EDUARDO MARTORELL

In his career, Mr. Martorell has represented clients in over 500 lawsuits in complex commercial litigation involving intellectual property, contract, First Amendment, banking, real estate, employment, products liability, securities, elder abuse, insurance, collection, foreclosure, toxic tort and asbestos issues. These lawsuits have included a breadth of industries, including entertainment, music, banking, lending, technology, fashion, retail, service, shipping, construction, aviation, and real estate.

Mr. Martorell is experienced in motion practice, oral argument, the discovery process, pre-trial preparation, trial and post-trial work.

Prior to founding Martorell Law APC, Mr. Martorell practiced at two AmLaw 100 law firms.

As a native of Mexico, Mr. Martorell is fluent in speaking, reading and writing Spanish.

Select Representative Cases

  • Obtained a unanimous $6.88 million verdict after completion of a six-day jury trial in Party Animal, Inc. v. Evanger’s Dog & Cat Food Co., Inc. (United States District Court (Central District) Case Number 2:17-cv003422-MEMF-FFM) in a lawsuit brought on behalf of a pet food brand against its former manufacturer based primarily on breach of contract.

  • Successfully represented client in 3.5-week jury trial in Synnex Corp. v. Sitoa Int'l, Inc., et al., resulting in $3.9 million verdict (offset by 60% comparative negligence) on the cross-complaint of an Internet start-up retail company against a Fortune 500 company (California Superior Court, County of Alameda, Case No. RG10532459).

  • Successfully represented client in trial in American Lung Association v. Breathe Los Angeles, resulting in $1.1 million verdict in litigation relating to interpretation of bequest language (California Superior Court, County of Alameda, Case No. RG05228892).

  • Obtained successful trial verdict in representation of founding member and bassist Louis Mayorga of the band Suicidal Tendencies in Mayorga v. Fancher dba Frontier Records (California Superior Court, County of Alameda, Case No. BC643234), securing digital streaming rights for client that had been denied by record label based on interpretation of 1983 recording contract that trial court found to be erroneous.

  • Secured favorable settlement for music producers in copyright infringement lawsuit for alleged sampling of The Alan Parsons Project's "Sirius" on mixtape for music group, Slaughterhouse (featuring Eminem) (U.S. District Court Case No. 2:15-cv-03049).

  • Negotiated confidential settlement in copyright infringement litigation on behalf of singer-songwriter against recording artist, Meat Loaf, and James Steinman (U.S. District Court (Central District) Case No. 2:17-cv-07304).

  • Obtained confidential $1.1 million settlement against global retail corporation due to injuries sustained by client at retail location.

  • Attained confidential settlement in copyright infringement litigation against all six defendants on behalf of plaintiff producer/dj against recording artist, Tinashe, her record label Tinashe Music, Inc., dj/producer MakJ, and three producers/songwriters (U.S. District Court (Central District) Case No. 2:20-cv-04534).

  • Secured favorable settlement in copyright infringement litigation on behalf of well-known guitarist against Atlantic Records and recording artist, Tank (U.S. District Court (Central District) Case No. 2:18-cv-03822).

  • Negotiated favorable settlement in defense of recording artist resulting from claims brought against her and co-stars of music video, recording artists, Migos (Offset, Takeoff and Quavo).

  • Defended skilled-nursing facilities in complex $74 million lawsuit involving 300 defendants arising out of alleged failure to adequately contribute to Health Industry Self-Insurance Program (“HISIP”), a workers’ compensation fund that became insolvent, triggering payment of the applicable bond by its surety and takeover by California’s Self-Insurers’ Security Fund (“SISF”).

  • Successfully defended music producer in copyright infringement case brought against him and recording artist “50 Cent” relating to song “P.I.M.P” (U.S. District Court (Central District) Case No. 2:16-cv-04287).

  • Represented clothing-apparel distributor of well-known brand in week-long arbitration and U.S. District Court litigation, arising from breach of contract (i.e. licensing agreement) and trademark dispute brought under Lanham Act.

  • Handled all aspects of trial-level litigation in elder abuse and predatory lending action against a client-bank (Das v. Bank of America, N.A. (2010) 186 Cal.App.4th 727), resulting in successful demurrers leading to dismissal, and assisted with the drafting of appellate brief in the successful opposition to a corresponding appeal.

  • Currently represent and represented talent, artists and athletes in litigation/negotiations/counseling involving issues of breach of contract, partnership disputes, breaches of fiduciary duties, misappropriation of likeness/right to privacy and defamation.

  • Represented former partner of one of world’s most-streamed music artists of 2019 with respect to Marvin claims.

  • Prevailed on motion for summary adjudication in defense of client-bank, resulting in the dismissal of claims brought pursuant to the Unlawful Fraudulent Transfer Act and involving allegations seeking to void a real estate transaction, effectively winning the case for client in the process.

  • Led team of attorneys in representation of more than three-hundred individuals and entities in multi-million dollar lawsuit brought against investment fund and fund manager for breach of fiduciary duties, breach of contract and fraud.

  • Successfully settled action in defense of client-designer of home fixtures in copyright dispute alleging unauthorized reproduction of fixtures.

  • Defended and successfully settled copyright infringement claim against celebrity DJ.

  • Defended national insurance company in check fraud/UCC claim against one of the country's largest national banks.

  • Defended various employers in class-action litigation involving employment claims brought pursuant to Labor Code and Industrial Welfare Commission wage orders, including frequent interviews of Spanish-speaking employees from putative class.

  • Obtained various dismissals via demurrers and motions to dismiss on behalf of lenders and financial institutions in a variety of consumer finance litigation matters arising under TILA, RESPA, FCRA, ECOA and FDCPA, state law CLRA and Unfair Competition claims, and a variety of common law claims.

  • Defended small companies and financial institutions in disputes involving real estate issues such as partition, lien priority, title claims, easement claims and curing defective documents recorded within chain of title.

  • Defended small-business clients in discrimination suits arising under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

  • Represented various manufacturers of aviation parts in litigation arising out of aircraft disasters.

  • Defended producers of solvents used in manufacturing process against product liability claims.

Community Service & Affiliations

Mr. Martorell was elected (November 2012) to and presently serves on the Board of Trustees of the Mexican-American Bar Foundation (http://www.themabf.org/) as Vice President of Fundraising and Chair of the Gala Committee.

Mr. Martorell was elected (August 2014) to and served on the Board of Directors of Centro Latino for Literacy until its merger with ProLiteracy in 2017. (www.centrolatinoliteracy.org).

Bar Admissions
California
U.S. District Court Central District of California
U.S. District Court Eastern District of California
U.S. District Court Northern District of California
U.S. District Court Southern District of California
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

Education
University of Southern California Gould School of Law, Los Angeles, California
J.D. - 2005

University of San Diego
B.A. - 2002
Major: Political Science

University of San Diego
B.B.A. - 2002
Major: Business Administration (Management Concentration)

Honors and Awards
Named Southern California Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2014
Named Southern California Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2015
Named Southern California Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2016
Named Southern California Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2017
Named Southern California Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2018
Named Southern California Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2019
Named Southern California Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2020