James Fendt is an Associate Attorney in the Litigation practice group at Singleton Schreiber where he litigates a wide range of cases including Personal Injury, Fire, and Mass Torts. Mr. Fendt is admitted to practice in California courts and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. He is a member of the Consumer Attorneys of San Diego. Before joining Singleton Schreiber, James was an associate on the General Liability team at a prominent litigation defense law firm in San Diego. He also previously served as a law clerk at two renowned litigation firms and as an extern at a leading business law firm, all in San Diego. In 2022, James presented on a panel at the National Interdisciplinary Cannabis Symposium, discussing the intersection of Federal and State cannabis regulations. James graduated Magna Cum Laude with his J.D. from California Western School of Law after earning a B.S. in environmental planning from Cal Poly Humboldt. Prior to his law career, James worked as a production brewer at Saint Archer Brewing Company and The Booth Brewing Company. James’s combined experience with the sciences, regulatory law, personal injury law, and production facilities allows him to assist clients from diverse backgrounds navigate various complex legal issues. Born in Philadelphia and raised in New Jersey, James has lived in San Diego since 2015 and is an avid surfer, runner and home chef.

Mark Fleming is a partner in Singleton Schreiber’s San Diego office and a member of our Mass Tort and Civil Rights practice groups. Known for complex trials, Mr. Fleming is one of the few attorneys in the country to have tried over 100 cases before federal juries. He is a frequent presenter at advanced trial skills seminars. In March 2022, Mr. Fleming and his co-counsel, Timothy Scott, represented the family of a young man killed by the San Diego Sheriffs Department. A federal jury returned an $85 million verdict for the family. It is the largest civil rights wrongful death verdict in history. The results achieved in this case, Estate of Phounsy v. County of San Diego, et al., earned recognition as one of the Top 10 Verdicts in California for 2022 on TopVerdicts.com In February 2020, after a seven-month RICO murder trial, a Las Vegas federal jury acquitted Mr. Fleming’s client, the International President of the Vagos Motorcycle Club, of all charges, including conspiracy to commit murder. In 2006, Mr. Fleming represented Barry Mills, the lead defendant in the largest RICO federal death penalty trial in U.S. history. After an eleven-month trial, the jury rejected the death penalty sought by the government in favor of a life sentence for Mr. Mills, who was accused of ordering 32 murders in United States v. Barry Mills, et. al. Mr. Fleming started his career as a trial attorney at Federal Defenders of San Diego in 1993. After honing his trial and appellate skills there for five years, he returned to his home state to serve as a trial attorney with New York County Defender Services in Manhattan. In 2000, Mr. Fleming was recruited back to Federal Defenders of San Diego, where he supervised a trial team of ten attorneys. In 2004, he started his own practice devoted to complex civil and criminal federal litigation. Each year since 2008, Mr. Fleming has been selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers of San Diego, a peer-recognition honor reserved for the top 5% of San Diego lawyers. And for the past seven years, Mr. Fleming has been recognized as a top litigator in Best Lawyers in Southern California Magazine. In his free time, Mr. Fleming enjoys snowboarding, playing guitar, and spending time with his family.

Justin Knowles is an Associate Attorney at Singleton Schreiber, where he supports clients across the firm’s Fire Litigation, Personal Injury, and Mass Torts practice areas. With a deep commitment to client advocacy and a diverse professional background, Justin brings a practical and compassionate approach to resolving complex legal challenges on behalf of individuals, families, and small businesses. Before joining Singleton Schreiber, Justin volunteered as a legal intern with the California EPA - Department of Toxic Substances Control, where he worked on public health, regulatory, and environmental law issues. He also participated in a clinical externship program working with a civil law firm representing both plaintiffs and defendants. Additionally, Justin worked as a law clerk with a wildfire litigation firm. He was also a legal intern with American Rivers, where he worked on federal hydropower regulation and environmental justice initiatives with a focus on clean energy and public-interest policy. Justin earned his J.D. from California Western School of Law, where he served as the Vice President of the Environmental Law Society, a Board Member of the Student Bar Association, and was admitted into the Pro Bono Honors Society. He holds a B.S. in Geography from the University of Oregon, where he also captained the Ducks Men’s Lacrosse team. Before law school, Justin built a well-rounded career in nonprofit management, real estate law, and urban regenerative agricultural. His prior professional experience continues to shape his communication style, strategic thinking, and dedication to community-centered legal work. Justin is admitted to practice law in California and is a member of the San Diego County Bar Association, Consumer Attorneys of San Diego, California Lawyers Association, and American Bar Association. Outside the office, Justin enjoys surfing, yoga, hiking, and cooking with his family.

