privilege Under Siege – The Self-Defense Exception to the Attorney-Client Privilege:  Disclosure of the Client’s Confidences or Personal Liability”, presented at the ABA/TIPS Spring Meeting, Lake Buena Vista, Florida, May 1989

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