Ann I. Park

LOS ANGELES - Ann I. Park regularly defends complex, high-risk toxic tort, asbestos products liability and premises liability actions. She is often called upon to explore and dive deep into the medical and scientific foundations for claims and is skilled in conveying complex medical and scientific data to judges and juries in clear terms.

"I enjoy reading scientific and medical articles. I enjoy expert discovery, taking expert depositions and defending them," Park said. "It's really challenging and fun to get into the facts of the cases and defend against the allegations, to try to defend our clients as best as we can. It's like being Colombo in a mystery, trying to figure out what's going on here. That's why I find it interesting, enjoyable and stimulating -- it's not just dry legal work."

Park recently reached a settlement in a case for industrial products and solutions manufacturer 3M. Eric Aldridge v. 3M Company, et al., RG 1882501 (Alameda Sup. Ct., filed Nov. 15, 2017). In the wrongful death case, it was alleged that the decedent passed due to an asbestos-related disease. Park was instrumental in preparing the case for trial, including taking the depositions of the decedent's treating physicians to establish that the decedent did not die from any asbestos-related condition.

"They alleged he had asbestosis caused by exposure to our client's products, but it turns out he didn't have asbestosis. I was able to depose his treating physicians," she said. "We established that in fact, his death was caused by pancreatic cancer and had nothing to do with asbestos exposure. So we were able to settle that case for nuisance value."

In June, Park was installed as president of the Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA), its first Asian-American president. Her main goals in this role include increasing diversity within the profession and ensuring the association is on solid financial footing by increasing membership.

"I'd like to increase membership, especially among young people," she said. "Membership in the bar associations has been really challenging in the past few years because a lot of people don't see the value in joining and being a member. But I think the pandemic helped prove our case, and people are seeing the tremendous benefits that membership in LACBA affords in terms of networking, client development, mentorship and CLEs," she said.