- Address:
633 West 5th Street
Forty-Seventh Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90071-2043
USA
- Email:
roakes@bargerwolen.com - Phone:
(213) 680-2800 - Download Vcard
Professional Notes & Events
Royal F. Oakes
Royal Oakes is a partner in the firm’s Los Angeles office. He has extensive trial and appellate experience in the fields of insurance and general business law, having litigated hundreds of cases in the areas of bad faith law and unfair business practices.
A substantial part of his practice is devoted to the defense of class actions.
Mr. Oakes has served as lead counsel in numerous appellate cases, including victories in the California Supreme Court and the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. He was lead counsel in Farmers Insurance Exchange v. Superior Court, 2 Cal. 4th 377 (1992), in which the California Supreme Court established the doctrine of primary jurisdiction.
Mr. Oakes’ most recent trials involved complex cases in both the property-casualty and life insurance fields. He won a bench trial involving a $1.5 million life insurance claim submitted by the heirs of an insured murder victim. He also won a jury trial involving a putative class action that alleged an automobile insurer’s “direct repair program” violated the rights of policyholders.
A frequent author, Mr. Oakes is also the co-editor of Barger & Wolen’s Employment Law Observer blog.
In addition to his work with Barger & Wolen, Mr. Oakes is one of the nation’s best-known television and radio legal commentators. Nationally, he is an ABC News Legal Analyst, and airs a daily feature, “It’s The Law,” on Westwood One’s “Metro Networks.” In Los Angeles, he serves as the on-air legal commentator for KFWB All-News Radio.
Education
- University of California, Los Angeles, J.D., 1977
- University of California, Los Angeles, B.A., 1974
Articles & Publications
- Life Insurance Contract
California Insurance Law and Practice - Chapter 21 (Revised) - High Noon at Home Plate for McCourts
Judge has until Dec. 28 to decide whether the Dodgers belong to Frank McCourt, or if the team is community property. (Los Angeles Daily News, December 05, 2010) - Claims Processing and Investigation
California Insurance Law and Practice - Chapter 12 (Revised) (LexisNexis Matthew Bender, June 01, 2010) - Making Millionaires from Class Suits
Tobacco Case Winners Have Spawned New Venue to Get Rich: the Court (Los Angeles Daily Journal, December 28, 1999) - Plaintiffs’ Bar Shouldn’t Fish for Damages When Remedy Isn’t Available
(Los Angeles Daily Journal, July 21, 1999) - Open up the books on Jackson-type settlements
(USA Today, January 27, 1994) - Courting Real Life Instead of Oprah
(Pasadena Star-News, May 09, 1992) - To Stay Out of the Malpractice Doghouse
(Lawyers' Mutual Insurance Company Bulletin, January 09, 1992) - Avoid These Common Law-and-Motion Pitfalls
(Los Angeles Daily Journal, October 11, 1990) - When Justice Runs Out of Gas
(Los Angeles Times, October 23, 1989) - Remembrance of a Trial Past
(Los Angeles Daily Journal, February 09, 1989) - Voir Dire: Something to Savor
(Los Angeles Daily Journal, December 15, 1988) - Some Suggestions for the Not Ready for Prime Time Litigator
(Los Angeles Daily Journal, July 13, 1988) - These 5 Principles May Help Improve Your Final Arguments
(Los Angeles Daily Journal, January 13, 1988) - Litigation Consultants Try to Transform an Art into a Science
(Los Angeles Daily Journal,, August 11, 1987) - Don’t Make Insurance a Scapegoat
(USA Today, April 14, 1986) - ‘Mini-Trials’ Can Benefit Lawyer and Soon-to-Be Grateful Client Alike
(Los Angeles Daily Journal, April 09, 1986) - Discharging Employees
Good News for Nervous Employers (Los Angeles Lawyer, March 25, 1985)
- The Health and Disability Insurance Contract, California Insurance Law & Practice (Matthew Bender 1996)
- Business Litigation Columnist, Los Angeles Daily Journal (1986-1991)
Professional Memberships
- The State Bar of California
- Commissioner, Los Angeles County Economy & Efficiency Commission, 2001-present
- Member, Board of Directors, Association of Business Trial Lawyers, 2003-2005
- President, Conference of Insurance Counsel, 2001-2002
