Buchalter

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Robert Addison

Robert Addison is a business litigator representing banks and financial institutions, corporate entities large and small, consumer products companies, and fiduciaries in business litigation matters in both state and federal courts. He has wide-ranging experience in general business and commercial litigation matters, including banking operations, banking and mortgage fraud, corporate litigation arising from the purchase and sale of businesses, partnership and joint venture disputes, corporate trustee litigation, real property disputes, film finance disputes, unfair competition, intellectual property claims, class actions, and provisional remedies, among many others. Mr. Addison is also an experienced appellate lawyer, having successfully handled appeals at all levels, including before the California Supreme Court. Among the representative litigation matters Mr. Addison has handled are defense of claims for hundreds of millions of dollars arising out of fraud and Ponzi schemes, prosecution of plaintiff’s fraud claims on behalf of financial institutions, prosecution and defense of contractual and partnership claims between corporate entities and their principals, complex litigation representing corporate trustees arising out of management and investment of trust assets, litigation arising out of fraud and the removal of operating partners in a portfolio of real property assets worth hundreds of millions of dollars, defense of class actions, and numerous other complex business litigation matters. In addition to his role as the Firm’s General Counsel, Mr. Addison leads Buchalter’s Litigation Practice Group as Firmwide Chair and serves on the firm’s Board of Directors.

Valerie Bantner Peo

Valerie Bantner Peo represents stakeholders in all aspects of restructuring, insolvency and commercial litigation. She regularly represents financial institutions, including agribusiness lenders and alternative lenders, software licensors, commercial landlords and tenants, equipment lessors, buyers of distressed assets and fiduciaries such as receivers and assignees. Ms. Bantner Peo is the Administrative Co-Chair of Buchalter’s Insolvency & Financial Law Group and a past chair of the Women@Buchalter committee. Since 2022, she has served as a Lawyer Representative to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Council for the Northern District of California, and served as co-chair of the Lawyer Representative Committee in 2023-24. Ms. Bantner Peo serves on the Board of Directors of the International Women’s Insolvency and Restructuring Confederation (“IWIRC”). In 2023, Ms. Bantner Peo received the IWIRC Fetner Award, presented to a member whose contributions to IWIRC have helped to fuel growth and expansion of IWIRC’s mission globally. She is a past Chair of the Executive Committee of the San Francisco Bar Association’s Commercial Law and Bankruptcy section and a current Board member of the Bay Area Bankruptcy Forum. She was recognized by Super Lawyer Magazine as a Northern California Super Lawyer from 2019-2025. Ms. Bantner Peo is recognized in the Best Lawyers in America, Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law since 2025. Ms. Bantner Peo served as a law clerk for the Honorable Edward D. Jellen (Ret.), U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California.

Farah Bhatti

Farah Bhatti is a nationally recognized trademark attorney with deep expertise in trademark prosecution, litigation, and global brand protection. As Chair of the Firm’s Trademark Law Practice, she leads a team trusted by companies across industries to safeguard and enforce their most valuable asset—their brand. Ms. Bhatti advises clients on every stage of the trademark lifecycle, from strategic selection and clearance to worldwide registration, portfolio management, enforcement, and litigation. She has particular strength in developing and executing domestic and international protection strategies that align with business goals, minimize risk, and maximize brand value. A former USPTO Trademark Examining Attorney, Ms. Bhatti has personally examined over 2,000 trademark applications and represented the USPTO before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB). That insider experience enables her to navigate the application process and TTAB proceedings—including oppositions and cancellations—with unmatched efficiency and insight. Ms. Bhatti is also an accomplished trademark litigator, with a strong track record in federal court cases involving infringement, cybersquatting, and unfair competition. She has successfully obtained substantial statutory damages and attorneys’ fees for clients under the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA), and regularly resolves complex online enforcement matters involving domain names, websites, and social media.In addition to her core trademark practice, Ms. Bhatti advises emerging and established clients on IP issues related to NFTs and digital assets, including trademark and copyright protection, licensing, and commercialization. Her client base spans industries including technology, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, fashion, consumer products, medical devices, and software. Whether representing global enterprises or high-growth startups, she is known for her clear, business-forward advice and practical, results-driven approach.

Shawn Christianson

Shawn M. Christianson focuses her practice on insolvency, receiverships, and complex litigation with an emphasis on technology related issues. She represents financial institutions, secured and unsecured creditors, technology companies, receivers, and bankruptcy trustees. Her practice spans the state, federal and bankruptcy courts, as well as out of court proceedings and mediation. She argued, and prevailed at every level from the trial court through the Ninth Circuit, a seminal case on the topic of perfection of security interests in unregistered copyrights, In re: World Auxiliary Power. Ms. Christianson is a former member of Buchalter’s Board of Directors, as well as the former Managing Shareholder of the Firm’s San Francisco office. Ms. Christianson was elected to and served two terms on the Board of Directors as a Director-At-Large of the International Women’s Insolvency and Restructuring Confederation and is a former Co-Chair of the Northern California Network of IWIRC. She has served on several boards and committees, including the California Receiver’s Forum, the Bay Area Chapter of the California Receiver’s Forum, where she also served as Vice President, the Board of Directors of the Bay Area Bankruptcy Forum (“BABF”), BABF’s Program and Finance Committees and the organizing committee of the California Bankruptcy Forum’s Fifth Annual Conference. She was appointed to a three-year term as a Lawyer Representative to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference and served on the Northern District of California’s Local Rules Committee which addressed both the District and Bankruptcy Court’s Local Rules. She is a trained mediator and has acted as a Resolution Advocate on the Bankruptcy Dispute Resolution Panel in the Northern District of California since that Panel’s creation. She served as both Chair and Vice-Chair of the Bar Association of San Francisco’s Commercial Law and Bankruptcy section, and was a founding member of the Barrister Club’s Speakers Bureau. She is a frequent lecturer and author, and has been profiled in the Receivership News. Ms. Christianson served two terms as the Mayor of the Town of Hillsborough, California, including leading the city through the first year of the pandemic. She has been an active participant in numerous community and civic organizations. She was elected in November 2005 to the Hillsborough City School District’s Board of Trustees, became President of that Board in 2009, and served on the Hillsborough City Council from 2012-2020, during which time she was both Vice Mayor and Mayor. Ms. Christianson was recognized as 2025 Lawdragon 500 leading U.S. Bankruptcy & Restructuring Lawyers, an honor she has received since 2020. Additionally, Ms. Christianson, who is AV Preeminent rated, has been selected as Super Lawyers Top Rated Lawyer in Northern California since 2005 and as one of Super Lawyers Top Women Attorneys Northern California, an honor she has received since 2016, and to Martindale-Hubbell’s Bar Register of Preeminent Women Lawyers. She has been recognized as a Best Lawyer in America in the areas of Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights and Insolvency and Reorganization Law, an honor she has received since 2016. Additionally, in 2016, Ms. Christianson was selected by the Cal Alumni Association Board of Directors and the UC Berkeley Foundation Board of Trustees to receive the Spirit of 1868 Volunteer Award, which acknowledges alumni and friends who have demonstrated outstanding volunteer leadership and accomplishments in support of the university’s philanthropic and outreach efforts.

