Arturo J. Gonzalez: Partner with Morrison & Foerster, LLP, San Francisco, CA

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Arturo J. Gonzalez: Partner with Morrison & Foerster, LLP, San Francisco, CA [By Kenneth Davis] Before he decided to become an attorney, Arturo Gonzalez was interested in another branch of law: law enforcement.

“I grew up in a low-income neighborhood

one of California’s top 20 young lawyers.

on his behalf. Gonzalez said the team did

and saw things that I thought were not

In 2006, the Los Angeles Daily Journal

receive a judgment against the Coliseum,

right,” Gonzalez said. “Initially I wanted

named Gonzalez one of California’s top 100

which is currently on appeal.

to become a police officer because when

leading lawyers. He was also selected as a

people got into trouble, they would always

“Leading Lawyer for Litigation in California”

Gonzalez was also the lead defense counsel

call the police-whether someone stole your

by the 2006 Chambers USA: Guide to

in a race discrimination case against Bank

bike, or stole your car, or broke into your

America’s Leading Business Lawyers.

of the West in 1998. After a three-week

house. Whatever happened, you would

trial, the jury returned a defense verdict.

always call the police. And I liked the idea

Gonzalez said that he doesn’t have a

of helping people.”

particular specialty area.

However, Gonzalez eventually found that he

“I’m a trial lawyer,” he said. “Maybe I’m old-

who was killed by the police. The suit

could be of greater assistance to people by

school in that sense in that I choose not to

claimed that the police violated the Fourth

becoming an attorney.

specialize. I realize that the vast majority of

Amendment by the manner in which they

lawyers in today’s market are specialists and

entered the family’s home and shot the

“I wanted to be a police officer for a

are leaning towards specializing in one area

man. After a three-week trial in federal

long time, and it wasn’t until there were

or another. I think there’s still a need for

court in Fresno, the jury found various

some people I knew who had experienced

people who can walk into a courtroom and

constitutional violations and awarded the

problems with the law that I came to realize

try any case, and that’s something I can do.”

widow and her children $12.5 million in

And in 1999, Gonzalez represented the widow and children of a farm worker

that one thing a policeman could not do was

damages. It was the largest verdict ever

to speak on someone’s behalf in a court of

Over the years, Gonzalez has handled a

law,” he explained. “And you had to be a

number of high-profile cases. In 2003, he

lawyer to do that, and that’s when I decided

was involved in a case in which the Oakland

Additionally, last year, Gonzalez

that I wanted to be a lawyer.”

Raiders sued the City of Oakland and County

represented the mother of a 19-year-old

of Alameda for fraud (Oakland Raiders v.

who had been sitting in a park with his

City of Oakland, et al.). In the suit, the team claimed it was intentionally misled when it was lured into returning to Oakland from Los Angeles by the promise of sell-outs for the 1995 season. The Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, former Director of the Coliseum Ed DeSilva, and now-defunct accounting firm Arthur Andersen were also named in the suit. The Raiders sought $1 billion in damages. Gonzalez successfully defended DeSilva in the case. The jury concluded that DeSilva did not mislead the Raiders and returned a defense verdict

girlfriend when a large branch fell out of a

From all indications, it would appear Gonzalez made the right decision. He is now a nationally recognized trial attorney and a partner with renowned international law firm Morrison & Foerster. In addition, a number of legal publications have acknowledged Gonzalez for his stellar legal work. In 2003, The American Lawyer named him one of the nation’s top 45 lawyers under the age of 45. He was also selected by the

National Law Journal in 1995 as one of the nation’s top 40 lawyers under 40, and in 1998 by California Business Magazine as PAGE

awarded in California for a police shooting.

tree and landed on his hip. He was taken to a hospital emergency room, where he sat in the waiting room for many hours and did not receive proper care. He was conscious when he arrived at the waiting room but was bleeding internally. After awhile, he passed out; the hospital staff started scrambling and panicking and eventually transferred him to another hospital, where he died. A Fresno Superior Court jury found that the young man had not been properly cared for prior to being transferred to another continued on back


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