Brian Panish honored at Consumer Watchdog's $2M Rage for Justice gala

BEVERLY HILLS -- Consumer Watchdog's 40th annual Rage for Justice Awards brought together legal and civic leaders on Saturday night for a spirited evening of recognition, reflection and advocacy at the Beverly Hills Wilshire Hotel.

The event raised $2 million--twice the 2021 total--according to Consumer Watchdog President Jamie Court, and honored Brian J. Panish of Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP with the Lifetime Legal Achievement Award for his decades-long advocacy for injury victims.

Panish, renowned for record-setting verdicts and mentoring a generation of plaintiffs' lawyers, was recognized for his relentless pursuit of courtroom accountability.

Panish doesn't use the word "rage" lightly--unless he's talking football. A former tackle at UC Fresno and in high school, he smiled as he acknowledged the term's raw origins.

In the courtroom, he said, rage takes on a different form.

"Rage with love fuels truth," Panish told the audience. "It fires my heartbeat."

Looking back on his life and career, Panish described a winding path. "I've had a lot of left turns in my life," he said. "But the journey is the reward."

Then, with a glance toward his wife in the audience, he added, "The best turn is my wife," who is not a football fan at all, he quipped.

Asked why he continues to take on emotionally and legally grueling cases after decades in the field, Panish didn't hesitate. "It's because of the clients, to be their champion. I'm grateful to represent them."

Panish also shared two lifelong lessons that he said shaped his approach to both law and life--lessons first learned on the football field. The first, he said, is simple but relentless: Do hard better. "It never gets easier," he said. "You just learn to do hard better." That mindset, forged in sports, carried over into the courtroom, where the stakes are real and the pressure unrelenting.

The second lesson cuts even deeper: "Be great." Not for the sake of recognition, but because the work demands it. In that spirit, Panish praised the mission of Consumer Watchdog, calling it "more important than ever--not only on a corporate level but in confronting government power." His words landed not as a call to arms, but a call to excellence.

He closed his remarks by sharing a reflection from the world of sports. "The quarterback always gets the credit," he said, "but it's all the team."

California State Sen. Lena Gonzalez, D-Long Beach received the Public Servant Award in recognition of her legislative efforts to end oil drilling in residential communities. Gonzalez, who was not present at the ceremony, has championed environmental justice policies that protect vulnerable neighborhoods from health hazards tied to fossil fuel extraction.

Longtime consumer advocate Michael Finney was also recognized for his watchdog journalism with a special award highlighting his work protecting California consumers from corporate misconduct and deceptive practices.

One of the evening's most pointed moments came during a speech by U.S. Rep. John Garamendi, D-Vallejo, a former California insurance commissioner. Garamendi criticized the current commissioner, Ricardo Lara, for what he described as mishandling wildfire-related insurance claims in Los Angeles County and allowing unjustified premium increases to proceed.

"The commissioner has the power to hold these companies accountable, but he's failing to use it," he said.

The dilemma is not new. "We fought the same game with Allstate back in 1992," Garamendi reminded the audience. That period was marked by disputes over insurance rate regulations and claims handling, particularly in the aftermath of the 1991 Oakland firestorm.

Today, Garamendi continued, "I'm disappointed. There's important work to be done, especially for the victims. They deserve better. We need more dedication--real, urgent action--to stop the harm being caused."