Petra Emerson is a partner in the Phoenix office of Lewis Brisbois and a member of the General Liability Practice. Ms. Emerson maintains a diverse practice, assisting clients in the areas of insurance defense, professional malpractice, construction and products defects, premises liability, and civil rights. She represents organizations and individuals in federal and state courts at all stages of litigation, including at the appellate level. Throughout her career, Ms. Emerson has served as a trusted advisor to her clients, consistently helping them achieve their business objectives. 

Ms. Emerson has a strong record of success at both the trial and appellate levels. She regularly secures the dismissal of matters brought against her clients through motion practice, including pre-answer and summary judgment motions. At the appellate level, Ms. Emerson has obtained many positive outcomes, with appellate courts affirming summary judgment in her clients’ favor on several occasions. Prior to entering private practice, Ms. Emerson held clerkships within the Arizona Supreme Court, the Arizona Court of Appeals, and the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona.

Publications

Community Service

Admissions

• State Bar Admissions
  • Arizona
  • District of Columbia
• State Supreme Courts
  • Arizona Supreme Court

Awards & Honors

Listed in Best Lawyers in America® — Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch, Appellate Practice, 2021 – 2025

Education

The University of Arizona

Juris Doctor, 2010

• Dean’s List 2010
• J.D. Certificate in International Trade and Business Law
• Morris K. Udall Inn of Court
• Joan M. Ruhtenberg Scholarship for Achievement in Life and Legal Writing
• Pima County Bar Association, Outstanding Student Volunteer of the Month Award
• International Law Society, Committee Chair (organized “Globalization Debate” with Jim Kolbe)
• International Legal Fraternity of Phi Delta Phi, Exchequer

Masaryk University, The Czech Republic

Bachelor of Science, Political Science & Psychology, 2004

Representative Matters

• Secured pre-answer dismissal against therapist accused of professional malpractice;
• Secured pre-answer dismissal based on failure to comply with the notice of claims statute;
• Secured pre-answer dismissal based on lack of personal jurisdiction;
• Secured pre-answer dismissal against trustee sued in personal capacity;
• Won appellate court’s affirmation of summary judgment based on failure to disclose admissible expert opinion;
• Won appellate court’s affirmation of summary judgment based on defamation barred by the statute of limitations;
• Won appellate court’s affirmation of summary judgment based on lack of vicarious liability for negligence of independent contractor;
• Secured dismissal through special action appeal to the superior court after trial before town council stemming from police officer’s demotion.

Judicial Clerkships

• Arizona Supreme Court
  • Justice James P. Beene
• Arizona Court of Appeals, Division One
  • The Honorable Paul J. McMurdie
  • The Honorable Patricia A. Orozco (ret.)
  • The Honorable Donn Kessler (ret.)
• United States District Court for the District of Arizona
  • Extern for the Honorable Frank R. Zapata, Senior Judge