Spencer’s practice focuses on catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death cases involving gas explosions and gas exposure, defective products, vehicular collisions, dangerous conditions of public and private property, and medical malpractice.
Outside of his practice at Walkup, Spencer also teaches at the University of California – Berkeley Law School and is the Co-Director of its Trial Competition Program
In recent years, Spencer’s practice has involved multiple catastrophic injury and death cases involving the dangers of leaking gas in northern California, southern California, and outside California. Leaks of natural gas and propane in home heating systems pose a considerably underappreciated risk of catastrophic explosion and burn injuries in homes and businesses. Likewise, leaking nitrogen gas in the commercial food processing industry presents the risk of asphyxiation as nitrogen displaces oxygen in confined spaces. Spencer’s recent focus has also included traumatic brain injury cases in which high-functioning individuals suffer mild traumatic brain injuries, which in fact result in considerable loss of earning capacity for individuals who had previously been a star performer at work. While Spencer’s practice involves all manner of catastrophic injury, these are among his recent focuses.
In addition to his teaching, he co-directs Berkeley Law’s external trial competition program and coaches multiple trial advocacy teams. Under Spencer’s guidance, the program has risen to national prominence, having won many national honors and distinctions, including several national championships. Spencer has served as the Regional Representative for Northern California, Nevada, Arizona, and Hawaii in the National Association of Legal Advocacy Educators.
Spencer has taught, lectured, and led discussions on trial advocacy, tort law, and the practice of law at institutions including Harvard Law School, the University of Chicago, the University of Texas, the University of Michigan School of Law, Universidad de Monterrey (Mexico), San Francisco State University, and UC Berkeley. Spencer has also been an invited lecturer at Baylor University’s prestigious School of the Trial, hosted annually in St. Andrews, Scotland. Spencer’s teaching includes instruction at the Public Defender’s Offices of San Francisco and Sacramento Counties, Bay Area Legal Aid, as well as training fellow plaintiff’s lawyers in private workshops.
In keeping with his focus on teaching and training, Spencer helped found the National Plaintiff’s Law Association, which now has 50 member chapters across the country. Serving as a member of the NPLA’s advisory board, Spencer helps law students find their path to plaintiff’s side practice by mentoring them in law school and beyond.
Spencer founded the Bay Area Trial League, a program that gives young attorneys real-world trial advocacy experience by having them try cases in front of real jurors. This unique program offers younger lawyers the chance to conduct voir dire, do opening statements and closing arguments, and examine witnesses, with the witnesses being trained actors. The program is designed to be a stepping stone for young lawyers to strengthen their skills and take them to a real courtroom.
Spencer joined the Walkup firm in 2007 and practices all types of personal injury litigation in all courts within the State of California.
