Preparing Clients for Their Deposition: Recommendations from Both Sides of the Table

Susan L. Gutierrez is a partner in the Litigation Department and co-head of Proskauer Rose LLP’s Mass Torts & Product Liability Group. 

As a commercial litigator and trial attorney, Susan specializes in high-stakes matters and complex disputes across industries. She has tried multiple high-profile cases to verdict in state and federal courts throughout the country. Susan also has significant experience coordinating and managing large, complex actions from the pleading stage through discovery and trial, including cross-jurisdiction matters involving multiple parties, counsel, and case issues. She represents many Fortune 500 companies in consumer products, pharmaceutical, media and entertainment and sports industries, including AbbVie, Meta, Sandoz Inc., Gilead Sciences, Johnson & Johnson, McDonald’s and National Football League.

Susan has consistently been named a Future Star by Euromoney’s Benchmark Litigation. Susan was also recognized as one of LABJ‘s 2021 Minority Leaders of Influence. In 2019, Law360 named Susan a Rising Star in Trials. Law360’s Rising Star list recognizes attorneys nationwide under 40 whose legal accomplishments transcend their age. Susan was also named to the Daily Journal’s Top 40 Under 40 in California, and Rising Star (Litigation: Trial Lawyer) by Euromoney Americas in 2019.

Mythily Sivarajah is Senior Counsel at Peck-Law, Employment & Civil Rights, where she represents employees in cases involving discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblower claims, defamation, wage and hour violations, and wrongful termination. With more than seventeen years of experience exclusively on the plaintiffs’ side, Mythily has devoted her entire legal career to advocating for workers’ rights and advancing social justice in the workplace.

Mythily has broad and deep litigation experience, having successfully handled employment and civil rights cases of varying complexity through all stages of litigation, from pre-suit investigation to trial. She has served as trial counsel in multiple cases tried to verdict in both California state and federal courts, achieving positive results on behalf of numerous plaintiffs against private employers, corporations, and public entities alike.

Recognized by her peers for excellence in advocacy, Mythily has been named a Super Lawyer every year from 2020 through 2025, following earlier recognition as a Rising Star in 2017 and 2018 by Super Lawyers Magazine. Mythily earned her Juris Doctor from the University of San Francisco School of Law and her Bachelor of Science from Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

Alexis Gamliel is the Founder and Principal Trial Attorney of Gamliel Law, an elite litigation firm focusing on employment matters, as well as personal injury and wrongful death cases. Equipped with deep litigation experience, Alexis dedicates her craft to the fight for justice for California consumers and employees. In her employment practice, Alexis handles a diverse array of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination matters. As a women’s rights advocate, Alexis maintains a particular affinity for representing clients in pregnancy discrimination, sex and gender discrimination, and sexual harassment cases. She takes pride in giving her clients light and hope in some of their darkest days.

Combining discerning focus with real compassion, Alexis gives each case the thoughtful attention it deserves. She applies meticulous performance to attain justice for those who have been wronged, and her results speak for themselves. For example, Alexis’s first jury trial resulted in a seven-figure verdict after she argued for and obtained substantial punitive damages. Since then, Alexis has continued to try cases and advocate for her clients in and out of the courtroom. In recognition of her work and reputation in the legal community, Alexis was recently included on the following prestigious lists: “Up-and-Coming 100: 2024 Southern California Rising Stars” and “Up-and-Coming 50: 2024 Women Southern California Rising Stars.”

Alexis is committed to giving back to the community, and she highly values building relationships. As a leader in the legal arena, Alexis serves on the Board of Directors for the Consumer Attorneys of California (CAOC), a statewide professional organization with thousands of members. Over the years, she has served as a dedicated member of CAOC, Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA), and the American Association for Justice (AAJ).

Born in Los Angeles and raised in Northern California, Alexis graduated with Honors from UCLA with a B.A. in Global Studies, and then spent the following two years living in Tel Aviv, Israel and working in business consulting. She then earned her J.D. at Loyola Law School where she served as the President of the Consumer Law Society (now, the Trial Lawyers Association) and President of the Jewish Law Students Association. Upon graduating from Loyola Law School, Alexis was selected by her peers, professors, and deans as the recipient of the distinguished Alumni Association Award. Alexis is also a proud alumna of Loyola Law School’s Byrne Trial Advocacy Team, a nationally ranked competitive trial team through which she received intensive, individualized training in all aspects of trial work.

As a thought leader in the legal field, Alexis is a sought-after speaker and author. She has been a featured speaker and moderator at numerous legal conferences and events across the state, and her written work has been published in widely circulated legal publications, including CAALA’s Advocate Magazine.