L. David Connell

David Connell is a Partner in Buchalter’s Portland office and a member of the Firm’s Corporate Practice Group. Mr. Connell has extensive experience in the emerging growth, technology, nonprofit and social enterprise, energy, and healthcare sectors and often serves as general counsel to business and nonprofit enterprises. He began his career as a tax attorney with an international accounting firm, and brings his tax and finance experience to the table when advising clients. Mr. Connell regularly assists clients with transactional and day-to-day business matters, including business formation, governance matters, shareholder and other agreements among owners, financings, mergers and acquisitions, reorganizations, stock incentive and other compensation arrangements, fund formation and joint ventures. Mr. Connell has been selected as an Oregon Super Lawyer in the area of Business/Corporate, and is recognized multiple times by Best Lawyers in America in the area of Business Organizations.

Noel Cook

Noel Cook is a Shareholder in the Firm’s San Francisco office and a member of the Intellectual Property practice group. Mr. Cook concentrates on trademark and copyright enforcement, litigation, counseling, prosecution, and licensing. He specializes in the protection and enforcement of trademarks, designs, images, and a variety of other content. Noel has worked with clients in a variety of fields, including the outdoor and retail industries, software/internet, product and furniture design, character merchandising, food and beverage, music, and insurance coverage. Mr. Cook was a member of the INTA Board of Directors (2022–24) and is a member of the Copyright Society of the USA Board of Trustees, reflecting his leadership in the IP field. He is also a long-time member of INTA’s Panel of Mediators. He is a frequent speaker on copyright and trademark law at INTA, Copyright Society and ABA meetings, among others, on topics including product design protection, trademarks on the Internet and damages in trademark and copyright cases. In addition, in 2017 he co-authored a U.S. Supreme Court amicus brief on behalf of INTA.

A. Blake Cooper

Jason Croft

Skye Daley

Skye Daley is a Shareholder at Buchalter. His practice is focused on representing clients in high stakes, complex business and commercial litigation and arbitration Skye represents clients ranging from small businesses and start-ups to Fortune 500 companies, semi-governmental agencies and banking institutions. He has experience representing his clients in both state and federal court, as well as in arbitration and in administrative proceedings. In addition to business and commercial litigation, Skye has extensive experience representing employers in a variety of employment matters, advising his clients on questions of labor and employment compliance, and forcefully and successfully asserting his client’s rights in trade secret disputes. Recently, Skye obtained a full defense award on behalf of a San Diego-based financial institution following a four-day arbitration. A cross-complaint had been filed against Skye’s client by one of its borrowers alleging, inter alia, negligent misrepresentation and fraud in the inducement of the borrower’s loan agreements claiming Skye’s client made representations inconsistent with the express terms of the loan agreements. The Arbitrator rejected borrower’s claims and found that Skye’s client’s representations and conduct were consistent with the express terms of the loan agreements and within customary industry standards for banking institutions, resulting in no exposure to borrower’s multi-million dollar claim. In addition to his work in litigation, Skye has recently had scholarly work published in Bloomberg Law discussing the origins and basics of the Common Interest Doctrine and its application as a tool in litigation. He is the Chair of the Cathedral City Planning Commission, a member of the Riverside County Superior Court’s Subcommittee to Eliminate Bias and Promote Equal Justice and the Bench-Bar Subcommittee, a past member of the Board of Governors of the LGBT Bar Association of Los Angeles, and is a coach of the La Quinta High School mock trial team. Skye has been recognized as a “Rising Star” in San Diego by Super Lawyers Magazine in 2023, 2024, and again in 2025.

Hillary Dorne

Ms. Dorne focuses her practice on advising private client transactions, including business planning and corporate compliance, corporate governance, commercial finance, and real estate, representing both individuals and entities. She has additional experience in the formation and operation of businesses, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, divestitures, stock options, finance, and general representation of entrepreneurs within a variety of diverse industries with a particular emphasis on advising clients in the health care field. Hillary Dorne is a member of the Corporate, Commercial Finance and the Health Care Practice Groups in Buchalter’s San Diego office. Ms. Dorne is also knowledgeable in personal estate planning and multigenerational family business succession planning. Ms. Dorne was named a Women of Influence in Law 2022 by the San Diego Business Journal.

James Dyer

Manuel Fishman

Manuel Fishman, who serves as the Chair of the firm’s northern California Real estate practice group focuses his practice on representing real estate developers and owners in the acquisition, sale, and financing of commercial properties. He has an active leasing practice representing owners of several major office buildings in San Francisco, including the Transamerica Pyramid, as well as tenants in lease and sublease transactions. His expertise includes letters of intent, tenant improvement work agreements, security deposits/letters of credit, signage rights, expansion and contraction rights, permitted transfers, operating expense audits, and lender and master landlord recognition agreements. Mr. Fishman maintains close relationships with the real estate brokerage community and utilizes these relationships to provide clients with market based information important to their existing and prospective real estate requirements. Mr. Fishman also has extensive experience in the area of ground leasing and retail leasing and is recognized as a leading attorney in the area of landline and wireless communications and Internet-based services in commercial properties and rooftop installations. In addition, Mr. Fishman acts as outside general counsel to start-ups that seek to leverage some part of commercial real estate into a tech application, and helps guide these companies in their efficient use of legal time and expertise in various subject matters, from employment and IP to enterprise contracts and web site privacy policies. Mr. Fishman also represents clients in equity structuring for, and the acquisition of, value add properties, including the formation of single purpose entities and joint ventures, and acquisition financing. Mr. Fishman has negotiated numerous construction management, project development and property management agreements, as well as all types of easements, declarations and restrictions and other adjoining owner agreements. Most recently, Mr. Fishman has been recognized as a 2026 Best Lawyer in America in Real Estate Law, an honor he has received since 2007, and was recognized as a 2014 Top Rated Lawyer by American Lawyer Media in conjunction with Martindale Hubbell. He has also been recognized as a Northern California Super Lawyer since 2012 and as one of Bay Area Magazine’s Top Lawyers in the Bay Area. Additionally, he was the recipient of the 2019 Associate Member of the Year award from BOMA San Francisco. Mr. Fishman is a frequent lecturer on office and shopping center leasing matters and writes frequently for industry newsletters. He has served as a speaker for the annual Practicing Law Institute’s Commercial Real Estate Law program since 2015.

