Moore & Van Allen, PLLC

Moore & Van Allen, PLLC

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Evan M. Bass

Evan M. Bass

Evan Bass is head of the firm’s Commercial Real Estate group. Evan represents clients in their ongoing business affairs and focuses his practice on commercial real estate, real estate finance and real estate related corporate law matters. He is also a member of the Investment Management practice, with a focus on REITs and private real estate investment funds. Evan's experience includes advising investors, developers, lenders and major corporations on a variety of commercial estate transactions, ranging from the purchase or sale of real estate assets, real estate lending and borrowing, complex lease negotiations, condominium and planned community creation and management and the acquisition of real estate liens in distressed debt markets. Evan serves as outside counsel to public and private companies, regularly advising senior management, asset managers, investment advisors and boards of directors on commercial real estate matters, corporate governance issues and related legal issues.
Kathryn Gusmer Cole

Kathryn Gusmer Cole

Kate serves as Co-head of the firm's Intellectual Property team. She provides strategic leadership and counsel on complex intellectual property matters for domestic and international clients, including start-ups, private equity groups, and large private and public companies. Her broad IP experience positions her to serve as a valued business partner to her clients on a variety of IP transactional and litigation matters. She represents clients in matters relating to IP development, portfolio acquisition, and complex licensing, and leads teams in advising on the IP aspects of various debt and equity investments. Clients look to Kate for her collaborative approach to deals, ensuring that both sides work together on creative solutions to reach a mutually positive outcome. Kate also routinely assists clients in protecting their IP rights through enforcement and litigation, with experience in federal courts throughout the country in IP disputes including patent, trademark, and trade secret litigation. Kate is ranked in IAM Strategy 300 as a leading IP strategist in licensing and M&A, and is recommended by IAM Patent 1000, where clients note that she is “an adept litigator as well as deal lawyer” and describe her as “brilliant – she is responsive, thorough, and careful but very creative. She has an extremely strong skill set when it comes to IP and corporate matters, so she can efficiently and effectively solve any problem that comes her way.” She has also been recognized by Best Lawyers in America, Business North Carolina Legal Elite, North Carolina Super Lawyers, and World Trademark Review 1000, with clients commenting that she is “extremely customer focused and looks for – and accomplishes – business wins.” “She always takes a business-sensitive tack on disputes, looking for the best value proposition for the client. She communicates promptly and responsively, and works closely with her patrons.  I have had uniformly excellent results from her and her team.” Kate has also been named a Charlotte Business Journal Women in Business Achievement Award winner for her significant contributions to her firm, industry, and community.
Suzanne K. Gainey

Suzanne K. Gainey

Suzanne Gainey practices in both the Commercial & Technology Transactions and Privacy & Data Security groups. Her experience involves a wide-range of technology, intellectual property, and privacy matters, with a focus on transactional work. Suzanne’s practice is focused on supply chain, licensing, technology and commercial transactional matters, as well as data security and privacy. She has extensive experience in drafting and negotiating a variety of commercial contracts, including licensing agreements, outsourcing agreements, cloud services agreements, reseller agreements, referral agreements, and payment processing agreements. Suzanne represents clients across a number of industries, including those in financial services, manufacturing and healthcare. Before practicing law, Suzanne studied mechanical engineering at the University of Illinois and worked as a technology analyst in the financial services industry. She also has experience analyzing patent portfolios and conducting intellectual property due diligence.
Brandon Gaskins

Brandon Gaskins

Brandon Gaskins maintains a broad practice that draws upon wide-ranging experience in litigation, land use, governmental, and employment matters. Realizing that no case or legal issue is exactly the same, Brandon applies his skills flexibly to offer clients strategic and innovative solutions. Brandon is an accomplished litigator with experience in complex business and contract disputes, land use and zoning disputes, and cases involving violations of non-competition, confidentiality, and other restrictive covenants. In the land use arena, he has successfully challenged governmental entities who have denied clients’ development and property rights. In addition, Brandon maintains a wide-ranging employment law practice, providing advice and litigating matters involving Title VII, Americans with Disabilities Act, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Family and Medical Leave Act. As part of this practice, Brandon regularly counsels employers, executives, and physicians regarding employment contracts, employee termination, wage and hour compliance, restrictive covenants, and other employment-related matters. Prior to joining the firm, Brandon served as Deputy Chief Counsel to South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford. In this role, Brandon served as a key member of the team representing the governor’s office during the high-profile ethics investigation and impeachment proceedings. Since leaving the governor’s office, Brandon has continued to represent clients in regulatory and internal investigations.
Stephen E. Gruendel

