About Bracamontes & Vlasak, P.C. · San Francisco
Bracamontes & Vlasak, P.C. (BV Law) is a Bay Area plaintiff-side litigation practice founded in 2008 by trial lawyers Michael R. Bracamontes and Ryan J. Vlasak. With offices in San Francisco and Oakland, the firm exclusively represents individuals and families — never corporations, banks, or insurance companies — in personal injury, tenant rights, employment, civil rights, and consumer cases throughout Northern California. Most matters are handled on a contingency basis, and the firm is known for major tenant-side verdicts and settlements, including multi-million-dollar results in habitability, fire, wrongful-eviction, and brain-injury matters.
Bracamontes & Vlasak, P.C., known as BV Law, was founded in October 2008 in San Francisco by Michael R. Bracamontes and Ryan J. Vlasak. Both partners met while litigating on opposite sides of the bar and joined forces to build a plaintiff-side practice dedicated to individuals and families who have been harmed by landlords, employers, corporations, insurance companies, and government actors. Today the firm operates from two offices — 220 Montgomery Street, Suite 2100, in San Francisco's Financial District and 1901 Harrison Street, Suite 1590, in Oakland — and serves clients across the Bay Area and the State of California. The firm's practice is built around six core areas: Personal Injury (including brain injury, spinal injury, elder abuse, medical malpractice, FELA railroad claims, and sexual assault), Landlord-Tenant Law (with a particular emphasis on habitability, wrongful eviction, and tenant harassment), Employment Law (discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage-and-hour claims), Civil Rights and Police Misconduct, Consumer Rights, and Premises Liability / Toxic Torts (mold, carbon monoxide, lead, fire, and chemical exposures). The partners are accomplished trial lawyers — both have repeatedly been named California Super Lawyers and have tried and won multi-million-dollar cases in state and federal court. BV Law is unusual in that it is one of the few California firms that exclusively represents tenants in its landlord-tenant practice. It also offers bilingual services (English and Spanish) and partners with community legal organizations including California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA), the AIDS Legal Referral Panel (ALRP), the San Francisco Bar Association's Lawyer Referral and Information Service, and the National Police Accountability Project. Michael Bracamontes is a UC Berkeley Law alumnus and now teaches Housing Litigation at Berkeley Law, while Ryan Vlasak, a Temple University Law graduate and former adjunct professor of philosophy and ethics, has been recognized as a Top 40 Under 40 attorney by the National Trial Lawyers and serves on the Board of Governors of the Alameda-Contra Costa Trial Lawyers' Association.
- In business
- Founded 2008 (over 17 years as of 2025)
- Owner
- Michael R. Bracamontes and Ryan J. Vlasak (Founding Partners, 2008)
- Serves
- San Francisco, Oakland, the greater Bay Area, and Northern California (with cases handled throughout the State of California)
- Rating
- 4.7 out of 5 across 55+ reviews on independent legal directories (LegalRank, ThatCarHitMe, TrustAnalytica)
Firm Overview
Bracamontes & Vlasak, P.C. (BV Law) is a Bay Area litigation practice founded in 2008 by trial lawyers Michael R. Bracamontes and Ryan J. Vlasak. The firm exclusively represents plaintiffs — individuals and families — against insurance companies, large employers, corporations, landlords, and government entities. The firm's stated mission is to provide victims of civil injustice with diligent and effective representation, and it pairs the resources of a large firm with the personal attention of a small office. Every case is assigned to one of the two partners, supported by associates and staff, and the firm prepares every matter as if it will go to trial.
- Founded October 2008 in San Francisco
- Plaintiff-side practice — never represents corporations, banks, or insurance companies
- Majority of cases taken on contingency
- Free initial consultations
- Offices in San Francisco (220 Montgomery St., Suite 2100) and Oakland (1901 Harrison St., Suite 1590)
Practice Areas
BV Law's work is organized around six core practice areas that together cover most of the civil harms suffered by individuals and families in the Bay Area. Personal injury and premises liability are handled alongside dedicated tenant-rights, employment, civil-rights, and consumer practices, with particular depth in habitability, brain injury, and police-misconduct litigation.
- Personal Injury — brain injury, spinal injury, motor-vehicle accidents, wrongful death, elder abuse, medical malpractice, FELA railroad claims, sexual assault
- Landlord-Tenant — wrongful eviction, habitability, rent ordinance, tenant buyouts, personal injury on the premises
- Employment Law — discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour
- Civil Rights — including police misconduct
- Consumer Rights
- Premises Liability and Toxic Torts — fire, slip-and-fall, assault, dog bite, drowning, mold, lead, carbon monoxide, air and water pollution
Notable Case Results
The firm regularly posts case results on its website to demonstrate its track record in high-stakes plaintiff litigation. Verdicts and settlements are concentrated in habitability, fire, brain-injury, and wrongful-eviction cases, with several results in the multi-million-dollar range.
- $11.7 million recovered in a San Francisco tenant case (2025)
- $21.4 million secured for an Oakland man injured from smoke inhalation (2021)
- $6.6 million awarded for an attempted wrongful eviction in San Francisco (2022)
- $5.7 million for San Francisco fire victims (2017)
- $1.95 million settlement in a carbon monoxide personal injury and habitability case (2010)
- $1.75 million pre-trial settlement for a nightclub assault/injury case (2017)
- $1.65 million result for SF fire victims — displacement and property damage (2018)
The Team — Attorneys
Every case at BV Law is assigned to one of the two founding partners, supported by associates and staff. The firm is intentionally small in feel but trial-ready in experience.
