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Jack T. Friedman

Jack T. Friedman

Partner

Walnut Creek

925.944.6080

Expertise

• Has practiced with Carroll, Burdick & McDonough since 1976, and has been a partner with the firm since 1982; in 1983, opened Carroll, Burdick & McDonough's East Bay branch in Walnut Creek, where he has since practiced.
• Prior to joining Carroll, Burdick & McDonough, clerked for the prominent jurist, William Wayne Justice, Federal District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Texas from 1974-1976, and also worked with the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, where Judge Justice sat by designation.
• As an active trial attorney, has tried cases in virtually all counties in the Greater Bay Area and elsewhere throughout California.
• Civil litigation practice encompasses a wide variety of business, tort and general litigation matters.
• Has developed special expertise in the fields of commercial litigation, employment law, real property/construction litigation, toxic tort environmental litigation, products liability, and insurance.

Commercial Litigation

• Practice includes the defense and prosecution of a wide variety of commercial disputes in state, federal and bankruptcy courts, as well as various arbitration and mediation venues.
• Represents parties in contract claims, shareholder disputes, unfair competition and trade secret litigation, and unfair business practice actions, including claims under California’s Business and Professions Code section 17200.
• Successfully defended at trial claims brought against Israeli software company for breach of stock option, employment and license agreements.
• Recently obtained a significant monetary judgment in a lengthy, multi-claim action arising from post-closing disputes in an alarm industry acquisition.
• Mediated to a favorable resolution litigation between all majority and minority shareholders of an investment advisory company which managed approximately one billion dollars of assets for a financial sector trust fund.
• Past experience includes federal court representation in adversary proceedings against former president and CEO of Texas corporate entities charged with conversion and mismanagement of $90 million of corporate assets in real estate, oil and gas and ranching ventures.
• Represented the nation’s largest franchisor of video dating services in a state-wide class action which had the potential to involve approximately 70,000 claimants. The lawsuit involved invasion of privacy (unlawful electronic eavesdropping claims, each of which was subject to a $5,000 statutory fine and general damages under the California Penal Code and constitutional provisions). The litigation was resolved, following the appointment of a special master, within the policy limits of an insurer which had written invasion of privacy coverage and with the contribution from the insured consisting of discount coupons for future services in lieu of monetary payments.

Real Property/Construction Litigation

• Experience in construction and real property litigation has included the presentation of major residential and commercial developers, contractors, design professionals, material suppliers and property owners.
• Representation of property owners/managers has included defense of premises liability claims, resolution of real estate transaction disputes, security issues, non-disclosure claims, insurance actions, and environmental contamination litigation.
• Litigation has involved projects such as ocean outfall systems, underground excavations for BART stations, commercial parking garage structures (including Pier 39 in San Francisco, California), window wall and glass fastening systems (e.g., AT&T Building in Pleasanton, California), exterior tile and brick structures (including the Bank of Walnut Creek Building in Walnut Creek, California), tilt-up concrete warehouses, and numerous other types of structures.
• Has served as lead defense counsel in many complex residential condominium, townhouse and apartment construction defect cases and has been involved in representation of developers, property owners and other defendants in numerous land subsidence and inverse condemnation actions.
• Obtained arbitration judgment in favor of major residential real estate developer in action for misrepresentation and non-disclosure of loan agreement terms following $25 million apartment acquisition.
• Recently defended a major residential developer against non-disclosure claims brought by approximately fifty homeowners arising out of a residential subdivision’s proximity to Superfund sites.

Employment Litigation

• Practice includes counseling a wide variety of corporations and other businesses on employer/employee relations, termination disputes, workplace violence, and other employment issues.
• Has substantial litigation experience successfully defending sexual harassment, racial and national origin discrimination and wrongful termination claims at trial, both in state and federal court.
• Obtained defense verdict in high profile Napa winery/vineyard owner sexual molestation case.
• Tried to a defense verdict the first national origin employment discrimination case before Federal Court Judge Cecil Poole, Opiana v. PG&E.
• Defended high-profile, multiple (5) plaintiff race discrimination case in federal court filed against major steel mill operators.

Toxic Tort/Environmental Litigation

• Currently representing manufacturer of epoxy products against numerous claims of chemically-caused cancers in IBM "clean room" litigation.
• Represented multiple corporate defendants in Southern California groundwater contamination litigation.
• Representation of Tosco Corp.'s Avon Refinery (hydrogen sulfide exposure), Kopper's Corp. (solvent exposure), Rohm & Haas ("sick" carpet/building syn­drome), pesticide exposure claims, and other manufacturers’ and product applicators’ toxic exposure suits.
• Represented manufacturer of soldering flux which was alleged to be a causative factor in copper contamination cases, commonly known in the Bay Area as the "blue water" litigation. Settled claims in excess of 500 plaintiff homeowners at nominal cost.
• Defended manufacturer of automotive bonding agent (Dynatron/Bondo) in numerous asbestos-like claims wherein the plaintiffs’ bar attempted to prove that the talc content in Bondo caused respiratory and other medical disabilities. Obtained dismissals in all actions within four months of service of the complaints by providing plaintiffs’ counsel with convincing evidence to contravene their claims.

Products Liability

• Defended Westinghouse Electric Corporation in numerous product actions involv­ing electronic equipment.
• Defended Motorola against claims of electronic failures.
• Defended manufacturers and suppliers of chemicals, including paints, solvents, pesticides, and adhesives.
• Defended manufacturer of railroad air brake systems and brake shoes in train explosion cases involving hundreds of plaintiffs (only party to win dismissal without any settlement payment to any plaintiff).
• Defended against tunnel machinery claim involving decapitation of plaintiff upon derailment of muck car.
• Defended fixed base operators and aircraft component suppliers in numerous general aviation accident cases.
• Defense verdict in high voltage wire electrocution/burn case.

Insurance Coverage

• Has represented insurance companies for over 23 years, providing first- and third-party coverage advice in commercial, personal, and most other lines of coverage.
• Has tried to successful conclusion insurance bad faith and declaratory relief claims, indemnity and subrogation claims among insurers, and has actively participated in the various ADR avenues to resolve insurance-related claims.
• Has significant insurance defense trial experience, including the defense of class action and other high-exposure, multiple-party actions.

Recent Presentations

• Has lectured and presented on panels to trial lawyer associations on construction defect and property owner litigation.