As part of our continued growth, Lewis & Llewellyn is pleased to welcome Kenneth Walczak to the firm as Of Counsel. A graduate of Harvard Law School, Kenneth has practiced civil rights law, constitutional law, and complex civil litigation for fourteen years. Before joining the firm, Kenneth worked in the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office, representing the City and County of San Francisco in labor and employment matters, affirmative litigation, and appeals. He has won victories at every phase of state and federal court proceedings, securing recoveries of millions of dollars on the plaintiffs’ side, as well as significant defense victories.
Category: Announcements
At Lewis & Llewellyn we handle litigation throughout the country and the world. Partner Evan Burbidge recently worked alongside Zimmerman Booher, Utah’s premiere appellate boutique, to file an amicus brief regarding a unique and far-reaching constitutional issue in Utah. The underlying case is currently before the Utah Supreme Court and the outcome will have significant ramifications for all cities and towns in Utah, and perhaps beyond.
The amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief was filed in support of Salt Lake City’s effort to regain control over one-fifth of its land and associated taxes in connection with the creation of an “inland port.” This port was created by the Utah Legislature and gives an unelected board effective control over the development of a large swath of Salt Lake City’s land and incremental tax revenues—with the ultimate goal to build and operate a transportation hub linking rail, truck, and air transportation in Utah.
In the brief, we argue that the Utah Constitution prohibits this transfer of municipal power to an unelected board. Lewis & Llewellyn is proud to contribute to this significant effort.
At Lewis & Llewellyn we have chosen to devote our litigation expertise to a social cause we feel passionately about—representing survivors of sexual violence in civil actions against their perpetrators and those institutions that enable the abuse. By providing the same exhaustive and aggressive representation that we provide to our business clients, we have successfully recovered millions of dollars on behalf of victims nationwide.
In furtherance of the firm’s groundbreaking work in this area, we are pleased to announce that Paul Llewellyn has been appointed to the National Leadership Council of RAINN, the country’s largest anti-sexual violence organization. The National Leadership Council is a leadership group of individuals who have been recognized based on their commitment to RAINN’s mission of supporting survivors of sexual assault and bringing perpetrators to justice. As part of the Leadership Council, Paul joins luminaries such as Tori Amos, Ashley Judd and Kesha, who have demonstrated a similar commitment to sexual abuse survivors. More information about RAINN can be found here.
As part of our continued growth, and to meet client demand, Lewis & Llewellyn is pleased to welcome Amy Kashiwabara and Erin Reding to the firm as Of Counsel.
After graduating from Stanford Law School, Amy has practiced complex commercial litigation for almost twenty years. She has represented clients ranging from Fortune 100 clients to startups, and in addition to first chair jury trial experience, she has also acted as a mediator. Erin received her law degree from UC Berkeley School of Law, and before joining the firm practiced at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe and as Deputy County Counsel for the County of Alameda.
The addition of these highly talented and experienced litigators to the firm further enhances our ability to handle litigation of any size and complexity.
In the United States, there are nearly 27 million small businesses which account for approximately half of the country’s GDP. As we all know, the unprecedented coronavirus crisis is taking a disproportionate toll on this critical part of our economy.
As a firm, we are highly fortunate to represent some of the largest and most well-known companies in the world. Yet many small businesses do not have access to the same caliber of legal services, and, particularly during this economic contraction, do not have the financial resources to afford them. So we are stepping up to help.
We want to play our part to help small businesses and startups during this time of need. We believe it is our duty to offer free legal advice and guidance so that these small business and startups can focus on continuing to provide income to their employees, and goods and services to their communities.
Accordingly, starting this week, we will be rolling out a pro bono program designed to provide free counseling and consultation services to small businesses and startups in need. These sessions will be by videoconference and phone, and will be targeted to address the legal issues small businesses and startups are currently facing.
If you own, or know someone who owns, a small business or startup, and have questions about an actual or potential dispute, business negotiation, rent abatement or reduction, or similar legal issues, we stand ready to help. These sessions will be entirely free, confidential, and without any expectation whatsoever to retain our services thereafter.
