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    LAWRENCE J. RUDD, M.D., J.D.

    • Available in Los Angeles, Northern California, All of California
    • Available for Mediation, Arbitration, and Private Judging assignments
    >> Contact Case Manager >> Submit an Inquiry >> Submit a Case

    Introduction

    Lawrence J. Rudd, M.D., J.D. is the only full-time mediator in Southern California, and likely the nation, with over 20 years of clinical medical experience and two decades of experience as a trial attorney.

    Larry Rudd sees mediation as the culmination of a long active professional career. Mediation joins together his experience and knowledge of medicine, which as an emergency physician ranged from obstetrics, pediatrics, geriatrics and all aspects of medicine in between, with his experience evaluating the legal claims of prospective client and litigating those cases he believed had merit. His goal as a mediator is the same as it was as a physician or a trial attorney, to reach the best possible result for all those involved.

    In order to reach that goal, prior to every mediation, Dr. Rudd carefully reads each brief, all materials provided and, if necessary, researches the key medical issues presented. His background as a physician/attorney allows him to quickly develop a rapport with injured parties, attorneys and health care providers, a critical skill when each side of a dispute wants to be both heard and understood.

    Specialties

    Hobbies & Interests

    Larry Rudd and his wife have a number of dogs of their own, but often open their home to foster dogs rescued from the streets or even worse situations and then help find them forever homes. Recently, Dr. Rudd has returned to medicine and is working part time in an urgent care clinic. In order to stay current, he is constantly reading medical journals. When not working as a mediator or a physician, Larry loves to play golf, which he discovered after closing his law practice in 2010.

    Website

    www.ruddmediation.com

    Testimonials

    He continues to dog the case after mediation. Very helpful.
    - Attorney on a personal injury burn dispute

    Judicate West is the only mediation service that we use. Having a mediator like Larry who settled a VERY difficult case is just another tribute to your amazing organization.
    - Attorney, San Diego County, California

    Larry is a great mediator who went the extra mile to get the case settled!
    - Attorney, Los Angeles, California

    Larry is an excellent mediator. He followed up the case personally with phone calls, which in turn got it settled!
    - Attorney, Los Angeles County, California

    His medical knowledge was invaluable.
    - Attorney on a premises liability dispute

    Experience Summary

    Legal Career

    • Partner, Cohen & Rudd, Pasadena, CA (1996-2011)
    • Mediator, Los Angeles County Superior Court ADR (2008-2013)
    • Partner, Cohen & Rudd, Pasadena, CA (1996-2011)
    • Mediator, Riverside County Superior Court ADR (2010-2014)
    • Associate, Gelfand and Gelfand, Beverly Hills, CA (1991-1996)
    • Board Certified in Emergency Medicine (1982-2002)
    • Staff Physician at various emergency departments(1981-1997)
    • Clinical Instructor, UCLA School of Medicine (1981-1987)
    • Emergency Medicine Resident, UCLA Hospital and Clinics (1979-1981)
    • Consultant, Los Angeles County Departments of Health Services and Mental Health (2014-)

    Education & Professional Affiliations

    • J.D, Harvard Law School (1990)
    • M.D, University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine (1976)
    • B.S., University of Wisconsin, Madison (1972)
    • Associate, American Board of Trial Advocates (2012-)
    • Pepperdine University Staus Institute for Dispute Resolution (2007)
    • Member, Consumer Attorneys of Los Angeles (1991-2014)
    • Member, Pasadena Bar Association (1998-2013)
    • Member, Beverly Hills Bar Association (2011-2012)

    Achievements & Awards

    • Lawrence Rudd has been named one of Southern California Super Lawyers every year since 2009, initially as a trial attorney and most recently in the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution.
    • Mr. Rudd is AV rated by Martindale Hubbell.
    • Dr. Rudd has lectured at the USC Keck School of Medicine on the Medical-Legal Aspects of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine.

    Legal Experience

    • Medical Malpractice
    • Dental Malpractice
    • Elder Abuse
    • Personal Injury

    Representative Case Information

    Recent Representative Cases

    Business/Commercial

    Contractual

    • Contract dispute between a contractor and a City relating to the construction of an athletic field. Disputed issues involved change orders, delays and liquidated damages.

    Professional Malpractice

    Medical Mal Dental

    • Dental Mal Mediation: dental extraction in area previously radiated for tonsillar cancer. Patient developed osteoradionecrosis with infection traveling down neck requiring tracheostomy and prolonged hospitalization.
    • Dental/Oral Surgery Mal Mediation: laceration of cornea during eye lid surgery by oral surgery. Injury allegedly due to failure to put protective device on eye before surgery on lid.
    • Dental Malpractice Mediation: injury to alveolar nerve do to overfilling of root canal.
    • Dental Mal: failure to fully extract a tooth, leaving behind a root tip which led to abscess formation and hospitalization.
    • Dental Mal Mediation: Seizure vs. conversion reaction after injection of anesthetic for deep dental cleaning.
    • Dental Mal Mediation: failure to timely biopsy abnormal area on gingiva which was later diagnosed to be squamous cell cancer.
    • Dental Malpractice: Claim of dental malpractice stemming from injury to the inferior alveolar nerve and lingual during removal of a wisdom tooth (3rd molar). Plaintiff's primary claim was that of lack of informed consent. Defense's position was that the plaintiff signed a consent form that listed nerve damage as a potential complication and that the injury was not caused by a negligent extraction.