Michael R. Bracamontes, Founding Partner
Michael R. Bracamontes earned his J.D. from UC Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall) in 2005, where he volunteered at the Worker's Rights Clinic, served as Treasurer of the Native American Law Students Association, and was a member of the La Raza Law Journal. He also holds a B.A. in Political Science with a minor in Philosophy from the University of California, Irvine (2001). He grew up in Montebello, California, and has practiced in San Francisco since 2006. He is a leading tenant-rights attorney in California, teaches Housing Litigation at UC Berkeley Law, and has served on the boards of Consumer Attorneys of California and California Rural Legal Assistance. He has been named a Super Lawyer every year from 2019 through 2024, was a Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2016, and was named 2010 Attorney of the Year by the AIDS Legal Referral Panel (ALRP).
- Admitted: California (2006), U.S. District Court Northern District of California, U.S. District Court Eastern District of California, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
- Lecturer, UC Berkeley Law — Housing Litigation and Policy (2022–present)
- Board Member, Consumer Attorneys of California (CAOC), 2020–present
- Board Member, California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA), 2020–2023
- Top 40 Under 40, National Trial Lawyers
- Bilingual (English/Spanish) — conducts bilingual tenant-landlord workshops
Ryan J. Vlasak, Founding Partner
Ryan J. Vlasak earned his J.D. from Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law in 2005, where he was Staff Editor of the Temple International and Comparative Law Journal. He also holds an M.A. in Philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania. Before law school he was an adjunct professor of philosophy, ethics, and logic, and before founding BV Law in 2008 he spent two years (2006–2008) as an associate at a Bay Area insurance defense firm. He has been designated a Preferred Panel Attorney by the Brain Injury Association of America, recognized as a Top 40 Under 40 attorney by the National Trial Lawyers, named a Super Lawyers Rising Star, and serves on the Board of Governors of the Alameda-Contra Costa Trial Lawyers' Association (ACCTLA).
- Admitted: California (2006)
- Practice focus: civil litigation for plaintiffs, brain and neurological injuries, wrongful death, employment, tenant, real estate, and consumer actions
- Authored chapter in a book on wrongful discharge litigation strategies (2013)
- Contributor to Plaintiff magazine article "Working While Muslim: Religious Discrimination in the Workplace" (2012)
Client Service Philosophy
BV Law emphasizes close client communication and personal attention as a core differentiator. The firm states that it makes every effort to return phone calls the same day and to work closely with clients to devise strategies and relay developments. The firm states that it is selective about the cases it accepts and prepares every case as if it will go to trial, often retaining multiple experts before a case will settle for a fair amount. The majority of cases are taken on a contingency basis, meaning clients pay nothing unless and until the firm wins a recovery for them.
- Free initial consultation — call 415-835-6777 or use the online form
- Same-day phone-call return policy
- Contingency-fee structure for most cases
- Bilingual services (English and Spanish)
Community Involvement, Pro Bono, and Speaking
The partners are active in the Bay Area legal-services community and regularly present at continuing legal education (CLE) seminars, bar association programs, and community workshops. The firm co-counsels with California Rural Legal Assistance on housing and civil-rights cases, partners with community organizations such as SF La Raza, and its attorneys have served on multiple non-profit boards.
- Co-counsel with California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA) on housing and civil-rights cases across California
- CLE presentations to CRLA Annual Housing Seminar on habitability, code violations, and discrimination (2014, 2015)
- Bilingual Tenant-Landlord Workshop sponsored by SF Supervisor Katy Tang (2014)
- Presenter at Twitter, Inc. headquarters on tenant rights (2013)
- Presenter at the Consulate General of Mexico — Labor Rights Week on racial discrimination and sexual harassment (2016)
- Mock-trial scoring attorney for the San Francisco Bar Association
- Featured casework in the San Francisco Bar Association's Lawyer Referral and Information Service (LRIS) Attorney Spotlight
Firm News and Recognition
BV Law publishes regular news and updates on its website, including coverage in The San Francisco Standard, KTVU Channel 2 News, and Plaintiff magazine. The firm has been named in Super Lawyers and Super Lawyers Rising Stars every year since 2016 and has received a series of professional and community-service honors.
- All BV Law attorneys named Super Lawyers (2019–2024)
- Ryan Vlasak joined ACCTLA Board of Governors, 2024
- Michael Bracamontes named Legislative Chair, CAOC Diversity Committee, 2023
- Michael Bracamontes joined Berkeley Law faculty, 2022
- Michael Bracamontes named 2018 Outstanding Volunteer by the SF Bar Association – Justice & Diversity Center
- BV Law and Greenstein & McDonald filed a wrongful-eviction and tenant-harassment case against Veritas Investments on behalf of over 100 tenants
- Ryan Vlasak cited in The San Francisco Standard — "Broken Horses: Investigation uncovers years of injuries, mistreatment at Golden Gate Park"
- Sponsorship of the KQED California Report
Office Locations and How to Reach the Firm
BV Law maintains two Northern California offices to serve clients across the Bay Area. Consultations are offered in person and by phone.
- San Francisco Office — 220 Montgomery Street, Suite 2100, San Francisco, CA 94104 | Phone 415-835-6777
- Oakland Office — 1901 Harrison Street, Suite 1590, Oakland, CA 94612
- Fax: 415-835-6780
- Email: [email protected] (partner direct)
- Online contact form: https://bvlawsf.com/contact/
- Languages spoken: English and Spanish