John Upton

John M. Upton is a partner at Dordick Law Corporation and leads the firm's law and motion and appellate advocacy practice, representing clients in complex, high-stakes motions, appeals, and writ proceedings in California's superior and appellate courts. He earned his J.D. from the University of San Diego School of Law on a merit scholarship, studied International and European Communities Law at Magdalen College, University of Oxford, and graduated cum laude with a B.A. in economics from UC Santa Barbara. He has handled hundreds of significant personal injury matters from intake through resolution, spanning catastrophic automobile and trucking collisions, motorcycle accidents, premises liability, products liability, sexual abuse, and medical negligence.

His appellate results include the affirmance of an $8.5 million judgment in Minnifield v. State of California (2025), the reversal of summary judgments in the wrongful death cases Walker v. City of Victorville and Walker v. Viveros (2023), and the published decision Brown v. Beach House Design and Development (2022), which reversed summary judgment for a general contractor after a scaffolding fall. He has also defeated dozens of summary judgment motions in superior courts across the state. A frequent speaker and moderator on pre-trial strategy, trial motions, and appellate practice, he is a member of CAALA and the Consumer Attorneys of California.