    Medical Malpractice

    • Elder Abuse/Med Mal Mediation: spinal compression fractures due to fall at adult day care.
    • Med Mal/Wrongful Death mediation: death due to allergic reaction in hospital after serving patient food to which he was known to be allergic.
    • Med Mal/Wrongful Death & Elder Abuse Mediation: claims of lack of timely attention to abnormal lab result leading to death.
    • Med Mal Mediation: quadriceps tendon tear due to fall from improper monitoring/assistance during physical therapy.
    • Med Mal Mediation: Claimed colonoscopy missed cecal cancer which, approximately 7 months later presented with a perforation and lymph node involvement.
    • Med Mal/WD & Elder Abuse Mediation: failure to obtain consent for bedside eye surgery. Also failure to recognize and treat sepsis which defense claimed was not related to the surgical procedure.
    • Med Mal Mediation: spinal cord injury alleged to be due to radiation therapy for vocal cord cancer. Both negligence and causation at issue.
    • Med Mal/WD l Mediation: extravasation of norepinephrine into arm. Patient died during arm debridement surgery.
    • Med Mal Mediation: improper alignment of leg fracture requiring reparative surgery.
    • Med Mal/WD Mediation: patient died during insertion of chemotherapy catheter for breast cancer. Life expectancy an important issue as had both cancer and on dialysis.
    • Med Mal Mediation: a portion of surgical drain left in knee after total knee replacement.
    • Med Mal Mediation: anoxic brain injury to 9 month old child allegedly from failure to properly monitor child who was intubated and on a ventilator. Defense claimed the neurologic damage was due to underlying genetic defect, pyridoxine dependent epilepsy.
    • Med Mal Mediation: failure to perform x-rays of thoracic spine despite complaints of pain in this area after body surfing injury. Bleeding around fracture site caused paraplegia, but excellent recovery of function.
    • Pharmacy Mal Mediation: complex issue as to whether wrongly dispensing gabapentin instead of diltiazem was responsible for myocardial infarction.
    • Med Mal/WD Mediation: Complex causation issue as to whether anything could have been done to save a patient brought to hospital without a cath lab in cardiogenic shock.
    • PI- Premises/Property Mediation: injury due to sidewalk giving way due to subsidence of ground beneath sidewalk due to trenching on adjacent property. Dispute as to which contractor was responsible.
    • Med Mal Mediation: failure to diagnose focal glomerulosclerosis leading to end stage renal disease. Causation hotly contested.
    • Med Mal Mediation: failure to take appropriate steps after ultrasound detected total placenta previa leading to delivery at 25 weeks of child that had brain damage, lung damage and additional problems related to pre-term delivery.
    • Med Mal Mediation: multi-defendant case in which a patient with a significant history of bleeding from Coumadin was errantly prescribed Coumadin and developed a subdural hematoma leaving patient unable to care for himself.
    • Med Mal Mediation: alleged failure to timely diagnosis parotid gland cancer. This was a multi-defendant case with complex causation issues.
    • Med Mal/WD Mediation: death due to alleged improper therapy for coagulation abnormalities in pregnant female who had cerebral vein thrombosis. Allegations of fraudulent concealment and constructive fraud complicated the medical issues.
    • Elder Abuse & Med Mal Mediation: failure rehabilitate patient or monitor blood sugar. Later hospitalized with pneumonia and sepsis.
    • Mediation of claimed cervical spine injury at massage spa. A key issue was whether MICRA limitations applied.
    • The case involved claims of Medical Negligence and Elder Abuse stemming from a patient falling out of bed in a rehabilitation facility. The plaintiff claimed the need for lifelong attendant care due to a cervical spine fracture which occurred in the fall. The defense's position was that the fracture was old and the plaintiff's spinal fusion surgery was necessitated by the plaintiff's pre-existing degenerative disease, not the fall.
    • This medical malpractice case involved admitted liability for the delay in diagnosis of cancer. The primary issue of the case shifted to causation, whether or not the delay caused the patient to go from a greater than 50% 5-year survival to a less than 50% 5-year survival. The rarity of the type of cancer made this a very complex issue.

    Prof Malpractice Pharmacy

    • Pharmacy Malpractice- Defendant allegedly dispensed the wrong drug to the plaintiff which caused an adverse reaction, numbness, mainly in legs, which is likely permanent.