Joseph Fletcher

Joseph K. Fletcher, III is a Shareholder in Buchalter’s Los Angeles office and Co-Chair of the firm’s Tax, Benefits and Estate Planning Group. With more than 25 years of tax law experience, Mr. Fletcher’s international practice includes matters involving the taxation of mergers and acquisitions, resolution of tax controversies, and international taxation. Mr. Fletcher shares his ample experience in tax law as an educator and frequent speaker on business tax issues. He has taught classes as an Adjunct Professor on “Taxation of Intellectual Property” and “Mergers and Acquisitions”, and is also a frequent panelist on CLEs addressing issues ranging from partnership taxation to cancellation of indebtedness income. Mr. Fletcher has achieved the highest rating of “AV-Preeminent” awarded by Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory for both tax law and corporate law, from 2013-present. He has been named to the Best Lawyers in America list from 2019-2023, and has been included in The Legal 500.

Jeffrey Frank

Robert S. Gillison

Robert Gillison is a Shareholder in our Los Angeles office and Chair of the firm’s Commercial Finance Practice—one of the largest finance practices on the West Coast. With more than 25 years of experience representing banks and non-bank credit providers, Mr. Gillison has built a strong reputation as one of California’s leading commercial finance attorneys. Mr. Gillison has led hundreds of lending transactions involving billions of dollars in aggregate commitments. His practice covers a wide range of financings, and he is known for his ability to effectively negotiate and close complex, highly structured credit facilities. This includes bilateral and club deals, syndicated loans, cross-border financings, unitranche and multi-tranche facilities, intercreditor and split-lien arrangements, and liability management transactions, in which he regularly represents the administrative agent or lead lender. What sets Mr. Gillison apart is his ability to navigate complex deal dynamics and competing interests among transaction parties across a broad range of industries and debt structures. This includes acquisition and leveraged financings, asset-based loans, aircraft financings, cash flow loans, and subscription and NAV-based facilities. He also has deep experience with securities-backed loans, healthcare lending, and technology and IP-based financings. Mr. Gillison frequently works on cross-border deals, coordinating with counsel in Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, and North America to ensure enforceability and compliance in global loan transactions. Mr. Gillison also serves on the firm’s Partnership Evaluation Committee and Professional Responsibility Committee.

Gabriel Green

Gabriel G. Green is an experienced trial attorney and the Firmwide Chair of Buchalter’s Litigation Practice Group. Focusing his practice in the areas of complex business disputes, commercial real estate, intellectual property, and franchising, Mr. Green is known as a problem solver who is able to win the most difficult cases. Understanding that cases are won through decisive and strategic planning, Mr. Green works in partnership with his clients to formulate plans designed to meet his clients’ objectives. Moreover, with litigation being a dynamic and ever-changing process, Mr. Green consistently evaluates strategy throughout a matter to meet his clients’ goals and prevail in their cases. Mr. Green’s business litigation experience involves a variety of industries, including aerospace, automotive, oil and gas exploration and distribution, financing, professional services, hospitality, medical providers, commercial leasing and sales, real estate development, wholesalers and distributors of consumer products, internet based as well as brick and mortar retailers, elder care facilities, and franchising. Mr. Green has assisted his clients in rescinding and unwinding fraudulent business acquisitions, pursuing competitors for unfair and anti-competitive business practices, litigating claims involving misappropriation of trade secrets, securing damages for business interference or contractual claims, and obtaining injunctive relief. Often times, Mr. Green is sought out to handle the complicated, hard to prove case involving fraud or similar unfair business practice. Indeed, Mr. Green has prevailed in a number of cases prosecuting and securing the rescission of the fraudulent sale of businesses where the fraud was only discovered after the sale was completed. Mr. Green also has extensive experience in litigating trade libel actions, defamation claims, and right to publicity matters. With regard to commercial real estate, Mr. Green has extensive experience in litigating a wide array of disputes involving acquisition or development financing, broker representation or commissions, buy and sale transactions, easements and property line challenges, and leasing. Mr. Green has successfully prosecuted lawsuits involving the purchase and sale of multi-million dollar real estate transactions and has secured specific performance of sale agreements. Conversely, Mr. Green has also succeeded in defending against claims involving disclosure requirements, commission claims, financing obligations, and contractual disputes. With regard to commercial tenancy, Mr. Green represents both commercial landlord and tenants in resolving leasing disputes and eviction proceedings. Mr. Green’s intellectual property practice involves prosecuting and defending trademark infringement claims as well as false advertising and unfair competition claims under the Lanham Act, California law, and common law. Mr. Green represents restaurateurs, professional service providers, scientific labs, franchisors, manufacturers, and entrepreneurs in protecting their valuable trade and service marks. Additionally, Mr. Green is well-versed in litigating copyright infringement actions and guides his clients through the nuisances of the Copyright Act. Mr. Green’s representative experience includes litigating copyright infringement claims involving video game graphics, jewelry designs, sculptural works, musical compositions, and literary works. Mr. Green’s franchise litigation practice derives from his representation of nationally and internationally renowned franchisors with brands in a range of industries. Understanding the valuable aspects of a franchised system, Mr. Green has obtained affirmative relief for franchisors against third-parties misappropriating a brand mark and/or a franchised trade secret. Likewise, Mr. Green has assisted his franchisor clients in pursuing claims against defaulting franchisees for violations of their operative franchise agreements and/or causing harm to the franchised brand. Mr. Green also represents franchisees encountering issues with troubled franchise systems or problematic franchisors. Mr. Green serves on the Executive Committee of the Litigation Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. He was named one of the Los Angeles Business Journal’s “Leaders of Influence: Litigators & Trial Lawyers” in 2020 and 2023, and was recognized as one of the publication’s Top 100 Lawyers in 2025.

