Hon. Chad W. Firetag (Ret.) brings extensive judicial and legal experience to JAMS, serving as an arbitrator, mediator, referee and neutral evaluator. With a distinguished judicial career spanning a decade in the civil and family courts, combined with prior experience as a private practitioner and later an administrator in a public agency, Judge Firetag offers a offers comprehensive perspective in resolving complex disputes across a wide range of legal areas.

During his service as a judge on the Superior Court, Judge Firetag presided over a broad spectrum of civil matters, including employment disputes, commercial litigation, business conflicts, breach of contract cases, catastrophic personal injury claims and environmental matters, including CEQA writs of mandate, land use disputes and eminent domain cases. He also handled sensitive sexual abuse cases, reflecting his judicial temperament and skill in managing emotionally charged and legally complex matters.

Judge Firetag also served in several key leadership roles within the court. From 2022 to 2025, he was the supervising civil judge of the Riverside Superior Court, where he oversaw the administration and management of the civil division. Additionally, he served on the court’s Appellate Division from 2020 to 2025 and was appointed presiding judge of the Appellate Division between 2022 and 2025. 

In his appellate role, Judge Firetag authored and joined in numerous opinions involving property-related disputes, including commercial and individual rental disputes. Many of these decisions involved high-conflict disputes between business partners and/or individuals.

Judge Firetag was honored by several bar associations during his time on the court. In 2021, he was named Douglas Weathers Judge of the Year by the California Attorneys of the Inland Empire (CAOIE) and, in 2024, Trial Judge of the Year by the San Bernardino-Riverside chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). He is still active in the Riverside County Bar Association, having served as its president from 2014 to 2015. 

Prior to his judicial service, Judge Firetag established himself as a skilled trial attorney, successfully taking more than 35 cases to verdict. In one of his largest cases, he served as counsel in a complex white-collar fraud case that resulted in a five-month trial with dozens of lay and expert witnesses. He was drawn to this case precisely because of its challenging nature, reflecting his commitment to handling complex legal matters that demand meticulous preparation, strategic thinking and sustained advocacy. This case and his many other trial cases provided him with valuable insight into the litigation process and the practical considerations that drive case resolution.

Judge Firetag's combination of trial advocacy experience, comprehensive judicial background and proven leadership in court administration uniquely positions him to serve those seeking efficient and effective resolutions to their disputes.

Representative Matters

While on the bench, Judge Firetag presided over a wide variety of matters, including:

