Partner
Marc S. Shapiro
Mr. Shapiro's practice over the past 34 years has focused on civil litigation, with an emphasis on real estate and personal injury matters, including complex cases involving toxic torts, habitability, landslides, and catastrophic injuries. He has served as lead trial counsel in more than 30 jury trials and over 20 bench trials, achieving numerous defense verdict as well as favorable results in a significant number of those matters. His trial experience includes representing parties in cases involving seven-figure damage claims, consistently delivering strong outcomes through strategic and cost-effective advocacy. Mr. Shapiro is also a member of ABOTA, a prestigious organization whose membership is limited to the top trial attorneys in the country.
Among his notable jury trial victories, Mr. Shapiro served as trial counsel in Goldstein v. Beck, a heavily litigated property dispute involving claims of encroachment and boundary line rights. His clients, the plaintiffs, prevailed on all causes of action, resulting in a judgment in excess of $7 million. Mr. Shapiro obtained a defense verdict on the defendant’s cross-complaint, securing a complete trial victory for his clients. In Boss v. Yamaguchi, he defended a landlord in a premises liability case involving serious personal injury allegations and over $100,000 in claimed medical expenses. The jury returned a defense verdict, finding no liability on the part of the defendant. In Sager v. J-Mar Investment Co., Mr. Shapiro obtained a defense verdict in a landlord-tenant case involving allegations of personal injury due to mold exposure. The plaintiff claimed that water intrusion following heavy rains in a Long Beach apartment caused significant mold contamination, leading to a wide range of physical and mental health symptoms. In November 2018, the jury found in favor of the defense on all claims. The resulting judgment in favor of Mr. Shapiro’s clients exceeded $100,000.
In addition to his trial work, Mr. Shapiro has an extensive appellate background and has handled dozens of appeals throughout his career. He is particularly recognized for his role in the landmark case Hirshfield v. Schwartz, in which he successfully established a new legal doctrine in California real estate law: the equitable easement. In that case, Mr. Shapiro persuaded the trial court to permit the defendants to retain long-standing improvements that encroached onto a neighboring property, despite the absence of any legal title or recorded easement. The court found that removing the encroachments would cause disproportionate hardship to the defendants, and allowed them to maintain their use of the property under equitable principles. In addition to prevailing on the easement issue, Mr. Shapiro also obtained a defense verdict on the plaintiff’s $300,000 claim for alleged damage to trees, with the court finding that the defendants bore no liability for the harm claimed. The decision was affirmed by the California Court of Appeal and has since become a leading precedent in property line disputes, widely cited for its articulation of the equitable easement doctrine.
Education
UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO SCHOOL OF LAW
Juris Doctor, 1991
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
B.A., Economics, 1987
Activities & Affiliations
• American Board of Trial Advocates
Bar Admissions
• State Bar of California, admitted 1991
• United States District Court for the Central District of California