Seasoned Legal Experts

Joel F. Citron is the Managing Partner of the firm of Citron & Citron. Over the course of his career, he has handled a wide variety of complex cases in which he has represented business clients, public entities, insurance companies and private clients. He has been lead counsel in over 100 jury trials and has been a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates for over 20 years.   As a trial lawyer and litigator, he has handled cases in virtually every area of the firm’s practice including, but not limited to, business litigation, professional liability, Construction, environmental coverage, insurance defense and elder care.   Throughout the years, Mr. Citron has been retained on multiple occasions to assist panel and/or outside counsel in the trial of cases involving catastrophic injuries and/or significant damages.

Education:

• Pomona College, B.A. (1961)
• University of California at Los Angeles L.L.B. (1964)
• Oxford University, Oxford, England (1959)

Admissions:

• The California State Bar (1965)
• United States District Court for Southern, Central and Northern Districts of California (1965)
• United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit (1965)
• United States Supreme Court (1971)

Professional Affiliations/Activities:

• State Bar of California
• Los Angeles County Bar Association
• American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA)
• Southern California Defense Counsel
• Mediator, JASOP Court Services - Dispute Resolution Services
• American Arbitration Association - National Panel of Arbitrators/Attorney Advisor
• American Judicature Society
• Judge Pro Tem, Los Angeles Superior Court West District
• Arbitrator/Mediator, Los Angeles Superior Court for the West, Central and Northwest Districts
• Settlement officer for Los Angeles Superior Court for the West, Central and Northwest Districts
• Lecturer and Moderator, California Continuing Education of the Bar
• Member of the Bar Registry of Preeminent Lawyers
• AV rated By Martindale Hubbell for over 25 years

Practice Areas:

• Business Litigation
• Construction
• Elder and Dependent Adult Care
• Environmental Coverage
• Excess Insurance
• Habitability and Fair Housing Act
• Foster Care
• Insurance Coverage
• Insurance Defense
• Insurance Bad Faith
• Intellectual property/Advertising Injury
• Premises Liability
• Products Liability
• Professional Negligence
• Real Estate
• Transportation

Published Decisions:

• Kerr v. Bock (1971) - Implied Consent and Medical Malpractice; BAJI 6.30
• Borders v. Great Falls Yosemite Ins. Co. (1977) - Automatic renewal of a policy with a signed waiver of UM Coverage. Demand for policy limits and bad faith. Defense verdict for Great Falls.
• Mattingly v. Anthony Industries (1980) - Latent defects.
• Billings v. Edwards (1981)
• Heninger v. Foremost (1985) - Bad faith. Successful defense of Foremost Insurance Company.
• Ambriz v. Kress - Was not involved in the Appeal which dealt with apportionment of liability under theory of comparative negligence.
• Hettig v. Four Queens (2003) - Not published - Motion to stay for forum non-conveniens

Education:

• Pomona College, B.A. (1991)
• Western State University, J.D. (1995)

Admissions:

• California State Bar (1996)
• United States District Court for the Central District of California
• United States District Court for the Eastern District of California

Professional Affiliations/Activities:

• State Bar of California
• Los Angeles County Bar Association
• American Bar Association
• Santa Monica Bar Association
• Los Angeles Superior Court Panel of Arbitrators
• Arbitrator/Mediator, Los Angeles Superior Court for the Northwest Districts
• Settlement Officer, Los Angeles Superior Court for the Northwest Districts

Practice Areas:

• Business Litigation
• Construction
• Elder and Dependent Adult Care
• Environmental Coverage
• Foster Care
• Habitability and Fair Housing Act
• Insurance Coverage
• Insurance Defense
• Insurance Bad Faith
• Intellectual property/Advertising Injury
• Premises Liability
• Products Liability
• Professional Liability including Medical, Legal, and Real Estate Malpractice
• Property and Casualty Claims
• Real Estate
• Transportation

Recent Trial Results:

• Santa Barbara Superior Court - Defense Verdict in bar fight case with $375,000.00 demand
• Los Angeles Superior Court - 3 separate Defense verdicts for public transportation entity
• Los Angeles Superior Court - Defense verdict in Habitability case involving elderly plaintiffs who had roof collapse from water pipe burst
• Riverside Superior Court - Favorable Verdict for homeowner whose son shot paintball gun at an  11 year old causing irreparable damage to plaintiff’s eyesight
• Los Angeles Superior Court - Favorable Verdict in Habitability and Wrongful Eviction case for less than 25% of pre-trial offer
• Los Angeles Superior Court - Defense Verdict for Mobile Home Park on claim of Mobilehome Residency Law violations
• Orange County Superior Court - Defense Verdict on slip and fall premises case where Plaintiff established lack of warning and claimed dangerous condition existed prior to fall.

Education:

• Wellesley College (1966-1967)
• Scripps College, Bachelor of Arts (1970)
• Claremont Graduate University, Master of Arts (1975)
• Southwestern University School of Law, Juris Doctor (Cum Laude 1989)
• National Institute of Trial Advocacy, Diploma in Trial Advocacy Skills (1990)

Admissions:

• California State Bar (1989)
• California State Courts (1989)
• United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit (1989)
• United States District Courts

Professional Affiliations/Activities:

• State Bar of California
• San Fernando Valley Bar Association

Practice Areas:

• State and Federal Litigation and Appellate Practice
• Complex, Class and Consumer Actions
• Personal Injury
• Premises Liability
• Primary and Excess Insurance Coverage and Litigation
• Environmental, Construction, Advertising and Personal Injury, Property Damage, Bodily Injury and Professional Liability Coverage and Litigation
• Bad Faith Insurance Defense
• Products Liability
• Legal Opinions
• Business Litigation
• Foster Care

Legal Opinions - Published:

• Hooker v. Department of Transportation (2002) 27 Cal.4th 198 (on behalf of CalTrans)
• Hamilton v. Maryland Cas. Co. (2002) 27 Cal.4th 718 (for various insurance companies as amici curiae)
• Crane v. Royal Insurance Co. of America (9th Cir. 1994) 17 F.3d 1186

Legal Opinions - Unpublished:

• Alan v. American Honda Motor Corporation, Inc. (2008) 31 Cal.Rptr.3d 854
• Hartford Casualty Insurance Co. v. S.C.L.A. (C3 Entertainment) (2004)125 Cal.App.4th 250
• Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company v. The Anden Group (2003)(2d Appellate Dist., B080861)
• Testan v. Porsche A.G., Carlsen Porsche, et al. (2002) (2d Appellate Dist., B124130)

Articles:

• “Spoliation of Evidence,” 1990 Products Liability Advisory Council Seminar Handbook

Meghan F. Lewis is an associate attorney at Citron & Citron. Meghan works on all aspects of the firm’s cases, including conducting discovery and depositions, writing and arguing motions, mediating cases, preparing pretrial and trial documents, and participating in trials. She second-chaired two jury trials in 2023 that both resulted in defense verdicts. Meghan is a former teacher who spent a decade teaching subjects ranging from preschool to adult education in Mexico and in California. She incorporates her teaching skills, as well as her Spanish language skills, into her practice of law. Meghan prides herself on her care and dedication to each client and civility in the profession.

Education:

• Southwestern Law School, J.D., cum laude (2020)
• Loyola Marymount University, Masters in Bilingual Education, Teaching Credential (2016)
• Western Washington University, B.A., cum laude (2011)

Admissions:

• California State Bar
• United States District Court for the Central District of California

Affiliations:

• Los Angeles County Bar Association
• Association of Southern California Defense Counsel