Vlad Raul Ghenciu

I have tried 24 civil jury trials, 19 of which went to a jury verdict.  I am a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, ABOTA, having been admitted to ABOTA in March 2024, and reaching the Associate level, a higher rank in 2025

I have co-chaired a civil jury trial that resulted in a $3 million settlement before I was to deliver plaintiff's rebutall closing argument.  The case was a disputed liability electric scooter fall case which resulted in paralysis and a traumatic brain injury.  The insurance defense attorney told the jury in closing argument to deliver a zero verdict for the plaintiff due to a .094 blood alcohol content and marijuana.  The case was Danny Pena v. City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County Superior Court Case Number: 19STCV39966, tried from May 9, 2022 to May 26, 2022, before the Honorable Randy Rhodes, Department F51, Chatsworth Courthouse.  Gabriel H. Avina, Esq. was the lead plf atty.

My civil trials were as follows:

1. June 2018 – representing a Allstate policyholder before a jury trial, West Covina Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge Gloria White-Brown, presiding, case went to a jury verdict;
2. September 2019 – representing a plaintiff before a jury trial, Chatsworth Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge Gabriela Freixes, presiding, case went to a jury verdict;
3. October 2019 – representing a plaintiff before a jury trial about to be empaneled, Van Nuys Courthouse East, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge James Kaddo presiding, case settled before jury empaneled;
4, January 2020 – representing a plaintiff before a judge trial, Stanley Mosk Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge Holly Kendig, presiding, case went to a bench verdict;
5. March 2020 – representing a plaintiff before a jury trial, Van Nuys Courthouse East, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge Michael Harwin, presiding, case went to a jury verdict;
6. April 2021 – representing a plaintiff before a judge trial, Stanley Mosk Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge Armen Tamzarian, presiding, case went to a bench verdict;
7. February – 2022 – representing a plaintiff before a jury trial, Spring Street Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge Stephen Moloney presiding, case went to a jury veridict,;
8. May 2022 – representing a quadriplegic/traumatic brain injury plaintiff in a electric scooter case/uplift in a city sidewalk case, before a jury trial, Chatsworth Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge Randy Rhodes, presiding, case settled before I was to deliver plaintiff's closing rebutal argument;
9. August 2022 – representing two plaintiffs in a disputed liability car crash, Westminster Courthouse, Orange County Superior Court before a jury trial, Judge Nathan Scott, presiding, case went to a jury verdict, 
10. September 2022 – representing two plaintiffs in a car crash case, Stanley Mosk Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Gregory Alarcon, presiding, case went to a jury verdict;
11. January 2023 - representing one plaintiff in a car crash case, Spring Street Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Mark A. Borenstein, presiding, case went to a jury verdict;
12. March 2023 - representing one plaintiff in a car crash case, Spring Street Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Richard J. Burdge, Jr., presiding, case went to a jury verdict;
13. May 2023- representing one plaintiff in a premises liability, Hall of Justice Courthouse, San Diego County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Timothy B. Taylor, presiding, case went to a jury verdict.
14. August 2023 - representing one plaintiff in a disputed liability car accident case, Spring Street Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Richard J. Burdge, Jr., presiding, case went to a jury verdict
14. September 2023 - representing one plaintiff in a car accident case, Van Nuys Courthouse West, Los Angeles County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Thomas Rubinson, presiding, case went to a jury verdict.
15. October 2023 -representing two plaintiffs in a car accident case, Van Nuys Courthouse East, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge James E. Blancarte, presiding, case settled during jury selection;
16. December 2023 - representing two plaintiffs in a car accident case, Westminister Courthouse, Orange County Superior Court, Judge Shelia Rocios, presiding, case went to a jury verdict.
17. March 2024, representing one plaintiff, in a car crash case jury trial, Long Beach Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Patrick Madden, presiding, case went to a jury verdict;
18. April 2024, representing an original plaintiff companies/ remaining cross-defendants companies in a business litigation case jury trial, Stanley Mosk Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge Wendy Chang, presiding, case settled after three days of jury trial;
19. May 2024, representing one plaintiff, in a car crash jury trial, Long Beach Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Michelle Flurer, presiding, case went to a jury verdict.
20. May 2024, representing two plaintiffs, in a car crash case jury trial, Historic Courthouse, Riverside County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Eric Keen, presiding, case went to a jury verdict.
21. November 2024, represented one plaintiff, in a 7-week wrongful death jury trial, Central Justice Center, Orange County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Gassia Apkarian, presiding, case went to a jury verdict.
22. December 2024, represented one plaintiff, in a car crash jury trial, Compton Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Wendy Wilcox, presiding, case went to a jury verdict.
23. January 2025, represented an inidividual defendant and three defendant business entities/three cross-complainants, in a business litigation case jury trial, Stanley Mosk Courthouse, before a jury trial, Judge Maurice Leiter, presiding, case settled following reading of closing jury instructions.
24. March 2025, represented a former California state Senate GOP leader (who also served in the CA state Assembly and former Mayor of Diamond Bar), his wife, and their company in a business litigation case, jury trial, North Justice Center, Orange County Superior Court, before a jury trial, Judge Nathan Vu, presiding, case went to a jury verdict. Jury cleared all clients of any wrongdoing.
25. April 2025, represented a lawyer in a bench trial in a legal malpractice defense case, with co-first chair representing the lawyer's law firm, Stanley Mosk Courthouse, Los Angeles County Superior Court, before Judge Stephen Cochran, presiding.
26. May 2025,  tried as first chair, with no second chair, disputed liability, premises liability jury trial, represented plaintiff, case settled after one day of jury selection above Defendants’ Offer to Compromise, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Shirley Watkins, presiding, Van Nuys Courthouse East.
27. September 2025, Tried first chair jury trial no second chair, car accident case, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Andrew Cooper, presiding, Chatsworth Courthouse, Admitted liability case, represented Mercury insured, jury rendered 12-0 vote in less than 30 minutes on substantial factor against plaintiff, $73, costs bill filed after Judgment

