Pedram Esfandiary
Top rated Class Action & Mass Torts attorney in Los Angeles, California
Wisner Baum LLP
Practice Areas: Class Action & Mass Torts, Products Liability; view more
Licensed in California since: 2016
Education: University of Southern California Gould School of Law
Selected to Rising Stars: 2019 - 2025 Call today:
888-795-5399
Free Consultation Wisner Baum LLP
11111 Santa Monica BlvdSuite 1750
Los Angeles, CA 90025 Visit website
Details
Pedram Esfandiary is a partner and trial attorney based in the Los Angeles office of Wisner Baum, where he concentrates his practice on toxic tort injuries, pharmaceutical drug liability, class actions, consumer fraud litigation and police misconduct lawsuits. He was promoted to partner in March 2023. He is the youngest lawyer to earn this distinction at the firm.
He is currently leading the firm’s legal team handling the toxic baby food litigation. This new mass tort litigation involves allegations against the major brand manufacturers (Nurture Happy Family Organics, Beech-Nut, Hain, Plum Organics, Walmart-Parent’s Choice, Sprout Foods and Gerber) for knowingly selling baby food with “dangerously high levels” of toxic heavy metals. Baby food contains dangerous levels of arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury, toxic heavy metals known to damage neurological development and brain development and associated with autism and ADHD in children.
Pedram recently successfully sued the Burbank Police Department (California) for police misconduct, civil rights violations, assault, battery, unlawful seizure, excessive force and negligence. He also obtained a settlement from the City of Irvine when its former mayor violated one of its citizen’s first amendment rights when she blocked him from posting to her personal Facebook page which she was using as a public forum concerning official mayoral business.
He was an integral part of the trial team that won the historic $2 billion verdict against Monsanto (now Bayer) in May 2019 on behalf of a couple who together sprayed Roundup weed killer on their properties for 30 years. The jury in Pilliod, et al. v. Monsanto determined that Roundup exposure caused Alva and Alberta Pilliod’s non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and that Monsanto failed to warn the couple about the cancer risk associated with Roundup use. The jury awarded them $55 million in compensatory damages and $2 billion in punitive damages.
He also served in a similar capacity on the very first Roundup cancer case to go to trial against Monsanto, resulting in a $289 million verdict on behalf of groundskeeper Dewayne “Lee” Johnson. In addition, he participated in the second Roundup trial against Monsanto on behalf of Edwin Hardeman. The jury in that trial awarded Mr. Hardeman $80 million for his damages.
In recognition of his work in the Monsanto Roundup trials, Pedram has received well-deserved awards. He was selected as a winner on Law360’s Rising Stars Top 40 Under 40 list for 2019, which recognizes attorneys whose legal accomplishments transcend their age. Pedram has also been selected to Southern California Super Lawyers® – Rising Stars and the National Trial Lawyers Top 40 Under 40.
He and other members of the Roundup trial teams in Pilliod, Hardeman and Johnson were also honored as Elite Trial Lawyers Mass Tort Law Firm of the Year finalists in 2020 by ALM and the National Law Journal, as well as the 2019 Trial Team of the Year 2019 by the National Trial Lawyers Top 100. At the end of 2020, the National Law Journal inducted Pedram and his colleagues into The Verdicts Hall of Fame and Law360 named them Product Liability Practice Group of the Year.
Various legal journals have top listed our landmark Roundup verdicts. The Daily Journal listed the $289M Johnson verdict among its top verdicts of 2018, the National Law Journal listed it in their Top 100 and Courtroom View Network listed it in its Top 10 Most Impressive Plaintiff Verdicts of 2018. Topverdict.com listed the $2B Pilliod verdict as #1 in California, #2 in the nation and the ninth largest verdict in history in 2019. The National Law Journal and the Daily Journal also recognized the Pilliod verdict in their top lists.
Call for a free, confidential consultation with Pedram. He provides legal services in fluent English, Farsi, and Swedish.
