Portola Valley Business Lawyers

Reno Fernandez represents businesses and individuals in complex bankruptcy law appeals. He is certified as a specialist in bankruptcy law by the California Board of Legal Specialization, and protects the interests of creditors, debtors, trustees, and other parties in bankruptcy-related appellate matters. Reno has appeared in the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, and other courts sitting in an appellate capacity under the Bankruptcy Code. He also consults on general bankruptcy litigation in the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts. He...

Experienced Principal with a demonstrated history of working in the law practice industry. Skilled in trial advocacy, representing clients with business disputes, labor and employment law and family Law. Samira received her undergraduate degree with honors from University of California at Berkeley and obtained a Doctor of Law (J.D.) from Santa Clara University School of Law, with a specialization in intellectual property. Samira practices in Federal Court, State Court and the Appellate Court.

James Cai founded SAC Attorneys, LLP after serving as in-house legal counsel for Yahoo! Inc. His practice focuses on corporate law, immigration, employment and estate planning. Mr. Cai believes in relationship lawyering and has a client-driven practice. He practices law the old fashioned way - giving each client this full attention with prompt responses, thorough research and analysis, aggressive representation and careful attention to details, in both transactional and litigation matters. As a result, most of his clients are repeat and long term clients, including individuals, small businesses, non-profit organizations and public companies. Before founding SAC Attorneys, LLP,...

Wilson Purves's practice focuses on Family-based Immigration, Deportation Defense, and Business Immigration to the United States. Mr. Purves has significant expertise in advocating for clients facing deportation proceedings nationwide and aiding individuals and families in achieving favorable results in residency, citizenship matters, and humanitarian relief. Moreover, Mr. Purves leverages his expertise in business immigration to serve a diverse clientele. With a client portfolio ranging from start-ups to industry giants, Mr. Purves brings expertise across diverse sectors including wineries, restaurants, manufacturing, academia, medical, technology, athletics, arts, fashion, artificial intelligence, and entertainment. Licensed by the California State Bar, Wilson Purves has been recognized...

Jeff Lawson is a shareholder of Silicon Valley Law Group, where his practice focuses on compliance and litigation related to environmental law and land use. He also litigates complex commercial and employment cases. Jeff serves the petroleum, manufacturing, water, agriculture, transportation, financial services, real estate, and semiconductor industries. He also serves as a mediator in environmental and commercial disputes. Jeff has been recognized by Law & Politics Media and San Francisco Magazine as one of "Northern California's Super Lawyers" from 2004 to the present and has been named one of the top 100 lawyers in Northern California in 2011, 2012...

With over 5 years of experience, I understand the challenges facing families when they begin to contemplate their future. I know that you want to make sure that you are leaving your loved ones in a good place, and I want to help you develop a comprehensive estate plan that allows you to achieve your specific objectives.

I offer customized Estate Plans tailored to each client's needs. I have dealt with estates of all different sizes. Even if you feel that it is unnecessary for you to create an estate plan, you may have more assets than you realize. Certainly,...

Michael Malter is an accomplished California attorney, advocating for clients in Bankruptcy, Business, Intellectual Property, Landlord Tenant, Real Estate and Tax Law matters. With over 40 years of experience, he has been recognized as a Certified Specialist in Bankruptcy Law by the California State Bar. Michael is committed to providing comprehensive and personalized representation focused on attaining the best possible outcomes.

Michael, a native of Long Island, New York, has been a resident of California since 1977. He currently lives in Saratoga with his two daughters and labradoodles. Outside of work, Michael can be found hiking and traveling. Additionally, he deems...

For your out of court settlement, mediation, negotiation, or transactional needs, contact Kevin Boileau, PhD, at 415.830.0065 or 858.688.4871. Specializing in complex negotiation, mediation, transactional, and int'l problem-solving. INTL LAW, divorce, business, climate change and water, design - - We handle transactions in Asia, Europe and throughout North America. ANIMAL RIGHTS MEDIATION - - We protect animals ranging from Animal Control issues, to vet malpractice, ownership, systemic abuse, and other. CLIMATE CHANGE, WATER & LAND MEDIATION - - We offer creative solutions to conflicts emerging from a changing environment. Wildfires, coastal erosion, earthquakes, land degradation, flash floods, heat, and polluted and scarce water. DIVORCE &...

