Practice Areas
Education
J.D., Loyola Law School 2015
B.A., French & Linguistics,
Scripps College 2011
About
Teresa is a trial lawyer practicing in the areas of plaintiff’s personal injury, wrongful death and employment litigation. Along with Dan Kramer, Teresa has second-chaired several trials, and has secured numerous six and seven figure verdicts and settlements for her clients. Since 2016, four of the verdicts have ranked among the top verdicts in the state of California by TopVerdict.com. As her clients’ legal representative during their most difficult times, Teresa handles cases from inception and all the way through trial.
In 2018, Teresa graduated from the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA) Plaintiff Trial Academy, a rigorous six-week course designed to teach advanced trial skills. Teresa has also authored several articles on litigation and trial strategy, and is frequently asked to speak on panels on the same topics.
Prior to joining the firm, Teresa attended Loyola Law School, where she earned her Juris Doctorate in 2015. While at Loyola, Teresa gained experience as a judicial extern to the Honorable R. Gary Klausner in the United States District Court, Central District of California. Teresa was President of the Consumer Law Society and also served on the Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review Editorial Board as the Chief Research Editor. In 2015 after graduating, Teresa completed a Fellowship sponsored by the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), a prominent organization comprised of trial lawyers throughout the nation.
Teresa is currently licensed to practice in California state courts and federal district courts in the Central District of California, and is an active member of several Plaintiff’s bar organizations. Teresa serves as the co-vice chair of the CAALA New Lawyers Committee. In 2021, Teresa was selected as a Finalist for the CAALA Rising Star Award and the CAOC Street Fighter of the Year Award.
Originally from Bloomington, Minnesota, Teresa moved to California in 2007 for her undergraduate degree at Scripps College. When not at work, Teresa enjoys cooking, reading, working out, and going on walks with her cat and boyfriend.
- Awards
- Finalist for 2021 CAALA Rising Star Award
- Finalist for 2021 CAOC Street Fighter of the Year Award
- 2020-2022 Rising Star, SuperLawyers
- May 2011 graduate of Scripps College with honors, cum laude
- Glass Linguistics Prize for Best Linguistics Thesis
- Padelford French Award
- Memberships & Boards
- Member of the Consumer Attorneys Association Los Angeles (CAALA) and Co-Vice Chair of the CAALA New Lawyers Committee, 2021-Present
- Member of the Consumer Attorneys of California (CAOC)
- Affiliate Member of the Loyola Law School Juris Society
- Volunteer Mentor for the Loyola Law School First-Year Student & Alumni Mentor Program
- Publications
- Article: Experts in slip-and-fall and auto-accident cases (Advocate October 2016)
- Article: The Money Cross-Examination of the One-Sided Expert (Advocate October 2017)
- Article: Jury Selection in Premises Liability Cases: Rooting out the Eyerolls (Advocate January 2020)
- Article: The construction-site case from complaint through discovery (Advocate October 2020)
- Article: Don't trip over these common premises-liability defenses (Advocate March 2022)
- Lectures & Speaking Engagements
- 2021 Speaker at the CAOC Convention, MSJ Panel
- 2021 Speaker at the CAALA Annual Las Vegas Convention, Evidence Panel
- 2021 Guest on the Great Trials Podcast
- 2021 Moderator at the CAALA New Lawyers Trial Skills Seminar
- 2021 Speaker at Case Analysis Webinars and Live Event
- 2021 Speaker at the Loyola Law School Consumer Law Society Speaker Series
- 2019 Speaker at the Loyola Law School Consumer Law Society Speaker Series
Case Results
On August 6, 2021, following six days of testimony and under three hours of deliberation at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in Downtown Los Angeles, a panel of 12 jurors awarded $12,622,238.75 in favor of plaintiff, represented by Kramer Trial Lawyers’ Dan Kramer and Teresa Johnson.
Adan Flores was seriously injured when an 80,000 pound tanker illegally pulled out in front of him cause multiple fractures throughout his body and a traumatic brain injury, leaving Mr. Flores in a coma for nearly a month. Liability and damages were hotly contested by the defendants. After 20 depositions, multiple motions, several rounds of written discovery, and the designation of over 40 expert witnesses, the case settled for $6,150,000 on December 6, 2021, just over thirty days before trial.
After a week-long construction site accident trial in Torrance, CA, the jury came back after only 1.5 hours of deliberation with a verdict of $2,847,500.00 in favor of Plaintiff Carlos Salazar.
Verdict against a public entity for a woman who seriously injured her back when falling in a negligently designed restroom. Selected as one of California’s TOP 100 Verdicts for 2016.
Verdict plus Judgment awarding attorney’s fees on behalf of a low-wage garment worker who was terminated after reporting a work injury at a high end jeans company.
A pharmacy technician was on his way to return a bag to a long time customer who had forgotten some items at the store when he rear-ended Dr. Theis in Pacific Palisades.
Our client was at the shooting range with his family when during a cease-fire, he was shot in the abdomen by a man standing two lanes down who improperly handled his gun, causing it to discharge.
Mr. De Peralta, a chef, was terminated when he injured his knee outside of work.