practice areas
honors + affiliations
Member, Central, Southern, Northern and Eastern Districts of U.S. District Courts of California
Member, Moot Court Board Recipient, National Moot Court Team and American Jurisprudence Award
bar admissions
- California
Court Admissions
- U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Eastern, Central, and Southern Districts of California
- U.S. Courts of Appeal for the Fifth and Ninth Circuits
- Los Angeles
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300 South Grand Ave, 22nd Fl.
Los Angeles, CA 90071-3132
Phone: 213.612.7305
Fax: 213.612.2501
Charles Malaret is a partner in Morgan Lewis's Litigation Practice. Mr. Malaret focuses his practice on complex commercial and policyholder insurance coverage litigation. On the matters that he has been the lead or co-lead attorney, he has recovered more than $1 billion for his clients, and has secured hundreds of millions of dollars in insurance assets through coverage-in-place agreements. Mr. Malaret also has successfully tried and litigated several non-insurance complex commercial litigation matters that have resulted in multi-million dollar favorable court decisions and settlements for his clients.
Mr. Malaret assists policyholders with insurance coverage and resolving pending claims. He also represents policyholders in providing advice to maximize and preserve insurance assets with regards to catastrophic losses, including obtaining defense and indemnity payments for ongoing litigation matters. He has assisted policyholders in obtaining insurance coverage for environmental liabilities, toxic tort liabilities, and catastrophic third-party bodily injury claims. Mr. Malaret has been lead counsel to manufacturing, chemical, and consumer product companies in insurance coverage disputes involving liabilities arising from benzene, asbestos, dioxin, solvents, and wood preserving materials. He also has advised pharmaceutical and medical device companies in dealing with alleged product liability claims relating to prescription drugs, vaccines, latex gloves, heart valves and pain pumps. In addition, he has advised many companies on insurance issues with regards to mergers, reorganizations, and bankruptcy proceedings to deal effectively with present and future catastrophic liabilities. He also has been approved multiple times as special insurance coverage counsel in bankruptcy proceedings, including in several cases where debtors have sought 524(g) protection under the bankruptcy code for asbestos liabilities.
Mr. Malaret's complex litigation experience also involves non-insurance matters. Recently, as lead trial counsel, he obtained a multi-million dollar judgment in a breach of contract/breach of lease case that was tried in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Mr. Malaret also successfully defended a utility company in a breach of contract and recession case where the requested damages exceeded $40 million dollars. During his career, he has tried cases throughout California in both state and federal courts, and has handled cases and insurance claims in Texas, Washington, New York, Illinois, Wisconsin, Georgia, Indiana, Minnesota, Maine, Florida, and in Latin America.
Mr. Malaret is admitted to practice in California and before the U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Eastern, Central, and Southern Districts of California and the U.S. Courts of Appeal for the Fifth and Ninth Circuits.Selected Representations
INSURANCE
Insurance—Asbestos Coverage Matters
- In Re Thorpe Insulation Company: As co-lead counsel and specially appointed coverage counsel, recovered over $600 million in insurance settlements in coverage litigation for an insulator and distributor of products relating to asbestos liabilities and assisted in providing insurance coverage advice during company's 524(g) bankruptcy reorganization.
- In Re J.T. Thorpe, Inc.: As co-lead counsel and specially appointed coverage counsel, recovered over $350 million in insurance settlements for a bankrupt refractory manufacturer relating to asbestos liabilities and assisted in providing insurance coverage advice during company's 524(g) bankruptcy reorganization.
- Negotiated coverage-in-place agreements, policy buy back agreements, and claims settlements on various environmental, asbestos and property damage claims well in excess of $500 million in value for various clients involving claims throughout the United States.
Insurance—Environmental, Toxic Tort Litigation and Medical Device Coverage Matters
- As co-lead counsel for a manufacturing company, resolved environmental liabilities at hundreds of sites throughout the United States that resulted in settlements in excess of $100 million.
- Lead coverage counsel for water and mold first party property damage claim in excess of $20 million relating to apartment complex.
- Lead coverage counsel for a consumer product company resolving environmental claims throughout United States.
- Lead coverage counsel for a paper company resolving a significant environmental claim in Washington.
- Lead coverage counsel for an insurance claim for defense and indemnity costs arising from toxic tort action in Maine.
- Lead coverage counsel for a company facing liabilities for hundreds of lawsuits seeking damage for solvent benzene exposure.
- Lead coverage counsel for an insurance claim for defense and indemnity costs arising from bodily injury claims relating to the sale and distribution of latex gloves.
- Lead coverage counsel for an insurance claim for defense and indemnity costs arising from bodily injury claims relating to the sale and distribution of pain pumps used in shoulder surgeries.
- Lead coverage counsel for an insurance claim for defense and indemnity costs arising from bodily injury claims of autism relating to sale and distribution of thimerosal for vaccines.
Insurance—Directors' & Officers, Errors & Omissions Coverage Matters
- Lead coverage counsel for liabilities arising from alleged backdating of options.
- Lead coverage counsel for defense and indemnity liabilities in excess of $100 million arising from civil judgment of securities violations against company and its officers in securities action.
- Lead coverage counsel on an Errors & Omissions claim for an energy company in an alleged consulting malpractice claim in excess of $50 million.
Insurance—Fidelity/Political Risk/International
- Co-lead Counsel for a Fortune 100 Company in employee dishonesty claim arising from client's operations in Brazil where total losses exceeded $45 million.
- Lead coverage counsel for a Fortune 100 Company on political risk/currency inconvertibility claims arising from Latin American country.
COMMERCIAL LITIGATION
- New Pacific Rodeo, LLC v. BIBA International, Limited: Successfully tried a breach of lease claim in the United States Bankruptcy Court for Southern District of New York resulting in a favorable bench decision and judgment in excess of $7.5 million for the claim.
- Successfully defended a municipal energy company in breach of contract/recession litigation matter requesting in excess of $40 million in damages that resulted in favorable result for client.
- Successfully tried a breach of contract claim in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas and established law on policyholder's rights to dividends from a mutual insurer. The matter resulted in a multi-million dollar recovery for the client, including attorneys' fees, and was affirmed by the Fifth Circuit in a published ruling, Kimberly-Clark Corporation v. Factory Mutual Insurance Company, 566 F.3d 541 (5th Cir. 2009).
- Lead counsel in defending a company in three-week arbitration involving purchase of companies and claims relating thereto. Received favorable arbitration decision and an award of attorneys' fees.
education
- University of California, Davis School of Law, 1989, J.D.
- University of San Francisco, 1986, B.A.