Contact

Gilson Daub

Corporate Headquarters

3005 S El Camino Real

San Clemente, CA 92672

(949) 369-9200

www.gilsondaub.com

The Gilson Daub Evolution

The Growth Journey of Gilson Daub and Brent Daub’s Vision for Leadership and Innovation

"I am fully committed to ongoing growth: geographic expansion, employee footprint growth, new practice area development, and personal development. My team and I are working on expanding our footprint beyond workers’ compensation into the practice areas of longshore, sports and entertainment, and general liability defense in the states we are currently in,” says Brent Daub, Founding Partner of Gilson Daub.

Starting as a San Clemente-based boutique law firm in 2011, Daub has grown the firm to offices in ten states: California, Nevada, Arizona, Hawaii, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Florida, and Indiana. The firm employs 65 people, serving clients in retail, trucking, staffing, hospitality, travel, sports and entertainment, local municipalities, national insurance carriers, and regional third-party administrators. Additional expansions within Florida and across the East Coast are already in the planning stages.

“I was drawn to legal practice with a strong desire to help others in their pursuit of justice. Over the years, I’ve found immense fulfillment in advocating for my clients, ensuring their voices are heard, and guiding them through complex legal challenges. The opportunity to effect positive change and provide solutions in difficult situations is what continues to drive my passion for this profession. Our amazing expansion to a national level has been truly client-driven,” Daub says.

Daub grew up in San Clemente and attended Laguna Hills High School. He earned his B.A. from the University of Central Oklahoma and his Juris Doctor from Pepperdine University School of Law in 2002. He never had an “aha” moment or seriously considered a career in law in his youth, but during his university years, he took a few pre-law courses and discovered that he enjoyed them. Later, he earned an internship at the district attorney’s office, where he got a close-up and in-depth look at the law in action. At that point, he realized that the law was not just an option; it was the option for his future.

After college, he and his wife moved to Orange County. Today, he lives in and oversees the company from its headquarters in San Clemente.

Driven to Exceptional Client Service

The operation is something of a unique family-oriented business. Daub’s father was the firm’s first employee, a man without legal experience who left his real estate and finance career to work opening the mail in his son’s new firm. Today, he serves as the in-house recruitment director, locating and recruiting top talent throughout the country. “My father has been a continual source of inspiration and support,” Daub says.

The heart of their success is a commitment to delivering exceptional client service, fostering strong relationships, and continuously adapting to the ever-evolving legal landscape. Daub takes pride in the forward-thinking attitude of the employees, not just in their approach to the law, but also in how they empower team members to grow and lead within the industry. A fundamental aspect of the firm’s growth is dedicated to maintaining the personalized touch that has been a cornerstone of their practice since day one.

One factor in the firm’s rapid growth is Daub’s well-known focus on fully serving the needs of each client—a trait that flows from leadership throughout the entire organization. “We are now a national organization, but one-on-one total support for every client is our goal. When I’m opening a new office, I’m really selective with whom we want to represent us there because our reputation is everything to us. We want to make sure we’re putting the right leaders in place and not just people who can handle the work. We want the people who can develop, manage, and inspire a team,” Daub says.

He adds, “My approach focuses on leadership development for individual partners and helping them become better team leaders, learn healthy leadership strategies and management styles, and pull the best out of each team. Finding the best people and letting them do what they do best is a proven management technique that works quite well for us.”

Dau

b is quick to note the qualifications of the entire team but singles out two attorneys for their contributions. Managing Partner Julio E. Martinez, who is also based in Orange County, joined the firm in 2023 and has helped increase the firm’s influence in California and expand into Oklahoma and Florida. He currently helps oversee additional growth locally and nationally for the firm.

Jesse Salazar began with the firm in 2013 as an associate attorney and has since worked his way through multiple leadership positions. Recently, he has become Managing Partner over all California operations. As such, Salazar embodies Gilson Daub’s core values of excellent communication, consistent quality, and exceptional character in all his roles. He has built upon the firm’s strong foundation in California and now leads the state into the next season of growth and success. He continues to reside in Orange County but has grown into an influential statewide leader.

