A native of Staten Island, New York, Bob Tyson is the Strategic Managing Partner of the firm.
Mr. Tyson is a trial lawyer and author of the #1 best-selling, first book written for the defense to limit exposure at trial, Nuclear Verdicts: Defending Justice for All. In this groundbreaking book, Mr. Tyson sets forth the specific methods to beat plaintiff lawyers and achieve justice. It is the culmination of an over 30-year legal career, during which he has successfully resolved a variety of cases involving complex products liability, commercial and general civil litigation, professional malpractice, environmental, and employment law – representing individuals, corporations, public entities, professionals, and many other different types of businesses.
Mr. Tyson is especially known for his groundbreaking work on Howell v. Hamilton Meats, a case he argued and won before the California Supreme Court. Howell has since been hailed as the most significant insurance decision to come down in over 40 years – altering the way California interprets the collateral source rule and impacting the damages a plaintiff may recover. Mr. Tyson successfully argued an injured plaintiff may only recover the much lower amount that is paid for medical expenses, not the full medical bills, as past medical damages. This difference between what is billed versus paid saves insurance companies and defendants over $10 billion dollars every year. The victory earned Mr. Tyson the California Lawyer of the Year (CLAY) award from the California Bar Magazine, among other awards.
Mr. Tyson earned his B.S. in finance from Villanova University in 1986 and his J.D. from Villanova University School of Law in 1989. Prior to founding Tyson & Mendes in 2002, he practiced law at some of Southern California’s largest defense firms, including Edwards, White & Sooy and Booth, Mitchel & Strange. Active in the community and legal profession, he frequently lectures on a variety of legal issues to business and professional organizations.
In his off time, he enjoys beating partner Pat Mendes at golf and spending time with his three children, Faith, Mary, and Bobby, and wife Jenny. His mantra: Justice for All. As a modern-day poet once said: “You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow. This opportunity comes once in a lifetime, yo!”
To learn about joining the Tyson & Mendes team, please visit our Careers page.
Recent Posts
Carrier Management – May 13, 2022
As the pandemic continues to wind down, and with jurors finally starting to return to large metropolitan courthouses across the country, it is becoming increasingly clear that insurance carriers are not ready to handle the impending wave of litigation that is on its way…
Carrier Management – April 22, 2022
Insurance carriers, are you and your defense counsel ready for the “perfect storm” of litigation that is coming once the pandemic is over? Are your teams trained to defend against the increasing wave of nuclear verdicts—jury verdicts of $10 million or more, or those in which non-economic damage awards are disproportionate to the economic damages—that is sure to come?
Daily Journal – March 21, 2022
A new trial program to teach defense attorneys how to fight excessive or runaway jury verdicts is set for June in San Diego, but plaintiffs’ lawyers don’t think it is needed.
SAN DIEGO (March 14, 2022) – The inaugural Nuclear Verdicts Defense Institute will take place June 23-26, 2022, in San Diego, led by an esteemed faculty of legal defense experts, including top trial attorneys, a specialist in jury psychology, and a certified faculty member for the National Institute of Trial Advocacy and professor at the University of San Diego School of Law. The Nuclear Verdicts Defense Institute is the only trial academy uniquely developed to teach experienced defense attorneys how to stop Nuclear Verdicts® – large, unsubstantiated jury awards that typically exceed $10 million.
Law360 – (February 9, 2022)
The continued rise in insurance litigation and verdict size has the insurance industry searching for the reasons behind the trend, with third-party litigation financing targeted as a key contributor.
Law 360 – December 23, 2021
The soaring costs of nuclear verdicts have reached a point where transportation companies, product makers and other defendants are more likely to accept responsibility early, hoping to sway juries with their own suggestions of damage amounts and avoid the headline-grabbing awards that have put some in financial straits.
Claims Journal – November 4, 2021
William Tisdale made a poor choice by stopping late at night at convenience store and gasoline station in a sketchy neighborhood of Tacoma.
A jury in Pierce County, Washington found Tisdale 10% at fault for the circumstances that led to him being beaten over the head with a baseball bat by an insane assailant.
ABA Journal – October 1, 2021
In Gadsden County, Florida, last October, six jurors and an alternate settled in for a long day in front of their home computers and mobile devices to hear a personal injury case. Among them was a pastor, a chiropractor and a state government worker.
Law360 – September 8, 2021
So-called nuclear verdicts, jury awards of $10 million or more, have generated splashy headlines in recent years as plaintiffs lawyers have seized on jurors’ anger toward corporate defendants to secure such awards, signaling that a change in strategy is needed for insurers that handle these corporations’ defense efforts.
Law.com The Recorder – July 21, 2021
San Diego-based midsize firm Tyson & Mendes has launched a new high-stakes trial business based out of the firm’s offices.
The newly created subsidiary, called TM HALO, is targeting the increasing threat and reality of nuclear verdicts—Jury verdicts in excess of $10 million—for its insurance clients.