    Tort

    Catastrophic Injury

    • Plaintiff claimed he slipped on oil in parking lot injuring shoulder and nose. Defense has a witness saying plaintiff tripped over a concrete parking stop. Defense claimed lack of notice if it was a slip and fall and only plaintiff's negligence if he tripped over obvious parking stop. Injuries required surgery on shoulder and nose.

    Common Carrier

    • PI-Common Carrier Mediation: injury to neck and shoulder when suitcase slid off luggage rack on airport shuttle when driver applied brakes.

    Elder Abuse

    • Elder Abuse & Med Mal/WD Mediation: improper care led to pressure sores and osteomyelitis.
    • This was an Elder Abuse case stemming from a broken hip due to a fall in a skilled nursing facility. Decedent's son brought the case as successor in interest. An interesting issue was whether or not Civil Code Section 3333.1 applies to Elder Abuse. There are no cases directly on point.

    General Negligence

    • PI Mediation: dental injury to special needs student at school.

    Personal Injury

    • PI- Premises Mediation: slip and fall in grocery with claimed back and shoulder injury.
    • Med Mal Mediation: slip and fall at dialysis center leading to brain surgery. Significant dispute on issues of life expectancy and damages.
    • PI- Premises/Property Mediation: injury due to sidewalk giving way due to subsidence of ground beneath sidewalk due to trenching on adjacent property. Dispute as to which contractor was responsible.
    • Fall off edge of elevated ramp at entrance of restaurant. Struck head on concrete plantar. Persistent headaches and neck pain with prior history of headaches and neck pain. Complex medical issues regarding pre-existing condition vs. abnormalities caused by fall.

    PI Auto

    • PI-Auto Mediation: MVA (motor vehicle accident) leading to laminectomy and spinal fusion. Plaintiff had significant prior history of low back complaints.
    • PI Mediation: Femur fractured when moving a wall built during a school construction project fell onto plaintiff's leg.
    • Mediation of claimed cervical spine injury at massage spa. A key issue was whether MICRA limitations applied.
    • PI-Auto Mediation: Auto vs. bicyclist resulting in broken clavicle and ribs. Dispute over fault and damages.
    • Med Mal Mediation: a portion of surgical drain left in knee after total knee replacement.
    • PI-Auto Mediation: MVA in patient with prior history of low back pain. Claims that accident worsened condition and required microdiscectomy, however plaintiff had persistent pain and leg weakness.
    • Elder Abuse & Med Mal Mediation: failure rehabilitate patient or monitor blood sugar. Later hospitalized with pneumonia and sepsis.

    Premises Liability

    • PI-Premises Mediation: slip and fall in fast food restaurant. Plaintiff with significant pre-existing condition.
    • PI-Auto Mediation: driver striking pedestrian with arm being caught between two cars. Issues regarding extent of damages.
    • PI-Premises Mediation: trip over unmarked step not in code compliance that led to shoulder injury-arthroscopic surgery and then total shoulder replacement.

    Wrongful Death

    • Med Mal/WD Mediation: alleged failure to timely recognize fulminant myocarditis. Both negligence and causation hotly contested.
    • Pi/Premises-Property Mediation: bicyclist injured on irregular sidewalk. Dispute by defendants as to whether the City or the property owner was responsible for sidewalk. If caused by roots from property owner's tree then property owner responsible.
    • Elder Abuse & Med Mal/WD: development of bed sores and urinary sepsis in rehab center leading to death.
    • The case not only centered on liability for an immediate post-operative hemorrhage leading to death, but of major importance was life expectancy and work life expectancy in a patient with pancreatic cancer.

    Downtown Los Angeles

    601 S. Figueroa
    Ste 4000
    Los Angeles, CA 90017
    Phone: 213.223.1113
    Fax      : 213.223.1114

    Los Angeles Mediation

    West Los Angeles

    11601 Wilshire Blvd
    Ste 2040
    Los Angeles, CA 90025
    Phone: 310.442.2100
    Fax      : 310.442.2125

    Mediators Los Angeles

    San Diego

    402 W. Broadway
    Ste 2400
    San Diego, CA 92101
    Phone: 619.814.1966
    Fax      : 619.814.1967

    San Diego Mediation

    Santa Ana

    1851 East First Street
    Ste 1600
    Santa Ana, CA 92705
    Phone: 714.834.1340
    Fax      : 714.834.1344

    Orange County Mediation

    San Francisco

    100 Pine Street
    Ste 1950
    San Francisco, CA 94111
    Phone: 415.266.1242
    Fax      : 415.266.1243

    San Francisco Mediation

    Sacramento

    980 9th Street
    Suite 2200
    Sacramento, CA 95814
    Phone: 916.394.8490
    Fax      : 916.394.8495

    Sacramento Mediation

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