Attorney Profiles

Managing Partner, San Diego and Las Vegas

Super Lawyers Names Norman A. Ryan as One of the Top Attorneys in San Diego, California, June 2, 2011

NORMAN A. RYAN, the Managing Partner of Ryan Mercaldo & Worthington LLP was honored to be named by California’s Super Lawyers © magazine as one of the top attorneys in San Diego, California for 2011. Only five percent of the lawyers in the state are named by Super Lawyers ©. Candidates are nominated by their peers and evaluated on peer recognition and professional achievement to include verdicts, settlements and experience. You can read more about Mr. Ryan at California Super Lawyers ©.

Norman A. Ryan

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Mr. Ryan was born in De Witt, Iowa and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1978 from the University of Northern Iowa and his Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of Iowa in 1980. He was admitted to the Iowa Bar in 1980, the California Bar in 1984 and the Nevada Bar in 1995.

In addition to his civilian practice, Mr. Ryan served for five years with the United States Navy’s Judge Advocate General’s Corp (JAGC) and then served for 22 years in the United States Naval Reserves. He retired as a Captain in January 2007.

In 1996, Martindale Hubbell, the leading resource for recommending reliable and highly rated attorneys and law firms, awarded Mr. Ryan with its highest rating of “A-V” in legal abilities and ethics which is a testament to his practice as evaluated and rated by members of the Judiciary, his peers in the Bar and an indpendent review board.

Mr. Ryan is a member of the San Diego Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates, Trucking Industry Defense Association, California Trucking Association and the Defense Research Institute. He is also a member of the American Bar Association Forum on Construction Industry, the California, Iowa, Nevada, San Diego County and Clark County Bar Associations, the United States District Court, Southern, Central and Eastern Districts of California. He is a member and former director of the San Diego Defense Lawyers and a member of the Las Vegas Defense Lawyers.

Mr. Ryan’s practice areas include: Catastrophic Loss, Civil Litigation, Construction Defect, Insurance Defense, Personal Injury, Product Liability, Risk Management, Wrongful Death and Trucking/Transportation Law.

E-mail: nryan@rmwfirm.com

Partner, San Diego

Mr. Mercaldo was born in Tucson, Arizona and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1994 from the University of Arizona and his Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of San Diego School of Law in 1998. He was admitted to the California Bar and United States District Court, Southern District of California in 1998 and the Arizona Bar in 2001. Mr. Mercaldo is a member of the San Diego and Arizona County Bar Associations as well as the San Diego Defense Lawyers and the California Trucking Association.

In 2010, Martindale Hubbell, the leading resource for recommending reliable and highly rated attorneys and law firms, awarded Mr. Mercaldo with its highest rating of “A-V” in legal abilities and ethics which is a testament to his practice as evaluated and rated by members of the Judiciary, his peers in the Bar and an indpendent review board.

Mr. Mercaldo’s practice areas include: Catastrophic Loss, Civil Litigation, Construction Law, Employment Law, Personal Injury, Product Liability and Trucking/Transportation Law.

E-mail: mmercaldo@rmwfirm.com

Partner, San Diego and Las Vegas

Mr. Worthington was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, received a Bachelor of Arts Degree, with honors, from the University of Wisconsin in 1991 and his Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of San Diego School of Law in 1995. He was admitted to the California Bar and the United States District Court, Southern District of California in 1995, and the Illinois and Nevada Bars in 1996.

Mr. Worthington is a member of the San Diego and Clark County Bar Associations and actively participates in the Appellate Court Committee. Mr. Worthington regularly provides seminars nationwide on the topics of insurance coverage and bad faith litigation. His seminars are designed to educate and inform our clients and the insurance community about relative and up to date insurance issues. He is also a member of the San Diego Defense Lawyers Association, Las Vegas Defense Lawyers and the Defense Research Institute. Mr. Worthington is proficient in French and German.

Mr. Worthington’s practice areas include: Appellate, Bad Faith Litigation, Civil Litigation and Insurance Coverage.

E-mail: bworthington@rmwfirm.com

Partner, Las Vegas

Mr. Venci was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1997 from the University of Minnesota, with a major in Journalism and Mass Communications and minors in History and Political Science. He obtained his Juris Doctorate Degree in 2000 from the University of San Francisco School of Law, graduating cum laude. He was admitted to the Nevada Bar in 2000, the United States District Court, District of Nevada in 2003 and is a member of the State Bar of Nevada, Clark County Bar Association and Las Vegas Defense Lawyers. Mr. Venci became a partner in the firm on January 1, 2009.

