The Great Trials Podcast

GTP CLASSIC | Mikal Watts │United States of America v. Mikal Watts


Listen Later

This week, your hosts Steve Lowry and Yvonne Godfrey interview Mikal Watts of  Watts Guerra, LLP. ( https://www.wattsguerra.com/ )
 
 
Remember to rate and review GTP in iTunes: Click Here To Rate and Review
 
 
Case Details: 
Mikal Watts, the founding partner of Watts Guerra LLP in Texas, has always been known as a fierce mass torts litigator with a history of winning cases against big corporations like Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. and Ford Motor Company. Then, he was charged with 95 counts of wire fraud, mail fraud, identity theft and aggravated identity theft. 
 
Falsely accused of stealing Social Security numbers to file claims on behalf of 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill victims, Watts discovered he was, in fact, the victim of fraud. A Mississippi-based consultant for the mass torts case and a claims manager spent millions of dollars funding their extramarital affair, rather than making sure money went to the victims of the oil spill. 
 
Faced with a possible life sentence and the end of his legal career, Watts shares why he chose to defend himself in court, how he proved his innocence to the jury and how he defines justice now that he has experienced a trial as both a lawyer and the accused.
 
Click Here to Read/Download the Complete Trial Documents
 
 
Guest Bio:
 
In August of 2002, Mr. Watts formed Watts Law Firm, L.L.P. In 2009, Mikal Watts joined forces with Francisco Guerra IV to form Watts Guerra LLP which handles catastrophic personal injury, toxic torts, product liability, automotive defects, refinery negligence, commercial trucking negligence, medical device, pharmaceutical, and commercial litigation.
 
Mr. Watts has been admitted to practice pro hoc vice in New, York, Alabama, Florida, New York, Minnesota, Mississippi, and California. Mr. Watts has defended punitive damages obtained in federal court by oral argument before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
 
Mr. Watts’ litigation against Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. and Ford Motor Company resulted in resolving the most significant product liability case in the country. The terms of the settlement in the Bailey case were unprecedented in American history for a case of this type; not only monetarily but by virtue of what the companies agreed to do with respect to the disclosure of information relating to their own investigations into the alleged defects with their products and their corporate safety policies and practices.
 
Watts Guerra LLP is nationally recognized as one of two firms leading in the pursuit of hundreds of claims brought nationwide against Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. and Ford Motor Company.
 
Mr. Watts was instrumental in bringing to light Ford’s quiet efforts to recall these defective tires in foreign countries while consumers in the United States continued to be injured or killed riding on the same tires. This litigation and settlement has been chronicled on the ABC World News Tonight, CBS Evening News, Dateline NBC, and CNBC, and in the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Washington Post, Associated Press, and all other major news sources in this country and around the world.
Read Full Bio
 
 
Show Sponsors:
 
Legal Technology Services - LegalTechService.com
 
 
Digital Law Marketing - DigitalLawMarketing.com
 
 
Harris, Lowry, and Manton - hlmlawfirm.com
 
 
Free Resources:
 
Stages Of A Jury Trial - Part 1
Stages Of A Jury Trial - Part 2
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

The Great Trials PodcastBy The Great Trials Podcast

  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7

4.7

131 ratings


More shows like The Great Trials Podcast

View all
Planet Money by NPR

Planet Money

30,665 Listeners

Pod Save America by Crooked Media

Pod Save America

87,159 Listeners

Trial Lawyer Nation by Michael Cowen

Trial Lawyer Nation

186 Listeners

Sari Swears by Sari de la Motte

Sari Swears

127 Listeners

Get in the Game Podcast from Jury Analyst by Brian Panish

Get in the Game Podcast from Jury Analyst

42 Listeners

American Scandal by Wondery

American Scandal

18,994 Listeners

The Bulwark Podcast by The Bulwark

The Bulwark Podcast

12,246 Listeners

Dateline NBC by NBC News

Dateline NBC

47,929 Listeners

Hacks On Tap by Vox Media

Hacks On Tap

8,042 Listeners

Elawvate: The Trial Lawyer Podcast by Benjamin Gideon & Rahul Ravipudi

Elawvate: The Trial Lawyer Podcast

48 Listeners

Best Practices with Kenny Berger by Kenneth Berger

Best Practices with Kenny Berger

24 Listeners

The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart by Comedy Central

The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart

10,800 Listeners

Search Engine by PJ Vogt

Search Engine

4,454 Listeners

BG2Pod with Brad Gerstner and Bill Gurley by BG2Pod

BG2Pod with Brad Gerstner and Bill Gurley

509 Listeners

Picking Justice by Harry Plotkin & Dan Kramer

Picking Justice

6 Listeners