Backed by a lifetime of personal and professional experience, no one is better suited to handle the complex nature of serious injury cases than Roger Dreyer. Throughout his distinguished career, Mr. Dreyer has honed his skill in the courtroom and is now recognized as one of California’s premier trial attorneys.
To date, he has tried more than 170 civil jury trials in 20 California counties and out-of-state. He has represented thousands of families and individuals who have suffered immeasurable loss. He has obtained record setting seven- and eight-figure jury verdicts in actions that include product liability, construction events, public entity, brain injury, wrongful death and the list goes on. He has obtained the biggest single victim sex abuse settlement in California. And, most importantly, he has effectively redefined the standards of conduct expected of corporations and individual actors. Due to his work and reputation he has also been sought out by professional sports teams, the then Oakland Raiders and the Sacramento Kings, to represent them in serious litigation matters.
A History of Landmark Cases
Mr. Dreyer’s breadth of work in the field of personal injury law knows no bounds, and his success rate speaks to the formidable force he brings to the courtroom. His winning record includes landmark legislation like the following:
$34 Million in the Largest Fraud Verdict in Sacramento County History. Personally sought by the owners of the Oakland Raiders, Mr. Dreyer served as trial counsel in the case against the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum and other defendants, which resulted in a finding of fraud that is now recognized as the largest business fraud verdict in Sacramento County history.
$31 Million & $75 Million Against MasterCraft Boats & Ford Motor Company, Respectively. In both defective product cases, Mr. Dreyer brought to light information that empowered juries to rule on the dangerous products from these companies, which, until the time of the verdicts, had been proclaimed as flaw-free and safe for consumer use. The jury ruled the MasterCraft boat defective, and Ford Motor Company was hit with a Sacramento County record award of punitive damages for its failures associated with its E350 Econoline Van.
$16.7 Million in Water Intoxication Death Case. Mr. Dreyer represented the family of Jennifer Strange in the highly publicized "water intoxication" death case of 2007. Recognized at the time as the largest wrongful death verdict for non-economic damages in Sacramento County history, Mr. Dreyer held a broadcast company responsible for the actions of its employees, which led to the death of Ms. Strange, mother of three. The verdict effectively changed the broadcasting industry’s approach to radio contests.
$15 Million Settlement for the Wrongful Death of a 12-Year Old. Mr. Dreyer represented the family in an action resulting from the wrongful death of a 12-year old due to being served a peanut-laced treat at a Sacramento County Summer Camp.
$10 Million Verdict Against Commercial Defendant for an undocumented laborer who suffered a traumatic brain injury.
$22 Million Verdict Against Beechcraft Corp for defective plane that caused the death of a couple.
$36 Million Verdict Against Nissan Corporation for a defective vehicle that resulted in an undocumented laborer being paralyzed.
$6.8 Million Verdict in Napa, California for a woman who suffered a mild traumatic brain injury in a motor vehicle collision.
Across the state, Mr. Dreyer has successfully secured seven- and eight-figure verdicts and settlements for recognized institutions like the Sacramento Kings, of the National Basketball Association, down to the individual consumer. His notable case results include many confidential settlements in Polaris product liability cases, $45 million in a construction accident case, and many more.
A Leader in the Field of Personal Injury Law
The sum total of Mr. Dreyer’s life work cannot be defined only by case results, as evidenced by the numerous professional recognitions he’s earned to date.
In 2004, the American Board of Trial Advocates recognized him as Trial Lawyer of the Year for the State of California. In 2010, the Consumer Attorneys of California did the same. In 2012, the Daily Journal recognized Mr. Dreyer as one of the top 100 attorneys in the state. He has also been repeatedly recognized by the peer review publication Super Lawyers® as one of the "Top Ten Super Lawyers" of Northern California.
Mr. Dreyer has been featured by the National Law Journal for obtaining one of the 100 largest verdicts in the United States in 2003, 2009 and 2011. He has been featured in California Lawyer, the State Bar of California's monthly publication, and has been AV Preeminent® Rated* since the late 1980s. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America© since the mid-1990s.
For his breadth of knowledge and experience, Mr. Dreyer has been an invited lecturer in trial practice programs on a wide range of topics, from jury selection to closing arguments for a myriad of professional organizations, including ABOTA, CAOC, and a variety of local trial lawyer chapters throughout the state. He has also been invited to other states to lecture as well.
A Practice Inspired by His Father’s Military Career
Inspired by his parents, Roger has committed his life to advocating for those in need; to making a difference in the world; and to upholding the value of hard work and integrity that he learned early in life.
He spent his childhood traveling the country and much of Europe with his family as his father was a career military officer. The result being that from a young age Roger recognized the importance of family and community better than most. He’s carried this with him throughout his life, nowhere more so than in his personal injury law practice where he advocates for underrepresented groups facing much larger corporations and institutions.
Raised by a father who fought for his country and flew over 40 combat missions in World War II, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart, who was shot down and held as a prisoner of war for almost two years, Roger understands just how fragile life can be. It’s this understanding that sets him apart from other trial lawyers. Catastrophic injury and loss are no strangers to Roger, who grew up exposed to the reality of hardship. He understands the importance of serving others from his parents and he too has committed his life to fighting on behalf of what he knows to be right and just.
When his father retired in the Sacramento region he went to work for the American Red Cross and his family set down roots in the community. Roger has remained in the area since, graduating from Foothill High School then attending the University of California, Davis, where he graduated with honors. He went on to obtain his law degree at the University of California at Hastings in San Francisco, where he learned his calling was to be in the courtroom representing the interests of others and advocating for those who have been wrongfully harmed.
Community-Minded Then & Now
What began for Roger as a way to create community while on the move as a child has evolved into a deeply committed passion for community outreach in local neighborhoods throughout the Sacramento region. One of his proudest contributions involves working with the Child Abuse Prevention Center in Sacramento, where he has served as Chairman of the Board and, most recently, as an executive committee member. Since 1998, Mr. Dreyer has actively helped support the training efforts of this organization, with the goal of one day eliminating child abuse altogether. In 2002, he was recognized by the Non-Profit Resource Center of the Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce as the Outstanding Board Leader for his work with the Child Abuse Prevention Center. He presently serves on the Capital Public Radio NPR Board of Directors helping to insure that the public gets the news from a reliable and trusted source.
Podcast Appearances
Areas of Practice
- Personal Injury Litigation
- Wrongful Death
- Construction Accidents
- Product Liability
- Motor Vehicle Accidents
Honors and Awards
- Selected to the Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Consumer Lawyers list, 2024
- Lawyer of the Year – USA, Civil Trial Advocacy - Lawyer Monthly
- Trial Lawyer of the Year for the State of California, American Board of Trial Advocates
- Trial Lawyer of the Year for the State of California, Consumer Attorneys of California
- Northern California Super Lawyers® listee since its inception and recognized repeatedly in the “Top Ten Super Lawyers"
- Recognized as one of the top 100 attorneys in the state by The Daily Journal
- AV Preeminent® rated by Martindale-Hubbell®
- Listed in The Best Lawyers in America since the mid-1990s, including as recently as 2022
- Recognized by the Non-Profit Resource Center of the Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce as the Outstanding Board Leader for his work for the Child Abuse Prevention Center
- Member, Board of Directors for Capital Public Radio
- Legends of ABOTA Award 2022
*AV®, AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell Distinguished and Martindale-Hubbell Notable are certification marks used under license in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell® is the facilitator of a peer-review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Ratings™ fall into two categories: legal ability and general ethical standards.