Alicia Guerra

Alicia Guerra has developed a multi-disciplinary practice focused on local, state, and federal land use entitlement and permitting and environmental review for a broad sector of private industry, developers, and public agencies. Ms. Guerra’s practice often involves complex and controversial projects at all levels of the administrative process including due diligence, land use entitlements, development agreements, disposition and development agreements, permitting advice, and counsel for water resources, environmental compliance, and wetlands natural resources. She has handled all aspects of these substantive areas, from advising private and public sector clients regarding the applicability of the law, to guiding clients through the permitting and entitlement processes at the local, state or federal level. She advises clients on legal strategies for defensible entitlement and environmental review processes in the face of challenges from local, state and national environmental groups opposing projects. Ms. Guerra provides assistance to residential developers and home builders of master planned residential and mixed use and golf course resort communities, life science companies and REITs, commercial enterprises, industrial companies, and public agencies in land development, entitlement, and environmental review and natural resources permitting processes. Her expertise includes the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the Clean Water Act (including Sections 401 and 404), federal and state flood control statutes, California’s planning laws, and other state and federal laws governing the use of land, water, and other natural resources. Ms. Guerra assists public and private clients with federal and state natural resources permitting under the federal and state Endangered Species Acts and the Federal Clean Water Act, including the Section 404 permitting and Section 7 consultation processes. She also assists clients with federal and state permitting of energy projects, flood control, reclamation and transportation projects. Her practice focuses on advising commercial/industrial developers, home builders, REITs, public and quasi-public agencies, and industrial and institutional companies in navigating the Clean Water Act and federal and state Endangered Species Acts and other State and Federal laws. Due to her multi-disciplinary practice and her experience advising both public and private sector entities, Ms. Guerra also advises public agency clients in negotiating and drafting joint powers agreements for infrastructure projects in Northern California. Additionally, she advises both private and public sector entities in negotiating development agreements and disposition and development agreements during the entitlement and post-entitlement processes as such agreements govern the development and construction of major infrastructure. Ms. Guerra was recognized by Super Lawyer Magazine as a Northern California Super Lawyer, a recognition she has received since 2014. In addition, she has been recognized in the Best Lawyers in America, Environmental Law and Land Use and Zoning Law, for 2024-2026.

Harumi Hata

Harumi Hata’s practice involves the representation of multinational companies, including U.S., European and Pacific Rim/Asian clients, in business structuring and advice, corporate and commercial transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, financing arrangements, and real estate acquisitions and dispositions. Ms. Hata advises clients with respect to strategic alliances, internal company management and operations, and business affairs. She also advises business clients in connection with the expansion of their operations and the establishment and management of subsidiaries and affiliates in the U.S. and abroad, including structuring and tax planning coordination and advice with respect to cross-border operations and business activities. Ms. Hata serves many of her clients as outside counsel as their in-house and general counsel, working closely with clients, being involved on day-to-day business affairs, operations and objectives and providing strategic advice. Ms. Hata has represented regulated entities, including insurance companies and insurance holding companies, and Fortune Global 500 companies in connection with the acquisition and disposition of assets and companies in the U.S. and abroad and the regulatory aspects relating to such transactions. Ms. Hata is fluent in Japanese and has a thorough understanding of Japanese business practices and protocol. Ms. Hata represents Japan-based clients in the U.S., as well as non-Japan based clients in connection with their investments and business transactions in Japan. Ms. Hata also represents high net worth individuals and families with respect to the assets, including real estate assets, held in the U.S.

Benjamin Heuer

Benjamin Heuer is Chair of the Buchalter’s FinTech Practice Group, and Co-Chair of the Firm’s Alternative Lenders Practice Group. His practice focuses on matters involving asset based lending, factoring, corporate finance, and loan workouts and restructurings. He represents banks, asset based lenders, factors, specialty finance companies and other non-bank financial institutions in connection with senior-secured, asset-based, syndicated, mezzanine, cross-border, and unsecured financing. Mr. Heuer also represents private equity and other borrowers in connection with lender finance transactions. In addition, Mr. Heuer advises FinTech companies on various aspects of their businesses, including products, operations, and regulatory matters, with particular emphasis on California’s commercial lending license issues and matters before the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. Mr. Heuer has been recognized as one of Sacramento Magazine’s Top Lawyer in the field of Commercial Law since 2021.

David Hitchcock

J. David Hitchcock is a Shareholder in the Los Angeles office of Buchalter, a member of the Firm’s Real Estate Practice Group, and Co-Chair of the Firm’s Cannabis & Hemp Industry Law Group. Mr. Hitchcock’s practice focuses on real estate acquisitions and dispositions, loan originations, loan workouts and restructurings, loan sales, secured real estate finance, joint ventures, and general real estate matters. He has extensive experience representing clients in all areas of the real estate market – private equity funds, real estate developers, core and value-add real estate owners/operators, public school districts, as well as publicly traded REITs. Before returning to the practice of law in 2011, Mr. Hitchcock was a Vice President with an international private equity fund, in charge of a $1 billion portfolio of distressed commercial real estate mortgages and related real estate collateral. In this capacity, Mr. Hitchcock negotiated and resolved numerous defaulted loans, ran multi-state foreclosures and receiverships, managed REO, and bought and sold performing and non-performing debt. Before joining the fund, Mr. Hitchcock ran his own real estate development and mortgage brokerage company. Mr. Hitchcock has been named one of the The Best Lawyers in America in Real Estate Law from 2019-2026. He has also been named a 2023 Visionary in the real estate category by Los Angeles Times B2B Publishing.

Peter Hogan

Peter V. Hogan is a Shareholder in Buchalter’s Los Angeles office and a member of the Firm’s Corporate Practice Group. Mr. Hogan represents middle market and emerging growth companies in initial public offerings, second offerings, mergers and acquisitions, angel and venture capital financing, 1934 Act reporting obligations, as well as the interests of broker-dealers. Mr. Hogan’s clients include private early stage, middle market, and publicly traded companies from the entertainment, digital media, manufacturing, restaurant, and technology industries. Mr. Hogan also advises companies on corporate governance, executive employment and shareholder matters.

Peggy Hosking

Peggy Hosking is a highly respected attorney with a dynamic practice spanning multiple facets of business law. As outside general counsel, Hosking offers strategic legal counsel to business owners, guiding them through every stage of growth—from startup and formation to successful sale or generational transfer. With a specialized focus on mergers and acquisitions, Hosking has expertly navigated and closed numerous high-profile transactions, consistently delivering exceptional results which align with her clients’ objectives. Her deep expertise in commercial real estate further strengthens her practice, where she handles complex transactions, negotiations, and disputes, ensuring her clients’ real estate portfolios are both secure and profitable. In addition to her business law prowess, Hosking collaborates closely with business and real estate owners to craft comprehensive estate plans that protect their wealth and solidify their legacies. Her role as co-chair of the Equine Law practice group highlights her unique ability to blend her legal acumen with her lifelong passion for the equestrian world, offering specialized counsel to those in this niche industry. Hosking’s unwavering dedication to her clients is reflected in her personalized approach. She takes the time to deeply understand each client’s unique needs and goals, providing them with insightful, practical advice that has made her a trusted advisor across various industries. A graduate of Loyola Law School and a member of the California bar, Peggy Hosking is not just a legal expert; she is a strategic partner in her clients’ success, known for her integrity, expertise, and commitment to excellence.

