• Auto Defense
• Premises Liability
• Products Liability
• Employment Law
• General Civil Litigation
• Business Litigation
• Dental Malpractice
• Bad Faith

Publications, Mock Trials, and Seminars

Publications

• Newsletters
• Complying With the Americans With Disabilities Act: Practical Considerations for Employers
• Continuing Violation Doctrine
• BOP Ma Include Hidden Gap in Electronic Data Coverage

UPCOMING EVENTS, MOCK TRIALS & SEMINARS

Our firm provides training in sexual harassment prevention to comply with the recent changes in the law brought about by AD 1825 (Government Code Section 12950.1) This change requires employers with 50 or more employees to provide their supervisors with extensive “interactive” training and education by the end of 2005 and at 6 month intervals thereafter to ensure timely training of new supervisors who may have joined your company since the date of the last training seminar held at your company.

We are able to bring a seminar to your location for a reasonable flat fee and supply your company with the required certificates verifying that your supervisors have completed this necessary training.

Wesierski & Zurek LLP would be pleased to present any of the following SEMINARS. upon request. If you are interested, please contact Jessica Daugherty at (949) 975-1000 or by email at jdaugherty@wzllp.com

Mock Trials:

Thomas G. Wianecki (Senior Partner/Irvine Office) recently conducted a 1-day mock jury trial in our Irvine office. 15 jurors attended and were divided into two groups for deliberations. Associate attorneys and office staff played the roles of witnesses and parties (based upon deposition testimony and the records). Juror feedback was spirited. Verdict forms and other handout materials were utilized to better focus the discussions in deliberations. The two groups met as a whole to compare thoughts and themes after initially conferring alone. Case details were condensed into direct examination testimony for both sides. Closing arguments were made.

Wesierski & Zurek LLP can economically and effectively conduct your next mock trial. Juror dialogue may well promote a unique understanding of your case. By carefully evaluating your side's strengths and weaknesses, you can better assess the probabilities for the thrill of victory verses the agony of defeat.

Seminars:

      Chris Wesierski has been asked by the Orange County Bar to teach at the College of Trial Advocacy for 2011. 

       February 16, 2011. Chris Wesierski and a well-known plaintiff's lawyer were asked to speak to Chapman Law School on civility in a two hour presentation.

      October 27, 2010.  Chris Wesierski and Garrett Jensen were part of a presentation on cross-examination of key witnesses at Turnip Rose to a group of lawyers and judges.

     June 25, 2010.  Clash of the Titans.  Chris Wesierski was selected by Orange County ABOTA to head the defense team for the Masters in Cross-Examination program at Chapman Law School on June 25, 2010.  Mark Robinson was the head of the plaintiff team with formidable lawyers on each team.  The two teams will cross-examine lay persons and experts throughout a one-day seminar with a one-hour talk on ethics.   The two teams have so many excellent trial attorneys that it is being billed as the "Clash of the Titans."

       March 25, 2010.  EXPERTS: Who Do You Need & How Do You Examine Them? Christopher Wesierski was selected by the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association to participate as Defense Attorney on a panel consisting of a Plaintiff's Attorney, Defense Attorney and Judge to give their perspective to selecting experts in various cases.  There will be a live examination of expert witnesses and direct and cross-examination of the experts. 

October 28, 2009. Chris Wesierski was asked to give a live presentation on voir dire at Robert Banyard Inn of Court on October 28, 2009 at the Turnip Rose restaurant along with a judge and another attorney.

October 23, 2009. Chris Wesierski spoke at a collaborative event at UCI Irvine School of Law on Friday October 23, 2009 at 1:45 pm. The brochure describes it as the first collaborative event between the new UC Irvine School of Law, Orange County Trial Lawyers Association and American Board of Trial Advocates. It goes on to state "Many of California's premier jurists, scholars and attorneys will share their views and insights with you..."

January 17, 2009. Christopher Wesierski was asked to give a one hour presentation to the Orange County Bar in their 17th Annual Last Dash Legal Education Seminar along with a distinguished retired jurist and a counsel for the plaintiff side on putting the "civil" back in civil litigation on January 17, 2009 at Whittier Law School.

November 14, 2007. On November 14, 2007, Christopher P. Wesierski along with retired judge Robert Jameson, Federal Court Judge Andrew Guilford, and State Court judge David McEachen presented a program to the Robert Banyard Inns of Court entitled the Allen E. Broussard Presentation on Professionalism and Civility where ethical hypotheticals were discussed and taught.

November 1, 2007. Christopher Wesierski, along with 5 other prominent labor law attorneys in the Orange County area, were invited to be a guest speaker for the Employment Law Update that was offered by Sterling Education Services in Santa Ana, California. The seminar covered hottest employment law topics, such as the Latest Interpretations of Current Employment Law, the Compensation Issues Under California Wage and Hour laws, Coping with Leave Laws, Negotiating Separation Agreements in Difficult Termination Situations, Employment Issues in the Paperless Workplace, as well as Mr. Wesierski’s presentation on the Avoiding Liability in Hiring and Terminating Foreign Nationals.