• Automotive
• Handled and managed hundreds of cases involving the largest automakers; resolved numerous discovery disputes through informal discovery conferences (“IDCs); ruled on many demurrers, motions for summary judgment and motions for judgment on the pleadings
• Presided over a lengthy trial involving claims of fraud and the Song-Beverly Act with major automaker
• Business Commercial
• Presided over a large, multimillion-dollar commercial dispute involving numerous businesses that involved the interpretation of land use rights and decades-old covenants
• Presided over a dispute between general and subcontractor corporate entities involving large government contract
• Presided over numerous business disputes between business partners and corporate entities; in some situations, Judge Firetag was able to settle these matters both pre- and mid-trial 
• Presided over dissolutions of partnerships, corporate entities and commercial organizations
• Cannabis
• Heard dozens of cases involving cannabis nuisance abatement
• Presided over many contract disputes between cannabis business partners
• Civil Rights
• Presided over a trial involving civil rights/excessive force claims involving members of the public and the police
• Handled a writ of mandate proceeding where a college professor claimed that he was terminated, in violation of his First Amendment rights
• Elder Abuse & Fraud
• Presided over a lengthy trial involving allegations of mistreatment against an assisted living facility by an elderly woman who suffered significant injuries from pressure ulcers that resulted in debridement surgery
• Managed numerous cases involving elder abuse from various facilities, including skilled nursing facilities, residential care facilities for the elderly and assisted living facilities
• Handled several matters alleging financial elder fraud
• Employment Law
• Presided over a trial involving allegations of wrongful termination, retaliation and other California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) claims against Fortune 500 company
• Presided over a trial involving the California Whistleblower Protection Act (Gov. Code § 8547.8(c)) against large governmental entity
• Handled numerous writs of mandate involving public employees against public entities post-arbitration
• Handled and tried employment cases involving a wide range of issues, from wrongful termination to discrimination to sexual harassment to disability discrimination, under FEHA and the California Labor Code
• Handled and tried numerous wage and hour cases
• Environmental Law
• Handled cases involving land use issues, including short-term rentals (STRs), property disputes and conditional use permit issues
• Presided over several CEQA matters; these matters included litigation regarding the lawfulness of a city’s general plan, numerous disputes regarding warehouse construction and the evaluation of a public entity’s environmental impact report
• Family Law
• Presided over numerous community property disputes, including valuation of family businesses (Van Camp/Pereira) and characterization/valuation of community/separate property (Moore/Marsden)
• Determined high-conflict custody issues, including move-away orders, orders tailored to children with special needs and UCCJEA determinations
• Presided over both temporary and permanent child support and spousal support determinations, including Family Code section 4320 trials
• Facilitated custom-designed outcomes through settlement, including being assigned by the presiding judge as one of two judges to mediate hundreds of family law cases during September and October 2020 in response to the backlog during the pandemic
• Governmental & Public Agency
• Handled numerous lawsuits against state and local agencies involving the Government Torts Claims Act; actions included land use challenges, personal injury lawsuits, sexual abuse allegations and civil rights
• Handled eminent domain and condemnation proceedings between landowners and state and local governments
• Presided over trial involving wrongful death claims against the State of California for dangerous condition of public property
• Handled a challenge to a county assessor’s valuation for tax purposes of a large shopping complex under the California Revenue and Taxation Code
• Insurance
• Handled cases involving insurance claims for property loss and bodily injury
• Handled breach of contract, bad faith policy cancellation and unfair business practices cases against insurance companies
• Personal Injury
• Presided over numerous trials involving serious bodily injury, including traumatic brain injuries, spinal injuries, and lifetime care planning and medical needs assessments
• Presided over a case involving allegations of TBI regarding a baby that had fallen out of a shopping cart
• Presided over a case involving a vehicle that rolled over after begin struck by a semi-tractor trailer on the freeway
• Presided over numerous cases involving auto accidents involving soft tissue damage, spinal paralysis and wrongful death
• Professional Liability
• Handled multiple medical malpractice cases, including allegations of negligence during surgery, a misdiagnosis of a cancer patient and wrongful death
• Presided over several matters involving legal malpractice claims
• Real Property
• Handled eminent domain cases involving state and local agencies
• Handled actions regarding title disputes, easements and nuisance actions; these actions included litigation between individuals, corporate entities and governmental entities
• Handled a challenge to a county assessor’s valuation for tax purposes of a large shopping complex under the Revenue and Taxation Code
• Sexual Abuse & Assault
• Presided over a trial against a school district that involved two students who were sexually abused by their teacher when they were in middle and high school
• Presided over and handled a case involving a woman who was sexually abused by her stepfather but had also alleged that their church was negligent during the course of the abuse
• Managed several cases involving sexual abuse allegations against various community organizations, including churches, sporting and recreational associations, and private individuals

Honors, Memberships, and Professional Activities

• Trial Judge of the Year, Consumer Attorneys of Inland Empire (CAOIE), 2021
• Trial Judge of the Year, San Bernardino-Riverside Chapter, American Board or Trial Advocates (ABOTA), 2025
• President, Riverside County Bar Association, 2014–2015

Background and Education

• Judge, Riverside Superior Court, 2015–2025
  • Supervising Civil Judge, 2022–2025
• Judge, Appellate Division, Riverside Superior Court, 2020–2025
  • Presiding Judge, Appellate Division, Riverside Superior Court, 2022–2025
• Judge, Appellate Division, Riverside Superior Court, 2020-2022
• Assistant Public Defender, Riverside County, 2013–2015
• Partner, Grech & Firetag, 2002–2013
• Associate, Rutan & Tucker, 2001–2002
• J.D., University of California, Davis School of Law
• B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, University of California, Riverside