Current Employment Position(s)

Managing Partner

Lawyer Overview

Ralph W. Thompson III served as Monterey County Deputy District Attorney from 1968 to 1971. He founded Thomas, Panetta & Thompson in 1971.  Partner Donald A. Thomas was appointed to the bench in 1972.  Partner Leon E. Panetta was elected to Congress in 1976 and later served as President Clinton's Chief of Staff.  Mr. Thompson established The Thompson Law Office in 1997 and then Thompson & Bileci, LLP in 2007.  He also offers private arbitration and mediation services.  He and his firm are committed to professional excellence, the highest ethical standards, civility in their business and professional relationships, and service to the community.

The Monterey County Bar Association awarded Mr. Thompson the Chief Justice Phil S. Gibson Award for Outstanding Community Service for 2003.

Areas of Practice

• Trust and Estate Litigation
• Elder Law
• Business and Real Estate Litigation
• Insurance Bad Faith and Coverage Issues
• Wills, Trusts and Probate
• Serious Injury and Wrongful Death Claims
• Professional Negligence

Representative Cases

• Geertz v. Ausonio, 4 Cal. App. 4th 1363 (Court of Appeal, 6th District 1992)

West Practice Categories

Alternative Dispute Resolution, Arbitration, Mediation, Private Judging, Bad Faith Insurance, Trusts, Insurance Law, Litigation & Appeals, Personal Injury -- Plaintiff, Probate & Estate Administration, Products Liability Law, Professional Malpractice Law

Bar Admissions

• California, 1968
• U.S. District Court Central District of California, 1968
• U.S. District Court Eastern District of California, 1972
• U.S. District Court Northern District of California, 1981

Professional Associations and Memberships

• California State Bar Association, 1968 - Present (Member, Chair Litigation/Jury Instructions Section (1984-1986))
• American Bar Association
• Monterey County Bar Association, 1968 - Present (Member, Past President (1995))
• Monterey County Superior Court (Judicial Arbitrator and Mediator)
• Monterey County Trial Lawyers Association (President (1984-1985))
• Consumer Attorneys of California, 1974 - 2000 (Member, Member Board of Governors (1984-1990))
• Legal Services for Seniors (Past President (1993-1995) and Member, Council of Advisors)
• Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, 1998 - Present (Member, Board of Directors (Board Chair, 2000))
• Rotary International

Honors and Awards

• Recipient, Chief Justice Gibson Award for Outstanding Community Service (2003)
• Loma Linda University, Alumnus of the Year Award (1985)

Classes and Seminars

• Instructor in Law, Criminal Law and Criminal Evidence, Monterey Peninsula College, 1969 - 1977
• Adjunct Professor, Administration of Justice, Constitutional Law, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, and Political Science, undergraduate and graduate levels, Golden Gate University, 1971 - 1986
• Professor, Legal and Public Policy Programs, Civil Litigation, Civil Procedure, and Tort and Personal Injury Practice, University of California, Santa Cruz, 1997 - 2001
• Speaker/Panelist, National Convention Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, 1987
• Speaker/Panelist, California Trial Lawyers Association Advocacy College, 1989
• Speaker/Panelist, California Trial Lawyers Association Annual Convention, 1990
• Speaker/Panelist, Mediation and Arbitration, California Judges Association 10th Annual Retired Judges Conference, 1998
• [State of California Standard Teaching Credential (Life), 1969]

Past Employment Positions

• U.S. Treasury Department, Assistant Trust Examiner, 1967 - 1968
• Monterey County District Attorney's Office, Deputy District Attorney, 1968 - 1971

Education

• California Western School of Law, San Diego, California, June, 1967
  Juris Doctorate
• Loma Linda University, Riverside, California, June, 1964
  Bachelor of Arts
  Major: History
  Minor: Political Science
  Minor: French

Ancillary Businesses

• The Thompson Mediation & Arbitration Center

Address

580 Calle Principal
First Floor
Monterey, CA 93940-2812

Phones

(831) 646-1224

Faxes

(831) 646-1225

Emails

rwt@lawmonterey.com

Websites

http://www.lawmonterey.com