Jeffrey Kapor

Kevin Lally

Kevin M. Lally is a Shareholder in the Firm’s Los Angeles office and a member of its Litigation and White Collar and Investigations practice groups. A former federal prosecutor, Mr. Lally is an accomplished trial and appellate attorney with extensive experience successfully resolving large scale federal criminal investigations, complex civil matters and novel regulatory issues. He specializes in high-stakes litigation, white-collar defense, and internal investigations and his practice covers a broad spectrum of industries, providing critical legal counsel to corporations, public entities, financial institutions, private equity firms, and individuals. With a career spanning nearly two decades as a federal prosecutor and now as a trusted legal advisor in private practice, Mr. Lally has earned a reputation for his strategic approach to navigating the intricacies of complex cases and utilizing his deep understanding of federal agency practice to confidentially secure successful resolutions on behalf of his corporate and individual clients before, among others, the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). His diverse practice includes both plaintiff and defense representations and regularly addresses matters involving RICO, money laundering, AML compliance, insider trading, the False Claims Act, health care, bank and wire fraud, and cross-border regulatory compliance and criminal enforcement. He also has conducted large-scale internal investigations for corporations, addressing allegations of financial misconduct and regulatory violations. During his tenure as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Central District of California, Mr. Lally served as the Chief of the International Narcotics, Money Laundering, and Racketeering Section, Deputy Chief of the Violent & Organized Crime Section and Senior Litigation Counsel in the Major Frauds Section. He prosecuted and supervised hundreds of cases that addressed virtually every area of federal criminal enforcement, including RICO, money laundering, health care fraud, wire fraud, computer crimes, narcotics distribution and diversion, wiretapping, and perjury. A skilled courtroom advocate, Mr. Lally tried 15 cases, convicting every defendant, and argued 18 appeals before the Ninth Circuit. His cases were among the highest profile and most significant prosecutions in the district’s recent history, earning him national recognition and multiple awards, including Prosecutor of the Year.

Shai Larkin

Shai Larkin is a Shareholder in the Firm’s San Diego office and a member of the Corporate practice group. He represents buyers, sellers, investors and sponsors in a variety of corporate transactions, including mergers, joint ventures and equity syndications. Mr. Larkin represents companies from formation through exit, servicing them throughout their lifecycle, including initial organizational matters, and seed and subsequent debt and equity financings. For both emerging growth and later-stage companies, he handles corporate governance matters, services agreements and strategic partnership agreements and other commercial agreements.

Lance Lehnhof

Aaron M. Levine

Aaron Levine is a Shareholder in the firm’s Los Angeles office. Mr. Levine, whose practice is focused on complex commercial and intellectual property litigation, has experience handling all phases of litigation from inception through resolution. His clients include multinational corporations, energy companies, financial institutions, apparel companies, fashion designers, technology companies, and small business owners. Mr. Levine was selected by Super Lawyers Magazine as a Rising Star from 2020-2024. In addition, he was also named to Best Lawyer’s “Ones to Watch” list in 2024 & 2025. Prior to law school, Mr. Levine represented Fortune 500 technology companies, international film festivals, and an assortment of celebrities and other media personalities at an award-winning entertainment, lifestyle, and corporate-focused public relations firm. Mr. Levine also spent several years as a talent agent at a boutique entertainment agency. In this role, Mr. Levine was charged with routing nation-wide tours and helping nationally-recognized recording artists cultivate and develop previously under-utilized revenue streams

Bukola Mabadeje

Bukola Mabadeje is a Shareholder in the Firm’s Real Estate and Commercial Finance practice groups, with extensive experience representing lenders in the middle market segment in real property and personal property secured and unsecured transactions. She also advises equity investors in utilizing a varying mix of investment structures to meet their needs. Bukola boasts an impressive track record and a substantial client portfolio in different types of financing for real estate transactions for purposes such as acquisition, development, and construction, whether in commercial real estate financing or community development financing. Her expertise extends to leveraging low-income housing tax credits, historic tax credits, and other structured approaches aimed at achieving affordable housing and rehabilitation of historic buildings. Her experience spans various property types, including multifamily, co-living, office, hospitality, retail, and industrial spaces, all across the United States. Additionally, Bukola adeptly handles other real estate transactional matters, including commercial real estate purchases and sales and office leasing. In addition to her real estate expertise, she advises agents, lenders and borrowers alike in commercial finance transactions, covering secured and unsecured asset-based and balance-sheet loans from a single lender or a syndicate of lenders. She is well versed in negotiating complex financing and security agreements, guarantees, intercreditor agreements, and other critical transaction documents. Beyond her legal expertise, Bukola is a proactive member of Buchalter’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. She is deeply engaged in her community, serving on several nonprofit boards, including International House, UC Berkeley. Bukola was named “One to Watch” in Banking and Finance Law by Best Lawyers from 2022-2025.