September 15, 2006. Christopher Wesierski and Paul Lipman recently presented a Fair Claims Settlement Practices Seminar to approximately 40 claims adjusters for Laidlaw Transit in Arlington, Texas. The seminar included a presentation and discussion on California Fair Claims Practices, as well as a discussion of the application of Hanif and Greer in jury trials.

July 27, 2006. Christopher Wesierski, along with 3 other prominent labor law attorneys in the Orange County area, was invited to be a guest speaker for the Employment Law Update that was offered by Sterling Education Services in Irvine, California on Thursday, July 27, 2006. The seminar covered today’s hottest employment law topics, such as employment law developments, immigration and employment law, the California Wage and Hour laws, harassment issues, privacy in the workplace, internal investigations, protecting at will employment as well as Mr. Wesierski’s presentation on the overlap of ADA, FMLA and workers compensation when dealing with absences of ill, injured and disabled employees.

April 7, 2006. Chris Wesierski participated as a member of the Masters In Trial MCLE-approved training program presented by The Foundation of the American Board of Trial Advocates and was held at the Marriott Newport Beach Hotel & Spa in Newport Beach, California. The program featured a trial demonstration regarding a medical device/products liability case from opening statements to jury deliberations. The sponsor for the program was The Foundation of the American Board of Trial Advocates.

February 22, 2006. Chris Wesierski was the moderator for the Robert A. Banyard Inns of Court. The topic discussed during this presentation was on Lawyer's Comments on Judges.

July 19 and 21, 2005. Chris Wesiersk recently presented a two hour sexual harassment prevention seminar to approximately 40 managers at Elmore Toyota in Westminster. The seminar included a lecture, videos and role-playing as well as a detailed discussion of recent changes to the law.

January 22, 2004. Tom Wianecki and Joe DuBois presented a compliance seminar for Downey Dental Association necessary for renewal of their professional licenses. Among the topics for this seminar were tax issues, employment law issues specifically sexual harassment and avoiding dental malpractice claims.

November 14, 2003. Chris Wesierski and Mary Bevins presented a 3-hour seminar entitled "Everything You Wanted to Know About Trial But Were Afraid To Ask" for a group of 15 claims examiners.

October 17, 2003. Chris Wesierski, Ron Zurek and Tom Wianecki conducted an all-day seminar in Irvine for LORMAN Seminars on the topic of jury selection. This seminar was given to a group of 40 attorneys with a wide range of experience levels.

October 3, 10 and 17, 2003. Chris Wesierski, Tom Wianecki, Terence Carney and Joe DuBois partnered with the CPA firm of Thomas and Fees for a compliance seminar for dentists and dental assistants necessary for renewal of their professional licenses. Among the topics for this seminar were tax issues, forming business partnerships, independent contractors, employment law issues and avoiding dental malpractice claims.

October 2, 2003. We put on a presentation to a very large national transit company providing school and municipal bus service across the country, on the new changes in punitive damages, both nationwide and in California. Using the new computer driven Smart Board technology to retrieve and project vivid color and black and white pictures, diagrams and text onto an interactive touch sensitive Windows-based screen, approximately 35 adjusters and supervisors were able to hear and see crucial up-to-the-minute changes in punitive damages exposure after the State Farm v. Campbell and Henley v. Phillip Morris cases, regarding both the new caps on punitive damages and the new defense arguments against allowing discovery or admissibility of defendant's wealth under the new cases.

September 19, 2003. Chris Wesierski and Tom Ely traveled to the Sacramento area recently for a presentation on pre-trial discovery ranging from attacking the complaint, discovery motions, motions in limine to trial briefs. This was an extremely educational four hour session for claims personnel. Recent first party bad faith cases were also discussed.

September 5, 2003. Chris Wesierski and Paul Lipman brought an informative seminar to a client in Costa Mesa discussing new technology currently available to our industry for use in trial, punitive damages and the recent change in California jury instructions.

June 13, 2003. Chris Wesierski participated in a mock trial put on by ABOTA (American Board of Trial Advocates) to in front of over a hundred attorneys at the Newport Beach Sutton Place Hotel involving a shooting incident at a hotel and a suit over that shooting.

Mr. Wesierski handled the direct exam of the defendant hotel manager and the jury eventually came back with a defense verdict in this mock deliberation with cameras filming the deliberation of actual Orange County jurors.

The seminar lasted eight hours and it was the second time Mr. Wesierski has been asked to participate in this prestigious event.

April 25,2003. Chris Wesierski and Ron Zurek recently went to Brea to present an all-day seminar on trials to a group of claims personnel on "Everything You Wanted to Know About Trial But Were Afraid to Ask." The presentation included live demonstrations of voir dire, direct and cross-examination of experts and witnesses.

The seminar was sold out and taped as a training session for claims personnel, as well as broadcast to two additional California locations.

October 2, 2002. Chris Wesierski gave a seminar to a large group of claims personnel discussing the topics of wrongful death, loss of consortium derivative actions and negligent infliction of emotional distress (bystander claims) (Code of Civil Procedure §377.60 through §377.62).