Stephen E. Gruendel

Steve Gruendel represents banks and other creditors in connection with workouts and bankruptcies. A certified mediator, a former entrepreneur and a workout lawyer, Steve brings a practical, solution-seeking approach to complex legal situations. He’s been recognized in Chambers Partners USA as a go-to workout lawyer for the past 14 years. Steve is co-head of the Bankruptcy & Financial Restructuring group. He represents banks and other creditors in workouts and bankruptcies. Also certified as a mediator, Steve brings a practical, problem-solving approach to workouts and recognizes that in most situations a practical and cooperative solution is better for his creditor clients than a collection action or a liquidation. Steve’s practice encompasses both syndicated credit facilities and bilateral loans and leases. With clients that are national, regional and local, his work is as likely to involve a restructure of a publicly traded defense contractor’s syndicated credit facility as it is the cooperative liquidation or winddown of a regional hog producer or franchisee’s restaurant chain.  Workout matters regularly involve forbearance agreements, amendments, wind-downs and debt restructuring agreements. Chapter 11 matters regularly involve debtor-in-possession financings and cash collateral use, section 363 sales and negotiated and/or contested reorganization plans.  Steve’s workout matters also often involve intercreditor issues with third parties, including payment subordination, lien subordination, and surety-related rights and he frequently advises clients about how to structure loans that involve particularly thorny or complex issues. In his free time, he coaches a high school mock trial team at Covenant Day School in Matthews, NC.
Arlene D. Hanks

Arlene D. Hanks

Arlene often serves as external trademark counsel and provides comprehensive legal advice in domestic and international trademark and copyright prosecution, protection, enforcement and related disputes, and intellectual property licensing and transactional work for her clients. Arlene counsels and guides clients through their development of practical brand strategies to maximize brand investment to meet their business and commercial goals, whether of a local, national, regional, or international scope.  This includes protecting, policing, and enforcing intellectual property rights domestically and globally, and related marketing, private label branding, licensing, and transactional matters. She assists clients with intellectual property disputes and with IP counseling and due diligence in connection with mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures.  She works with an extensive network of respected firms internationally and assists those firms in protecting and enforcing their clients’ intellectual property rights in the United States. She serves as external trademark counsel for several multinational companies and their subsidiaries across a wide spectrum of industries, providing guidance and assistance with both day-to-day issues and enterprise-wide concerns and strategies.
Joshua D. Lanning

Joshua D. Lanning

Josh Lanning brings considerable trial and litigation experience to his cases with a wide-ranging background in complex commercial disputes. Josh has tried and won numerous cases to jury verdict and has successfully argued state and federal appeals in areas ranging from constitutional law to securities entitlements. Josh focuses his practice on class action defense, antitrust and commercial litigation, including matters involving state and federal antitrust laws; complex contractual disputes; fraud and other business torts; Civil RICO; unfair commercial practices; securities fraud; intellectual property; and fiduciary duties. In addition, Josh has managed multiple internal investigations for clients including Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions, and local government bodies. Josh has represented plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal courts throughout North Carolina as well as in a number of other jurisdictions, having litigated significant disputes on behalf of his clients in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Florida, Maine, Georgia, Utah, Nebraska, Texas, and Louisiana. His clients are a diverse set of people and businesses ranging from individuals and families to large national and international banking institutions. In addition, Josh has made pro bono matters an important part of his litigation practice. His experience includes representing prisoners in need of adequate medical care; advocating for special needs children requesting special education services under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act; helping battered spouses obtain protective orders; representing families facing eviction; and assisting in obtaining debt relief for low-income families who were victims of a nationwide fraud ring.  In 2023 Josh partnered with the NC NAACP, North Carolina Disability Rights, and Children’s Rights to file claims on behalf of a class of disabled foster children unnecessarily held in psychiatric residential treatment facilities. Prior to joining the firm, Josh worked for five years as an associate at a prominent litigation firm in New Haven, Connecticut.
Luis M. Lluberas

