Mr. Frantz’s 40 years of legal experience includes litigating catastrophic injury claims, tractor-trailer collisions, amusement park accidents, products liability, motorcycle, and automobile collisions, aviation accidents, fire and explosion related injuries and wrongful death claims, mass transit accidents, construction accidents, industrial accidents, complex business disputes, class actions, and mass torts. Mr. Frantz currently serves on the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee for the Porter Ranch Gas Leak litigation (one of the largest mass tort litigation in U.S. history), as well as the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee in the wildfire litigation against Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) and Southern California Edison (SCE). Mr. Frantz served as President of the Meadows Del Mar Homeowners Association for eight years (Meadows Del Mar consists of 134 homes with an estimated total value of $500 million in real estate).
ACHIEVING LANDMARK COURT VICTORIES
Mr. Frantz and co-counsel have trial-tested their extensive experience securing landmark verdicts and settlements, including:
$55.4 million jury verdict* ** awarded to the families of four marines who were killed as a result of the negligence of San Diego Gas & Electric Utility (no pre-trial offer was made by defendants).
Jury verdict of $223 million* (top pretrial offer was $100,000) in a professional negligence case. **
Verdict of $18.5 million* **- Mr. Frantz’s expertise was sought by Congress where he testified as a product liability expert with respect to the litigation he prosecuted against a drug manufacturer whereby he won (with co-counsel) an $18.5 million verdict. Within months after Mr. Frantz’s congressional testimony the product was banned by the federal government due to significant safety concerns.
$13.5 billion* against Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) on behalf of thousands of victims harmed in the 2017 and 2018 Northern California wildfires (FLG represents 4,400 victims). Mr. Frantz played an integral role in obtaining this landmark settlement.
$800 million* against MGM Resorts International on behalf of victims of the 2017 Las Vegas Shooting at Mandalay Bay (Frantz Law Group represented 201 victims). Mr. Frantz played a very important part in achieving this historic settlement.
*Results in other matters do not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction of the outcome of your legal matter. Results are dependent on the facts of each case, and the results may vary based on different facts.
**Reduced and appealed; resolved for a confidential amount.
***James P. Frantz, Esq. approves the content of this document.
The Daily Transcript honored Mr. Frantz as one of the Top 10 Attorneys. Mr. Frantz has been nominated for Top Attorneys in the insurance and personal injury category 2010 – 2020. Mr. Frantz has also been honored as a Super Lawyer and Tier One Best Lawyers of America for twelve consecutive years.
Mr. Frantz is a cum laude graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara and a graduate of Thomas Jefferson School of Law. He represented the San Diego County Bar Association as a Delegate to the State Bar of California and has served as a Special Master for the State Bar of California for the past 30 years. He has also been an Arbitrator for 30 years. He is a Master of the William B. Enright Chapter of the American Inns of Court. He is a Fellow and Associate of the prestigious American Board of Trial Advocates and is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbel.
AREAS OF PRACTICE
Personal Injury / Tractor Trailer Crashes
Wildfire Litigation/Public Utility Regulation
Complex Business Litigation
Professional Negligence
Mass Torts / Class Actions
EDUCATION
University of California, Santa Barbara, California
B.A., Bachelor of Arts cum laude – 1975
Major: Political Science
Thomas Jefferson School of Law, San Diego, California
Juris Doctor – 1979
HONORS & RECOGNITION
One of the largest Southern California jury verdicts for an individual client in a professional negligence claim ($223 million) * **
Largest San Diego verdict against drug manufacturer ($18.5 million) * **
Largest helicopter aviation jury verdict in U.S. history against a public utility ($55.4 million) * **
Daily Transcript’s Top 10 Attorneys
Outstanding California Trial Lawyer nomination, 2003
Super Lawyers, 2008 – 2021
Best Lawyers of America, 2010 – 2021
AV Preeminent* by Martindale Hubbell, 2012 – 2021
Top Lawyers in San Diego by San Diego Magazine, 2012 – 2021
Best California Trial Attorneys by Best Lawyers, 2012 – 2021
Tier 1 ranking for Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions-Plaintiffs by U.S. News
Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” Tier One Rankings, 2010 – 2021
Top Attorneys in San Diego by The New York Times & Los Angeles Magazine, 2013 – Present
Top 100 Verdicts in the Nation for 2008
BAR ADMISSIONS
State Bar of California, 1979
U.S. District Court Southern District of California
U.S. Tax Court
U.S. District Court Central District of California
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
ASSOCIATIONS & MEMBERSHIPS
The Fellows of the American Bar Foundation
American Bar Association, (20-year member of the Tort, Trial & Insurance Sections)
San Diego County Bar Association (SDCBA)
Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA)
American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA)
Consumer Attorneys of California (CAOC)
Consumer Attorneys of San Diego (CASD)
Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA)
American Association for Justice (AAJ)
Association of Plaintiff Interstate Trucking Lawyers of America
Master, William B. Enright Chapter of The American Inns of Court (EIOC)
State Bar of California, Delegate
State Bar of California, Special Master
Superior Court, Arbitrator, 1982 – Present
Community Involvement Content
James P. Frantz, is also a proud Board Member of Impact Teen Drivers. Since 2007, Impact Teen Drivers (ITD) has emerged as a leading non-profit organization dedicated to reversing the pervasive yet preventable crisis of distracted driving by minors (cell phone use). ITD’s mission is to change the driving habits of minors thereby saving lives not only in this generation of drivers, but in future generations as well. ITD is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to changing the driving culture to one that is distraction-free.
ITD accomplishes its goal through a nationwide educational program that confronts the dangers and consequences of reckless and distracted driving, as well as, vaping while driving. Impact Teen Drivers (ITD) partners with schools, first responders, health care organizations, and state agencies to spread the message of safe, distraction-free driving and achieve real impact in communities throughout California. ITD works with family members of teens killed by reckless and distracted driving and uses real stories of teens who have lost their lives or caused the loss of life in preventable car crashes to connect emotionally and motivate young people toward attitude and behavior change.
James Frantz works alongside the following fellow board members of Impact Teen Drivers:
Beau Brown – Chairman & CEO California Casualty
Carolyn Doggett – Executive Director California Teacher’s Association
Dwight Helmick – Former Commissioner California Highway Patrol
Jack O’Connell – Former CA State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Jon Hamm – CEO, California Association of Highway Patrolmen
Margarita Cuizon – Director of Member Services and Support ACSA
Warren Stanley – Former Commissioner California Highway Patrol
Amanda L. Ray – Current Commissioner California Highway Patrol
Distracted and reckless driving is a multifaceted public health crisis that requires a multi-faceted response, so while Impact’s message remains the same—to end it—the formats and venues to spread it vary. Automobile crashes are the #1 killer of teens in America, and they are preventable. Impact has developed evidence-based curricula and guides for different professional fields, and for different target audiences. Impact Teen Drivers offers myriad free resources to educators, first responders, healthcare professionals, parents, community members, and teens and teen organizations.