Practice areas
Class Action/Mass Torts: Plaintiff, Personal Injury - Products: PlaintiffFocus areas
Class Actions, Pharmaceutical, Toxic Torts
- 50% Class Action/Mass Torts: Plaintiff
- 50% Personal Injury - Products: Plaintiff
First Admitted: 2016, California
Professional Webpage: https://www.wisnerbaum.com/attorneys/pedram-esfandiary/
- California, 2016
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, 2018
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California, 2018
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Wisconsin, 2017
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, 2017
- U.S. District Court, Central District of California, 2017
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, 2017
- Trial Team Member, Dewayne “Lee” Johnson vs Monsanto Company (Roundup cancer verdict $289.2 million), San Francisco, California, 2018
- Trial Team Member, Pilliod et al. v. Monsanto.Company (Roundup cancer verdict $2.055 billion), Oakland, California, 2019
- State Bar of California
- The American Association for Justice: Leaders Forum; Herbicides and Pesticides Litigation Group; Police Misconduct Litigation Group
- Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles
- Executive Board Member, National Lawyers Guild of Los Angeles
- San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association
- $1.25 million settlement against the LAPD Peaceful protestor who suffered life-threatening injuries on May 30, 2020 on streets of Los Angeles sued the LAPD for firing a rubber bullet at his head as he stood with his arms raised while walking backward away from police. Plaintiff sued for punitive damages and seven causes of action: Count I: Violation of First Amendment – Free Speech and Assembly Count II: Violation of Fourth Amendment – Unlawful Seizure & Excessive Force Count III: Violation of Fourteenth Amendment – Substantive Due Process Count IV: Violation of Bane Act Count V: Assault Count VI: Battery Count VII: Negligence The Los Angeles Police Department later settled with the plaintiff for $1.25 million. Monique Alarcon was one of the lawyers from Wisner Baum that represented the plaintiff., 2022
- $2.055 billion verdict - Trial Team Member, Pilliod et al. v. Monsanto.Company (Roundup cancer lawsuit), Oakland, California, 2019. Pilliod et al. v. Monsanto Co. was the third Monsanto Roundup lawsuit to proceed to trial. Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman attorney R. Brent Wisner served as co-lead trial counsel with Mike Miller of Miller Law Firm for Alva and Alberta Pilliod, a couple in their 70s who alleged exposure to Monsanto’s Roundup caused them to develop non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Brent delivered the opening and closing statements, presented most of the scientific evidence and cross-examined many of Monsanto’s experts. Baum Hedlund managing partner, Michael Baum, and attorney Pedram Esfandiary, also served on the trial team as did lawyers from Miller Law Firm, Brady Law Group and Audet & Partners. After seven weeks of trial proceedings, the jury returned a verdict on May 13, 2019, awarding $2.055 billion to the plaintiffs, finding that exposure to Roundup caused the Pilliods’ cancer and that Monsanto failed to warn consumers of this severe health hazard. The jury also found that Monsanto acted with malice, oppression or fraud and should be punished for its conduct., 2019
- $289M verdict - Dewayne Johnson v. Monsanto Company (case no. CGC-16-550128) Unanimous $289.2 million jury verdict against Monsanto Company This was a groundbreaking $289.2 million jury verdict in San Francisco Superior Court against Monsanto for causing Dewayne "Lee" Johnson's non-Hodgkin lymphoma due to exposure to a Monsanto glyphosate-based herbicide called Roundup. The jury ordered Monsanto to pay $39.2 million in compensatory damages and $250 million in punitive damages for failing to warn consumers that exposure to Roundup weed killer causes cancer. This verdict is on appeal., 2018. Mr. Johnson is represented by The Miller Firm, LLC, Baum Hedlund Aristei & Goldman, PC and Audet & Partners LLP, 2018
- Published the Monsanto Papers - During the Monsanto Roundup cancer litigation, Pedram helped declassify and publish internal documents known as the Monsanto Papers, revealing Monsanto’s scientific manipulation to hide the truth about Roundup’s harmful effects. This evidence and the successful plaintiffs verdicts have changed how the world questions the safety of Roundup, resulting in regulatory changes, restrictions and bans of glyphosate across the globe. August 1, 2017 through December 2019.
- Executive Board member, National Lawyers Guild of Los Angeles
- Volunteer Adjunct Law Professor at People's College of Law, Los Angeles
- Volunteer at Schools, Colleges and Community Outreach Program at Nottingham Trent University, U.K.