Mr. Venci’s practice areas include: Civil Litigation, Construction Defect, Trucking/Transportation Law, Personal Injury, Product Liability, Insurance Coverage and Bad Faith Litigation.

E-mail: rvenci@rmwfirm.com

Partner, San Diego

Mr. White was born in San Diego, California. He received a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of California San Diego in 1998. He graduated from Georgetown University Law Center and received his Juris Doctorate Degree in 2002. He was admitted to the California Bar in 2002 and is a member of the San Diego County Bar Association, San Diego Defense Lawyers Association and the Defense Research Institute (DRI) which is the largest international membership organization of attorneys.

In January 2011, Mr. White became a partner in the firm.

Mr. White’s practice areas include: Civil Litigation, Construction Defect, Employment Law, Insurance Defense, Personal Injury and Transportation Law.

E-mail: twhite@rmwfirm.com

Partner, San Diego

Mr. Carvalho is originally from Mattapoisett, Massachusetts. He received a Bachelor of Arts Degree Summa Cum Laude in 1997 from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and his Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of San Diego School of Law in 2001. He was admitted to the California Bar in 2001 and The American Bar Association in 2002. Mr. Carvalho is a member of the San Diego County Bar Association and the San Diego Defense Lawyers Association.

In addition to Mr. Carvalho’s civilian practice, he was an active member of the Air National Guard from 1991-1997.

In January 2011, Mr. Carvalho became a partner in the firm and has been a member of the firm since September 2004.

Mr. Carvalho’s practice areas include: Civil Litigation, representing developers, general contractors and subcontractors in a wide variety of trades in Construction Defect matters, Insurance Defense, Personal Injury, Property Damage and Business Clients.

E-mail: jcarvalho@rmwfirm.com

Senior Associate, San Diego

Mr. Townsend was born in Cambridge, England. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from University of Keele, England in 1978, a Postgraduate Certificate in Education from the University of London in 1979, and graduated cum laude from the University of San Diego School of Law, receiving his Juris Doctorate Degree in 1993. He was a published Articles Editor for the San Diego Law Review and was admitted to the California Bar in 1993.

Mr. Townsend is a member of the San Diego County Bar Association, United States District Court, Eastern District, San Diego Defense Lawyers Association, the Enright Inn of Court and Mensa.

Mr. Townsend’s practice areas include: Civil Litigation, Personal Injury, Product Defect Litigation, Commercial Lease and Construction Defect Disputes, Insurance Coverage, Business Litigation and Professional Malpractice Actions.

E-mail: gtownsend@rmwfirm.com

Associate, Las Vegas

Ms. Suter was born in Mason City, Iowa. She received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Social Work with a minor in Economics from Augsburg College, Minnesota in 2003. She graduated from William Mitchell College of Law and received her Juris Doctorate Degree in 2006. Ms. Suter was admitted to the Nevada Bar and the United States District Court, District of Nevada in 2007 and is a member of the Clark County Bar Association, State Bar of Nevada and is a board member of the Las Vegas Defense Lawyers. She is also a member of the Howard D. McKibben Inn of Court and Refrigerating Engineers and Technicians Association (RETA). RETA is dedicated to the professional development of industrial refrigeration operators and technicians.

In March 2010, Ms. Suter was appointed as a mediator for the State of Nevada’s Foreclosure Mediation Program. She was also chosen by her peers as a Legal Elite lawyer and was featured in the September 2010 issue of Nevada Business Magazine.

Ms. Suter’s practice areas include General Civil Litigation, Insurance Defense, Trucking/Transportation Law, Product Liability, Personal Injury, Refrigeration Systems and Construction Defect Litigation.

E-mail: ssuter@rmwfirm.com

Associate, San Diego

Ms. Schneider was born in North Dakota and completed her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science at the University of Minnesota in 2003. She graduated from the California Western School of Law in San Diego, obtained her Juris Doctorate and was admitted to the California Bar in 2008. She is a member of the California Bar, San Diego County Bar Association and the San Diego Defense Lawyers. Her volunteer experience includes working with the U.S. Marine Corps Key Volunteer Program which provides information and support to other Marine Corps spouses during deployment.

Ms. Schneider’s practice areas include: General Civil Litigation and Insurance Defense.

E-mail: aschneider@rmwfirm.com