Full service real estate attorney with an emphasis on litigation and dispute resolution. Represents and advises real estate investors, lenders, property managers, commercial tenants, brokers, contractors, and homeowners. Litigated matters include landlord-tenant, boundary and easement disputes, title disputes, wrongful foreclosure, buy-sell litigation, construction, HOA, nuisance, land use, commercial loan defaults, and bankruptcy litigation for creditors. Transactions include leasing, buy-sell, financing, easements, holding companies, and workouts. Left prior firm on good terms to open this office, the goal being to continue to grow professionally and serve a broader range of clients on a variety of real estate matters, which has proved successful. Responsible for all business development and management of staff and attorneys.Specialties: Law

Represented national banks, lenders, and loan servicers in real estate and financial services litigation, including the areas of lender liability, loan servicer liability, and title disputes. Worked in Stuart Wolfe’s exceptional mortgage banking practice during the unprecedented wave of lender/loan servicer litigation during the Great Recession. Played a key role in developing strategies and legal theories for favorably defending and resolving these cases in a quickly changing landscape of case law, regulation, and plaintiff’s tactics. Was responsible for a large caseload (25 to 45 at a time) in state and federal courts throughout Northern California, handled most client counseling and all pretrial court proceedings, discovery, negotiations, trial preparation, and appeals. First chaired all law and motion proceedings, motions for summary judgment, depositions, mediations, settlement conferences, and appellate arguments. Successfully defended or settled 100% of cases, totaling in the hundreds. Notable successes include a landmark appeal, prevailing on summary judgment in some particularly difficult cases, many exceptional results in settlement negotiations, and facilitating a large number of loan modification settlements which kept the clients’ customers in their homes. Developed effective and trusting relationships with in-house law departments at national banks, prioritizing their need for efficiency and learning their organizational structures and cultures. Left firm on good terms to open new office, looking for a new challenge and to serve a broader range of clients on a wider variety of real estate matters.

Litigation, primarily in the areas of real estate, homeowners associations, commercial landlord-tenant, and professional liability. Was the managing attorney for a number of cases, involving construction contracts, HOA liability, and retail landlord-tenant defaults. Supported the firm’s partners in other cases, where I was responsible for a number of successful projects, including a motion for summary judgment on a land purchase-sale dispute, various civil appeals, and a contested preliminary injunction proceeding in an adjoining landowner dispute. First chaired a binding arbitration hearing, law and motion matters, depositions, mediations, and default prove-up hearings. Responsible for written discovery and assisting in trial preparation. Revised and implemented improved firm procedures for handling HOA collection cases. Left firm on good terms to advance to mid-sized firm Wolfe & Wyman.

Taught two law courses, Intro to Law and Business Law, to undergraduate students both in the classroom (2006 - 2007) and online (2007 - 2009). Developed all lesson plans, lectures, written exams, and written materials to supplement assigned texts. Successfully worked with a diverse student group including many ESL students. Left position on good terms to focus on law practice.

Represented individuals and small businesses in litigation and transactions, focusing on Lemon Law and other consumer cases. Also worked as a contract attorney for other lawyers on civil litigation matters. Closed solo practice to pursue better career prospects in the Bay Area.

Worked on consumer protection matters, first for class credit and then as a paid federal employee. Conducted dozens of witness interviews, gathered documentary evidence, and drafted witness declarations to support the agency’s TRO/injunction applications in federal court. Also gathered and analyzed large volumes pf Internet evidence to support the FTC's SPAM investigations and actions.