Clifford H. Pearson

Sherman Oaks

Litigation

For almost half of his 40-year legal career, Clifford H. Pearson has helped lead his namesake boutique firm in a string of class actions against some of the nation's most famous companies and organizations.

Since the firm's inception in 2006, Pearson Warshaw has tried two major antitrust cases and successfully resolved many more, earning the reputation as a go-to place for antitrust violations and wage issues. Now, Pearson is eyeing the next stage in his career by adding "mediator" to his resume.

"I don't want to retire and that would be a good compromise in terms of my time and responsibility," he said. "One of the things I've really enjoyed in my career is how to resolve disputes. Maybe I can take what I did as a litigator and make it work as a mediator to resolve these types of complex cases."

He just wrapped up Senne et al. v. Office of the Commissioner of Baseball, et al., 14-cv-0608 (N.D. Cal, filed Feb. 7, 2014), where minor league players alleged Major League Baseball failed to pay minimum wage and overtime. The case settled for $185 million.

Pearson's goal now is to make sure newer lawyers are mentored and have more responsibility handling cases. A trend has been forming in state and federal courts to have veteran attorneys step aside in some hearings to allow a newer generation to gain experience.

"I'm now focusing on younger attorneys coming up the ranks and taking a bigger role in cases," he said. "The goal is to give them as much responsibility as possible."

Pearson pointed to a broiler chicken antitrust litigation involving the nation's biggest chicken suppliers. Partner Bobby Pouya, in his early 40s, will be trying the case with partner Jill Manning and co-lead counsel.

Two of Pearson's sons are also in the firm. "We've had a good run at Pearson Warshaw and let's hope it continues," Pearson said.

-Tori Richards