One of Salazar’s most noteworthy cases showcases the firm’s approach. They were asked to substitute as the attorney of record on an old high-exposure case. Settlement negotiations had stalled due to a disagreement between the opposing counsel and the prior handling attorney. His instructions were to rebuild rapport with the opposing counsel and restart settlement negotiations. Salazar was able to negotiate a settlement and get it finalized within approximately five weeks.

Daub says, “I am passionate about crafting and communicating a compelling vision for the future, with a great commitment to leadership development in our team. Seeing others excel and become great leaders is one of my favorite parts of my job. My personality strengths of being a future-focused and strategic thinker, coupled with my keen pride in achievement while always remaining open to learning and taking input, help us reach the goals we set for the firm.”

Driving to Nevada and Beyond

The Gilson Daub move to national status began with a request to help on a case in Nevada. Although not licensed in that state at the time, Daub made the right connections, found the right people, and made the right decisions, and the move across state lines began.

He admits to some initial trepidation. One of the major challenges was overseeing more people, more clients, more offices, and a lot more work. He quickly realized the task was too large for any one person. His drive to succeed and the need for action drove out any fears. The quest for the right people was a priority and a search that paid off. “We’ve been very fortunate to raise up some real leaders on the team who help me face the challenges and opportunities with full confidence. They help not only oversee the state that they’re in but sometimes regionally. Trusting those people to lead and help me lead the team, so I don’t have to be involved in every decision, helped us make the transition to a national firm in only two or three years.”

Daub believes in letting every attorney perform according to their own approach, in the way they interact with clients and with other attorneys and staff on the team. “Flexibility is key; each person serves in an area of personal strength and in a way that lets them follow their own passion in the law. All of these different strengths really come together, and we value those contributions. It isn’t just about one attorney being the highest biller and therefore getting promoted. No, we try to identify where their strengths are and put them into those roles,” he says.

Daub focuses considerable effort on training as well. Most graduates coming right out of law school need training for working in the real world. Stepping into that world requires additional development not found in law schools.

One of his chief responsibilities is to ensure that the right leaders are in place to mentor young attorneys, teach and inspire them to achieve and adhere to the firm’s standards in the arenas of law and client service. Someone observes and ensures that the young attorneys progress and grow into fully responsible professionals who meet clients’ needs for full representation.

Driving Down the Road

Today, Gilson Daub is recognized as a national firm with the ability to help clients in many states across the country while still providing local, specialized, and experienced client service. They are a growth firm looking to the future and focusing on developing the next generation of leadership in the legal industry while seeking innovative solutions to improve the litigation process. Each team is held to the highest standards so they are known for consistently achieving outstanding results. Daub’s view is that the attorneys are not only relentless advocates but also trusted partners to those they represent. With a proven track record of success in complex cases and meaningful recognition in the legal field, attorneys can confidently refer clients knowing they’ll receive the highest level of service and expertise. Additionally, they offer a competitive referral payout program, making it a mutually beneficial relationship for both the referring attorney and their clients. Each attorney in each office understands the importance of collaboration and is committed to ensuring the best possible outcomes for every case. These mutually beneficial relationships will continue to be one of the firm’s building blocks into the future.

Gilson Daub has been focusing on leadership development and innovation for more than thirteen years. By building cohesive teams of local attorneys who embrace new technologies and a national vision, they provide a boutique customer service experience on a scalable model. The firm’s commitment to culture, leadership, and technology has provided the foundation for uncommon growth within a collaborative partner team that is committed to a common vision to help the team become the leaders the industry needs for the future.

Given his success route to date, Daub is continually looking for and planning for the opportunities and challenges of the future. He has overseen his firm embrace and master the technologies that make interaction faster, more accurate, and more accessible between attorneys, offices, and clients scattered over ten states. For example, when they first opened in 2011, they began as a paperless office. Because of this technological advantage, the 2020 economic slowdown that affected so many businesses nationwide never slowed down Gilson Daub.

Daub has noticed that law schools are not attracting as many students as in earlier years and, therefore, the number of attorneys available to service clients will necessarily shrink. One of their internal solutions to this challenge is finding members of their staff who might be interested in becoming attorneys. Several employees have taken that opportunity and are now enrolled in law school.