I’m very excited for this conversation with Nina Shapirshteyn, a partner at Abramson Smith Waldsmith LLP and one of California's most decorated plaintiff's trial lawyers. Nina represents individuals and families in serious injury and wrongful death cases, with a proven trial record. Nina was named Trial Lawyer of the Year by the San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association after securing a $79.8 million verdict in 2015 — the largest in California that year. Santa Clara County later honored her with the same award after she won three separate multimillion-dollar jury verdicts for plaintiffs in a single year, an unprecedented achievement.
Nina is a member of ABOTA and a Fellow of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers — both invitation-only organizations recognizing elite trial lawyers. She also served as a Superior Court judge, appointed by Governor Newsom, giving her a rare perspective on both sides of the courtroom.
So please sit back and enjoy this wide-ranging conversation with Nina Shapirshteyn!
This is a two-part conversation: subscribe to the channel/podcast and don’t miss Part 2, where Nina breaks down the Johnson & Johnson medical device case, explains how she proved a product case without the product itself, and shares hard-earned lessons on punitive damages, 998s, juror clarity, and trying the case you actually have.
More on Nina:
- Firm bio: https://www.aswllp.com/attorney/shapirshteyn-nina-g/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nina-shapirshteyn-36534a3/
- Plaintiff Magazine profile: https://plaintiffmagazine.com/recent-issues/item/profile-nina-shapirshteyn
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We are now on video as well. You can watch the episodes on our Youtube channel!
Hosted by Miles Cooper
Produced by Mauro Serra | Kenji Productions
Recorded & Co-produced by Zach Morvant | www.zmorvant.com
Music by The Sure Fire Soul Ensemble
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Questions, comments, feedback and suggestion? Email us at: podcast@coopers.law
Read Coopers' Code & articles and publications
Information
- Show
- FrequencyUpdated weekly
- Published20 April 2026 at 10:00 UTC
- Length54 min
- Season4
- Episode16
- RatingClean