Luis M. Lluberas

Luis Lluberas’ multidisciplinary practice encompasses a wide range of financial services matters with a focus on the resolution of troubled credits. Luis has extensive experience representing key stakeholders in connection with all aspects of financial restructuring matters in a myriad of industry sectors, including agriculture, commercial real estate, commercial services, consumer discretionary, energy, healthcare, government contracting, manufacturing, retail, technology and transportation. Luis routinely represents financial institutions, in both lender and agent capacities, in syndicated credit facilities and other secured lending transactions. He has also represented strategic investors, receivers and corporate debtors. His out-of-court experience includes creditor compositions, lender workouts, liability management transactions, debt-to-equity swaps and secured party sales. His in-court experience includes large corporate chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, the acquisition of assets out of bankruptcy proceedings, receiverships and foreclosure actions. As a compliment to his vibrant financial restructuring practice, Luis regularly represents lenders and administrative agents in non-distressed lending transactions, including in preparing intercreditor agreements for first lien / second lien, senior / subdebt, and unitranche financing structures. For over three years concluding in December 2022, Luis served as the general counsel and secretary for the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance (formerly the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce), which is focused on the promotion and advancement of the 15-county Charlotte region. In that role, Luis was the primary source of legal advice for the enterprise and regularly advises on matters related to corporate governance, compliance, commercial transactions, human resources and risk management. He is a member of the firm’s Inclusion & Belonging Committee, has served on the firm’s Attorney Development Committee and for six years served as the chair or co-chair of the firm’s Lawyers of Color affinity group. Luis is fluent in Spanish.
Thomas D. Myrick

Thomas D. Myrick

In four decades of practice, Tom Myrick has been first chair trial counsel through verdict in dozens of civil jury trials, including months-long trials and litigation lasting nearly 15 years. He litigates matters ranging from business torts, contract and estate disputes, and wrongful terminations, to franchise class action and product liability claims, corporate governance issues, and much more. Clients appreciate Tom’s earnest demeanor, tenacity, and well-rounded approach that perpetuates successful outcomes. Tom litigates a wide range of high-stakes suits on behalf of corporations and individuals from varying industries and geographies. His accomplishments include securing the largest jury verdict in North Carolina history and serving as lead trial counsel in one of the longest civil jury trials in state court history. He also tried a case before the North Carolina Business Court, then defended the results on appeal before the North Carolina Court of Appeals, North Carolina Supreme Court, and ultimately the U.S. Supreme Court. Tom, a CPA and licensed broker, has arbitrated and resolved high-risk disputes in healthcare, taxation, power and gas, contracting, banking, and other complex and technical industries. His representations have involved negligence, retaliatory actions, product liability, sophisticated damage theories, product recalls in concert with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, fraud, corporate governance issues, and many more realms of law. His ever-present goal is to minimize clients’ exposure to litigation, but he relentlessly pursues a positive outcome if litigation cannot be avoided. In the courtroom, Tom applies inventive approaches to persuasively defend his clients. He works to be a relatable communicator to every audience — juries and judges in particular —and has taught courses and authored published works on top strategies for jury selection. Tom takes on every matter with the mindset that litigation is a fact-specific practice. He believes it comes down to the art of deduction, not rigidity or conventionality. Clients praise Tom’s integrity, ability to manage expectations, and straightforward communication style. “He’s an advocate in every sense and operates with utmost respect for those on both sides of the table,” one client remarked. In addition to his courtroom advocacy, Tom serves as board treasurer for Our Military Kids, a nonprofit that offers grants to children of deployed military members and veterans. To date, the organization has given a total of $35 million in grants to more than 98,000 children, and a grant has been given to every child who has applied. Tom also previously served as board chair for Justice Initiatives, Inc.
J. Christopher Oates