- 2020 – 2024, Selected to: Southern California Super Lawyers Rising Stars, Super Lawyers, 2024
- California Power House, Law360 Regional Powerhouse Series, 2021
- California Legal Awards, Lawyers on the Fast Track (Under 40), The Recorder / ALM, 2023
- Best Lawyers: Ones To Watch, Best Lawyers
- Product Liability Practice Group of the Year, Law360, 2020
- Elite Trial Lawyers Mass Torts Law Firm of the Year, Finalist, ALM and National Law Journal, 2020
- Top 40 Under 40, Law360 Rising Stars, 2019
- Number 1 Verdict in California, Topverdict.com (Pilliod et al. v. Monsanto Co.), 2019
- Top 10 Verdicts in California, Topverdict.com (Pilliod et al. v. Monsanto Co.), 2019
- Elite Trial Lawyers Mass Torts Trial Team of the Year, The National Law Journal and The Trial Lawyer Magazine, 2019
- Trial Team of the Year, The National Trial Lawyers Top 100, 2019
- Daily Journal Top Verdicts, Daily Journal, 2018
- CVN’s Top 10 Most Impressive Plaintiff Verdicts, CVN, 2018
- Number 1 Product Liability Verdict in California, Topverdict.com (Johnson v. Monsanto Co.), 2018
- Top 10 Personal Injury Verdicts in the U.S., Topverdict.com (Johnson v. Monsanto Co.), 2018
- Top 100 Verdicts, ALM, National Law Journal, Verdict Search (Johnson v. Monsanto Co.), 2018
- Verdicts Hall of Fame Inductee, The National Law Journal and VerdictSearch
- The National Trial Lawyers Top 40 Under 40, The National Trial Lawyers
- Listed, The Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyer, The Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyer
- Senior Editor of Los Angeles Public Interest Law Journal (LAPILJ), Senior Editor of Los Angeles Public Interest Law Journal (LAPILJ), Los Angeles Public Interest Law Journal
- University of Southern California USC Gould School of Law, LL.M, 2016
- Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, United Kingdom, M.A. in Criminology, Honors: Distinction Grade, Postgraduate Outreach Ambassador, 2014
- University of Birmingham Law School, Birmingham, United Kingdom, LL.B, 2013
- Baby Foods: A Personal Injury Perspective, Speaker, Baby Foods: A Personal Injury Perspective, Mass Torts Made Perfect, MTMP Connect Webinar, Legal, 2021
- Breaking Down the 1st Monsanto Roundup Trial and $289 Verdict, Speaker, Breaking Down the 1st Monsanto Roundup Trial and $289 Verdict, Webinar for CaseAnalysis.com, Legal, 2020
- Monsanto Litigation – Decades of Deceit, Speaker, Monsanto Litigation – Decades of Deceit, Students for Economic & Environmental Justice, Expert Panel, Berkeley Law School, Legal, 2019
- Roundup, Speaker, Roundup, American Association for Justice, AAJ Winter Convention – What’s Hot in Mass Tort Litigation, Miami, Florida, Legal, 2019
- Suing Monsanto: How a Team of Lawyers Won a Verdict Linking the Herbicide Roundup to Cancer, Speaker, Suing Monsanto: How a Team of Lawyers Won a Verdict Linking the Herbicide Roundup to Cancer, UCLA School of Law, Emmett Institute on Climate Change & the Environment and The Resnick Center for Food Law & Policy, Lunchtime Event, UCLA Law Building, University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law, Legal, 2018
- $289M Monsanto Roundup Verdict – Life After the Daubert Ruling and Johnson Trial, Speaker, $289M Monsanto Roundup Verdict – Life After the Daubert Ruling and Johnson Trial, Trial Theme Overview, Harris Martin Publishing, Half-Day Roundup CLE (Continuing Legal Education), Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel, Santa Monica, California, Legal, 2018
- Challenging Court Secrecy in Medical Product Litigation, Speaker, Challenging Court Secrecy in Medical Product Litigation, Yale University, Conference, Yale Law School’s Collaboration for Research Integrity and Transparency (CRIT) program, Yale University’s Greenberg Conference Center, New Haven, Connecticut, Legal, 2018
- Adjunct Professor of Law, 2020 - Present, Speaker, Adjunct Professor of Law, Peoples College of Law, Los Angeles, California, Legal
- Public Comment – Mr. Esfandiary submitted a comment on behalf of Baum Hedlund on October 8, 2021, during the Public Comment period concerning the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) hearing on the Proposed Rulemaking, Warnings for Exposures to Glyphosate from Consumer Products New Sections 25607.48 and 25607.49 held on September 9, 2021. Our comments pertained to OEHHA’s proposed rulemaking for glyphosate exposure warnings. Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup weed killer, is a chemical known to cause cancer under California's Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act (known more simply as Proposition 65)., 2021
- Public Comment - Mr. Esfandiary submitted a comment on behalf of Baum Hedlund on December 20, 2021, during the Public Comment period under the scope of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) “Closer to Zero Action Plant: Impacts of Toxic Element Exposure and Nutrition at Different Crucial Developmental Stages,” virtual public meeting held on November 18, 2021. The FDA’s Closer to Zero (C2Z) action plan is meant to reduce exposure to arsenic, lead, cadmium, and mercury from foods eaten by babies and young children-to as low as possible., 2021
- Government Testimony: Quasi-legislative formal public hearing: California Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) hearing on the Proposed Rulemaking, Warnings for Exposures to Glyphosate from Consumer Products New Sections 25607.48 and 25607.49, September 9, 2021, 2021
- Government Testimony: California Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) hearing on the proposed regulatory “Safe Harbor” No Significant Risk Level (NSRL) for glyphosate, June 7, 2017, 2017
Office location for Pedram Esfandiary
11111 Santa Monica Blvd
Suite 1750
Los Angeles, CA 90025
Phone: 888-795-5399
Selections
- Rising Stars: 2019 - 2025
