Michael J. Dowd

Michael Dowd was a founding partner of Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP. He has practiced in the area of securities litigation for 20 years, prosecuting dozens of complex securities cases and obtaining significant recoveries for investors in cases such as American Realty ($1.025 billion); UnitedHealth ($925 million), WorldCom ($657 million), AOL Time Warner ($629 million), Qwest ($445 million), Under Armour ($434 million), and Pfizer ($400 million). 

Mike served as lead trial counsel in Jaffe v. Household International in the Northern District of Illinois, a securities class action that obtained a record-breaking $1.575 billion settlement after 14 years of litigation, including a six-week jury trial in 2009 that resulted in a verdict for plaintiffs. Mike also served as the lead trial lawyer in In re AT&T Corp. Sec. Litig., which was tried in the District of New Jersey and settled after only two weeks of trial for $100 million.

Mike served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of California from 1987-1991, and again from 1994-1998, where he handled dozens of jury trials and was awarded the Director's Award for Superior Performance. Mike has received the AV Preeminent certification by Martindale-Hubbell (the highest rating available). He has been named Attorney of the Year by California Lawyer, one of the Top 100 Lawyers by the Daily Journal, and a Leading Lawyer in America, Hall of Fame, a Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyer by Lawdragon, a Super Lawyer by Super Lawyers Magazine, and a Best Lawyer in America and Best Lawyer in Southern California by Best Lawyers®. Additionally, the National Association of Corporate Directors’ NACD Directorship magazine named him to their Directorship 100, which recognizes those individuals who have had a profound impact and the greatest influence on corporate governance. Mike received the 2024 Hon. David H. Bartick Award for Civility and Professionalism from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

Mike graduated from Fordham University, magna cum laude, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Latin. While at Fordham, he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from University of Michigan Law School. 

• Rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell
• Director’s Award for Superior Performance, United States Attorney’s Office
• Best Lawyer in America, Best Lawyers®, 2015-2025
• Hon. David H. Bartick Award for Civility and Professionalism, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, 2024
• Recommended Lawyer, The Legal 500, 2016-2019, 2023-2024
• Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyer, Lawdragon, 2019-2024
• Top Lawyer in San Diego, San Diego Magazine, 2013-2022
• Southern California Best Lawyer, Best Lawyers®, 2015-2021
• Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers Magazine, 2010-2020
• Lawyer of the Year, Best Lawyers®, 2020
• Hall of Fame, Lawdragon, 2018
• Litigator of the Year, Our City San Diego, 2017
• Leading Lawyer in America, Lawdragon, 2014-2016
• Litigator of the Week, The American Lawyer, 2015
• Litigation Star, Benchmark Litigation, 2013
• Directorship 100, NACD Directorship, 2012
• Attorney of the Year, California Lawyer, 2010
• Top 100 Lawyers, Daily Journal, 2009

University of Michigan Law School, J.D., 1984

Fordham University, B.A., 1981, History and Latin, magna cum laude

• Phi Beta Kappa

• California
• New York
• United States Courts of Appeals for the Sixth, Seventh, and Ninth Circuits
• United States District Courts for the Central and Southern Districts of California
• United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
• United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin

Notable Cases