J. Christopher Oates

Chris Oates brings considerable experience to his clients and concentrates his practice in the areas of commercial real estate and land use law. He is a former leader of the firm’s Commercial Real Estate group. Chris Oates is routinely involved in the acquisition, development, financing, and leasing of urban and suburban office complexes, mixed-use developments, hotels, and retail shopping center facilities. He has represented municipal interests and private developers in public/private joint ventures, economic incentive agreements, and other collaborations. He has also been involved with the negotiation of lease agreements, restrictive covenants, and operating and reciprocal easement agreements for developer, lender, and tenant clients. He has assisted developers with zoning issues and obtaining variances before municipal boards. Chris has written and lectured on commercial real estate leasing issues, especially the negotiation of retail leases.
Christopher A. Ogiba

Christopher A. Ogiba

Chris Ogiba is a versatile litigator who focuses on high stakes matters for a variety of institutional, corporate, and individual clients. He is a go-to trial attorney for several Fortune 500 companies, home builders, financial institutions, accounting firms, household-name retailers, construction companies, industrial and manufacturing entities, and real estate developers. Chris is an experienced civil litigator and trial attorney who has successfully represented a wide variety of clients in state and federal court and in arbitrations. As the chair of the firm’s Charleston Litigation group, Chris is supported by a smart and creative team of professionals and is adept at scaling up or down as the needs of a particular engagement demand. Chris also advises his clients of the most efficient and least painful methods of resolving their disputes. Chris is a litigator who can take on any legal obstacle with success and exceptional service, bringing a deep understanding of the law and evolving regulations. He has more than 25 years of experience representing home builders, financial institutions, investment firms, technology companies, professional services networks, accounting and auditing firms, third-party human resource and administrative companies, manufacturers and distributors of industrial and consumer products, construction and bonding companies, retirement communities, real estate developers, and property owners’ associations. Chris has tried more than two dozen cases to verdict in a variety of venues in several jurisdictions along the East Coast and is known for his calm demeanor and confident approach that puts clients at ease even in the face of a potentially catastrophic dispute. His clients also appreciate that he is cognizant of opportunities to drive efficiencies in cost and time.
Nader S. Raja

Nader S. Raja

Global financial institutions, public companies, and individuals turn to Nader to provide thoughtful, authoritative advocacy in complex, high-profile disputes and regulatory enforcement matters. Hailed for his steady judgment, analytical rigor, and results-driven approach, Nader is frequently engaged in matters that present significant legal, financial, and reputational risk, including securities and commodities litigation, corporate governance disputes, and investigations arising from trading activity and market conduct. Nader has substantial experience representing clients in parallel civil, criminal, and regulatory matters involving the DOJ, SEC, CFTC, FINRA, global trading exchanges, and state enforcement authorities.  He has secured favorable outcomes in investigations carrying substantial follow-on litigation risk.  Nader’s matters include securing a declination in a DOJ Fraud Section investigation into alleged commodities and securities fraud and manipulation; defending financial institutions in CFTC and FINRA investigations concerning trading practices, off‑channel communications, and regulatory reporting obligations; and representing clients in sanctions‑related matters arising from DOJ priorities. On the strength of his track record and proven mitigation strategies, he is regularly called upon to manage investigations that present significant follow‑on litigation risk and cross‑border exposure. In litigation, Nader represents clients in complex commercial disputes in federal and state courts across the country, as well as in domestic and international arbitration. His experience spans securities and corporate governance litigation, shareholder and class actions, consumer lending and credit, and other sophisticated commercial litigation. He is regularly entrusted with matters involving significant exposure, contested transactions, and core business practices, and has a strong track record of positioning clients for favorable outcomes through disciplined motion practice and strategic case management. Nader also advises companies on governance, remediation, and compliance matters. He works closely with clients to design and implement effective compliance programs, including policies, procedures, training, and other internal controls designed to prevent, deter, and detect misconduct. For his excellence in this realm, Nader was previously honored as a Law360 Compliance Rising Star. Across all aspects of his practice, Nader delivers strategic, cost-effective representation. He aims to bring clients not only solutions and a clear plan of action, but also peace of mind. In addition to his commercial practice, Nader is deeply committed to pro bono services and has represented individuals in matters involving access to justice and community impact. He views pro bono work as a core professional responsibility and an integral part of his firm’s broader service mission.
W. Kevin Ransom

