PROFILE

Since he joined the firm in 1979, Mr. Geraghty's work has been devoted exclusively to litigation and trial practice before state and federal courts. He has assumed lead counsel responsibilities in all of his trials, which have included both civil and criminal law, as well as proceedings before the OSHA Review Board, the Alaska State Commission on Human Rights and the U.S. Land Commission. He has tried cases before juries in Fairbanks, Anchorage, Barrow, Kenai and Dillingham. Mr. Geraghty has been selected in The Best Lawyers in America in the specialties of Construction Law and Personal Injury Litigation since 2007 and he has also been recognized as a “Superlawyer” by Washington Law & Politics magazine since 2008. In 2005 he was appointed by the Governor to serve Alaska as a Uniform Law Commissioner to the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. In 2007 he was honored by his peers when he received the Board of Governors Professionalism Award “in recognition of exemplary conduct in his association with the public, his colleagues and the legal community.”

PRACTICE DESCRIPTION

Born and raised in Alaska, Mr. Geraghty's practice has focused on industries and areas that reflect this state's growth and history, including natural resources, oil and gas and construction. He has been involved in numerous complex litigations, including class actions and anti-trust. Many, if not most, of these cases pose unique challenges in terms of developing orderly plans for discovery, document production, depositions of witnesses and experts, and other related matters.

He has handled approximately 20 appeals to the Alaska Supreme Court in the areas of sovereign immunity, administrative law, insurance and bad faith, attorney-client privilege, OSHA regulations, personal injury, products liability and premises-landowner liability. His reported cases include:

• Harris v. Ahtna Government Services Corp., 193 P.3d 300 (Alaska 2008)
• Kirk v. Demientieff, 145 P.3d 512 (Alaska 2006)
• Halliburton Energy Services v. State of Alaska, Department of Labor Division
  of Labor Standards and Safety, Occupational Safety and Health Section,
  2 P.3d 41 (Alaska 2000)
• McCubbins v. State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources,
  Division of Parks and Recreation, 973 P.2d 588 (Alaska 1999)
• State of Alaska v. State Farm, 939 P.2d 788 (Alaska 1997)
• State of Alaska v. Sanders, 944 P.2d 453 (Alaska 1997)
• City of Dillingham v. CH2M Hill Northwest, Inc., 873 P.2d 1271 (Alaska 1994)
• Central Constr. Co. v. The Home Indem. Co., 794 P.2d 595 (Alaska 1990)
• Lake v. Constr. Mach., Inc., 787 P.2d 1027 (Alaska 1990)
• Myers v. Snow White Cleaners, 770 P.2d 750 (Alaska 1989)
• Ogle v. Craig Taylor Equip. Co., 761 P.2d 722 (Alaska 1988)
• Wade Oilfield Serv. Co. v. Providence Washington Ins. Co., 759 P.2d 1302
  (Alaska 1988)
• Cheeks v. Wismer & Becker, 742 P.2d 239 (Alaska 1987)
• Exxon Corp. v. Alvey, 690 P.2d 733 (Alaska 1984)
• Miller v. Northside Danzi Constr. Co., 629 P.2d 1389 (Alaska 1981)
• Black v. Universal Services, Inc., 627 P.2d 1073 (Alaska 1981)
• Ribar v. H & S Earthmovers, 618 P.2d 582 (Alaska 1980)
• Board of Educ. v. Ewig, 609 P.2d 10 (Alaska 1980)

Michael’s approach is client-focused, solution-driven and premised on providing timely and superior service.

PROFESSIONAL AND COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES

• Uniform Law Commissioner, National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws
• American Bar Association Litigation Section and Construction Industry Forum
• Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel (FDCC)

EDUCATION

• University of Santa Clara, J.D., Cum Laude, 1978
• University of Hawaii, B.A., Political Science, 1974

BAR AND COURT ADMISSIONS

• Alaska Bar Association
• United States District Court for the District of Alaska
• United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit