Luke Ellis at a Glance:
J. D., University of California at Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law, 1975
B. A., Antioch College (OH), 1972
Attorney at Law since 1976
Email: luke@gjel.com
Luke Ellis is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell. He is a past and current selection for the Northern California Super Lawyers as well as The Best Lawyers in America. He has one of the largest personal injury jury trial verdicts on record in Alameda County, and the largest wrongful death recovery by either settlement or verdict in Contra Costa County.
Mr. Ellis’ recent case results include: $111.7 Million in the Tenet Healthcare Cases; $10.65 Million for a wrongful death in the Walnut Creek Gas Pipeline Case; $9.2 Million in the Sulzer Hip Implant Litigation. He was appointed by the courts to serve as one of the lead plaintiff attorneys in the Judicial Council Coordinated Proceedings (JCCP) in all three cases; in total, these cases settled for $442 Million, $95 Million, and $1.05 Billion, respectively.
Mr. Ellis has served as Vice President of the California Trial Lawyers Association (CTLA) and Vice President of the Consumer Attorneys of California (CAOC), organizations dedicated to the protection of the civil justice system and the rights of injured persons and consumers.
Mr. Ellis received his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, Boalt Hall in 1975. He has tried numerous civil and criminal jury trials, as well as court trials. He has written and lectured widely in the field of trial practice, and has chaired numerous educational seminars in all fields of litigation. He was a consultant to the California Continuing Education of the Bar for their 1995, 1997 and 1999 California Trial Objections, Third through Seventh Editions. He is a co-author of the Government Tort Liability Practice, Third Edition, published by California Continuing Education of the Bar.
Mr. Ellis serves regularly as a Court Settlement Commissioner by appointment of the Contra Costa and Alameda County Superior Courts.
He also teaches Mock Trial at Miramonte High School in Orinda, where his teams have won the county championship, sponsored by the Contra Costa County Office of Education(CCCOE), six out of the last seven years.
Bar Admissions:
- California, 1976
- U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1976
- U.S. District Court Northern District of California, 1976
Classes/Seminars Taught:
- Lecturer, Trial Practice, California Trial Lawyers Association
- “Maximizing Settlements,” Alameda Contra Costa Trial Lawyers Association
- “Cross-Examination,” San Francisco Bar Association
- “The Defective Sulzer Hip Litigation,” Alameda County Superior Courts
- ”Handling Products Liability Cases,” Continuing Education of the Bar (CEB)
- “Use and Admissibility of Demonstrative Exhibits,” San Francisco Trial Lawyers’ Association
- ”Demonstrative Evidence,” California Trial Lawyers Association (now CAOC)
- “Opening Statements,” California Trial Lawyers’ Association
- “Automobile Cases,” California Trial Lawyers’ Association
- “Selected Evidentiary Issues,” California Trial Lawyers’ Association
- “Jury Selection,” California Trial Lawyers’ Association
Professional Associations and Memberships:
- Alameda-Contra Costa County Trial Lawyers Association
- American Trial Lawyers Association (ATLA)
- Consumer Attorneys of California
- Alameda County Bar Association
- State Bar of California
- California Trial Lawyers Association
- Association of Trial Lawyers of America
