Gary A. Dordick

Beverly Hills

Civil Litigation

Gary A. Dordick founded Dordick Law Corporation in 1987 to pursue plaintiff personal injury cases. The firm has now expanded to include a Riverside office, and it's become something of a family affair: three of his children are among the 18 attorneys on the roster and Dordick's wife, Nava, the firm's longtime CFO, has graduated from Loyola Law School and is studying for the bar exam.

"This year, I tried my first cases with my daughters and with my son," Dordick said.

His success in obtaining multimillion-dollar verdicts and settlements allowed him to contribute $8 million to Loyola; a new Dordick Family Advocacy Center will be dedicated in September.

"The aim is to increase diversity in trial advocacy," Dordick said.

His annual trial college event in Cabo San Lucas in May attracted more than 400 attendees, with proceeds going to cancer research. And in June, he was inducted into the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles' Hall of Fame.

In April, Dordick, working with daughters Michelle J. L. Dordick and Taylor B. Dordick, won a $2.28 billion jury verdict for a woman who endured years of rape and sexual assault from her stepfather, starting from when she was five. The sum, likely uncollectable from a man who recently got out of prison for the crimes, is believed to be the largest sexual abuse verdict in history, Dordick said. Doe v. Fitzgerald, CVR12100419 (Riverside Co. Super. Ct., filed Jan. 28, 2021).

Shortly before the three-day trial, Dordick settled with the family's church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, for $1 million.

"They were Mormons. The church told her 'it's better to forgive,'" Dordick said. "The abuse happened in the days before the law made them legally required to report it, so their liability was limited."

"This is the stuff you dream about," Dordick said of the satisfaction he took from the case. "Some cases have nothing to do with money. Every day has been a struggle for this woman. She's in her 40s now, and this was the first time she told her story publicly. She wanted him held publicly accountable. At the end, I watched every juror hug her and wish her well and tell her with warmth and love they hoped their verdict would help her move on."

Also in April, Dordick tried a case with his son, Dylan J. Dordick; they obtained an $8.447 million settlement for a man struck in a marked crosswalk by a vehicle whose driver was a government employee. Minnifield v. State of California, 19SYCV24850 (Los Angeles Super. Ct., filed July 17, 2019).

"We settled Minnifield and started the Riverside trial the next day," Dordick said. "Busy, but very satisfying."

--John Roemer