Hon. Rita “Sunny” Miller

Mediator  •  Arbitrator  •  Referee

Judge, Los Angeles Superior Court, Retired

Personal Injury

​REPRESENTATIVE CASES​

  • 29-year old film school student was killed when an ATV overturned in the sand dunes while students were making a film for a class. The student killed was not enrolled in the University conducting the class. His parents sued that school on the premise that the school had a duty to protect the decedent from the negligent acts of the University's students. The decedent rode in an ATV in sand dunes without a seatbelt. The University alleged Primary Assumption of the risk of an ultra hazardous activity. The three remaining occupants of the ATV wore seatbelts and survived without a scratch, prompting the University to claim that the decedent was 100% responsible for his injuries. Plaintiffs contended that the University had a duty to inquire of the students about what and where they were filming, to protect from unsafe practices and that the University should have known that a dangerous activity -- the use of an ATV on dunes -- was about to occur.


  • Customer claimed he suffered a traumatic brain injury while looking at merchandise at a home improvement store when a metal and mesh door which was raised for him to examine merchandise behind it fell on his head.


  • CHP officer accidentally ran red light he could not see from his position and t-boned car carrying two plaintiffs at close to 55 miles per hour. Their injuries were mostly soft tissue. They had many, many injections and other invasive treatments not amounting to major surgery. Liability is admitted but State claims the injuries were far less severe than claimed and that the medical treatment was not reasonable or necessary.


  • Bicyclist hit pothole on City street and was seriously injured.


  • Plaintiff suffered traumatic brain injury when rear-ended while stopped at a red light.


  • Merchant mariner claimed to have been assaulted and injured by another sailor during a voyage and that he was retaliated against by the ships owner and captain for complaining about the assault.

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  • Defendant driver made a legal left turn across a yellow center line from a driveway. Plaintiff was walking across the street outside any crosswalk. Plaintiff struck her, fracturing her ankle, meniscus, and tibia, requiring three months without weight bearing. Comparative fault at issue.


  • 18-wheeler sideswiped plaintiff's car on freeway pushing her off the road. Plaintiff claimed mild traumatic brain injury and spine damage visible on MRI.


  • Limousine driver hired for the entire evening sought to pick up passengers across the street from night club. Inebriated passenger darted into street to reach limousine and was hit by a car, smashing his cervical spine, requiring 16 pins, fusions, and sustaining other serious injuries. Plaintiff claimed that driver was asked to come to the side of the street where passengers were and refused unnecessarily, despite duties of care of common carrier and foreseeability that passenger would be drunk after a night of clubbing. Limo company denied that it was its limo, and asserted that passenger was violating law vitiating duties.


  • A cable TV installer was injured by an electric shock when he opened a “facility” owned by the defendant company, thinking it was a cable facility. It allegedly was not marked as an electrical facility and was not maintained properly.

  • Plaintiff worked on the ramp at an airline. His supervisor was unhappy with him for talking on the phone at work. The supervisor hit him in the private parts, claiming it was an accident. The airline promptly investigated, put the supervisor off work, and ultimately terminated him. Plaintiff claimed he was harassed after the incident by co-employees, however, he refused to give the names of most of them and the airline claimed that this prevented a meaningful investigation. Plaintiff sued for sexual harassment and other torts.

  • Numerous automobile accidents.

  • Driver of car sued manufacturer where vehicle allegedly rolled out of park, running over and dragging exiting driver.

  • Injured driver sued good Samaritan who extricated her from car after accident, further injuring her.

  • Teenager sued driver who inflicted traumatic brain injury on teen in auto accident.

  • Teenager who suffered traumatic brain injury after being hit by car while crossing in crosswalk sued the driver and municipality, claiming the accident was caused in part by municipality’s landscaping, obscuring driver’s view.

  • Family sued municipality for drowning of minor in public swimming pool, alleging lifeguard negligence.

  • Family sued county and waverunner manufacturer after minor drowned after being pinned underneath waverunner.

  • Minor and family of decedent sued school district for off-campus stabbing of students by gang member after incident at school.

  • Special needs student sued school district for sexual molestation en route to and from school.

  • Family of young adult sued apartment building owner/manager after the young adult fell from rooftop or committed suicide.

  • Injured parties sued building owners for failure to provide adequate security in parking lot and common areas.

  • Arrested party’s family sued law enforcement for excessive use of force, violation of civil rights and wrongful death.

  • Disabled public bus patron sued for failure to secure wheelchair properly and failure to deploy ramp for access to bus.

  • Various parties sued for slip and trip and fall incidents on public sidewalks.

  • Various premises liability disputes.