Benjamin Ikuta

Partner

Benjamin T. Ikuta is a trial attorney who has been licensed in California since 2008. For his entire career, Ben has focused on cases of wrongdoing against healthcare providers. Ben is a preeminent attorney in prosecuting medical malpractice actions who has tried multiple cases to verdict. He has presented and been published many times on medical malpractice issues.

In July of 2025, Ben was voted into the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), which is one of the most prestigious legal organizations in the United States. Membership is by invitation only and is extended only to those attorneys who have the requisite civil trial experience.

Ben handles complex medical malpractice actions, typically involving serious injury or death. Since 2016, Ben has secured 178 six-figure settlements and 58 seven-figure settlements. He has multiple plaintiff-side jury verdicts in medical malpractice actions. In total, since late 2016, Ben has recovered over $113 million on behalf of clients.

Specifically, Ben has successfully litigated and handled many birth injury cases, including cases of delay in delivery that resulted in neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, acidosis/acidemia, Erb’s palsy, and/or death. Ben has litigated cases in the delay in diagnosis or reporting of lymphoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, basal cell carcinoma, and other types of cancer. Ben has also handled cases involving allegations of elder abuse and dependent adult abuse based on neglect leading to the development of decubitus ulcers, falls, or physical and/or sexual abuse by other residents.

For the majority of his career prior to forming Ikuta Hemesath, LLP, Ben worked for firms that defended physicians, hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, residential care facilities for the elderly in actions of medical malpractice and elder abuse. As a defense lawyer prior to forming Ikuta Hemesath, LLP, Ben routinely secured judgments in favor of healthcare providers and insurance companies and provided counseling and presentations on how to reduce or avoid liability. Ben’s experience as a former medical malpractice defense lawyer provides him with a unique perspective in relation to the tactics and strategies implemented by insurance companies, corporations, and defense attorneys.In 2016, Ben realized that his true calling was not in defending healthcare providers and insurance companies, but rather to work for those injured by wrongdoing. He joined a premier medical malpractice plaintiff-side firm and within five years was made a named partner. Ben’s extensive experience with the best firms on both the plaintiff and defense side prior to forming Ikuta Hemesath provides him the experience and knowledge to obtain the best possible results.

Ben obtained a B.S. in mathematics and a B.A. in economics from UCLA in 2005. In 2008, Ben graduated from the University of California, Hastings college of the law where he was a member of, and published in, the Hastings Law Journal. In 2018, Ben co-founded the Medical Malpractice Trial Attorneys of California. In 2022 through 2025, Ben was appointed to the Board of Directors for the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association (OCTLA). Ben was appointed to the Board of Directors for the Consumer Attorneys of California in 2024 and 2025. Ben was selected as a Super Lawyer in medical malpractice in 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026 in plaintiff-side medical malpractice. From 2017 through 2022, Ben was selected as a Super Lawyer Rising Star in plaintiff-side medical malpractice, which included being selected to the “Up-and-Coming 100: Southern California Rising Stars” from 2019 through 2022 and the “Up-and-Coming 25: Orange County Rising Stars” from 2017 through 2020 and 2022. From 2014 through 2016, Ben was selected as a Super Lawyer Rising Star in defense-side medical malpractice.

Appellate Work

Ben has also contributed significantly to appellate work, frequently drafting amicus and letter briefs on behalf of the Consumer Attorneys of California and the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association. Particularly in medical malpractice matters, his work has helped shaped appellate law in the State of California.

Gutierrez v. Tostado et al. (California Supreme Court case no.S283128)
(On behalf of CAOC, filed an amicus curiae brief seeking reversal of the Court of Appeal. Ben argues that a driver who is rear-ended by an ambulance transporting a patient on a non-emergent basis with its siren and emergency lights off should not be considered medical malpractice.)

Montoya v. Superior Court (Fowler), Case No. G064459
(2025, Fourth Appellate District, Division Three)
(This medical malpractice case held that when a healthcare provider’s negligence makes it impossible to determine the extent of harm, the burden of proof on causation may shift to the defendant. It is the first California decision to apply burden-shifting principles to a malpractice omission.)

Zaragoza v. Adam, Case No. A168100
(2024, First Appellate District, Division Four)
(This medical malpractice case held that expert declarations must specifically address how the surgery was performed—not merely state that the outcome was a recognized complication. A conclusory declaration lacking analysis of the surgeon’s technique was found insufficient.)

Lombardo v. Gramercy Court, Case No. C098857
(2024, Third Appellate District)
(The court found that an agent’s power of attorney, even if broad, did not authorize her to bind the principal or heirs to arbitration. In the context of wrongful death claims against a skilled nursing facility, arbitration could not be compelled without clear authority.)

Hearden v. Windsor, Case No. C098736
(2024, Third Appellate District)
(In this elder abuse and medical malpractice case, the court upheld denial of arbitration under CCP § 1281.2 due to the risk of conflicting rulings. It also clarified that family members cannot be bound by arbitration agreements unless true agency is shown.)

Kernan v. Regents of the University of California, Case No. A162750
(2022, First Appellate District, Division Four)
(This medical malpractice case involving a stillbirth clarified that the statute of limitations does not begin to run merely upon a poor outcome. Without reason to suspect negligence, a plaintiff is not put on inquiry notice under CCP § 340.5.)

Grabowski v. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Case No. D076968
(2021, Fourth Appellate District, Division One)
(This medical malpractice arbitration case was reversed due to the arbitrator’s failure to disclose an ex parte communication with defense counsel. The court emphasized the importance of transparency and impartiality in private arbitrations.)

Filosa v. Alagappan, Case No. A156412
(2020, First Appellate District, Division Four)
(This medical malpractice case clarified that under MICRA, “injury” includes the point at which a condition becomes significantly worse—not just the initial onset of symptoms. The decision addressed how CCP § 340.5’s three-year cap applies in delayed-diagnosis cases.)

McAlpine v. Norman, Case No. C088327
(2020, Third Appellate District)
(This medical malpractice case held that informed consent does not shield a provider from liability for negligently performed procedures. The court emphasized that acknowledging a known risk does not excuse substandard care.)

John Doe v. Good Samaritan Hospital, Case No. F073934
(2018, Fifth Appellate District)
(This medical malpractice case held that a defendant’s expert must articulate both the applicable standard of care and the reasoning behind their opinion. A vague or conclusory expert declaration is not sufficient to support summary judgment.)

Benjamin Ikuta

Ikuta Hemesath, LLP