Brian Panish has been named to the Daily Journal‘s inaugural list of Distinguished Counsel, featured in the publication’s 2025 Top 100 Lawyers in California supplement. This honor is reserved for individuals who have been named to the Top 100 list at least 15 times, and who continue to shape both the legal field and the broader world in meaningful ways. The 17 Distinguished Counsel recipients were honored earlier this month with a dinner hosted by Daily Journal at Spago in Beverly Hills.
As noted in the publication, it’s Mr. Panish’s instinct for reading courtooms and witnesses that has defined his four-decade career, transforming him into one of the nation’s most formidable trial lawyers. His careful observation combined with a willingness to act on hunches have produced some of the most significant verdicts and settlements in U.S. history, including in the case of Anderson v. General Motors.
During trial, as defense attorneys lifted the crash test vehicle to demonstrate that their fuel tank design wouldn’t leak, a juror walked underneath to get a closer look and was struck in the head by red stoddard solution. “They bring that car and the test car and they show them,” Mr. Panish shares in his Daily Journal interview. “They proved the prosecution’s theory of the case right there in front of the jury.” The case resulted in a landmark $4.9 billion verdict.
Earlier this year, Mr. Panish obtained a $37,025,000 settlement in LaPlante v. Griffith Company, pursuant to a high/low agreement with defendants that was finalized just minutes before a jury delivered a $27,727,630 verdict in the matter. He also recently secured a $31 million settlement in Garcia v. Newport-Mesa Unified School District for plaintiff Emanuel “Manny” Garcia, a former Corona del Mar High School freshman football player who suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of a negligently maintained field.
Beyond individual cases, Mr. Panish has also served in numerous leadership positions including in the Social Media Cases, Southern California Gas Leak Cases, and in the Woolsey, Thomas, and Maui fires litigation, among others.
Read more about Mr. Panish and his accomplishments in his Distinguished Counsel profile featured in the Special Reports section at dailyjournal.com.