Our Attorneys

Lee W. Cotugno

Lee W. Cotugno obtained his law degree from the University of California at Berkeley (Boalt Hall) in 1977 where he was a Member of the Moot Court Board and graduated summa cum laude from the University of Minnesota in 1973, majoring in Political Science. Prior to joining his present firm, Mr. Cotugno worked for a prominent Los Angeles law firm and litigated a variety of complex business cases. He has tried numerous jury and court trials and has been lead trial and appellate counsel in unfair competition, banking and real estate actions. A substantial portion of Mr. Cotugno's current practice is in the area of employment law, representing corporate officers, employees and workers who have claims against private and public employers for wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, denial of pension and similar benefits, and other violations of state and federal civil rights laws. Mr. Cotugno also advises and represents companies who seek to comply with state and federal employment laws in order to avoid litigation.

Mark Kalisch

Mark Kalisch is the founding partner of the predecessor firm to what is now Kalisch, Cotugno & Rust, LLP. In addition to being qualified to practice law in California, Mr. Kalisch qualified as an English barrister at the Inns of Court School of Law in London and is a member of the Honourable Society of Gray's Inn. He was educated in England where he graduated from the University of Keele in Staffordshire, England in 1975 with BA Honours in Law and Psychology and received the highest degree awarded in law. He also obtained an Honours Degree of Barrister at Law from the Inns of Court School of Law in London in 1977. For nearly 25 years, Mr. Kalisch has been involved in all aspects of civil litigation ranging from unfair competition cases to complex banking and real estate disputes to personal injury cases, and has successfully obtained jury verdicts in the millions of dollars. He also has been lead-counsel in numerous actions concerning partnership and insurance disputes, as well as all types of torts. For more than seven years he has acted as a Judge Pro Tem and settlement officer in the Beverly Hills and Los Angeles Court system, responsible for settling and mediating civil disputes. He has settled hundreds of cases both as a settlement officer, Judge Pro Tem, mediator and arbitrator. He is also frequently appointed by the Los Angeles Superior Court and Beverly Hills Bar Association to act as an arbitrator in commercial and tort disputes. Mr. Kalisch is a director and the Vice-President, Secretary, and legal counsel of the British-American Business Council, formerly known as the British-American Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Kalisch continues to be involved with several charitable and philanthropic organizations.

Richard N. Rust

Mr. Rust is a graduate of Stanford University where he received a BA degree in Economics in 1974. He obtained his law degree in 1977 from the School of Law at the University of California at Los Angeles. He was awarded the Distinguished Advocate Award in the UCLA Moot Court Honors Program. For nearly 25 years, Mr. Rust's practice has been devoted primarily to real estate, corporate and partnership disputes, unfair business practices, and general civil and business litigation. He is an accomplished trial attorney in both state and federal courts, having won several multi-million dollar lawsuits. Mr. Rust also handles commercial arbitrations and civil appellate work. He is a participating attorney in the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) Legal Services Network, where he provides quality legal services to AARP members.