Jeffrey J. Parker

Jeffrey J. Parker is a partner in Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP's Los Angeles office, where he specializes in business litigation, environmental law, and complex environmental litigation.

Areas of Practice

Mr. Parker has extensive experience in environmental counseling and in complex environmental and toxic tort litigation. His environmental and tort litigation experience includes dozens of product liability actions in California State and Federal District Courts and multi-district litigation proceedings in the Southern District of New York that arise out of MTBE contamination of drinking water aquifers, as well as actions brought under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act ("CERCLA"), the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ("RCRA"), California Proposition 65, and various state environmental laws or tort doctrines. He has also advised clients with respect to the Polanco Redevelopment Act, California Air Resources Board variance proceedings and Regional Water Quality Control Board permit proceedings, and has handled resulting writs of mandate. In addition, he has considerable experience in business litigation, including actions involving rights of first refusal, shareholder disputes, challenges to mergers, corporate dissolution, breach of contract, injunctions, and allegations of fraud and breach of fiduciary duty. He has experience in all aspect of litigation, including discovery, motions, settlement negotiations, mediation, arbitration, trial, appeal, and writ practice.

In 2010, he tried the case of Sullins v. Exxon Mobil Corporation in the Northern District of California, obtaining a jury verdict for the defense in July 2010 and a bench trial judgment for the defense on the remaining claims in January 2011.

His significant appellate victories include the landmark environmental decision Consumer Advocacy Group v. Exxon Mobil Corporation, 104 Cal. App. 4th 438 (2002), where the California Court of Appeal held that "passive migration" or "continued presence" of chemicals in soil or water did not constitute a "discharge or release" under Proposition 65.  Other significant appeals include: Consumer Defense Group v. Shell Oil Company, et al., Cal. Ct. of Appeal, 4th App. Dist. Case No. G034935 (2006 (unpub.)) (same issue as Consumer Advocacy Group v. Exxon Mobil Corporation); Kashani v. Tsann Kuen China Enterprise Co., Ltd., 118 Cal.App.4th 531 (2004) (defined summary judgment burdens of proof on affirmative defenses of illegality and violation of public policy); and Mylan Laboratories Inc. v. Soon-Shiong, 76 Cal. App. 4th 71 (1999) (established that a non-party can simply file a motion to assert a privilege in a pending action without intervening to become a party).

Education

• J.D., University of Southern California, 1991, articles editor and published author for the Southern California Law Review
• B.S., Aerospace Engineering, University of Notre Dame, 1987, with honors

Admissions

• California
• U.S. District Courts for the Southern, Central, Eastern and Northern Districts of California
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Honors

• Profiled by Los Angeles Business Journal as one of " L.A.'s Leading Environmental Lawyers."

Memberships

• Member, California State Bar
• Member, Litigation and Environmental Law Sections of the State Bar of California
• Member, Litigation and Environmental Law Sections of the Los Angeles County Bar Association
• Member, California Association of Business Trial Lawyers
• Member, National Aerospace Engineering Honor Society
• Member, National Engineering Honor Society