MICHAEL A. KELLY
Mr. Kelly is one of California's premiere wrongful death trial lawyers. He has tried cases involving wrongful death from product liability, automobile defects, government negligence, automobile accident liability, aviation crashes and medical malpractice. He has been asked to teach other lawyers how to prepare and try wrongful death cases, and has recovered more than 100 million dollars on behalf of his clients in wrongful death cases.
He has tried cases throughout California and has been involved in more than 150 cases where his client(s) recovered $1,000,000 or more by way of trial, arbitration, mediation or settlement. He is the only four-time "Trial Lawyer of the Year" nominee of the San Francisco Trial Lawyer's Association, having most recently won the award in 2010. In 2010 he was also nominated ( for a second time ) for the prestigious Consumer Attorneys of California "Consumer Attorney of the Year" award. Voted in 2009 by the readers of San Francisco's Recorder legal newspaper as the "Best Personal Injury Attorney" in San Francisco, he was featured on the cover of the 2009 Northern California Super Lawyers magazine.
In 2010 he was selected for the 16th consecutive year as one of the Best Lawyers In America; in 2006, he obtained a jury verdict which was, at that time, the largest ever reported for the wrongful death of a non-dependent adult child in San Francisco Superior Court.
His commitment to pro-bono work and the rights of the underserved and under represented have been acknowledged by multiple Bar organizations. In 2008 he was honored by Sonoma County Legal Aid for his commitment to the poor, and in 2007 the Bar Association of San Francisco presented him with a citation acknowledging his commitment to training lawyers for children.
In 2010 he served as President of the San Francisco chapter of ABOTA. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. In 2011 he serves as Vice President of the International Society of Barristers.
He is a summa cum laude graduate of St. Mary's College of California and obtained his law degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 1976. Mr. Kelly has successfully prosecuted cases throughout California in both State and Federal Court. He has also litigated matters in Oregon, Hawaii, Colorado, Alaska, Minnesota, New Mexico and the Territory of Guam. He has obtained 8-figure jury verdicts and settlements in wrongful death cases.
He holds an "AV" rating (highest rating) from Martindale-Hubbell and has been favorably profiled in legal periodicals. He is heavily involved in continuing legal education and teaches for NITA, the California Continuing Education of the Bar, ABOTA, CAOC, SFTLA and The Rutter Group. He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the National Institute of Trial Advocacy, and serves as Program Director of that organization's San Francisco, New York and Colorado Teacher Training Programs.
