Joel B. Castro Honored for Excellence in Construction Litigation

    LOS ANGELES, CA, March 04, 2016 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Joel B. Castro, Lawyer of Castro & Associates, has been recognized for showing dedication, leadership and excellence in construction litigation.

Mr. Castro has 38 years of experience as a lawyer of Castro & Associates. In addition to his legal expertise, he has set himself apart through his knowledge in the areas of construction and engineering, particularly as they relate to earthquake damage. Each day, Mr. Castro is responsible to attending trials and managing the firm, which provides specialization in complex multiparty construction litigation including soils failures, structural defects, concrete failures, water intrusion and steel high rise defects.

Mr. Castro spent a short time with the California Attorney General, Criminal Appellate Division, and started private practice in 1977. He began representing condominium homeowner associations in construction defect litigation and as general counsel. In 1984, he began working on a large 200-unit condominium project in Monterey Hills, found to be sitting on a defective 100-foot landfill constructed for the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency. The case, the longest civil jury trial in Los Angeles county, was tried over nine months before a Superior Court jury.

The jury returned a verdict of $10 million which was increased to more than $13.5 million when the judge awarded fees, costs and interest. As a result of this favorable verdict and judgment, all Monterey Hills owners were able to settle their claims for $65 million. The $65 million represented all remaining coverage for all carriers after they paid the defense firms' $40,000,000 in defense costs. Mr. Castro was instrumental in achieving that global settlement.

Looking back, Mr. Castro attributes his success to hia hard work and preparation. He became involved in his profession because he grew up very poor in East LA as one of seven children. Eventually, he became a lawyer and began trying criminal law. While working for the attorney general in California, he found other areas of law and branched out. He then began a very interesting and successful career doing engineering and geo technical law. Mr. Castro was nicknamed the "Indiana Jones of Attorneys" for always getting fully involved in the case and heavily reviewing the evidence.

Mr. Castro is pursuing continuing education seminars and classes to supplement his JD, which he received from the UCLA School of Law in 1976. He was inducted into Worldwide Registry and also maintains affiliation with AAJ, AJA, SEAOSC, the California Bar Association, the Los Angeles Bar Association, Los Angeles County Trial Lawyers and The Naval Academy. In recognition of his hard work and dedication, he has received a Flaig Award through the Los Angeles County Bar Association in 2015, as well as the Jennifer Myrick Justice Advocacy Award in 2012. In addition, he was selected as a Super Lawyer, a Top Lawyer by Forbes, and an AV Preeminent Rated Attorney by Martindale-Hubbell. In years to come, Mr. Castro will be continuing to tackle new frontiers in construction case law and making in-roads in law where people live and work.

For more information about Castro & Associates, visit http://defectlaw.com/attorneys_jc.html.

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