Philip Nulud

Philip Nulud has successfully guided clients in protecting and monetizing their vital trademarks and other intellectual property for close to two decades. His day-to-day representations are in the fashion, apparel, retail, and consumer products space. He represents and works with well-known apparel brands, couture fashion houses, streetwear brands, apparel and footwear manufacturers, licensing agencies, retailers, celebrities, athletes, influencers, beauty and wellness companies, financial services companies, and others in all things IP. They rely on Phil’s value-add approach and strategic management of their IP holdings and often seek his counsel in all things legal. Having handled thousands of domestic and international trademarks, Phil offers extensive experience in establishing, protecting, and enforcing clients’ IP. He has also earned a reputation as the go-to-lawyer for all issues revolving around domain names, social media, and the Internet, Phil provides practical, hands-on guidance and a big-picture perspective on: \tTrademarks, domestic and international \tPatents \tCopyrights \tLicensing \tMarketing and advertising \tSocial media influencers \tDomain names Phil’s significant representation of makers of luxury goods and global brands includes proactive protection of their trademarks, copyrights, images, and other IP. He invests in his clients and their success, whether keeping them ahead of competitive threats or supporting the launch of a new collection from the front row of a runway show. Outside General Counsel and Global Reach Company leaders turn to him as an outside general counsel beyond his IP advice. He offers insights and practical resources for clients’ challenges in virtually all areas of the law. Phil is recognized by the World IP Review as one of the world’s leading intellectual property attorneys. Phil is an appointee to the International Trademark Association (INTA) Famous and Well Known Marks Committee. While most of his clients have operations in California, the globalization of goods means their interests and issues occur worldwide, and Phil has been able to guide clients in matters across the globe. He has built a productive and resourceful network, which includes New York, the West Coast, the European Union, and Asia, with an emphasis and deep experience in China. He readily addresses licensing, counterfeiting, customs, and potential infringement issues wherever they may arise. Fashion Law Authority Phil is preparing Southern California’s next generation of IP protectorates in the Fashion Law course he teaches as an adjunct professor at Loyola Law School Los Angeles, his alma mater. His commitment to the profession and the community also includes longtime support and leadership of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA), where he has served as a director; the National Filipino American Lawyers Association (NFALA), where he has served as president; the Philippine American Bar Association (PABA), where he has served as president; and California Asian Pacific American Bar Association (CAL-APABA), where he was a founding board member and served as treasurer. He is also a past president of the Loyola Law School Alumni Association Board of Governors, and serves as Co-Chair of the Bench Bar Coalition. Phil has also received recognition from Super Lawyers, NAPABA, and as a Leader of Influence: Minority Attorneys from the Los Angeles Business Journal.

Jay Paxton

Jay L. Paxton specializes in real estate transactions, leasing and land use planning. Mr. Paxton represents both sellers and acquirers in the negotiation and documentation of real estate sale transactions, including portfolios of properties. His experience includes representation of numerous Fortune 500 companies in acquisitions, sales, sale/leasebacks, build-to-suit developments, ground leases, financings and property acquisitions and dispositions throughout the United States. He was the lead lawyer in a complex sale/leaseback transaction for the expansion of a large corporate headquarters campus in Northern California and, quite recently, was the lead lawyer in an assemblage of eleven office buildings for a new corporate campus in Silicon Valley for one of the leading technology companies in the world, an assemblage that he managed to keep confidential until all properties were in contract. He also represented Carnegie Mellon University in establishing its West Coast campus at the NASA Ames Research Park, and represented The Regents of the University of California in obtaining a long term ground lease to create a research facility at NASA Ames. His extensive experience representing both landowners and users in leasing includes directing all legal aspects of ongoing leasing matters for the owners of seven high-rise office buildings in San Francisco and several suburban office projects. He also represents major users in lease negotiations for office and retail space and is well-experienced in helping landlords and tenants in restructuring troubled leases. Mr. Paxton represented the landlord in what was then the largest office lease in the history of San Francisco and in the real estate aspects of the securitization and sale of the income stream from that lease into the bond markets, a transaction which was the first of its kind in the United States. In addition to his transactional practice, Mr. Paxton has extensive experience in obtaining land use approvals and entitlements for major developers, landowners and retailers. His work in land use has included securing all approvals for the conversion of a former landfill at the shore of the Bay to a regional retail center, with Home Depot and Target as the anchor tenants. That project was the most controversial land use matter to have received permits in the city where it was located.

Alison Pear

Alison M. Pear is a Partner who specializes in corporate transactions, focusing on securities regulation, corporate governance, and mergers and acquisitions. Ms. Pear has an extensive history of representing 1934 Act reporting companies with respect to their public reporting obligations, as well as their acquisition activities and governance practices. In addition to many years in private practice, Ms. Pear spent several years as in-house counsel at a NYSE-listed publicly-traded natural gas utility where she gained valuable insight into internal corporate workings, as well risk-based and business-oriented decision-making. Ms. Pear prides herself on being able to calibrate to client needs, and being a lawyer that people want to work with. Ms. Pear also regularly represents clients in Regulation A offerings, private placements, and other corporate transactions. Alison M. Pear is based in the Firm’s Portland office, but is also a member of the California State Bar and represents clients nationwide. Alison enjoys spending time with her tween daughter and is a pickleball fanatic. Representative industries: Manufacturing, utilities, banking, real estate funds, angel investing, agribusiness, and technology Expertise: Mergers and Acquisitions, Securities Act of 1933, Securities Act of 1934, Regulation A, Regulation CF, Regulation D (private placements), Rule 144, Business Integrity & Compliance

Rajnish Puri

Rajnish Puri is a Shareholder in Buchalter’s Corporate Practice Group in the Firm’s Los Angeles office. Mr. Puri represents companies and individuals in various transactional matters, including mergers and acquisitions, venture capital financing, joint ventures, private placements of equity and debt securities, and other business transactions, with an emphasis in private, middle market, and emerging growth companies. Mr. Puri also advises companies on due diligence activities, evaluation of target entities, corporate governance, preparation and maintenance of corporate records, executive employment arrangements, shareholder issues and routine business activities. His clients include corporations, partnerships, entrepreneurs, and family-owned businesses in a wide range of industries, including aerospace, bio-agriculture, digital media, entertainment, healthcare, information technology, manufacturing, and wealth management industries. Prior to joining Buchalter, Mr. Puri has practiced corporate finance at an international law firm and boutique firms, advising publicly owned and privately held businesses in M&A, financings and general corporate matters.

Ashwin Ram

Ashwin J. Ram is a highly sought-after legal strategist and “problem solver” for all types of high-profile domestic and cross-border disputes. He is an accomplished trial lawyer with nearly 20 years of experience representing corporate and individual clients in criminal, civil, and regulatory matters. His work encompasses a broad range of investigations, white-collar criminal cases, securities litigation, class actions, state and federal False Claims Act litigation, business disputes, and “bet-the-company” and other high-impact litigation. Ashwin also advises clients on crisis management, corporate governance, and regulatory compliance issues. Additionally, he has been recognized for his trial and appellate work, having tried over two dozen cases to verdict and briefed or argued countless state and federal appeals, including at the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Prior to returning to private practice, Ashwin spent more than seven years as a federal prosecutor, including serving as an Assistant U.S. attorney in the Major Frauds Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles (DOJ). As a federal prosecutor, he handled numerous high-profile investigations, such as “Operation Spinal Cap,” one of the largest healthcare fraud prosecutions in California history. Ashwin also investigated and prosecuted cases of money laundering, bribery, kickbacks, insider trading, and investment fraud, as well as violations of the mail, wire, bank, and tax fraud statutes. One of the country’s “go-to” white-collar defense lawyers, Ashwin has extensive experience in all aspects of federal criminal practice, from investigations through trial, sentencing, and appeal. As both a defense attorney and former federal prosecutor, Ashwin has handled approximately two dozen trials and has successfully resolved more than 100 criminal matters involving cumulative alleged losses exceeding several billion dollars. Through this work, Ashwin has developed intimate knowledge of the inner workings of investigations and prosecutions relevant to corporate and individual clients. Ashwin’s strength in the courtroom and strategic approach facilitate successful outcomes for clients in commercial disputes. He has spearheaded high-profile RICO and fraud actions for both plaintiffs and defendants, defended against putative class actions, and successfully resolved several securities litigation class actions and shareholder derivative lawsuits. He has also represented corporate and individual clients in arbitrations and qui tam lawsuits. These commercial disputes have involved countless statutory, contractual, and tort-based claims in state and federal courts. By proactively managing these representations, Ashwin has effectively advanced positions for clients in diverse contexts, including stock offerings, asset purchase agreements, partnership disputes, restrictive covenants, insurance coverage matters, and D&O liability issues. Demonstrating his extensive experience in both criminal and civil matters—and the intersection of the two—Ashwin has written and spoken extensively on topics relevant to corporate and individual clients.

William Schoenholz

William Schoenholz has extensive experience in complex domestic and international financing transactions, representing banks, commercial finance companies, funds and other institutional investors. He has structured, negotiated, and documented a wide variety of financing arrangements ranging from acquisition financing (including leverage buyouts and the financing of tender offers), bridge financing, and working capital financing. These transactions typically involve multi-facility secured credit arrangements that often include multiple borrowers and cross-border elements. Mr. Schoenholz also has considerable experience representing agents in syndicated and club loan transactions and in negotiating and documenting various inter-creditor arrangements. In addition to Mr. Schoenholz’s “front-end” practice, he often represents lenders in workouts and forbearance arrangements. In this connection, he has substantial experience in the enforcement of secured creditor remedies under the Uniform Commercial Code. Since 2009 Mr. Schoenholz has been annually recognized by Chambers USA as a leader in the field of Bank & Finance and is AV Preeminent rated by Martindale Hubbell. He has also been recognized by the L.A. Times B2B Publishing as a Banking & Finance Visionary in 2023 – 2025. From the most recent Chambers USA research, clients report: “He has a solid command of the law with a balanced understanding of business aspects and very strong commercial awareness. This allows William Schoenholz to excel in his profession.” “He is a top-tier banking lawyer and is an expert at representing clients.” “In addition to being highly knowledgeable and experienced, Bill provides practical solutions and effectively works with us to reach reasonable compromises when negotiating legal and business points.” He actively supports a number of non-profit organizations and charities. In 2024 Mr. Schoenholz was the recipient of the National Jewish Health Humanitarian Award. Annually, he participates in several golf tournaments and maintains a single-digit handicap.

Daniel Silva

Tereza Simonyan

Bryn Spradling

Bryn Spradling is a Shareholder in the Firm’s San Diego office and member of both the Corporate Practice Group and Health Care Practice Group. Mr. Spradling practices general business and corporate law, health care law and real estate law, focusing on contractual arrangements in business transactions, representing both individuals and entities, with a large portion of his practice involving clients in the health care field. In the corporate law arena, Mr. Spradling’s practice areas include individual and corporate business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions and joint ventures. He is experienced in entity selection and formation of corporations, partnerships, limited partnerships and limited liability companies, intellectual property/technology strategy and licensing, documenting essential early relationships, buy/sell arrangements between shareholders and other business partners, and non-competition and non-solicitation arrangements. From a health care law standpoint, Mr. Spradling regularly represents individual physicians, medical groups and other providers in connection with entity formation and mergers and acquisitions. In addition, he provides counseling and guidance relating to negotiation and documentation of employment, independent contractor, shareholder and partnership agreements and related business arrangements. He also assists in the formation and structuring of Management Service Organizations and documentation of related transactions with health care providers. Mr. Spradling also has a broad range of experience with general transactional matters including intellectual property licensing and real property acquisitions and sales, both residential and commercial, commercial property leasing, and planning for succession or control of closely-held businesses. He has been named a “San Diego Top Attorney” from 2017-2021. As well as recognition in the Best Lawyers in America, Corporate Law, for 2023 & 2024.

Stephen Strauss

Stephen J. Strauss is a Shareholder and Co-Chair of the Firm’s Entertainment Industry Group. For over 30 years, Mr. Strauss has specialized in domestic and international trademark, copyright, and unfair competition matters, including licensing, Internet domain name disputes, and litigation. He has prosecuted over two thousand U.S. and foreign trademark and service mark applications, and won over 60 UDRP decisions. Mr. Strauss also provides various legal production services for documentary and narrative films and scripted and unscripted television projects (including development, rights acquisition, rights and title clearances, and IP protection and enforcement). Mr. Strauss represents a number of internationally recognized celebrities, sports personalities, recording artists, chefs, authors, social media influencers, and media and entertainment companies. He also represents a wide range of diverse clients in the fields of cosmetics and fragrances, motion picture and television production, comic book publishing, restaurants, alcoholic beverages and wines, vegetable and fruit production, vitamins and nutritional supplements, financial and real estate services, medical services, energy, computer software and artificial intelligence, clothing, toys, digital collectibles and tokens, and labor unions. Recent Projects \tCharmaine’s Kitchen (Reality/Lifestyle TV Pilot – 2024) \tAmerican Cats: The Good, The Bad & The Cuddly (Documentary Film – 2024) \tClaim to Fame (Reality Competition TV – 2022) \tCooking with Curtis (Reality TV – 2022) \tLookalike Love (Reality TV – 2021) \tRock Camp: The Movie (Documentary Film – 2021) \tMaking Apes: The Artists Who Changed Film (Documentary Film – 2019) \tAmazing Grace (Documentary Film – 2019) Cinenegotiations Blog \tLost in America \tTrue Grit \tScrooged \tNightcrawler \tLincoln \tJaws \t1776 \tNorma Rae \tThe Bride of Frankenstein

