Paul M. Bessette is a senior litigation counsel for the firm and has extensive experience in all aspects of litigation. Mr. Bessette's current practice focuses primarily on product liability and premises liability defense.

Mr. Bessette's varied litigation practice has included commercial and securities litigation, aviation, maritime, toxic tort, asbestos, breast implants, medical malpractice, and insurance coverage.

Prior to joining Brydon Hugo & Parker he was a founding partner in the law firm of Niesar & Diamond LLP where he was part of that firm's litigation and trial team. Prior to that he was a Principal with the San Francisco office of a national litigation defense firm. There, he defended over fifty arbitrations and participated in numerous mediations on behalf of several national aviation companies, insurance companies and product manufacturers.

From 1987 to 1989, he was an attorney with a San Francisco maritime defense law firm where he represented United States marine carriers against cargo, pollution and personal injury claims and handled several construction law matters. Mr. Bessette's expertise in the area of maritime law also includes completing an internship in the Admiralty Section of the United States Department of Justice and working on offshore commercial fishing vessels on the New England Coast.

Mr. Bessette is a member of the American Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, the State Bar of California, the San Francisco Bar Association, and the Defense Litigation Institute. He received his J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 1986 and earned his B.A. degree, Cum Laude, from Boston College in 1980.