W. Kevin Ransom

Kevin Ransom is a member of the Moore & Van Allen Intellectual Property group. A trained electrical engineer with corporate experience, Kevin brings both technical experience and legal know-how to his widely varying U.S. and non-U.S. based intellectual property clients. Some of the services Kevin provides his clients include: \tObtaining patent protection in the U.S. and non-U.S. patent offices. \tInfringement and invalidity investigations, product landscaping, and freedom to operate investigations, and product redesign assistance. \tPreparing and negotiating license, manufacturing, distribution, joint-venture, joint-development, royalty-sharing, intellectual property purchase agreements. \tNegotiating and performing due diligence involving intellectual property in a variety of debt and M&A transactions, including: preparing and negotiating intellectual property and regulatory compliance provisions; due diligence related to ownership, scope, product coverage, and overall legal value of intellectual property assets/ collateral; and analyzing material licenses and other commercial agreements to assess a range of issues, such as the scope of license rights, transferability, assignability, and termination provisions. He also assists clients to develop strategies to effectively manage their intellectual property, including risk management of third-party intellectual property rights, consulting on a wide range of transactions with intellectual property components. Kevin works with clients in diverse areas of technology, including electronics, computer software/firmware, artificial intelligence, blockchain, sensor technologies, distributed networks,  cloud computing, network analysis & maintenance, data security, data management, telephony, medical devices, power-management systems, flight navigation, laser and optics, printing technology, battery technology, financial services and banking systems, power and drive train for heavy vehicles. He has also pursued numerous software and business-method inventions, such as on­line search engines, inventory and logistic systems, database management, web-based interfaces, online ticketing, financial instruments, insurance products, banking transactions. Kevin has particular experience with blockchain technology, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and data and cyber security.
Trudy H. Robertson

Trudy H. Robertson

Trudy Robertson is a member of the Management Committee and is the co-managing member of the Charleston office and handles wide-ranging business, governmental, fiduciary, banking, healthcare, and products liability and property matters. Her active business and commercial litigation practice emphasizes corporate, banking, healthcare, municipal, regulatory, and litigation issues. Trudy frequently counsels individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations, charitable organizations, municipalities, physicians, and other health care providers through governance and transactional matters, regulatory compliance, and disputes. She regularly advises and represents governmental and nonprofit organizations in contractual, governance and litigation matters. She represents health care providers in licensing, medical staff, governance, and fair hearing matters, and has experience advising on Certificate of Need issues. She brings significant litigation experience in representing fiduciaries in trust and estate matters. She also has litigation experience in representing clients in condemnation, easement and property related matters. Trudy has experience serving in outside general counsel roles for municipal and nonprofit clients. She has experience handling matters in state, federal, and administrative courts in South Carolina. As counsel to municipalities, Trudy is the principal legal advisor to the town council and town departments. She represents the municipalities in legal matters affecting the towns’ interests. She also drafts resolutions, local laws, ordinances, and contracts for the town council.
Zachary H. Smith

