John Farrell

Overview

John Farrell is a veteran trial attorney.  He has tried over 150 trials and has been recognized as a top trial lawyer, including being given the CLAY Award (California Lawyer of the Year).

One client who worked with John on several cases, described John as “a world class trial lawyer” and added that “John is unassuming, and the jury clearly loves him.”  Clients have remarked on his skill in presenting expert witness testimony in ways that the trier of fact can understand and his extraordinary ability to cross examine key experts on the other side.

John is valued for his trial skills as well as his strength in working with witnesses and guiding other lawyers at trial. John’s colleagues routinely ask him to work with their trial witnesses and prepare witness for deposition.  John has real expertise in taking depositions. One client remarked that John took “a brilliant and pivotal deposition of an in-house lawyer that resulted in a complete victory based on the doctrine of unclean hands.”

Prior to joining Becker, John was a Principal at Fish & Richardson. Over the 20 years at Fish, John was recognized as a top trial lawyer in intellectual property matters and focused on pharma practice, where he worked as trial counsel for clients in their biggest cases.

John teaches trial advocacy and deposition skills to firms throughout the country. He also served as a faculty member at the Microsoft Advocacy Academy. He is a long-time member of the faculty of the National Institute for Trial Advocacy and has done national webcasts for NITA on direct examination and closing argument. His webcasts rank as some of the most watched. He has written a three-part series of articles on Taking a Good Deposition and soon will publish a book entitled Tools for the Trial Lawyer.

Before joining private practice, John was an assistant district attorney in the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office, rising to Head Attorney working in the Homicide Unit. In addition to his trial work as an ADA, John became a sought-after lecturer for the California District Attorneys Association, giving three hour talks throughout the state on the use of uncharged acts and the law of hearsay. He was given the CDAA Instructor of the Year Award.

John attended Indiana University, where he graduated with highest honors, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts in history and political science.  He was named the top student in both departments and was awarded the Elvis J. Stahr Award, given to five seniors who excelled academically and served as campus leaders. John received his law degree from the University of Chicago with honors, where he served as President of the Law Students Association. He clerked for the Honorable S. Hugh Dillin of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana.