How Emily Helps Clients

Emily Cuatto is a Certified Appellate Specialist who has appeared as lead appellate counsel on behalf of numerous clients, including automobile manufacturers, healthcare entities, and large insurers in the California, Oregon, and Nevada Supreme Courts, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and the California Court of Appeal. In addition to her work briefing and arguing appeals, she frequently partners with trial teams to develop legal strategies and preserve appellate issues during trial. She has served as appellate and trial counsel in a wide range of civil practice areas, including insurance coverage, business torts, catastrophic personal injury, and products liability.

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Emily serves on the California Lawyers’ Association Business Law Section Insurance Law Committee and coordinates the firm's pro bono efforts. Emily is a past recipient of the Harriett Buhai Center for Family Law's Volunteer of the Year award for her work representing on appeal a mother seeking expanded visitation rights with her son.

Emily is a 2016 Fellow of the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD).  The LCLD is an organization of more than 200 members who serve as either general counsel of major corporations or managing partners of leading law firms.  LCLD develops action programs designed to help a new and more diverse generation of attorneys ascend to positions of leadership. 

Before joining Horvitz & Levy, Emily worked in the Santa Monica office of Bingham McCutchen LLP, where she handled a variety of complex commercial litigation matters involving insurance coverage, contracts, employment, and business torts.

Between college and law school, Emily taught middle school special education in New Orleans, Louisiana, through the Teach for America program.

Representative Matters

Yahoo!, Inc. v. National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, PA (2021)
Ninth Circuit rejects insured’s argument for contract damages exceeding the benefit of the insurance bargain.

Putt v. Ford (2021)
Court of Appeal reverses multimillion dollar jury verdict finding Ford 100% at fault in an asbestos case.

Newman v. Larios (2020)
California Court of Appeal affirms a judgment based on a settlement offer made pursuant to California Code of Civil Procedure section 998, and rejects plaintiff’s contentions that acceptance was invalid.

Michery v. Ford (2019)
Ninth Circuit holds that district court did not err in permitting defendant to withdraw comparative fault defense during trial.

Stennett v. Miller (2019)
California Court of Appeal upholds wrongful death statute against equal protection challenge.

Victaulic v. American Home Assurance Co. (2018)
California Court of Appeal reverses $46 million punitive damage award against insurer.

Ochoa-Valenzuela v. Ford (2017)
In products liability case, Ninth Circuit affirms district court’s decision to exclude as irrelevant the testimony of plaintiff’s expert, who was former government lawyer, about the applicable federal motor vehicle safety standard and how the federal agency created it.

Edwards v. Ford (2017)
In products liability case, Ninth Circuit affirms district court decision to instruct jury on only the risk-benefit test for design defect, and not on the alternative consumer expectations test.

Licudine v. Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (2016)
California Court of Appeal adopts “reasonable probability” standard for lost earning capacity damages.

Hartford Casualty Insurance Co. v. J.R. Marketing, LLC (2015)
California Supreme Court permits insurers to seek reimbursement directly from Cumis counsel for objectively unreasonable billings.

Albert v. Mid-Century Insurance (2015)
California Court of Appeal holds that trespass to trees is not covered by a general liability policy.

Cann v. Stefanec (2013)
California Court of Appeal holds that primary assumption of risk doctrine bars suit by college swimmer injured in weight room accident.

Education

• University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law
  J.D., 2008
• Stanford University
  B.A., 2003

Clerkships

• Hon. Milan D. Smith, Jr., U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit (2009-2010)
• Hon. R. Gary Klausner, U.S. District Court, Central District of California (2006) (extern)

Bar Admissions

• California
• Oregon
• Washington
• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
• U.S. District Court, Central District of California
• U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of California

Professional Associations

• California Lawyers’ Association, Business Law Section, Insurance Law Standing Committee
• Association of Southern California Defense Counsel
• Leadership Council on Legal Diversity
• Los Angeles County Bar Association

Awards

• Super Lawyers "Rising Stars" (2014-2018)
• Top 50 Women Rising Stars in Southern California
• Pro Bono Volunteer of the Year Award, Harriett Buhai Center for Family Law (2014)

Publications

• Insurance Law Update, California Lawyers’ Association 2020 Annual Business Law Review (forthcoming)
• Co-Author, Green Sheets, ASCDC Verdict Magazine (2014-present)
• Returning to Rutherford: A Call to California Courts to Rejoin the Legal Mainstream and Require Causation be Proved in Asbestos Cases under Traditional Torts Principles (Nov. 23, 2016) Southwestern Law Review
• When Interpreting Ambiguous Terms, Consistency Prevails (Nov. 12, 2014) Daily J., Insurance Supplement, p. 9
• From Secrecy to Disclosure (Aug. 5, 2013) The Recorder
• In Practice: Post-Trial Motions — To File or Not (June 26, 2013) The Recorder