Born in Heidelberg, Germany, where his father was serving in the U.S. Army, Mr. DeBlase was raised in the Midwest and attended high school in Chicago before moving to southern California. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree, in the College Honors program, in Political Science, also earning a Specialization in Business Administration at the University of California, Los Angeles in 1990. He received his Juris Doctor from Whittier College in 1993, where he received an American Jurisprudence award in Legal Process. Mr. DeBlase was admitted to the California State Bar in December 1993.
While an undergraduate at UCLA in 1989, Mr. DeBlase clerked for Sayre, Moreno, Purcell & Boucher, where he became involved in complex, toxic tort litigation. There Mr. DeBlase gained experience and knowledge regarding asbestos product liability cases and their attendant product identification issues, evidence, work-up, discovery and trial. He thereafter worked with noted trial attorney Russell Nordstrom in Los Angeles, prosecuting and trying medical malpractice, asbestos and other personal injury cases.
Mr. DeBlase joined Kiesel, Boucher & Larson, LLP upon its founding in April 1999, becoming a partner in December 2004. His broad civil practice emphasizes product liability, class actions, construction defect, personal injury, medical malpractice, asbestos, business and contract disputes. Mr. DeBlase has extensive trial experience in the fields of asbestos personal injury and property damage, medical malpractice, product liability and construction defect. He has successfully moved for class certification in numerous consumer class actions and has brought successful writ petitions and appeals before the California Court of Appeal.
In 2003 Mr. DeBlase was honored by being appointed by then-Governor Gray Davis as Commissioner to the California delegation of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. Mr. DeBlase also serves as a member of the Los Angeles County Superior Court's Asbestos Working Group, a six attorney committee which reports to the presiding judge concerning issues related to asbestos litigation, trials and the asbestos general orders.
Mr. DeBlase is a member of the Consumer Attorneys of Los Angeles and the Consumer Attorneys of California, where he has spoken on a variety of topics at continuing education seminars. Mr. DeBlase is also a member of the American Bar Association, the Association of Business Trial Lawyers and the Los Angeles County Bar Association.
Patrick DeBlase: Recent Trials
The following is a listing of some of Mr. DeBlase’s recent trials. Please feel free to contact Mr. DeBlase concerning any of his trials.
John D. v. Kaiser Gypsum
San Francisco County Superior Court jury trial
Judge Mary Wiss
June 2007
Type of Case: Products Liability, Negligence, Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma
Case settled after Plaintiff’s case in chief: in excess of $2.1 million as to all defendants.
Plaintiff’s witnesses: Carl Andrew Brodkin, M.D., Eugene Mark, M.D., Richard Hatfield, Barry Castleman, Ph.D, Arnold Brody, Ph.D, plaintiff.
John was a plasterer who worked with stucco and drywall joint compound during his career. He was exposed to asbestos during the mixing, sanding and cleanup of tape joint compound.
Tony P. v. Vons Grocery Store
Los Angeles County Superior Court jury trial
Judge Tricia Ann Bigelow
October 2007
Type of Case: Products Liability, Premises Liability, Negligence, Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma.
Case settled during Plaintiff’s case in chief: in excess of $1.4 million as to all defendants.
Plaintiff’s witnesses: Richard Lemen, Ph.D., William Longo, Ph.D, co-workers of plaintiff and plaintiff.
Tony was a carpenter who worked for a construction company which did the remodeling work for Vons supermarkets. Among various asbestos-containing building products, Tony was exposed to crocidolite asbestos when he was required to cut asbestos-containing transite board with a skilsaw.
Charles B. v. Advocate Mines
San Francisco County Superior Court jury trial
Judge John Stewart
November 2007
Type of Case: Products Liability, Negligence, Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma.
Case settled after Plaintiff’s case in chief: in excess of $1.25 million as to all defendants.
Plaintiff’s witnesses: Advocate Mines union member, widow of Advocate Mines miner diagnosed with mesothelioma, James Robb, M.D., Richard Lemen, Ph.D, plaintiff’s mother and plaintiff’s wife.
Charles was diagnosed with mesothelioma at age 55. He was exposed to asbestos when his father - who worked at the Johns Manville asbestos-cement pipe plant in Louisiana - brought it home on his work clothes. Advocate Mines supplied asbestos to this asbestos-cement pipe plant during the years Charles, as a child, lived in his parent’s home.
Delia M. v. Riverside Cement
Los Angeles County Superior Court jury trial
Judge Mark Mooney
August 2008
Type of Case: Products Liability, Negligence, Wrongful Death, Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma.
Case settled after Plaintiff’s case in chief: in excess of $2.2 million as to all defendants.
Plaintiff’s witnesses: Richard Hatfield, Richard Lemen, Ph.D, plaintiff’s co-workers.
Delia’s husband died of mesothelioma. He was exposed to asbestos during the mixing, sanding and cleanup of tape joint compound. He was also exposed to asbestos during the mixing and cleanup of Riverside gun plastic cement.
Hyam C. v. Rockwell Automation
Los Angeles County Superior Court jury trial
Judge Aurelio Munoz
September 2008
Type of Case: Products Liability, Negligence, Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma.
Case settled after the jury and all alternates were sworn: in excess of $2.2 million as to all defendants.
Hyam worked with asbestos-containing wire and phenolic resins on Navy ships. He was exposed to asbestos while working with these products including drilling, sanding and replacing equipment.
Joseph S. v. CertainTeed
San Francisco County Superior Court jury trial
Judge Thomas Mellon, Jr.
October 2008
Type of Case: Products Liability, Negligence, Environmental Exposure, Premises Liability, Malignant Peritoneal Mesothelioma
Case Settled after Plaintiff’s case in chief: in excess of $2.6 million as to all defendants.
Plaintiff’s witnesses: Allen Smith, M.D., Arnold Brody, Ph.D., Richard Hatfield, Richard Cohen, M.D., Barry Horn, M.D., Kenneth Cohen, Barry Ben-Zion, Samual Hammar, M.D.
Joseph was exposed to crocidolite asbestos from an asbestos-cement pipe plant approximately two miles upwind of his residence. He was also exposed to asbestos-containing building products during construction at his college dormitory.
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