Parada K. Ornelas

Partner

Overview

Parada K. Ornelas is partner in the firm’s Products Liability and Warranty groups. She represents automotive manufacturers in warranty claims brought under the Consumer Legal Remedies Act, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, and the Magnuson-Moss Act. She also represents companies in product liability, personal injury, and wrongful death matters, brought under federal and state laws, from inception to trial.

Prior to joining the firm, Parada was an associate attorney at a firm in San Diego litigating complex civil actions. She also has experience representing institutional lenders in bankruptcy and commercial litigation matters.

Parada earned a Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law, where she was recognized on the Dean’s List and was a recipient of the Lawyers Club’s Janeen Kerper Scholarship. She competed as a member of the Mock Trial Team and served as the Vice President of the Student Bar Association. While attending law school, Parada interned for the Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Trustee’s Office for the Southern District of California.

Memberships

  • San Diego Asian American Legal Education Fund, Board of Directors, Secretary (2021-present)
  • Pan Asian Lawyers of San Diego, Scholarship Committee, Chair (2017-present)
  • Lawyers Club, Diverse Women’s Committee (2018-present)

Honors and Recognition

  • Included in San Diego Business Journal’s Asian Pacific Islander Leaders of Influence (2024)
  • Named to the San Diego Super Lawyers – Rising Stars list (2019-2024)
  • Included in SD Metro’s 2023/2024 “Women of Influence”
  • Included in The Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch™ in America for Product Liability Litigation – Defendants (2023-2024)
  • Recipient, Profiles in Diversity Journal’s Asian Leaders Worth Watching Award (2022)
  • Finalist, San Diego Business Journal’s Leaders In Law (2020)
  • Included in The Daily Transcript’s 40 Under 40 List (2020)
  • Finalist, San Diego Business Journal’s Next Top Business Leaders Under 40 (2019)

Representative Matters

  • Achieved a defense verdict in the first phase of a bifurcated trial in a personal injury action stemming from an accident involving an alleged defective rental equipment. The court found that plaintiff failed to prove that the equipment was rented from defendant’s store. As a result of the decision, plaintiff was precluded from seeking liability against defendant.
  • Obtained a judgment of dismissal on behalf of a national car-sharing company in a personal injury action.
  • Resolved more than 150 cases on behalf of manufacturers and other national clients.

Speeches & Publications