John R. Brydon

Bio John Brydon is the managing partner and senior trial counsel for the San Francisco office of Demler, Armstrong & Rowland, LLP. AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell for over 25 years, he is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, holding the highest rank of Diplomate and is a Certified Specialist in Civil Trial Law and Diplomate of the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He is also a Senior Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America. Mr. Brydon has successfully defended through trial, scores of multi-million-dollar complex personal injury, product liability, insurance coverage and bad faith matters throughout California and nationally, including cases involving issues of punitive damage exposure for major corporate and insurer defendants. He is a member of national trial teams for major manufacturing defendants in asbestos personal injury cases and has been lead trial counsel on matters in nearly a dozen states. Mr. Brydon has also successfully argued cases before the California Courts of Appeal, State Supreme Court and 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. In 1997, Mr. Brydon successfully argued the case of Buss v. Superior Court (1997) 16 Cal. 4th 35, a nationally recognized decision that extends to insurance companies a right to seek reimbursement for defense costs expended to defend non-covered claims asserted against policyholders. In a 1999 California Supreme Court decision, PPG Industries, Inc. v. Transamerica Ins. Co. (1999) 20 Cal. 4th 310, he successfully argued for limits on the types of damages recoverable against insurance companies in bad faith cases based on alleged failure to settle within policy limits. An active member of the DRI and Association of Defense Counsel, Mr. Brydon has lectured on topics of defense in bad faith lawsuits, insurance coverage disputes, products liability, toxic tort defense and trial practice.