Mr. Binder has over 35 years of experience representing businesses and individuals as debtors or creditors in all types of bankruptcy matters and corporate restructuring. In addition to his considerable bankruptcy experience, Mr. Binder frequently represents businesses and individuals in real estate and business matters, collection and collection defense, and commercial law disputes. Mr. Binder’s practice also includes asset protection planning, creditor negotiations and workouts, debtor-creditor rights, tax disputes, bankruptcy appeals, and representing under-insured defendants in settlement negotiations and mediations.

Mr. Binder is active in the local Silicon Valley community, frequently lecturing on bankruptcy and related topics such as asset protection...

Bernie Vogel is a shareholder and the CEO and President of Silicon Valley Law Group. His practice emphasizes complex corporate transactions, investment financings, mergers and acquisitions, as well as the formation and maintenance of partnerships and limited liability companies. He provides ongoing business counseling to a variety of entities, ranging from venture capital firms and start up high tech and biotech companies. Advices on directors & officers liability, corporate governance, stock option plans, licensing, and contracts, as well as advice on complex tax issues with respect to transaction structuring, entity formation, reorganizations, and business succession planning. Before practicing law, Bernie...

Stephen Wu is a shareholder with Silicon Valley Law Group. He advises business clients on information governance matters, focusing on information security, privacy, mobile computing, ediscovery preparedness, records management, and computer-related investigations. He reviews and writes sophisticated information security policies for large enterprises, and assists in data security regulatory compliance, incident response, breach notifications, and establishing secure electronic commerce systems. He drafts privacy policies for clients, including ones for U.S. companies with European and Asian operations. He assists clients with European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) compliance. Steve assists clients in managing enterprise mobile device programs, including writing bring...

Mr. Binder was admitted to the California Bar in December 2012 after graduating from the Santa Clara School of Law in June 2012. Mr. Binder’s practice includes debtor and creditor representation, bankruptcy and financial analysis of individuals and entities. Mr. Binder received his Bachelor of Science in Commerce from Santa Clara University in Finance in 2009. Mr. Binder earned his law degree from the Santa Clara University School of Law in 2012. During law school, Mr. Binder was the recipient of a number of awards, including being awarded Witkin Awards in California Civil Procedure, California Evictions and Unlawful Detainer, Commercial Finance,...

Ms. Rome-Banks has 35 years of bankruptcy and related experience. Ms. Rome-Banks’ practice focuses on representing small to mid-size businesses in Chapter 11 and Subchapter V cases, representing landlords in all chapters of bankruptcy, and representing parties in all types of bankruptcy litigation. Ms. Rome-Banks has considerable experience representing commercial landlords in all aspects of bankruptcy, including a number of well-known bankruptcies, including Rite Aid, 24 Hour Fitness, Chuck E. Cheese, Guitar Center, Mens Warehouse, Mattress Firm, Circuit City, Chevy’s, Fresh Choice, Mervyn’s, Crown Books, Hollywood Video, Levitz, Tower Record, and Jennifer Convertibles. Ms. Rome-Banks also has substantial experience...

Mr. Harris’ practice focuses on representing businesses and individuals in Chapter 11, both as debtors and creditors, as well as in bankruptcy litigation, state court assignments for the benefit of creditors (ABCs), receiverships, execution sales and various other bankruptcy and collection matters. Mr. Harris has substantial experience in a number of bankruptcy areas, including real estate restructurings, sales and reorganizations of high tech and general manufacturing companies, dealing with intellectual property rights in bankruptcy, and handling alleged securities laws and Federal Trade Act violations.

Mr. Harris frequently lectures and writes on bankruptcy topics and has authored numerous articles, case analyses, and...

Adam Stoddard is a partner in the firm and has represented developers, general contractors and their insurance companies specializing in the representation of businesses and individuals in complex construction defect litigation, contract, and fraud-based disputes. This included representation ranging from Fortune 500 companies, to national builders and to individual board members of non-profit corporations through the initial investigation, pre-litigation process, and trial. Adam also worked for a prominent plaintiff's law firm representing homeowner's associations in complex construction defect cases. This provided Adam with a practical approach to critically evaluate construction defect claims and implement effective resolution strategies through mediation and settlement...

