Timothy John Tatro

For more than twenty-five years, Tim has been representing individuals, small and large businesses, non-profits, HOAs, and certified classes throughout the state. His practice areas include construction defect, real estate disputes, catastrophic personal injury, medical malpractice, nursing home cases, financial elder abuse, insurance bad faith, art fraud, class actions, and business disputes. Tim has served for many years as outside special counsel to the Zoological Society of San Diego, working to protect special habitats at the San Diego Zoo and the San Diego Safari Park. He has also developed a unique subspecialty in mobilehome parks and ensuring that homeowners receive proper compensation when their park closes. Tim handles jury trials, bench trials, arbitrations, and appeals. He is affiliated with the San Diego County Bar, Consumer Attorneys of San Diego, various Inns of Court, and the Poker Players Alliance. He has lived abroad, loves exercise, and plays acoustic guitar with more passion than talent.

Education

• University of San Diego School of Law, San Diego, California
  • J.D. – 1994
  • Law Review: University of San Diego Law review, Editorial Board, 1993 – 1994
• University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
  • B.A. – 1989
  • Major: Journalism/Literature

Published Works

• Braun v. Soldier of Fortune: Tort Law Enters the Braun’s Age as Constitutional Safeguards for Commercial Speech Buckle ‘neath the Crunch of Third- Party Liability, 30 SDLR 95, 1993

Past Employment Positions

• Tatro & Zamoyski, LLP, Partner, 2003 – 2017
• Thorsnes Bartolotta & McGuire, Associate Attorney, 1999 – 2003
• Belsky & Associates, Associate Attorney, 1995 – 1999
• California Court of Appeals, 4th District Division One, Judicial Intern, 1994
• Bonne Bridges Mueller O’Keefe & Nichols, Summer Associate, 1993
• Hunewill Guest Ranch, Irrigation Specialist, 1987 – 1991

Representative Cases

• Pearson v. Murphy: Financial elder abuse trial resulting in seven-figure verdict.
• De Anza Cove HOA, et al. v. City of San Diego: Multiple violations of mobile home residency law by City of San Diego when it attempted to close mobile home park without providing legally required relocation benefits, $36 million judgement after trial.
• Brack v. Khan: Punitive damage award against fraudulent art dealer.
• Abbit v. City of San Diego, et al. Failure to maintain mobile home park, resident abuse; $3.6 Million Settlement.
• Zoological Society of S.D. v. Doe Defendants: Recovered seven-figure settlement for S.D. Zoo from multiple contractors for defects related to faulty construction of animal enclosures
• Zoological Society of San Diego v. Doe Steel Contractor: Successful pre-litigation settlement involving defective construction of commercial elevator tower.
• Zoological Society of San Diego v. Rudolph & Sletten: Arbitration regarding cost overruns, construction delays, and defective work stemming from new $70+ million Africa Rocks Exhibit.
• Abbit v. ING/Voya: Multi-state class action involving the sale of fraudulent annuity products that prey on senior citizens.
• Griffin v. BMR LLC: Putative class action involving the quality of drinking water provided to a large residential community and resultant property damage caused by corrosive water leaching copper from household plumbing systems.
• Pfaff v. Bess: Neighbor v. neighbor suit involving unpermitted grading which caused massive flooding and property damage; resolved for six figures just prior to trial.
• Baggs v. Doe Skilled Nursing Facility: Elder abuse case involving unexplained injuries and premature death of an elderly resident; resolved at mediation for confidential amount.
• Redwood Capital Group v. Doe Insurance Company: Bad faith case and judgment collection involving carrier’s refusal to provide a defense and failure to indemnify the insurer.

Honors and Awards

• Top Attorneys Nominee- San Diego Daily Transcript, 2011
• Trial Lawyers Care – American Trial Lawyers Organization, 2003
• Editorial Board Comments Editor – University of San Diego School of Law, Law Review, 1994