Leslie A. Brueckner is a Partner at Singleton Schreiber with over 35 years of appellate litigation experience across a broad spectrum of cases, including constitutional, consumer protection, antitrust, bankruptcy, class actions, environmental law, and more. Prior to joining Singleton Schreiber, Leslie was a Partner at a prominent national law firm, where she helped lead the firm’s national Appellate and Supreme Court Practice Group. Before then, Leslie spent nearly three decades at Public Justice, a national advocacy organization, where she argued and won numerous high-profile appeals, including unanimous decisions from both the California and United States Supreme Courts. (Leslie’s 2019 oral argument in Noel v. Thrifty, a unanimous class action ruling from the California Supreme Court, can be accessed via this link. Her 2002 argument in Sprietsma v. Mercury Marine, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court decision rejecting federal preemption of tort claims, can be accessed via this link). Leslie also founded Public Justice’s Food Project, which used strategically targeted litigation to address abuses in American’s industrial animal agriculture system. With decades of appellate experience, Leslie plays a key role in enhancing Singleton Schreiber’s ability to manage complex appeals and develop successful litigation strategies. Her extensive track record in high-stakes cases across a range of legal areas continues to solidify the firm’s standing as a leader in precedent-setting litigation for plaintiffs nationwide. A magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School and summa cum laude graduate of U.C. Berkeley (where she was recognized as the Most Distinguished Graduating Senior in her class of over 5,000 students), Leslie has been awarded the Pro Bono Achievement Award from the Animal Legal Defense Fund; the Women’s Consumer Advocate of the Year Award from the Consumer Attorneys of California; the Appellate Advocacy Award from the Pound Civil Justice Institute for her 2017 California Supreme Court victory in T.H. v. Novartis (CA 2017), and the Dale Haralson Fallout Award from the Western Trial Lawyers Association. Leslie was also a Finalist for the Appellate Lawyer of the Year Award from the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles. In addition to her litigation work, Leslie has taught appellate advocacy at the Georgetown University Law Center and the American University, Washington College of Law.

Gigi Vernon is a member of Singleton Schreiber’s Mass Tort Litigation practice group, where she leads a team handling complex national cases. She plays a key role in the Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists (GLP-1 RAs) Products Liability Litigation, advocating for individuals injured by diabetes and weight-loss drugs. She also contributes to the Hair Relaxer litigation and is actively involved in the emerging Terbutaline litigation, as well as other personal injury matters. Earlier in her career, Ms. Vernon represented victims of some of California’s most devastating wildfires, including the Camp Fire, Thomas Fire, Woolsey Fire, Kincade Fire, North Bay Fires, and Butte Fire, gaining extensive experience in large-scale disaster recovery. Before joining Singleton Schreiber, she gained valuable experience in family law and immigration law and completed an internship with the Federal Defenders of San Diego, where she participated in criminal trials. She holds dual degrees in psychology and criminal justice from Florida International University, where she graduated at the top of her class, and earned her J.D. with a specialization in dispute resolution. As a native Spanish speaker, Ms. Vernon communicates with ease and empathy with clients whose first language is Spanish. She is skilled at breaking down complex legal issues into clear, accessible terms, ensuring that clients feel informed and supported throughout the legal process. Ms. Vernon is admitted to practice in California state and federal courts. Ms. Vernon is also widely recognized for her commitment to community advocacy, particularly for families of children with special needs. She uses her knowledge of the California Department of Education and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to guide parents through the process of securing services and supports, while educating families on their rights. She also organizes autism awareness events, creating spaces for families to connect, share resources, and access guidance. A Miami, Florida native, Ms. Vernon is an active leader in the children’s ministry at her church. She loves to travel and values time spent with family and friends.

