Donna Tobar

Donna Tobar provides a full range of litigation and counseling services in the arenas of public and private construction projects, suretyship, and contractual disputes. She has worked in various legal settings, including litigation (state court, federal court, appellate court), mediation, appellate practice, and informal settings (including acting as project attorney for ongoing construction projects).

Donna has prepared, advocated and successfully resolved a large variety of claims and legal issues. Representative claims and issues that she has handled for construction matters include, but are not limited to: Total cost claims, productivity and delay claims, change order claims, claims for defective workmanship, contract compliance on live construction projects, pass through claims, insurance coverage, labor audits and reviews, stop notice claims, mechanic’s lien claims, False Claims Act claims

Donna has also handled transactional and surety-specific matters, including: Performance bond claims, takeover efforts by sureties, indemnity transactions, liquidation and claims, bankruptcy and insolvency matters, payment bond claims, bad faith claims, surety financing.

Donna also has a substantial amount of experience on public works projects and has successfully handled business contract disputes and alter ego matters, among other claims and legal issues. 

  1. General Information

    Education

    • University of California, Los Angeles, J.D., 2002
    • Moot Court Honors
    • Phi Delta Phi Legal Honor Society
    • University of California, Irvine, B.A., 1998, magna cum laude
    • Phi Beta Kappa
    • Order of Omega Honor Society
    • Psi Chi International Honor Society

    Bar Admissions

    • California

    Court Admissions

    • U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit
    • U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
    • California Supreme Court
    • U.S. District Court for the Eastern, Central, Northern and Southern Districts of California
  2. Memberships & Affiliations
    • American Bar Association
    • Los Angeles County Bar Association
    • Orange County Bar Association
    • National Association of Women in Construction
    • National Association of Women Lawyers
    • California Associated General Contractors
  3. Publications and Presentations
    • Chapter Author: “Types of Construction Claims,” California Construction Law Manual, 2011.
    • Author: “Foreign Construction Projects: Assessing The Need For Political Risk Insurance,” From The Ground Up, Summer 2003.
    • Author: “Bribery Abroad,” California Lawyer, February 2003.
    • Author: “The Need For A Uniform Void Ab Initio Standard For Violations Of The Automatic Stay,” Whittier Law Review, Fall 2002.