Ms. McHugh Cardenas is a seasoned litigator and trial/appellate attorney with extensive experience defending commercial insureds (including WRAPS) and municipalities in a wide variety of construction-related cases (construction contracts, defect, delays, cost overruns, mechanic’s liens), real estate law (including transactional), catastrophic injury, premises liability, habitability, subrogation, property damage and professional negligence cases, among others. Her mediation, trial, binding arbitration, and appellate experience includes claims from subrogation to negligence in property management, complex construction claims running the gamut from $12 million spec homes to tract homes, multiuse high rises to hotels and condominiums throughout the State of California. Her clients have included real estate developers, construction general and sub-contractors, and various private business entities in insurance and non-insurance matters in both state and federal courts. Meighan continues to aggressively protects her clients’ interests in the courtroom while negotiating strategic business solutions that provide optimal value to the client.
Ms. McHugh Cardenas graduated California State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. Having discovered organic chemistry is a language unknown to man, Ms. McHugh Cardenas realized a career in law, or anything except medicine, was calling. Ms. McHugh Cardenas earned her Juris Doctorate in 2003, and was admitted to practice the following year. She is licensed to practice in both California state and federal courts. Over the course of her career Ms. McHugh Cardenas has held positions with ever increasing responsibility and continued successes. Meighan’s most recent accomplishment was successfully defending a writ petition in the Third District regarding an HOA’s standing to press SB800 (Right to Repair Act) claims on behalf of its members culminating in a published opinion. (River’s Side at Washington Square Homeowners Association v Superior Court of Yolo County (River’s Side, LLC) (2023) 88 Cal.App.5th 1209).