Patrick J. Byrne
Patrick J. Byrne is Senior Counsel at Knox Ricksen LLP and has over 25 years of experience as a defense trial attorney. Mr. Byrne has represented a wide variety of insured and self-insured clients in the areas of products liability, premises liability, construction defect, industrial accidents, error and omissions and insurance coverage. He has successfully defended clients in catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death cases involving vehicle accidents, construction accidents, defective premises, industrial machinery, punch presses, firearms, saws, grinders, ladders, elevators, escalators, and a multitude of consumer products. He has defended clients in over one thousand toxic tort cases involving exposures to benzene, asbestos, silica, welding fumes, mold, formaldehyde, and PCE's. He has also defended cases involving Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS).
Mr. Byrne has successfully represented several domestic and foreign automobile manufacturers and dealers in products liability, fire damage, breach of warranty ("Lemon Law") and fraud cases. He has presented litigation seminars for various automobile manufacture and dealer groups in California and Nevada on the subjects of Lemon Law and dealer and sales fraud.
Mr. Byrne successfully defended two national commercial insurers in a year-long C.E.R.C.L.A. Superfund insurance coverage trial involving environmental damage and clean-up claims at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal (RMA) Superfund site in Colorado. Mr. Byrne's two clients had over $25,000,000 in CGL coverage at risk, and both clients received a defense verdict. Has also defended claims against landowners and businesses for groundwater contamination due to PCE or "Perc", as well as leaking underground fuel storage tanks.
Education
- J.D. University of San Francisco School of the Law (1979)
- B.A. University of California, Santa Barbara (1971)
Admitted to Practice
- State Bar of California (1980)
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (1980)
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California (1991)
- U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit (1991)
Honors & Awards
- “AV” rating with Martindale Hubbell
- Excellency Award in Oral Advocacy, Moot Court Competition, University of San Francisco School of Law.
Professional Activities
- Member, Defense Research Institute (DRI) Association
- Member, Association of Defense Counsel of Northern California and Nevada (ADC).
- Member, Association of Defense Counsel of Northern California and Nevada. (ADC), Toxic Tort Substantive Law Committee.
- Member, State Bar of California, Litigation Section.
- Member, Northern California Fraud Investigators Association.
Publications and Speeches
- “Recent Developments in California Lemon Law,” presented to Auto Manufacturing Zone Office Managers, Zone Field Representatives and Dealer Management, California and Nevada (1989-1991)
- “Trial Strategies for the Automobile Manufacturer in a California Lemon Law Case.” (1987 - 1991)
