Business Planning

Tony provides business advice and planning to a variety of businesses in San Diego.  He has participated in their strategic planning sessions, advised them on buying and selling businesses as well as assisting in the drafting of various contracts.  These clients often view him as a member of their management team.  His experiences in litigated matters have helped Tony in assisting his clients to recognize and avoid potential pitfalls.

Litigation

Tony’s practice is and has been primarily focused on litigation, whether in the form of state or federal court suits, private arbitrations or administrative proceedings.  He has represented and continues to represent both plaintiffs and defendants.  Tony has appeared in California Superior Courts from San Diego to San Francisco to Palm Springs.  He has also appeared before U.S. District Courts in the Southern and Central Districts of California as well as in Arizona.  He has argued cases before California’s Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District as well as the United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Tony’s peers have consistently recognized his abilities as being on a par with the highest level of skills and ethics in San Diego by designating him as “AV” in the Martindale Hubbell Law Directory.

While he is prepared to take his cases to court judgment, jury verdict or arbitration award, Tony recognizes that resolving a case through a negotiated settlement may be the best result for a client.  His training in mediation, through the American Arbitration Association and the San Diego Mediation Center, as well as his participation in hundreds of mediation sessions, has allowed him to achieve excellent results for clients through negotiated settlements.

Construction

His clients have included prominent residential developers, design professionals, general contractors, homeowners associations and individual homeowners.  He has handled claims of construction defect, design defects, mold and other problems.  Recently, after taking over an extremely complex case from another law firm, Tony and his co-counsel achieved a settlement of over $6,500,000 for a local church.
Tony has also represented clients in the construction industry in negotiating contracts, with a particular emphasis on indemnity and insurance issues, as well as assisting them in recovering money owed on contracts.

Arbitrations and Mediations

Arbitrations
: Tony is available to serve as an arbitrator. He has served as an arbitrator for the San Diego County Bar Association for many years serving as both a sole arbitrator and on panels.

Mediations
: Tony has received mediation training by both the American Arbitration Association and the San Diego Mediation Center (now known as the National Conflict Resolution Center). Following the economic downturn in 2008, he served the Superior Court of the County of San Diego as a volunteer neutral focusing on the resolution of limited jurisdiction cases. In addition to the foregoing, Tony has participated in many mediations and settlement conferences representing both plaintiffs and defendants in a wide variety of civil and probate matters. As a mediator, he looks for creative ways to achieve problem solving, tension lessening and relationship saving.

Arbitrator

Tony has served for many years as an arbitrator for the San Diego County Bar Association in fee dispute matters.  He is prepared to handle arbitrations in a wide range of disputes.

Nonprofit Organizations

The operations of non-profit organizations present unique challenges to their staff and board of directors.  As a longtime board member of multiple non-profits in San Diego, Tony has worked through numerous challenges to make the organizations he champions much stronger.  Many charitable entities work on a shoe-string budget and don’t have the resources that for-profit entities possess.  Tony’s strength is recognizing those limitations while delivering meaningful assistance.  501 (c) (3) entities thrive when given sound guidance on fiduciary obligations and conflicts of interest. Knowing the best way to handle such issues, or who to turn to for affordable representation is of paramount importance for organizations looking to deliver the most “bang for the buck” to our San Diego community.  That is where Tony’s experience and connections throughout San Diego will ensure your non-profit grows and shines.

Strategic Planning

Tony consults with corporations and business owners on strategic planning to avoid potential future business litigation.  Many of Tony’s clients have come to rely on him as a sounding board for various business matters.  He is able to draw upon years of litigation and seeing the results of decisions gone awry as well as his undergraduate work in finance and economics.  His clients know that they can benefit from his pragmatic approaches to their concerns and his focus on helping them to achieve both short-term and long-term goals.