Trial lawyer representing those harmed due to the wrongful conduct of others. Catastrophic personal injury, wrongful death, products liability, aviation, and business torts.

The $14.9 million jury verdict we obtained for our client injured in a plane crash was one of the largest personal injury verdicts obtained in the state of California in 2008. The $20 million settlement we obtained for a client burned in a utility explosion was one of the largest personal injury settlements in the state for 2006.

Other representative results:

$10 million jury verdict for widow of man killed in California helicopter crash (2011);

$2.6 million settlement for a...

Fred W. Schwinn is a licensed attorney admitted to practice in the States of California and Kansas. Fred is the shareholder and owner of the Consumer Law Center, Inc. His practice is dedicated exclusively to representing consumer debtors in bankruptcy, stopping predatory and abusive consumer lending practices, and protecting consumers from illegal debt collection activity.

In 1997, Fred graduated from Washburn University School of Law in Topeka, Kansas where he organized and volunteered at the law school's Volunteer Income Tax Assistance site. While other law students were training in the law school's legal clinic, Fred began his legal career in...

Ed Kraus is a shareholder with Silicon Valley Law Group. For over 20 years he has represented individuals, small and large companies in a variety of civil and criminal litigation matters. Ed has successfully handled litigation involving employment issues, real estate, construction, commercial disputes, contract issues, unfair competition and Americans with Disabilities Act claims on behalf of businesses. Ed also handles a wide variety of criminal litigation including representing individuals and corporations accused of grand theft, embezzlement, real estate fraud, insurance fraud, environmental, trade secret violations, driving under the influence, other driving related charges and other general criminal matters.

Ed believes...

Marc van Niekerk is Special Counsel with Silicon Valley Law Group’s Business Litigation and Intellectual Property & Employment Group. Over the course of his career, Marc has tried more than 50 cases to verdict and also has extensive mediation experience. His practice focuses on business litigation, with special emphasis in the areas of intellectual property disputes, business torts and commercial contract disputes. During his more than 25 years in practice, Marc has counselled and represented clients in a wide array of commercial disputes including, inter alia, employee solicitation and trade secret misappropriation, business disputes, including breach of contract,...

Help small to medium size companies navigate through a wide variety of legal challenges: formation, funding, governmental impediments, operational legal planning, merger and acquisition, employee relations, and labor compliance. All with the goal of litigation avoidance. Litigation in all California state courts and the Northern and Eastern U.S. District Courts of California.

Since 1989, Lori has been practicing civil litigation throughout Northern California. She is experienced in civil litigation, professional malpractice, employment discrimination, labor and employment, personal injury, wrongful termination, and general business and contract disputes. Lori is licensed to practice law in both state and federal courts in California. With more than 25 years of experience, Lori Costanzo has engaged in a broad range of complex civil actions; she has handled jury and bench trials in both state and federal courts, and has served as a fierce advocate for her clients in mediation and arbitration. Her experience extends to the judicial level...

Experienced, dedicated and affordable immigration attorney servings the Immigration community for near 20 years. Record of winning case on asylum, VAWA claim, naturalization with criminal background, waivers, and complex family based immigrant visa petitions.

As a lawyer for over 30 years, on a daily basis, John Teter has assisted thousands of clients in achieving their business and personal goals. He draws on this wealth of real-world experience, coupled with interaction with colleagues and a lifetime commitment to continuing education, to provide his clients the best legal representation possible. It is a great source of personal pleasure to apply these tools to assist others. Mr. Teter considers each case to be a personal challenge to achieve what is best for each of his clients.

As an experienced taxation law attorney, he has the knowledge and resources...

After practicing for a successful San Francisco financial district law firm for ten years, Ronald started his own practice in 1988. His primary practice areas include business representation, business formations, conversions, acquisitions, sales and mergers, real estate and transportation law, and estate planning. He specializes in representing small to medium sized entities in various industries, including real estate, transportation and logistics, and start-up technology and commercial enterprises. Estate planning services are provided for business owners and their families.

I am a real estate, business and estate planning attorney. My background is in real estate, where I was a real estate appraiser, property manager, and project manager for condominium conversions and other real estate developments. I can certainly relate to many of the issues that my clients face in their day-to-day professional lives.

