Celebrated Trial Lawyer Thomas Girardi Opens Up About His Work and His Life
Listen to this articleFor more than 50 years Thomas Girardi, has taken on and won some of the world’s most famous cases. His unlucky opponents include corporate goliaths, like Merck, and major movie studios. Over the course of his legendary career, Girardi was presented with a variety of prestigious awards, as well as having been inducted into the Trial Lawyer Hall of Fame by the California State Bar.
Erin Brockovich’s case against Pacific Gas and Electric Company was immortalized on the big screen, and here too Girardi played a pivotal role in winning this case, one that made the public aware of the risks posed by exposure to toxic waste. Girardi over the course of his career has been a champion for everyday people, helping them get justice.
Fans of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills may also remember seeing this legal guru next to his wife, American Singer, Actress and Television Personality Erika Nay Girardi. Thomas Girardi’s epic career piqued our interest and then some, so we were very excited when he agreed to an interview, to learn more about his life’s work and passion as person.
You have helped so many people win settlements in cases that run the gamut from small cases to big ones. What is one of the keys of your success? Also what factors go into your decision to take on a client?
Give me a good person who is honest and sincere and I want to do everything in my power to help them. Give me a bad guy who isn’t genuine and who is dishonest and I do not want to help them. A lot of times the smaller the cases are they are the ones that are so important and dear to my heart. Sometimes those cases don’t give the biggest financial return but seeing how much I can help these types of cases brings me the most happiness throughout my career. I got a card in the mail a few weeks ago and it said, “Mr. Girardi I cannot thank you enough for what you did for my husband and I. We both prayed for you last night. – Mrs. Hansen
Immediately I asked my assistant to pull up her case file to see how much the settlement was for. She had received only $7,500 but for her to take the time to send me a card and to pray for me makes me realize that I have the best job in the world.
What advice would you give up and coming lawyers looking to follow in your rather impressive footprints?
I love mentoring young lawyer. We meet up after a long day normally with a glass of wine and discuss our cases. I love to give presentations to lawyers about the art of persuasion and the importance of jury selection.
With your landmark case against PG&E that inspired the movie ‘Erin Brockovich,’ did you know that this case was going to change the world so significantly?
I certainly didn’t, but you know it really did mean a lot. People really didn’t have much of a realization of ground contamination until that case. Before, environmental cases they weren’t really very viable. Then all of a sudden this case told people how serious some of these issues could be. Obviously Julia Roberts made it pretty good to watch and of course raise awareness to world.
To this day if you have a toxic case and your selecting a jury, the jury is always asked, “Have any of you ever seen the movie ‘Erin Brockovich?’”
Usually all but one will raise their hand. That doesn’t happen with any other any other movie, or anything like that, so it had a huge impact, without a doubt, on the environment and how important it was to the world. Over the years – in some memos that were privately passed on to me from companies that said “We better clean this up, or Girardi will be all over us with another Erin Brockovich,”
In short, it truly did have a strong impact and then Erin’s role was played so well, she’s such a terrific person, but I think the whole the whole population and the world learned an awful truth, that stuff was in the soil, its in the air, and it can really hurt you.
To learn more about Thomas Girardi, check out his official website and his law firm’s official homepage.