Tatyana Hopkins is a member of our Mass Tort practice group. With a legal education rooted in system change and social justice, Ms. Hopkins has long been a dedicated advocate for a broad range of issues affecting marginalized communities. As a law student, her work included policy and direct-impact projects, as well as publications centered on juvenile, economic, voting, and environmental justice, often with a strong focus on how institutional systems and structures disproportionately impact Black communities. After law school, she spent a year on Capitol Hill as a Congressional Black Caucus Foundation John R. Lewis Social Justice Fellow, working on policy issues that included harm reduction, social equity in the cannabis industry, and preserving access to the arts in low-income communities. After earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism at Howard University, Ms. Hopkins attended the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) David A. Clarke School of Law. For two years, Ms. Hopkins served as the Notes editor of the UDC Law Review, a student-run periodical that focuses on legal issues of social concern and embodies community activism and service. Upon graduating in 2022, Ms. Hopkins was awarded the Richard H. Semsker Prize in Civil Rights Law for her demonstrated commitment to civil rights as a student and in recognition of her intent to work as a civil rights lawyer. Before attending law school, Ms. Hopkins wrote for publications that were members of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a national association of Black-owned newspapers. As a journalist, she covered the Flint water crisis and the efforts of Congressional Black Caucus members to call attention to it, issues of concern to Black residents in Washington, D.C., and post-Hurricane Maria recovery efforts in Puerto Rico. Ms. Hopkins is admitted to practice in Washington, D.C.

Bonnie Watkins is an Associate Attorney at Singleton Schreiber and is part of the bad faith practice. Ms. Watkins focuses on cases involving numerous plaintiffs affected by similar harms, including consumer class action cases, unfair business practice claims, and environmental cases. Before joining Singleton Schreiber, Ms. Watkins clerked for the 7th Judicial District in Idaho, before joining the Prosecuting Attorney's office in Bonneville County, Idaho. Currently, Ms. Watkins is working on representing the victims of the Eaton and Palisades Fires and helping them fight against the bad faith conduct of their insurers. Bonnie Watkins graduated from the J. Reuben Clark Law School in 2019 and is barred in Idaho, Utah, the United States District Court of Idaho, and the United States Bankruptcy Court of Idaho. During law school, Ms. Wakins practiced on the Trial Advocacy Team, where she represented BYU in Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado. Ms. Watkins is also a graduate from Brigham Young University - Idaho with a BA in English & Literature/Letters in 2015. Bonnie spends her leisure time with her husband and her three young, very energetic children. They enjoy going on family hikes and traveling to see new parts of the country. When she has spare time, Bonnie enjoys archery, playing the piano, and playing racquetball.

Tyson Gamble is counsel in our San Diego office and a member of our Mass Tort practice group. A seasoned civil litigator, Mr. Gamble has over 14 years of experience handling complex product liability and toxic tort cases for plaintiffs. He is a zealous advocate whose motivation to represent families harmed by toxic or defective products stems from personal experience — at a young age, he suffered the loss of two close relatives who were stricken with mesothelioma, a fatal and incurable cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.

We aggressively represent the best interests of our clients, and fight for results they deserve. Upon being licensed to practice law in 2000, Ross Jurewitz dedicated his career to representing injury victims. He is the founder and managing attorney of Jurewitz Law Group | Injury & Accident Lawyers, which has been recognized in publications throughout the United States, including Time and Newsweek®. Mr. Jurewitz is a frequent guest legal expert on local and national television news programs. Mr. Jurewitz received his J.D. at Washington College of Law, American University, Washington, D.C., in 2000. Prior to his law degree, Mr. Jurewitz completed a bachelor’s degree in Political Science (with a minor in Law & Society) at the University of California, San Diego. Mr. Jurewitz is licensed to practice law before all courts in the State of California. In 2002, he joined the prestigious San Diego personal injury firm of Hoey and Morgan, representing injury victims in litigation and as trial counsel. In 2004, Mr. Jurewitz formed the partnership of Wick Jurewitz, where he took the lessons learned in the large firm he had just left and combined them with the personal touch found in smaller firms. Continuing the same philosophy and expanding his practice to represent workers' compensation and employment law clients, Mr. Jurewitz formed Jurewitz Law Group | Injury & Accident Lawyers in 2007. Mr. Jurewitz currently lives in a coastal North County home. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his wife, their daughter, and their two dogs, Ace (an American Bulldog) and Blackjack (a German shepherd mix). He also enjoys playing golf, traveling, and spending the fall rooting for the University of Texas Longhorns football team.

Terry Singleton is an experienced litigator with an emphasis on handling personal injury claims for clients throughout the metro San Diego area and surrounding portions of Southern California. Mr. Singleton is an accomplished trial lawyer with a long track record of success in representing injured individuals and small businesses against corporations, insurers and government entities.