All inquiries should be directed to probono@lewisllewellyn.com with a brief description of the issue or issues you would like to discuss and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Similarly, if you are a professional services provider or other business who may be in a position to help small businesses in their hour of need, please let us know so we can assemble a cadre of potential resources.
Lewis & Llewellyn. We are here to help.
On April 14 at 3:00 p.m., Lewis & Llewellyn partner Paul Llewellyn will join Ryan Harding and Jennifer Frisk of commercial real estate firm Newmark Knight Frank, to present a free webinar on COVID-19 and Commercial Real Estate. The panel will share their insights and tips on, among other things, rent abatement and reduction during the current crisis, the outlook for commercial real estate, as well as more general tips about working remotely and keeping a team motivated and engaged during the current climate. To learn more about the webinar, or to register, click here.
In early March, Lewis & Llewellyn partners Ryan Erickson and Paul Llewellyn traveled to Europe to discuss the firm’s groundbreaking work bringing civil lawsuits on behalf of survivors of sexual violence. The pair first traveled to University College Dublin where, at the invitation of the University’s Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice, they delivered the faculty’s Distinguished Guest Lecture. They then traveled to the United Kingdom where, in conjunction with the University of Oxford’s Faculty of Law, the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights, and Oxford Lawyers Without Borders, they addressed students and faculty in a presentation entitled “Fighting Back: U.S. Litigation In The #MeToo Era.” Lewis & Llewellyn looks forward to fostering closer ties with these prestigious universities.
In two weeks, Lewis & Llewellyn partners Paul Llewellyn and Ryan Erickson will travel to Europe to discuss the firm’s groundbreaking work pursuing civil lawsuits on behalf of survivors of sexual violence. In 2012, before the #MeToo movement had begun, the firm represented a childhood survivor of horrific sexual abuse perpetrated by two California teachers. The case garnered worldwide media attention and together with two other victims from the same school, concluded with the largest ever sexual abuse settlement by a school district in United States history. Since then, in addition to its core business litigation expertise, the firm has earned a reputation as one of the country’s leading firms pursuing justice on behalf of survivors of sexual abuse.
In conjunction with the University of Oxford’s Faculty of Law, the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights, and Oxford Lawyers Without Borders, Llewellyn and Erickson will address students and faculty from this prestigious university in a presentation entitled “Fighting Back: U.S. Litigation In The #MeToo Era.” More information about the lecture can be found here.
Llewellyn and Erickson will then head to University College Dublin. 2020 marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of University’s Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice. The Institute has planned a series of special events to celebrate this landmark occasion, and the pair are honored to have been invited to give a lecture to students and faculty there as part of the special events.
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Lewis & Llewellyn Has Moved!
We are pleased to announce that the firm began 2020 in its new office space. In order to accommodate our continued growth, we relocated to a newly renovated space on the top floor of a building directly across from the Transamerica Pyramid, and just down Montgomery Street from our prior location. Please stop by if you are in the neighborhood.
Our new address is 601 Montgomery Street, Suite 2000, San Francisco, CA 94111.
Our attorneys were busy last month presenting on all aspects of civil litigation. Ryan Erickson and Evan Burbidge returned to the California Superior Court Boot Camp Conference hosted by Pincus Professional Education, giving presentations on “Mastering Oral Argument” and “How to Prepare for Trial.” Becca Furman moderated a panel for the Bar Association of San Francisco on best practices for working with in-house counsel. Paul Llewellyn presented at Bridgeport CLE’s trial preparation program on preparing witnesses for trial. And Ryan Erickson and Nick Saenz traveled to UCLA to speak to law students about prosecuting and defending trade secret disputes.
Also in October, Marc Lewis spent two intensive days at NPR’s How I Built This Summit, a gathering of successful entrepreneurs. Marc met with many groundbreaking builders and innovators including the founders of Instagram, JetBlue, Bliss, Slack, Away, Urban One, and others. Programming included several small sessions where Marc discussed business fundamentals, personal and organizational leadership, and innovation with other entrepreneurs.
