Robert J. Schwartz

As a partner at Gwilliam, Ivary, Chiosso, Cavalli & Brewer, Rob Schwartz exclusively represents plaintiffs in employment, civil rights, and personal injury cases throughout California.

Mr. Schwartz received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Michigan. An idealist, he decided to attend law school to focus on social justice and environmental issues. Mr. Schwartz attended the University of Oregon School of Law, receiving certificates in public service law, pro bono, and environmental and natural resources law. He then served as staff attorney for a Bay Area environmental nonprofit organization.

After two years, Mr. Schwartz was ready for a change, wanting to work more directly with people to make a difference in their lives. He found a home at Gwilliam, Ivary, Chiosso, Cavalli & Brewer, a firm with a long history of important civil rights and personal injury cases, litigated with compassion.

Mr. Schwartz immediately jumped into a complex case involving 130 plaintiffs, who alleged that they were wrongfully terminated because of their age.  After more than six years and two trials, the case finally settled for $37.25 million.  For their work on the case, Mr. Schwartz and his partners, Gary Gwilliam and Randy Strauss, were finalists for the 2016 Trial Lawyer of the Year award given by Public Justice.

That experience taught Mr. Schwartz important lessons both about successfully litigating cases and persevering on behalf of his clients.  He applies those lessons to all his cases, big or small.

Mr. Schwartz specializes in employment discrimination, harassment and retaliation; whistleblower retaliation; civil rights; and personal injury cases.

He is a board member of the Alameda County Bar Association Trial Practice Section and regularly speaks at Minimum Continuing Legal Educations programs.