SAN DIEGO (February 5, 2021) – Less than a year after reaching gender parity in equity partnership – already a rarity in the legal industry – nationwide civil litigation defense firm Tyson & Mendes LLP announced today the promotion of two more women to equity partner: Kristi Blackwell and Lynn Allen.  With three men and five women equity partners, the firm is now nearly two-thirds women-owned.  Additional equity partners include Robert Tyson, Patrick Mendes, Mina Miserlis, James Sell, Susan Oliver, and Cayce Lynch.

Based out of Tyson & Mendes’ San Diego headquarters, Kristi Blackwell is an experienced litigator who leads the firm’s Retail, Restaurant, and Hospitality practice group, which represents some of the largest chain retailers and hotel companies in the country.  Blackwell began her legal career with Tyson & Mendes as an associate in 2008, assisting with preparation of the petition and opening brief for the firm’s landmark California Supreme Court win Howell v. Hamilton Meats in 2011.  Blackwell was promoted to partner in 2014 and today leads a multi-attorney litigation team focused primarily on general liability, personal injury, premises liability, and complex litigation.  Throughout her career, Blackwell has secured several defense verdicts and numerous jury verdicts substantially below plaintiffs’ settlement demands prior to trial, saving her clients millions of dollars in damages awards.  She is a member of the San Diego Defense Lawyers and earned her Juris Doctor cum laude from California Western School of Law.

Lynn Allen is Managing Partner of Tyson & Mendes Phoenix office and is an expert in all aspects of insurance defense, representing insurance companies and their insureds in a wide range of cases, including insurance coverage disputes, insurance bad faith, personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits, intellectual property, employment law, and appeals.  Allen joined Tyson & Mendes in 2015, after more than a decade running her own practice.  She has since been lead counsel in many high-profile and successful jury trials, arbitrations, summary judgment motions, and appeals – saving millions of dollars in indemnity for her clients in the process.  Allen is rated AV-Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell and has been honored as a Southwest Super Lawyer for Insurance Coverage from 2011–2016.  With more than 30 years of professional experience, Allen is also a frequent lecturer on insurance bad faith and coverage issues in Arizona.  She is a member of the Maricopa County Bar Association and Arizona Association of Defense Counsel and earned her Juris Doctor cum laude from Arizona State University College of Law.

“Kristi and Lynn are two of our most successful and winningest litigators,” said Tyson & Mendes Managing Partner Robert Tyson.  “Their dedication to achieving exceptional results on behalf of our clients make them valued additions to our firm’s equity partnership, and we are fortunate to have them.”

Tyson & Mendes continues to be recognized for its outspoken commitment to supporting female professionals and was ranked as the No. 1 “Ceiling Smasher” in Law360’s 2020 Glass Ceiling Report for the “101-250 Attorneys” category for female equity partnership.  The national legal publication also ranked the firm No. 2 in the “101-250 attorneys” category for the firm’s percentage of female attorneys overall.  With the inclusion of administrative, support, and management staff, about 64% of the firm’s total employees are women.

With 14 nationwide offices serving 16 states, Tyson & Mendes is one of the country’s fastest growing civil defense firms.  For more information and to view career opportunities, visit www.tysonmendes.com.

About Tyson & Mendes LLP
Tyson & Mendes LLP is a nationwide, AV-rated litigation firm specializing in insurance defense.  Founded in 2002, firm principals and seasoned trial attorneys Robert Tyson and Patrick Mendes have grown the firm to more than 150 attorneys defending corporations, insurance companies, and their clients in civil litigation matters throughout Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin.  The firm is most widely recognized for winning the landmark Howell v. Hamilton Meats California Supreme Court case, which forever changed the state’s litigation landscape by significantly impacting the damages a plaintiff may recover.  Robert Tyson is also the author of the Amazon Bestseller Nuclear Verdicts: Defending Justice for All, the first playbook for the defense on how to avoid runaway jury verdicts.  For more information, visit www.tysonmendes.com.

Media Contact:
Ashley Bendas, J. Walcher Communications
ashley@jwalcher.com, 619-295-7140

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