Zachary H. Smith

Zach is a Member and the Co-head of MVA’s Bankruptcy and Financial Restructuring practice. Zach is a nationally recognized restructuring lawyer with more than 20 years of experience in complex restructurings, representing a broad spectrum of stakeholders in special situations and bankruptcy proceedings. Before joining MVA in 2013, Zach was a partner in the restructuring practice of an international law firm based in New York City. Zach’s practice covers transactional and litigation, and encompasses representations such as: \tPrivate equity sponsors and their portfolio companies in out-of-court distressed M&A transactions. \tIndependent directors and special committees in distressed M&A transactions. \tPurchasers of distressed businesses and their assets. \tCorporate debtors in all aspects of complex chapter 11 proceedings, including chapter 11 litigation. \tFinancial institutions, special situation funds, and direct lenders in the restructuring and exit of troubled credits. \tStakeholders in cross-border insolvency situations. \tHigh net worth individuals and family offices in risk mitigation and management, transaction structuring, and transaction execution associated with distressed investment opportunities and special situations. \tPuerto Rico-based financial institutions, private equity investors, and distress investors. Zach is an adjunct professor at Duke University Law School where he teaches courses in corporate restructuring, chapter 11, distress investing, and structuring of financial transactions.
Skottowe W. Smith, Jr.

Skottowe W. Smith, Jr.

Skott Smith brings considerable experience to his clients in the areas of retail, office and mixed-use development, leasing and financing. In this capacity, Skott assists developers, owners, tenants, lenders, and investors in a variety of transactions: \tHe recently handled the development of a downtown office tower adjacent to and part of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, NC \tHe has handled the acquisition, financing, development and disposition of numerous large office, retail and residential developments \tHe recently handled the acquisition of several medical office complexes \tHe has extensive experience handling complex retail and office lease transactions throughout the United States \tHe has recently been involved in the acquisition and development of a regional mall
Christopher D. Tomlinson

Christopher D. Tomlinson

Chris Tomlinson is a seasoned and effective litigator who consistently secures favorable results for his regional, national, and global clients. He has extensive experience representing clients in complex business disputes, with concentrations in shareholder and corporate governance disputes, financial services litigation, and disputes in the manufacturing space. Equal parts counselor and advocate, Chris employs his judgment, creativity, and dedication to resolve disputes both in and out of the courtroom. A longtime member of MVA’s Litigation group and leader of the firm’s North Carolina Business Court team, Chris is called upon to protect clients’ intricate and critical business interests. He assists a wide variety of large and middle-market clients, including global financial institutions, manufacturers, broker-dealers, private equity groups, and aircraft lessors. He also represents members, shareholders, and directors in corporate governance disputes and business break-ups, which often involve claims for breach of fiduciary duties. Chris maintains a national practice, regularly litigating in federal and state courts around the country, as well as in private arbitrations. In his nearly two decades of practice, Chris also has developed trial strategies tailored to North Carolina Business Court representations and he parlays that experience into successful outcomes for clients. Chris’s clients appreciate that he is direct and pragmatic, approaching every issue with the same tenacity. In addition to his many years of experience in private practice, Chris leverages lessons learned from time spent completing a special assignment as an assistant district attorney at the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Office, where he tried dozens of cases to verdict. Chris has a significant record of pro bono legal service, as he has assisted on numerous court-appointed federal criminal cases and housing rights cases. He also serves as the vice-chairman of the Board of Directors of A Christian Ministry in the National Parks, a nationwide nonprofit that operates in 30 national parks. In this role, Chris advises the board on constitutional issues and other matters. Prior to joining the firm, Chris clerked for the Honorable Sidney A. Fitzwater, Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.
Scott M. Tyler

Scott M. Tyler

Scott Tyler has more than two decades of experience successfully representing some of the nation’s largest financial services, manufacturing, real estate, and other companies in a range of complex disputes. He provides his clients with a practical approach to achieving a balance between business considerations and zealous advocacy. Scott focuses his time—and his clients’ resources—on a strategic path to success by creating a road map for each case, from pleadings to motions, to discovery, and onto trial. He is prepared to seek a prompt but favorable compromise or to fight aggressively for his clients’ interests. He works thoughtfully with legal experts while considering a cost-benefit analysis for both tactical and strategic issues impacting each matter. Scott guides other attorneys using the same methodical, effective approach. Scott served as co-head of the Litigation group for nearly a decade and on the firm’s Management Committee.