Law Firm News

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Law Firm News

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Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps, LLP

Court Upholds Arbitration of Construction Defects Involving Interstate Commerce
"Since 1989, arbitration clauses in California real estate sales contracts were subject to an important exception for construction defects. Code of Civil Procedure section 1298.7 allows a purchaser of real property to bring an action in court for construction and design defects, notwithstanding an agreement to arbitrate. However, a recent California Court of Appeal decision held that the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) preempts the statute where it is shown that the materials used in construction came from interstate commerce.

In Shepard v. Edward Mackay Enterprises, Inc. (2007) 148 Cal.App.4th 1092, the plaintiff homebuyer sued a contractor and developer after a plumbing leak caused extensive damage to the buyer’s home. The defendants moved to compel arbitration of the dispute based on an arbitration provision in the real estate purchase agreement, but the trial court denied the motion based on section 1298.7. On appeal, defendants argued the FAA preempted the statute based on recent Supreme Court decisions.

The Court of Appeal reversed the order denying arbitration. The court concluded that defendants met their burden of demonstrating that the transaction substantially affected interstate commerce. Defendants produced declarations showing that the construction of the buyer’s home involved the receipt and use of building materials that were manufactured and produced outside of the state. Accordingly, the court held the FAA preempted the California statute.

For homebuilders, the Shephard decision is good news because it requires enforcement of arbitration clauses for construction defects in circumstances where an adequate showing is made that the building materials came from interstate commerce."

06-06-2007

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Stone, Pigman, Walther & Wittmann, L.L.C.

Walter Wolf To Address Restaurant Entrepreneurs
Walter Wolf will address restaurant entrepreneurs at Anatole Restaurant, 600 St. Charles Ave., on Tuesday, June 26 at 5:30 p.m. The focus of his talk will be on intellectual property issues in the restaurant business. Some of the issues he will discuss include branding and trade secrets.

06-06-2007

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Sherin & Lodgen LLP

Frank J. Bailey elected to the Governing Board of the Supreme Judicial Court
Frank J. Bailey was elected to the Governing Board of the SJC Law Clerk’s Society. The SJC Law Clerk’s Society is an association of former SJC law clerks. The SJC is the oldest appellate court in continuous existence in the Western Hemisphere. Frank served as judicial law clerk to Honorable Herbert P. Wilkins in 1980-81.

Litigation attorneys Robert J. Muldoon (Kirk, J.) and Edward S. Cheng (Marshall, C.J.) are also members of the Law Clerk’s Society and have served on the Governing Board. Bob Muldoon has also served as Co-Chair of the Society.

06-06-2007

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Patton Boggs LLP

Patton Boggs LLP Receives Prestigious Legal Writing and Publishing Awards
Patton Boggs LLP is pleased to announce that the firm has won a series of prestigious awards for legal writing and publishing.

In early May, the Burton Awards for Legal Achievement announced that Patton Boggs partners Robert Luskin and Andrew Friedman had earned a 2007 Burton Award for Legal Writing for their article, When Congress Calls, which was published by Inside Litigation magazine in the Spring/Summer 2006 edition.

In addition, the firm’s custom-published magazine Capital Thinking was honored with the 2007 Best Law Firm Publication Award, co-sponsored by the Burton Foundation and the Association of Legal Administrators. Since Patton Boggs has received a Burton Award for three consecutive years, the firm was also presented with a “Record of Distinction” Award. This honor is particularly noteworthy since only eight law firms have received this award this year. The winners and other representatives from the firm attended an awards dinner and ceremony on June 4 in the Great Hall of the Library of Congress in Washington, DC.

This is the third major award for Capital Thinking, a semi-annual, issues-based, thought leadership magazine providing coverage on a wide range of developments affecting business, finance, politics, and legal issues. Shortly after the magazine was launched in 2006, it won the Custom Publishing Council Pearl Award-Silver for Editorial: Best New Magazine. In March, it received 3rd Place in the Best Other Communications category at the 2007 Legal Marketing Association (LMA) Your Honor Awards Ceremony, recognizing creativity, execution, achievement, and excellence in legal marketing.

06-06-2007

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Patton Boggs LLP

Patton Boggs LLP Hires Former Coca-Cola Senior Counsel Christopher Hagenbush
Patton Boggs LLP is pleased to announce that Christopher L. Hagenbush has joined the firm as a partner in the Washington, D.C. office. He comes to Patton Boggs from The Coca-Cola Company, where he most recently served as Senior Counsel.

At Patton Boggs, Mr. Hagenbush will draw from his extensive background as an in-house counsel to assist the firm’s clients on numerous matters involving food, drug, and cosmetic law. His diverse experience dealing with a variety of U.S. and international legal and business issues has provided him with a practical perspective in helping clients address the myriad complex challenges confronted by companies in the food and drug industries.

