Charles Douthat

A member of the firm, Charles Douthat has been an active trial lawyer in Connecticut for over 25 years. Among judges and other lawyers, Charles is widely known for his courtroom skills, his tenacity, and his innovative approaches to complex and challenging cases. His practice is primarily devoted to representing clients seriously injured by medical malpractice, dangerous products, and in workplace accidents. He has achieved a number of large verdicts and million dollar settlements for his clients.

A few examples of Charles’ cases include:

He represented a teenage girl who was partially blinded by a parasite passed to her from a diseased puppy her parents bought at a local pet store. Charles filed a lawsuit alleging the puppy was a dangerous product under the Connecticut Product Liability Act. The trial court upheld this innovative claim, and the case settled shortly before trial for over one million dollars.

He represented Donny T, a young boy hospitalized with a head injury after running into a street and being hit by a car. From a coma, Donny was awakened when his family brought his dog into his hospital room. Using computer graphics, Charles was able to reconstruct the accident and show the driver’s fault. The case settled at the start of trial for $460,000.

He represented an elderly woman whose bladder was punctured during a routine interventional radiology procedure. She developed peritonitis and remained in the hospital for over a year. The case was initially rejected as too difficult to prove by several other law firms. Eventually, Charles was able to obtain hospital records initially withheld which documented the physician’s negligence. The case settled on the first day of trial for a confidential amount.

He represented a machinist whose hands were injured while operating a computerized lathe manufactured by a Japanese corporation. Charles brought the case in United States District Court, claiming the lathe was defectively designed. After the first trial witness, the Japanese company withdrew all settlement offers. The jury awarded $560,000.

He represented the family of a construction site elevator operator who fell seventeen stories to his death at a hotel under construction at the Mohegan Sun reservation. Charles was able to prove that the elevator malfunctioned due to the installation of a defective brake part. The case settled after four days of court-sponsored mediation for a confidential amount.

Charles has been recognized for excellence by his fellow lawyers who selected him for membership in Outstanding Lawyers of America. He has been rated AV (the highest possible rating) by Martindale Hubbell, the attorney rating service. He has been appointed and served as an Attorney Trial Referee, Arbitrator, and Special Master in the Connecticut Superior Court.

Charles was born in Santa Monica, California where he attended public schools before graduating from Stanford University. He received his law degree from Hastings College of the Law. Before joining JGBDK, Charles was a partner for many years in the AV rated, New Haven law firm, Jacobs & Jacobs.

Charles lives in New Haven and is a parishioner at St. Mary’s Church on Hillhouse Avenue. His son Ross, a graduate of Hamden Hall, writes for the Atlantic Monthly. His daughter Jeanne, a graduate of Sacred Heart Academy in Hamden, attends Yale University.