Profile
Mr. Martinez’s practice focus is on civil appeals and writs in state and federal courts. He is responsible for all aspects of appellate litigation, including drafting appellate briefs and motions, assessment of issues, and partnering with trial counsel to preserve issues for appellate review.
Mr. Martinez has argued successfully before several California appellate courts and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, overturning $1 million terminating sanctions against an individual foreign client, and reversing a jury verdict of fraud. He was the principal author of briefs filed with the U.S. Supreme Court and the California Supreme Court. Mr. Martinez secured a dismissal from the U.S. Supreme Court of the State of California's premature appeal from orders in prison-overcrowding litigation. He recently persuaded the California Supreme Court to accept review of a case threatening to eliminate grievance arbitration for public employees throughout the state.
At the trial court level, Mr. Martinez prepares dispositive motions, and partners with trial counsel on strategies to best position the case and the record for appeal.
Mr. Martinez has experience in a wide range of subject areas, including complex commercial litigation, class actions, constitutional law, products liability, and public sector labor law.
Presentations and Publications
After Eight: Separation of Powers Concerns in the Wake of Proposition 8, American Constitutional Society, The Constitution in the 21st Century Issue Brief (2009), co-authored with colleague Troy Yoshino.
Cutting to the Chase: Dismissing Chapter 11 Cases for Lack of Good Faith, 5 Pratt's Journal of Bankruptcy Law 417 (2005) (co-authored).