Long before Russell Kussman, M.D., J.D. began a legal career that placed him among the Best Lawyers in America, he was a practicing physician who had trained at Harvard and Stanford University Medical Centers. After practicing medicine for nearly 10 years and becoming certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine, Dr. Kussman graduated from one of the nation's most prestigious law schools, Boalt Hall School of Law (University of California, Berkeley) while working as an Emergency Room Physician in San Francisco, and as an Assistant Professor of Medicine at U.C.S.F.

Kussman's legal practice focuses on representing victims of medical malpractice, primarily involving major neurologic injuries, brain or spinal cord damage, or wrongful death. Dr. Kussman set the record for the highest medical malpractice jury verdict in California history in the late 1980's, and more recent verdicts have been at the very highest levels as well. For example, a jury in San Bernardino County recently awarded one of his clients (who had suffered a birth injury) over $109,000,000 in damages (with a present cash value of $17,162,273) -- one of the highest medical malpractice verdicts ever reported.

Dr. Kussman and his law firm pride themselves on being aggressive yet professional advocates who screen cases carefully and only proceed against health care providers if there is substantial evidence of negligence or malfeasance. Kussman's peers have recognized this combination of powerful advocacy and ethical lawyering by naming him to the American Board of Trial Advocates ("ABOTA"); by listing him in "Best Lawyers in America" for over 10 years; and by repeatedly voting him onto Los Angeles Magazine's "Super Lawyers," where in 2006 he was honored as one of the "Top 100 Lawyers" in Southern California.

Given his recent successes at trial, Dr. Kussman was nominated (for the 7th time) to be the Los Angeles "Trial Lawyer of the Year." And, he was chosen as a Finalist for the statewide Consumer Attorneys of California "Trial Lawyer of the Year" as well.

Reported Cases: Western Steamship Lines, Inc. v. San Pedro Peninsula Hospital, 8 Cal. 4th 100 (1994); Marlene F. v. Affiliated Psychiatric Medical Clinic, Inc., 48 Cal. 3d 583 (1989); St. Vincent Medical Center v. Superior Court, 160 Cal. App. 3d 1030 (1984); Herbert v. Superior Court (1985) 169 Cal.App.3d 718.

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Read SuperLawyers article about Kussman & Whitehill

KUSSMAN & WHITEHILL OBTAIN ANOTHER RECORD RECOVERY
$7.6 MILLION PRE-TRIAL SETTLEMENT FOR AN ADULT WOMAN
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LOS ANGELES JURY RENDERS VERDICT OF OVER $40,000,000 FOR KUSSMAN & WHITEHILL CLIENT. Click here to read more.

ARBITRATOR RENDERS RECORD AWARD AGAINST KAISER HOSPITAL FOR KUSSMAN & WHITEHILL CLIENT. Click here for more information.

Email: rkussman@kussmanwhitehill.com