Sean E. Ponist

Practice areas

Business Litigation, Construction Litigation: Business, Real Estate: Business, Civil Litigation: Plaintiff, Civil Litigation: Defense, Criminal Defense: White Collar, Elder Law

Focus areas

Construction Defects, Landlord/Tenant

Sean E. Ponist stands as a respected trial lawyer and is both the founder and proprietor of Ponist Law Group, P.C. This law firm maintains offices in both San Diego and San Francisco. Leveraging his expertise as a skilled civil litigator and a former prosecutor, Mr. Ponist exerts a formidable presence in the courtroom, advocating passionately on behalf of his clients. His practice encompasses the representation of individuals and businesses throughout the state in a diverse array of legal disputes, including real estate, business, and construction matters, along with cases involving financial elder abuse and government enforcement actions (white collar defense). His extensive track record boasts over 35 trials concluded to verdict, underscoring his substantial litigation and trial experience that he brings to his clients’ representation.

In recognition of his outstanding achievements, Mr. Ponist has received the esteemed distinction of being named a “Super Lawyer” for over a decade—an honor accorded to less than 5% of attorneys. Moreover, he holds membership as a fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, an honorary society reserved for the top echelon of trial lawyers, encompassing less than one-half of 1% of legal practitioners, judges, and scholars across North America. His merit has also been acknowledged with the “Best of the Bar” designation by the San Diego Business Journal.

Mr. Ponist’s legal purview encompasses a wide spectrum of high-stakes civil litigation matters, spanning real estate disputes (ranging from purchase and sale conflicts to issues of nondisclosure and broker malpractice, as well as commercial unlawful detainer and other real property concerns), construction-related disputes (encompassing construction delays, design and construction defect cases, mechanic’s liens, and additional construction-related issues), business litigation (including breach of contract cases, officer and director liability, unfair competition, business insurance claims, securities litigation, and other business partnership and corporate disputes), as well as cases concerning financial elder abuse and government enforcement actions (white collar defense).

Beyond his legal practice, Mr. Ponist also takes an active role in legal associations. He serves on the Board of the Real Property Section for the San Francisco Bar Association (BASF), having also held prominent positions such as Chair of the Civil Litigation Section and the Real Property Section for the San Diego County Bar Association (SDCBA), and serving on the Board of the Construction Law Section for the SDCBA.

Mr. Ponist has further extended his expertise through educational endeavors, delivering lectures on legal subjects for various bar associations and other legal education providers. His topics of presentation have included subjects like “Deconstructing Commercial Leases,” “Commercial Real Estate Brokerage Standard of Care,” “Assessing Damages in Real Estate Cases,” “Optimal Utilization of Experts in Real Estate Cases,” “Agency Issues In Real Estate,” “Handling Troubled Real Estate Deals,” “Agent-Principal Relationship,” and “Effective Examination Techniques for Civil Litigators.”

Educationally, Mr. Ponist acquired his Juris Doctor degree from UC Davis School of Law in 1999. Prior to entering law school, he pursued his undergraduate studies at UCLA, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy in 1995 and receiving the distinction of being a Departmental Scholar. He holds admission to practice before all California federal and state courts, the California Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court.