The Pedigo Law Corporation

Legal eagle for 2010

Brian Pedigo — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 16:22:38 +0000

The OC Metro magazine (August 2010) has named attorney Brian Pedigo a “legal eagle” for 2010. OC Metro used metrics from Avvo, a national organization that rates attorneys based on a mathematical model that evaluates years in practice, disciplinary history, professional achievements and industry recognition. OC Metro then listed the top five attorneys in 19 specialties, including Brian as “a true leaders in [his] profession.”

Brian Pedigo serves as a juror in a murder trial

Brian Pedigo — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 20:07:06 +0000

For more information about Brian Pedigo’s experience serving as a juror, click here.

California law says animals are property

Brian Pedigo — Mon, 17 May 2010 16:24:27 +0000

In the state of California, animals are considered “mere property” or chattel. This means that if someone maims or kills your pet dog, cat, or other animal, the traditional measure of damages in civil court is the replacement value (or street value) of the animal.

Our office received a case in which a reckless driver ran a stop sign and ran over a man’s Labrador retriever. This happened while the man and his dog were out for a walk and lawfully crossing the street. The dog was rushed to emergency vet care in critical condition. The vet bills were over $5,000 to save the dog’s life. When my office demanded the insurance company pay for these bills, they refused and instead offered to pay the “market value” of the dog (which would have been approximately $100 to $500). The insurance company maintained that California law does not give animals any “”special value” which would mandate they pay any more than the dog’s replacement value.

Due to the horrible unfairness of the situation, the client and this firm decided to file a lawsuit. The legal “loophole” to recover more in damages was California Civil Code Section 3340, which states:

For wrongful injuries to animals being subjects of property, committed willfully or by gross negligence, in disregard of humanity, exemplary damages may be given.

The attorney for the insurance company told us that in his many years of law practice, he had never come across or heard of this statute.

The insurance company immediately filed a Motion to Strike Exemplary Damages.

Before the hearing on the motion to strike, the insurance company decided to settle for the full amount of the vet bills.

If your household pet has been harmed or killed due to the negligence or intentional misconduct by another, contact our office today.

Client Testimonials

Brian Pedigo — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 14:11:23 +0000

Brian Pedigo Selected as one of Orange County’s Top 95 Lawyers by OC Metro

Brian Pedigo — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 22:22:50 +0000

Attorney Brian Pedigo was selected as one of Orange County’s Top 95 Lawyers by OC Metro Magazine in its August 2009 edition. For this special issue, OC METRO looked at the top lawyers based on the Avvo rankings in 19 different legal categories. The Avvo rating is an evaluation of a lawyer’s background, calculated using a mathematical model that considers the lawyer’s profile, including years in practice, disciplinary history, professional achievements and industry recognition.

Links:

Orange County’s Top Lawyers

Attorney Brian Pedigo sucessfully defends another fraud case brought in a bankruptcy adversary proceeding

Brian Pedigo — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 00:01:48 +0000

The United States District Court, Central District of California, in case number 6:08-ap-01384-PC, filed and entered its decision to dismiss a lawsuit against the defendants. Brian Pedigo, attorney of record for the defendants, filed a motion to dismiss under FRCP 12(b)(6) (FRCP 12 is incorporated by reference by the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure) on the grounds that judicial estoppel should stop the plaintiff from bringing his claims against defendants.

If you are sued for fraud even though you never lied or did anything wrong, seek a lawyer immediately!
The reason that judicial estoppel applied in this case was because the plaintiff alleged two breaches of contract against defendants whereby the property allegedly at interest in the contract had not been disclosed in Plaintiff’s own prior bankruptcy. Due to Plaintiff’s clearly inconsistent positions, the Court agreed with the Defendant’s argument that judicial estoppel was necessary in order to protect the integrity of the bankruptcy system. The suit was dismissed in its entirety, with prejudice.

Motion to Dismiss | Court’s Memorandum of Decision

Insurance Company Reverses its Denial of its Insureds’ Claim

Brian Pedigo — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:09:55 +0000

If an agent (or anyone who sells you insurance) says one thing, and you buy the insurance with that assurance of coverage, the insurance company cannot later trick the insured with some fine-print, hard-to-understand exclusion and deny a claim for loss.

The potential plaintiff in this case (“owner”), was storing his property in a rental storage unit. The owner’s property was destroyed when the storage facility removed the flooding controls to the unit, it rained, and the rain destroyed the property with water damage. Insurance company denied owner’s claim for reimbursement due to an exclusion in the policy for “surface waters” damage. However, the agent who sold the policy told owner that water damage was a covered event.

After attorney Brian Pedigo went back-and-forth with the company in several phone calls and letters, the insurance company agreed to settle for the policy limits of $5,000.

Settlement Reached in Breach of Contract / Fraud Case on Behalf of Former Independent Contractor

Brian Pedigo — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 01:53:00 +0000

If you agree to do work for someone, and then you don’t get paid for your work, seek legal help to have a chance at a fair settlement (or judgment after trial).

During a court-sponsored mediation, attorney Brian Pedigo helped bring about a settlement in excess of the contract amount promised to plaintiff, an ex-independent contractor for defendant. Plaintiff hired Pedigo to bring a lawsuit for unpaid money earned on a very large mechanical project. Defendant had refused to pay Plaintiff, but after a deposition, several interrogatories, and a half day of court-sponsored mediation, the defendant agreed to pay

Successful defense of fraud claims brought to trial in bankruptcy adversary proceeding

Brian Pedigo — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 01:54:12 +0000

If you have a contract problem and are sued in a bankruptcy adversary proceeding for fraud, seek a lawyer immediately!

After a two-day bench trial, in the United States District Court, Central District of California, case no. RS 08-01222 MJ , Attorney Brian Pedigo sucessfully defended his clients accused of fraud in a bankruptcy adversary proceeding. The main legal argument was that there was an express condition precedent to the agreement at issue, and that condition was clearly not satisfied.

Links:

Trial Brief| Court’s Memorandum of Decision

A Settlement Negotiation with an Insured’s Own Homeowners Insurance Policy Produces a Desired Result

Brian Pedigo — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 01:59:27 +0000

When an insurance company says it will do one thing, and then later does the opposite, hire a lawyer to produce a fair settlement.

The potential plaintiff in this case, a homeowner, contacted attorney Brian Pedigo when the owner’s homeowner’s insurance company denied a claim for reimbursement. According to owner, the insurance company told him one thing over the phone (“the loss is covered and will be reimbursed”) only to later completely change positions on the reimbursement — and after the homeowner had the needed repairs completed. A demand letter was sent to the insurance company by the law firm, and the insurance company offered to pay the owner the full amount of the loss ($7,150.00).