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OVERVIEW
A significant portion of the firm’s personnel and resources is devoted to the litigation of a broad spectrum of sophisticated business, employment, real estate, entertainment, trust, and probate disputes. Senior members of the Litigation Department have extensive experience in the conduct of court and jury trials, and routinely appear in state and federal courts throughout the country. The Department handles all aspects of dispute resolution, including the prosecution and defense of clients’ claims in both state and federal court litigation, as well as in arbitration proceedings. The Department conducts many cases before the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), U.S. Tax Court and other governmental and regulatory tribunals and agencies. The Department has a solid history of success in representing its clients, oftentimes appearing against some of the nation’s largest law firms. The Department attributes its success and the continuous growth of its client base to hands-on involvement by its senior litigators, combined with careful staffing designed to achieve optimum, cost-effective results.
The Department prides itself on its successful, result-oriented client representation; recognizing the need to establish sensible goals and a realistic budget at the inception of every case. Each case is evaluated at the outset, and continuously re-evaluated at each stage of the litigation, to determine whether an alternative dispute resolution procedure (i.e., mediation or settlement conference conducted by retired judicial officers and/or other legal professionals) should be employed. As a matter of routine practice, members of the Litigation Department make a point of keeping their clients informed and up to date regarding the progress of each case, and involving their clients in all key decision making.
SIGNIFICANT RESULTS INCLUDE:
- A $10.5 million judgment in a partnership dispute relating to the ownership and construction of a luxury high-rise condominium project located in West Los Angeles.
- A $5.5 million judgment against a large California-based mortgage lender involving issues of fraud, misrepresentation, unfair business practices and civil RICO charges.
- A $2.25 million National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) Arbitration Award in a highly publicized securities industry employment case, involving claims of defamation, breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation against a major broker-dealer firm.
- The successful representation of dozens of securities industry professionals, including financial consultants, branch/regional managers and investment bankers in employment disputes required to be litigated before the securities industry’s tribunals, including the NASD and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
- The successful defense of brokers and broker dealers in NYSE, NASD and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulatory enforcement proceedings.
- A complete defense verdict, following a six-week jury trial in a case involving a claimed fifty percent ownership interest in a $50 million real estate development.
- A multi-million dollar recovery in an action for breach of an entertainment character licensing agreement.
- The successful representation of a prominent Southern California law firm in an action against its landlord in regard to lease interpretation, resulting in millions of dollars in rent savings over the life of a long-term lease.
- The successful defense of the largest manufacturer of slide-in campers in the world against claims of anti-trust violations and other acts of unfair competition.
- The successful prosecution of an action for unfair competition and industrial sabotage brought by the preeminent manufacturer of motorcycle after-market clutches and related products against certain former employees.
- Recovery of millions of dollars in settlement on behalf of plaintiffs seeking extensive monetary damages caused by hazardous chemicals.
- Successful representation for a real estate owner/developer in resisting foreclosure of an office project and related litigation.
- Successful prosecution of numerous cases before securities arbitration tribunals, including the NASD and NYSE, on behalf of claimants who incurred significant losses due to unsuitable investments, as well as unauthorized and excessive trading in their securities accounts.
- The successful prosecution of claims by investors arising from research analyst/broker-dealer conflicts of interest.
- Obtaining injunctive relief on behalf of a nation-wide furniture retailer, forcing closure of a competitor’s operations in violation of a restrictive land use covenant.
- The successful resolution of a landlord-tenant dispute, resulting in a $2 million settlement on behalf of the firm’s client.
- The Settlement of a major construction defect case involving ten beach-front townhomes, resulting in a $4 million recovery for the homeowners.
- The successful defense of a class action consumer fraud case against a national furniture retailer.
LITIGATION PRACTICE AREAS
Corporate Business
The Litigation Department has a broad range of experience in representing a variety of clients, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to local businesses, individuals, investors and partnerships, joint ventures and closely held corporations, in a broad spectrum of business disputes.
Our services and experience include:
- Breach of Contract disputes
- Business torts
- Unfair competition and trade secret disputes
- Unfair trade practices
- Antitrust
- Partnership and corporate dissolutions, as well as accounting and alter ego actions
- Intellectual property disputes, including claims of patent, trademark and copyright infringement
- Defamation and trade disparagement
- Tax controversies, including income tax claims and property tax assessment appeals
- Entertainment industry disputes, including producer/talent disputes, and licensing disputes
- Property liability claims
- Banking law and lender liability actions, including large collection actions, involving writs of attachment, injunctions, restraining orders and other provisional remedies
- Malicious prosecution claims
- Lender and mortgage broker disputes
Real Estate Disputes
The Litigation Department handles a broad range of real estate-related litigation and also represents many of the firm’s Real Estate Department clients in the resolution of disputes pertaining to commercial and residential real property.
Our services and experience include:
- Breaches of purchase and sale agreements
- Commercial and residential landlord/tenant disputes
- Brokerage commission disputes
- Lender disputes (including receiverships and foreclosures)
- Construction contract disputes and construction defect litigation
- California Environmental Quality Act mandate cases
- Joint property owner disputes, including actions for partition
- Environmental, hazardous waste and toxic tort litigation
- Adjoining property owner disputes
- Secured real property remedies, such as receiverships to collect rents and profits of income property and judicial foreclosures
- Escrow disputes
- Title insurance disputes
Employment Law
The Litigation Department routinely represents employers and employees in connection with employment issues and claims; including claims for wrongful discharge, constructive termination, breach of employment contracts and related matters. The Department specializes in Securities Industry employment disputes and has also successfully represented numerous securities brokers in regulatory proceedings before the NASD and NYSE. Because of their extensive experience and background in this area of the law, members of the Litigation Department are uniquely qualified to advise brokers and their broker-dealer employers in sensitive employment matters to limit their liability in this burgeoning area of litigation.
Employment matters include:
- Employer liability for employment discrimination, workplace harassment and unsafe conditions
- Employer liability and wrongful discharge disputes
- Securities Industry employment disputes and defense of Regulatory Enforcement Proceedings conducted by the NASD, NYSE and SEC
Major areas include:
- Proceedings before the NASD and NYSE involving claims of wrongful termination, constructive discharge, defamation and defense of Note Claims
- Customer complaints, including claims of suitability, lack of authorization and excessive trading claims
- Securities fraud claims
- The successful defense of brokers and broker dealers in NYSE an NASD regulatory enforcement proceedings, including successful appeals to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
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