About Ethan

When I launched my firm in 2021, I had fifteen years of litigation experience, including as a partner at a San Francisco intellectual property boutique, an associate at the New York offices of a globe-spanning firm, and as a clerk for a federal judge. I use that experience to combine top-tier representation with service that is practical, cost-effective, and personalized.

I live in San Francisco's Mission Terrace neighborhood. When I’m not practicing law, you can find me playing with my kids, running (okay—jogging) to the top of Bernal Heights, or trying to make the perfect profiterole.

Profile pic 2021.jpeg

Education

  • Columbia Law School, J.D. (Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar; Columbia Law Review) (2004)

  • Pomona College, B.A. Philosophy, cum laude (1997)

Prior Experience

  • Holland Law LLP (San Francisco), partner

  • Covington & Burling LLP (New York), associate

Clerkships

  • Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

Professional Affiliations and Activities

  • The Copyright Society (member, former National Chapter Coordinator)

Bar Admissions

  • California

  • New York

Select Engagements

  • Represented several entrepreneurs in founder disputes and contentious business divorces.

  • Represented real estate advisory firm in lawsuit over commissions due on high-rise development project. Residential Realty Advisors, Inc. v. The Mark Company Inc., N.D. Cal. Case No. 19-cv-4042.

  • Represented film production company in dispute over competing dramatic and documentary film projects.

  • Represented technology entrepreneur in disputes and litigation arising from the operation of the MTGOX bitcoin exchange.

  • Brought suit to obtain emergency relief against client’s competitor for inducing an employee to download and abscond with trade secrets.

  • Represented software developer in copyright infringement lawsuit to enjoin copycat app.

  • Represented accrediting commission in City Attorney lawsuit arising from commission’s decision to terminate community college’s accreditation. Result: court trial culminated in a defeat of all of City Attorney’s claims that the commission was motivated by political and personal bias against the college.

  • Represented the author of Point Break LIVE!, a parody of the 1991 action film Point Break, in her jury trial against a producer for breach of contract and copyright infringement. Result: unanimous verdict and damages award for client—one of only a few trials nationwide in which a jury has decided “fair use” under the Copyright Act. Keeling v. New Rock Theater Productions, LLC, et al., S.D.N.Y. Case No. 10 Civ. 9345.

  • Represented a major record company in purported class actions challenging the payment of artist royalties on downloads of digital music. Shropshire v. Sony Music Entertainment, S.D.N.Y. Case No. 06 Civ. 3232 and The Youngbloods v. BMG Music, S.D.N.Y. Case No. 07 Civ. 2394.

Speaking Engagements

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