James Sabovich

James M. Sabovich

Senior Trial Attorney James Sabovich

Mr. Sabovich is a trial attorney with over 15 years of litigation experience representing clients ranging from Fortune Five Companies to individuals. During that time he has successfully defended clients from multi-billion dollar claims and obtained multi-million dollar awards for plaintiff clients.

He spearheaded the fraud and racketeering work on the internationally followed Chevron matter, which uncovered that multi-billion dollar special master reports and an $8.646 billion judgment had been ghostwritten and procured by bribery. A three month trial in the Southern District of New York adjudged that and the Second Circuit affirmed in a published opinion. Outside court, Mr. Sabovich is a prolific author, having published widely on litigation issues.

Mr. Sabovich specializes in international, financial, fraud, RICO, toxic tort, environmental, and business litigation. He also has significant transactional experience, which lends a unique perspective to commercial litigation. Prior to joining Callahan & Blaine, Mr. Sabovich was Of Counsel at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.

Some of Mr. Sabovich’s matters include:

  • An affirmed judgment from the Southern District of New York following a three-month trial, confirming that an $8.646 billion judgment was obtained by fraud and bribery.
  • Successfully defended JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. to defense judgment in multiple suits alleging fraud in connection with commercial and residential banking.
  • Successfully defended electronics manufacturer in a year-long trial in Taiwan, resulted in a defense verdict on most significant issues.
  • Successfully defended defense-related product testing company from community exposure suit alleging that chemicals caused death, injury, emotional distress, and diminished property values to those near the facility and seeking compensatory, punitive, and medical monitoring damages.
  • Successfully defended an aerospace company from a 700-plaintiff toxic tort claim seeking over $150 million. After the first tier of plaintiffs resulted in a defense judgment, the overall lawsuit was settled for an amount approximately equal to the Plaintiffs’ lawyers’ hard costs.
  • Obtained a $2.4 million dollar judgment, affirmed on appeal, in breach of contract and indemnity action for an aerospace company.
  • Successfully defended multiple companies from breach of contract and duty to defend allegations relating to a sale of 427-acre industrial facility.

Articles

Published Works

  • The Starstruck Medical Causation Trend, May 22, 2013
  • CEQA Reform: The Aggrieved Instigator, March 5, 2013
  • The TSCA, Lead and The Division Of The Hazardous Bullet, May 24, 2012
  • Toxic Torts: Designation for Causation, November 9, 2011
  • CEQA Fireworks, September 8, 2011
  • Requiring Causation Proof in Foreign Recognition Actions, July 7, 2011
  • Loss of Peak Market Real Estate Sales as Damages in Contamination Cases, September 21, 2009
  • In Environmental Cases, Petition Immunity Can Complement Pre-Emption, August 27, 2009
  • Damaged Before Repair, June 11, 2009
  • Diminished Property Value Claims in a Diminished Real Estate Market, February 19, 2009
  • Petition Without Prejudice: Against the Fraud Exception to Noerr-Pennington Immunity from the Toxic Tort Perspective, December 1, 2008

Past Employment Positions

  • Judge Harry Pregerson of the United States Courts of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Intern Clerk
  • Judge David Carter of the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Intern Clerk
  • Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Of Counsel