Michael Isaku Begert has been a commercial litigation partner with Bingham McCutchen, LLP in San Francisco since 1996. He has lead teams in significant jury trials, arbitrations and class action lawsuits.
Michael has experience in product liability class actions, consumer class actions, complex construction disputes and international copyright and trademark anti-piracy litigation. His recent representative experience includes:
o National coordinating counsel: overseeing strategy on a multiple class action complaints relating to a building product in the Southeast. Ongoing.
o National product class action: lead counsel on a complaint for damages in excess of $100 million by more than 5,000 class members resulted in a defense victory on all claims after a two month jury trial in 2006. Argued the appeal on April 15, 2008.
o National product class action: lead counsel on a complaint for damages in excess of $500 million by more than 30,000 class members resulted in a favorable settlement after completion of jury selection in a 2005 trial.
o National product class action opt-out claim: lead counsel on a complaint for damages relating to a large apartment complex by opt-out class members resulted in a favorable settlement after completion of jury selection in a 2005 trial.
o Coordinating counsel: lead counsel responsible for implementation of two national class action settlements.
Michael currently serves as chair of the Board of Directors of the Asian American Justice Center. From 1997 to 2002, Michael served as the chair of the Board of Directors for the Asian Law Caucus. Michael is also a member of the Board of Directors for the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights for the San Francisco Bay Area. He is a member of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area and the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association.
Michael graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Washington in Seattle. In 1989, he received a J.D. with honors from the University of Chicago Law School where he was a member of the Law Review and the Moot Court Board. Michael published “The Corporate Opportunity Doctrine and Outside Business Interests” in the University of Chicago Law Review.