Bradley Thoreson

Jeremy Weitz

Mr. Weitz’s expertise covers mergers and acquisitions, private equity, publicly and privately traded securities, venture capital, corporate maintenance and formation, corporate finance, and licensing. He represents clients in a variety of industries, including apparel, retail, beauty, food, fitness, technology, software, e-commerce, aerospace and defense, manufacturing, and entertainment that range in size from small start-ups to multi-billion dollar publicly traded corporations. Mr. Weitz routinely serves as outside general counsel for his corporate clients. Mr. Weitz represents both buyers and sellers in merger and acquisition transactions. Mr. Weitz’s mergers and acquisitions practice is focused on the middle market with transaction values ranging between $10 million up to $3 billion. Mr. Weitz routinely lectures on mergers and acquisitions and the apparel industry. He has also served as a faculty lecturer for the Practising Law Institute where he has lectured on mergers and acquisitions and financing transactions. Mr. Weitz is also Co-Chair of the Firm’s Consumer Products’ Industry Practice Group and former Chair of the Firm’s Apparel Industry Practice Group. Mr. Weitz’s apparel industry practice includes representation of manufacturers, importers and retailers. His experience in the apparel industry includes mergers and acquisitions, finance, commercial law, financial and business planning, licensing, copyright and trademark matters and corporate law. Mr. Weitz has served as President of the Apparel Industries’ Group for the City of Hope and is actively engaged in several charitable endeavors. Mr. Weitz has been named “Most Influential Private Equity Advisor” by the Los Angeles Business Journal. He has also been selected as one of Southern California’s Super Lawyers from 2018 – 2020 and a Southern California Rising Star from 2006 – 2008, 2013. In 2023, Mr. Weitz was recognized as a Los Angeles Visionary by LA Times B2B Publishing. Most recently, he was selected as one of the Top 100 Attorneys in Los Angeles by The Los Angeles Business Journal.

Michael Williamson

Michael Williamson sits on the Board of Buchalter, and is Chair of the firm’s Real Estate Practice Group which includes the Community Development Finance group. Michael’s practice includes equity and debt finance, tax credits, opportunity zones, real estate fund formation, syndicated investments, and portfolio and syndicated credit facilities. Michael represents the spectrum of transaction participants including investors, fund sponsors, joint ventures, lenders and borrowers nationwide in all real estate product types. He lectures frequently on legal and financing issues, opportunity zones, historic preservation, tax credits, and housing issues. Michael is active in community affairs in his hometown of Pasadena. He was Chair of the City Planning Commission and Chair of the Pasadena Board of Zoning Appeals. He is founder, past president and vice president of development of Heritage Housing Partners, a nonprofit for-sale housing developer. In 2019 & 2020, Michael was selected as a finalist by the Los Angeles Business Journal for the prestigious “Leader in Law” award.

Dylan Wiseman

For 28 years, Mr. Wiseman has practiced exclusively in the fields of trade secrets, unfair competition, and employee mobility. Mr. Wiseman is the Co-Chair of Buchalter’s Trade Secret and Employee Mobility Practice Group. Since 2021, Dylan has been recognized by the Daily Journal, California’s legal industry newspaper, as among the Top Trade Secrets Lawyers in California. He is nationally recognized by London-based IAM (Intellectual Asset Management) for trade secret litigation. In 2023, IAM tapped Mr. Wiseman as its exclusive commentator on trade secrets law for the United States. In 2024, Mr. Wiseman spoke via Zoom at the United States Patent & Trademark Office’s trade secrets conference in Bangkok, Thailand for the Association of South East Asian Nations. In 2025, the United States Patent and Trademark Office tapped Mr. Wiseman to present on the status of U.S. trade secrets at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation’s trade secret workshop in Incheon, South Korea. Mr. Wiseman represents businesses, on both the plaintiff and defense side in disputes involving: \tTrade secrets \tUnfair competition \tEmployee mobility and en masse departures \tAntitrust claims \tDisputes involving customer non-solicitation restrictions He also counsels employers and start-ups regarding best practices for intellectual property. Mr. Wiseman’s diverse group of clients include: \tInsurance brokerages \tVenture capital, private equity, and investment banking firms \tAerospace companies \tArtificial intelligence and machine learning companies \tMortgage banking firms \tBiomedical device companies \tInventors \tProfessional service firms \tLife sciences companies \tRenewable and sustainable energy companies \tCasinos \tHealthcare companies \tSporting goods companies \tMedia outlets \tCommercial banks Mr. Wiseman has extensive jury trial experience. He has been lead trial counsel in several complex designated unfair competition jury trials, including an eight-week jury trial. Mr. Wiseman also has substantial first-chair experience in complex arbitrations. Because of his trial experience, the California Lawyers Association asked Mr. Wiseman to be the sole author of the chapter on jury instructions in the treatise Trade Secret Litigation & Protection: A Practice Guide to the DTSA and CUTSA (4th Ed. 2021). Mr. Wiseman’s chapter provides a comprehensive critique of the CACI 4400 series jury instructions used for trade secret claims. Similarly recognizing Mr. Wiseman’s two decades of trade secrets trial verdicts, he is a co-author of the Template Civil Jury Instructions Under the Defend Trade Secrets Act, which was published in 2021 in the Intellectual Property & Technology Law Journal. In 2023, Mr. Wiseman joined The Sedona Conference – Working Group 12 (Trade Secrets), which is developing a set of pattern jury instructions for the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act. Appearing in state and federal courts, Mr. Wiseman has extensive experience litigating disputes under: \tThe Uniform Trade Secrets Act \tThe Defend Trade Secrets Act \tThe Sherman Antitrust Act \tThe Computer Fraud and Abuse Act \tCalifornia’s Unfair Competition Law, Business and Professions Code, section 17200 \tCalifornia’s Business & Professions Code sections 16600 and 16601 \tCalifornia’s intellectual property assignment provisions \tCalifornia Penal Code section 502 \tCalifornia’s employee duty loyalty provisions On multiple occasions, Mr. Wiseman has taught continuing education seminars regarding trade secrets and unfair competition litigation for the State Bar of California’s Labor and Employment Law Section. An award-winning lecturer, he has also taught continuing legal education seminars regarding intellectual property protection, social media and confidentiality, computer forensics, and eDiscovery. In 2017, Mr. Wiseman opened the Sacramento office after working for a year to plan, organize, and recruit the other Sacramento attorneys. The Sacramento office now has over 40 resident lawyers. Prior to joining Buchalter, Mr. Wiseman was a Shareholder for ten years at Littler Mendelson, the world’s largest labor and employment law firm.

Philip Wolman

Philip J. Wolman has handled tax matters in a wide variety of subjects including corporate and partnership tax planning, domestic and international business transactions, executive compensation and employee benefit plan matters, estate planning, business acquisitions and dispositions, equipment leasing, and tax controversies. Mr. Wolman, who is AV Preeminent rated by Martindale Hubbell, is a member of the American (Taxation Section, Committee on Personal Service Organizations), Los Angeles County (Taxation Section) and Beverly Hills (Committee of Taxation) Bar Associations. He is admitted to practice in the United States District Court for the Central District of California and the United States Tax Court.