Winning a $3 Million Verdict - The Case of John Upton

On the Docket in this episode, Tina Denning takes you inside the courtroom on a case of an everyday neighborly dispute over the trimming of bushes gone awry in the affluent Encinitas, CA area that escalated and came to a chilling end with the murder of documentary filmmaker John Upton by Michael Vilkin. Vilkin, an inventor who emigrated from the former Soviet state of Georgia for the American dream, at age 63, was sentenced to 64 years in prison for Upton’s murder. Tina worked directly on the civil wrongful death and fraudulent transfer of property cases representing the victim’s children. Since the criminal prosecution has to be heard first, Tina talks about how quickly you have to move with the filing of the wrongful death lawsuit and the twists and turns a case such as this can quickly take from the fraudulent transfer of property to collecting on the verdict. The verdict resulted in a $3M award for the children, but the case highlights a flaw in the law that makes it very difficult for victims to collect after it is all said in done.

Tina Denning is the Managing Director of the premier firm Denning Moores. She has over 20 years of experience practicing in the areas of construction law, business litigation and personal injury, and she litigates disputes from the claim stage through arbitration or trial and post-judgment collection efforts. https://www.denningmoores.com/christina-denning

This episode is brought to you by Imagine Reporting. Imagine Reporting offers comprehensive litigation support tailored to the needs of your firm. To learn more, visit https://www.imaginereporting.com/.