"We welcome Chris to the firm at this important time, particularly when so many of the regulatory issues he has long worked on are facing potentially significant changes,” said Stuart M. Pape, Managing Partner. “His in-house experience will provide our practice with additional creativity, perspective, and a clearer understanding of these issues affecting the food and drug industry.”

In his most recent position of Senior Counsel at the Coca-Cola Company, Mr. Hagenbush managed legal and regulatory matters related to formulation, production, labeling, and advertising of beverages, as well as product safety, security, and quality. He represented the company’s interests before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in addition to self-regulatory, international, and supra-national regulatory bodies, plus trade associations, NGOs, and other non-profit organizations.

Mr. Hagenbush also worked for the company in Tokyo, Japan as General Counsel for the Asia-Pacific region, where he managed a team of 22 lawyers in six divisions in the Asia-Pacific strategic business unit (SBU) to deliver all legal services for the company in Asia, Australia, and India. He spent time as Chief Counsel for Food Law in Atlanta, Georgia and was Associate General Counsel in Houston, Texas for the company’s Foods Division.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Hagenbush was Legal Director for the consumer products division of one of the 20 largest pharmaceutical companies in the United States, Associate Counsel for a global manufacturer of household cleaning supplies and other consumer chemicals, and Senior Attorney for a food supplement/medical device/OTC drug company.

Mr. Hagenbush was an adjunct faculty member at Georgia State College of Law in the Food and Drug Law area during the Fall of 2005 and 2006.

He graduated from the Indiana University School of Law – Indianapolis, with a J.D. in 1979 and attended Indiana University – Bloomington, earning an A.B. in 1974.

06-06-2007

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Patton Boggs LLP

Walter Featherly Named Managing Partner of Patton Boggs Anchorage Office: Attorneys Rebecca Copeland and Teresa Ridle Promoted To Of Counsel
The international law firm of Patton Boggs LLP is pleased to announce that Walter T. Featherly has been named Managing Partner of the Anchorage office. He assumes this new role immediately. The firm has also promoted attorneys Rebecca S. Copeland and Teresa S. Ridle to Of Counsel status.

“Walter’s years of legal experience in Alaska and his understanding of the important role played by our Anchorage office makes him the right choice to direct our efforts in Alaska and throughout the Pacific Northwest,” noted Stuart M. Pape, the firm’s Managing Partner. “We look forward to his leadership and working with him as we continue to grow in this vital region.”

Mr. Featherly counsels boards of directors and executive managers on matters of corporate law and governance, entity formation, securities law, protection of intellectual property, government contracting, employment practices, finance, and real estate. For more than twenty-five years, the focus of Mr. Featherly’s practice has been Alaska Native Corporations, which he regularly represents in matters concerning the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) Business Development and HUBZone programs, and other corporate and business matters.

In addition, Mr. Featherly’s business practice includes bankruptcy and litigation. He has tried numerous cases in Alaska and federal courts in the areas of commercial transactions, real estate, construction, antitrust, bankruptcy, product liability, personal injury, and eminent domain, and he has argued appeals to the Alaska Supreme Court and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

He is a graduate of Harvard Law School (1980) and earned a B.A. from St. John's College (1977).

Ms. Copeland assists clients with issues relating to commercial and business transactions. In addition to her years of experience representing businesses on entity formation, lending transactions, securities, bankruptcy, and reorganization issues affecting both creditors and debtors, she has extensive knowledge of the economic and business sectors, where she focuses on the needs of mid-size businesses and regulated industries.

Ms. Copeland earned her law degree at Tulane University Law School in 1978 and graduated from Eckerd College with a B.A. in1970.

Ms. Ridle advises clients on a broad range of matters, including business formations and commercial transactions. She also helps businesses and individuals navigate complex civil litigation matters. Previously, she served as a law clerk to the Honorable Larry D. Card, Alaska Superior Court, and to the Honorable Richard D. Savell, Alaska Superior Court.

She earned a J.D. from Gonzaga University School of Law (1994) and holds a B.A. from the University of Alaska - Anchorage (1989).

06-06-2007

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Menter, Rudin & Trivelpiece, P.C.

Firm welcomes John P. Sidd and Celia E. Moore
Menter, Rudin & Trivelpiece, P.C. is pleased to announce that John P. Sidd and Celia E. Moore have joined the firm as associates.

Mr. Sidd is a 1991 graduate of Syracuse University College of Law and has extensive experience in the areas of business law as well as commercial and residential real estate. He will be practicing with the firm’s Commercial Transactions and Real Estate practice groups.

Ms. Moore, a 2006 graduate of Albany Law School of Union University, was recently admitted to practice in New York and will be working with the firm’s Litigation practice group.

06-06-2007

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