Gary M. Roberts

Partner

A member of the firm's Litigation and Environmental practices, Gary Roberts has extensive complex litigation, advocacy and counseling experience regarding environmental law, product liability and false advertising matters. His experience includes state and federal litigation, as well as administrative advocacy before a wide range of state and federal regulators.

Gary clerked for Judge David R. Thompson of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and served as notes editor of the Stanford Law Review, where he was awarded distinction.

Representative Experience

Class Action and Major Complex Litigation Matters

• Gary represents an owner of quick-serve restaurants in a proposed class action concerning certain menu statements.
• Gary currently serves as trial counsel for a major construction industry client in connection with possible class action and product liability litigation in state and federal courts. He served as group counsel in a product misrepresentation class action matter arising under California's B&P Codes §§ 17200 and 17500. He also represented a well-known internet company in defending a false advertising class action.
• In March 2005, Gary obtained court approval of a stipulated judgment in the amount of $81 million that resolved two complex cases brought by his client, the South Coast Air Quality Management District, concerning air emission violations.
• He represented a major Southern California aerospace company in approximately 20 consolidated toxic tort cases brought by over 3,000 neighbors of the company's facility.

Proposition 65 Litigation and Counseling

• Gary consistently has represented Fortune 500 companies in Proposition 65 litigation matters for over twenty years. His representative litigation matters include cases involving leaded crystal, adhesive products, lead foil wine capsules, diesel trucks and engines, zinc oxide products, prescription products, nutritional products, bismuth products, french fries and other foods, food preparation products, jewelry, various plastics, air emissions issues and water discharge issues. Gary has been selected on several occasions by defense groups to serve as liaison counsel in multidefendant and multiplaintiff Proposition 65 and related cases. In addition to litigation under Proposition 65, Gary has defended related failure to warn and failure to disclose allegations of individual plaintiffs and proposed class representatives under California's Unfair Business Practices Act and California's Consumers Legal Remedies Act.
• He also advises major corporations and trade associations on Proposition 65 administrative and compliance matters. He has represented industries in connection with the successful removal of chemicals from the list of chemicals regulated by Proposition 65, and he has represented industries and companies in connection with the state's determination not to add chemicals to the Proposition 65 list. He has been successful in removing certain organizations from the list of entities considered "authoritative" on reproductive toxicity issues under Proposition 65.
• The state of California recently appointed Gary to a working group tasked with revising Proposition 65 warning regulations. He has successfully advocated amendments to Proposition 65 regulations on a number of occasions. Gary maintains strong relationships with the public officials who implement and enforce Proposition 65.
• He has served on the Editorial Board of Proposition 65 News, and he is a regular speaker and author on Proposition 65 topics. He wrote the chapter on Proposition 65 in the California Environmental Law Handbook (8th, 9th and 10th eds.).

Environmental Law

• In March 2005, Gary obtained court approval of a stipulated judgment in the amount of $81 million that resolved two complex cases brought by his client, the South Coast Air Quality Management District, concerning air emission violations at a Southern California oil refinery. In connection with this matter, Gary also advised the district concerning various permitting issues.
• He has represented clients responding to a wide range of state and federal environmental laws; including the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act; the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act; the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; California recycling and plastic content laws; and various community right-to-know and site cleanup laws.
• Gary has appeared before the California Environmental Protection Agency, the California Air Resources Board, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, the California Integrated Waste Management Board, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control and Region 9 of the US EPA. He has appeared before various regional water boards and air districts, and he has substantial experience interacting with the California Attorney General's office and various California district attorneys.
• Gary's toxic tort experience includes defending injury, fear of cancer and medical monitoring claims relating to air emissions, industrial chemicals, pesticides and consumer products. He represented a major Southern California aerospace company in approximately 20 consolidated toxic tort cases brought by over 3,000 neighbors of the company's facility.
• He has lectured and written on various chemical risk and environmental law issues, including serving as a faculty member for the Environmental Law Institute's "Environmental Law Bootcamp."

Chambers USA

• America's Leading Lawyers for Business 2010 recognized him for his environmental work.

Misleading Advertising Issues

• Gary has been selected by prominent businesses and defense groups to serve as lead counsel and liaison counsel in multidefendant and multiplaintiff consumer product litigation matters arising under California's Unfair Business Practices Act, California's Misleading Advertising Act, California's Consumers Legal Remedies Act and California's Proposition 65. He also has handled proposed class actions arising under these laws. Among the allegations that he has defended in this area are claims that product materials misleadingly omitted material information.
• Gary's experience defending misleading advertising allegations includes representation of a prominent U.S. restaurant chain in connection with the marketing of one of its signature products, and advice to several U.S. food companies concerning product attribute statements and product marketing. Gary also has advised a major pharmaceutical company in connection with consumer marketing inquiries by a group of state attorneys general.

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