A large segment of my client base is small business owners. I understand that you want simple answers to your questions; I help focus on figuring out how to get what you're interested in, explaining your options and deciding what will work best for you. I...

Adept at crafting and executing on strategy, building teams, and partnering across functions to advance the business. I have rich experience in law, management and corporate development across diverse settings in terms of scale and geography. This has included advising startups, public companies and investors as outside counsel; serving as a legal and corporate development executive at an industry-leading public company with extensive global operations; and founding a real estate technology start-up. Strengths include: structuring and negotiating complex transactions; mergers & acquisitions; joint ventures; startups; venture capital financings; strategy; corporate governance; securities offerings; SEC reporting requirements; and global operations for complex...

I am a startup business lawyer and litigator practicing in Silicon Valley as head of a 4-lawyer boutique firm, George Grellas & Associates. We are business lawyers with a specialty in early-stage tech startups. Since 1984, we have helped small to medium-sized businesses, startups, entrepreneurs, and executives - several thousand in all. We help form companies - fund them - sell or merge or acquire them - sell their assets - do their corporate work, employment work, contracts, leases, and standard terms - licensing, trademark, and IP work - founder and equity incentive structures - commercial deals of all types. We...

Quynh (“Quinn”) Chen is a bilingual attorney that has been admitted to practice in the Ninth Circuit of the United States Appellate Court. Her practice areas primarily focus on family law, entity formations, and intellectual property. Her interest is in software patents and helping underrepresented clients in her community.

As part of her interest in software patents, Ms. Chen is proficient in programming in Ruby on Rails, MEAN stack Javascript, and working with various databases. While at Golden Gate University, School of Law, she served as Vice President of Asian Pacific American Law Student Association.

I am a determined California attorney practicing Bankruptcy, Business, Real Estate and Construction Law, with a particular focus on insolvency, debtor-creditor rights and real estate matters. With years of experience, my goal is always providing exceptional legal service and representation to achieve the best possible outcomes.

At Structure Law Group, I am part of a dedicated legal team providing skilled and knowledgeable advocacy for business and real estate law matters. For more information visit my website or call for a consultation.

Bill is Special Counsel with Silicon Valley Law Group. He provides experienced and knowledgeable representation in the Corporate & Securities and Intellectual Property groups. His practice areas include business formation and governance, mergers and acquisitions, strategic alliances and joint ventures, private placements, and corporate finance, as well as commercial and intellectual property transactions, including technology licensing, copyright and trademark registration and licensing, strategic intellectual property counseling, and franchisor/franchisee relationship transactions and counseling. With 30 years of experience, Bill is committed to outstanding advocacy and the best possible outcomes for his clients' legal needs.

Bill earned his B.A. in Economics in...

Michael Stebbins is a shareholder with Silicon Valley Law Group and the Chair of its Business and IP Litigation and Employment Groups. His practice focuses primarily on employment, intellectual property and commercial disputes. He has extensive litigation and trial experience in matters involving trade secret theft, employee solicitation, technology licensing, IP infringement, false advertising, earn-out issues, unfair competition, shareholder disputes, breach of fiduciary duty, trade libel, harassment, discrimination, wage and hour issues, and wrongful termination. He has also litigated complex matters involving real estate leases, construction contracts and insurance coverage.

A significant portion of Michael’s practice also involves...

Clarence J. Ferrari is a founding partner of Ferrari Ottoboni Caputo & Wunderling. He primarily handles cases involving business and tax planning, with an emphasis on business planning and wealth transfer for families, individuals, and closely-held companies. He has extensive knowledge and hands-on experience in business transfers, generation-skipping transfers, creating sophisticated estate plans, charitable trusts, life insurance trusts, and more. Mr. Ferrari also understands the state and federal tax implications regarding estate plans and business transactions. He is a certified specialist in taxation.

Ken is a transactions attorney, arbitrator and mediator with 29 years of experience in intellectual property licensing, litigation, and technology transactions. He practiced at leading US law firms and served as Senior Vice President at Samsung Electronics as the head of the Silicon Valley IP Office from 2011 to 2021. Ken has handled more than two hundred IP litigation matters, negotiated numerous patent licenses including three of the largest patent cross license agreements, and helped clients to acquire companies ranging from startups to a multibillion dollar company. He was also extensively involved in SEP and FRAND disputes...