My trial advocacy began at Loyola Law School, as a Certified Law Clerk, in July 2012 where at the age of 26 I tried my first felony trial to jury verdict before Judge Upinder Kalra, Foltz Courthouse.  I tried two bench trials for the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office in 2016 following completion of the "Academy of Justice" trial advocacy program.  I tried a criminal defense misdemeanor trial before a jury in December 2019 in San Fernando Courthouse before Judge Andrew Cooper.

Regarding trial advocacy training, I have completed, two intensive trial advocacy courses, seen below:

1. Criminal prosecution-The Los Angeles City Attorney's Office "Academy of Justice" a six week (40 hours a week) invitation only, tax payer funded program taught by veteran Los Angeles Deputy City Attorneys.  I took and graduated from this course in the Summer of 2016 after which I was placed as a Special Deputy City Attorney in the Pacific Branch (LAX Courthouse) to try and litigate misdeamnor cases on behalf of the City of Los Angeles).

2. Plaintiffs' Civil Litigation-The Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA) "Plaintiffs' Trial Academy (PTA)."  This course was a 7 week program that I took and graduated from in the summer of 2019.  The course was taught by Mike Arias, past president of CAALA and president of Consumer Attorneys of California (CAC).  Lecturers included Carl Douglas, Arash Homanpour, Christa Ramey, Gary Dordick, Bob Simon, and Rahul Ravipudi.  Topics like the Academy of Justice were Jury Selection, Direct Examination, Cross Examination, Closing Arguments, Evidence, Ethics, Maintaing Credibility with the Jury and Trial themes.  Closing Speech was by Nick Rowley.

In August 2024, as an ABOTA member, I volunteered and taught at Loyola Law School, for 3 days in the ABOTA Jack Daniel's Trial School.

I have lived in Washington, D.C., suburbia, Los Angeles, and small town America (West Virginia).

I look forward to working on your case.