Payne & Fears’ business litigation attorneys are skilled in representing businesses and business leaders in state, federal, and administrative forums, building a remarkable record of success for our clients. Our goal is always to represent our clients efficiently and effectively to achieve the best results on their behalf. 

We understand the unique concerns and issues businesses face. Our attorneys, therefore, do not focus only on the legal view of the matters presented; we focus on achieving the best result for our clients from a legal, economic, and public relations perspective. As a result, we provide counsel and representation to our clients from before a dispute arises up to and through trial and appeal. 

Our focus on providing the best service possible to our clients affords us the opportunity to represent a broad spectrum of clients. Our clients include companies and partnerships of varying sizes, as well as their owners, members, directors, and officers. We are proud to serve our business clients in trial and appellate proceedings in state and federal courts, in arbitration, and before regulatory agencies. Areas of concentration for our business litigation practice are discussed below.

Employee Mobility & Trade Secrets

Changes in the workforce mean increased vulnerabilities for trade secret misappropriation. By helping clients understand the threats to proprietary information posed by their workforce, we help employers protect intellectual property in a variety of ways, including helping them create robust trade secret policies, add conditions to employee agreements, and place restrictions on the kinds of information employees may access. Our employee mobility and trade secret attorneys routinely help clients create confidentiality, non-compete, non-solicitation, and restrictive covenants, guard against unfair competition and unlawful business practices, and create policies to guard against computer fraud. These preventative measures help businesses to reduce the risk of trade secret theft. However, even with the best safeguards in place, disputes sometimes occur. The employee mobility and trade secret attorneys at Payne & Fears are prepared to assist clients with trade secret matters from preventative counsel all the way through trial.

Intellectual Property Litigation

Payne & Fears business litigation attorneys handle intellectual property disputes and litigation for clients of varying sizes, from private individuals to Fortune 100 companies. Our clients rely on our counsel for trade secret enforcement and defense, intellectual property disputes arising from license and indemnity agreements, trademark and trade dress infringement, copyright infringement, and antitrust matters.

Our attorneys have the experience, trial skills, and resources required to efficiently resolve even the most complex intellectual property cases. In addition to providing critical legal support to emerging companies facing copyright, trademark, antitrust, and trade secret challenges, our attorneys also regularly counsel and represent established high technology companies throughout California on intellectual property and other technology-related issues.

Appellate Law

Winning at trial is sometimes not the end of a case, and courts are not infallible. Whether they are defending a hard-fought victory or challenging errors made by a trial court, our business attorneys have extensive appellate experience. We are skilled in taking a case from trial court through the appeals court and have stepped in to assist other counsel after an unfavorable court decision. Our attorneys provide the necessary legal and practical advice that clients need before making the decision to commit additional resources to appeal a decision. Once the decision is made to appeal a decision, our business appellate attorneys have the skills, knowledge, and experience to provide high-caliber representation before the appellate courts.

Business Transactions

Payne & Fears business attorneys advise clients in a wide array of business transactions, from business formation to legal issues surrounding the operation and growth of a company and major business transactions such as buying, selling, or merging existing businesses. Our attorneys draw on years of experience to provide a cost-effective and practical representation of domestic and foreign corporations, investors, and entrepreneurs.

Our business attorneys represent clients in many different industries, including software, manufacturing, real estate, entertainment, and medical devices, among others. By understanding the nuances of our clients’ industry, we can provide knowledgeable and practical counsel in all areas where we are engaged. We regularly serve as outside general counsel for existing businesses as well as start-up and early-stage companies, both domestically and internationally.

Breach of Contract & Business Disputes

The business attorneys at Payne & Fears have spent decades helping clients protect their rights in breach of contract and business disputes. We regularly help clients formulate strategies to work toward resolution of their business disputes, beginning with helping them to interpret the terms of their agreements. Wherever possible, we use those terms to resolve conflicts. We also help clients determine whether a breach has occurred and, where necessary, negotiate appropriate resolutions. We work for solutions without litigation, but are prepared to help clients navigate through mediation and/or arbitration to arrive at a satisfactory resolution. We have considerable business litigation experience and help our clients prevail in court when negotiation fails to produce a satisfactory result.

Consumer Class Action 

The consumer class action attorneys at Payne & Fears have secured significant victories in major class actions. Our work on behalf of plaintiffs informs the work we do to defend class actions and help our clients who find themselves the target of consumer class action lawsuits. We have significant experience with Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), false advertising, Consumer Legal Remedies Act (CLRA), Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), and unfair competition cases. We fight aggressively and creatively for our clients in trial courts and, where necessary, on appeal.

Healthcare Litigation 

Our healthcare litigation attorneys have extensive experience representing healthcare providers in a wide variety of disputes. They have successfully represented hospitals and hospital affiliates in litigation involving managed care contracts, partnership, and joint venture agreements, Medi-Cal payments, non-competition agreements, liability insurance coverage, stop-loss insurance, non-contracted emergency care, and complex class actions. We represent clients in several areas of the healthcare industry, including hospitals, medical groups, medical device and life science companies, rehabilitation centers, and extended and elder care facilities.

Construction & Real Estate Litigation

Construction projects are complicated enterprises and present many legal hazards. Our attorneys are familiar with the several intersecting areas of law that are relevant to construction and real estate projects. We take an active approach to meeting our clients’ needs by advising them on risk exposure and how to strengthen their positions in the event of a claim. We are familiar with the assortment of disputes common to the construction process. We shepherd clients through the entirety of their projects and, in the event of a dispute, are ready to protect our clients’ interests in court.