Category: Announcements

It is with great sadness that we convey the news of the passing of Ken Wilson, our former “name partner” at Meyers Nave Riback Silver & Wilson.  Ken graduated from the University of Oregon and Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco.  After working as a sole practitioner in Santa Rosa for several years, Ken joined Meyers Nave in 1993.  Ken had an outstanding reputation as an honest, forthright and plain-spoken city attorney for the cities of Healdsburg and Clearlake.  Ken was the driving force behind the Firm’s decision to open a Santa Rosa office.  While at Meyers Nave, Ken further strengthened the Firm’s presence in Sonoma County as we added such clients as the City of Cloverdale (still a Meyers Nave client), the Town of Sonoma, and the Sweetwater Springs Water District (also a current Meyers Nave client).  Ken also served as city attorney to the City of Fort Bragg and district counsel to the Irish Beach Water District in Mendocino County.

Ken was an outdoorsman at heart, and much preferred jeans and a plaid shirt in the office over a suit any day.  Outside of the office, Ken’s expertise included fly-fishing, hunting, boating and horseback riding.  Ken retired from the Firm in 2003, and returned to a family-owned marina and restaurant business at Lake Almanor in Prattville, Plumas County.  Our thoughts are with Ken’s wife, Karen, and their children. The Firm’s thoughts also go out to everyone at Meyers Nave who had the privilege of working with and learning from Ken, as well as the many clients and communities that Ken served.  For all of us, Ken was a reliable friend, dedicated colleague and compassionate human being. We are grateful to include Ken as part of the Meyers Nave family.

To our clients, colleagues, families, friends and communities where we live and work,

Everyone at Meyers Nave would like to express our deepest concern and support for the health and safety of all members of the Meyers Nave community. We are actively monitoring local, state, national and international guidelines and requirements for protecting the well-being of ourselves and each other.

Business Continuity and Remote Work
Following recent governmental shelter-in-place and stay-at-home directives, Meyers Nave would like to take this opportunity to let you know that we have implemented a comprehensive business continuity plan that enables a seamless remote work environment for our attorneys and all operational departments of our Firm. To help protect public health and implement social distancing as an effective means of slowing the transmission rate of COVID-19, our remote work protocols address the goal of having more people work from home and not go into their regular place of work when their physical presence in the office is not required to perform an essential activity.

Communications and Data Security
There is no change to the phone or email methods of communication that you currently utilize to reach our attorneys and professional support personnel. Additional video communication options are also available. You will continue to have responsive and effective access to your team at Meyers Nave. Whether our attorneys are remote or in our offices, our data information security standards best practices and protection of confidential information remain the same. We are open for business and continue to provide the highest quality legal services and professional commitment that clients have come to expect and experience.

Questions
We also understand that many of our clients have implemented their own COVID-19 related policies and procedures, and we look forward to coordinating and supporting your efforts as well. If you have any questions or specific needs as we work through these challenging times together, please contact your Meyers Nave relationship team member for assistance. Thank you for being part of the Meyers Nave community as we combine our energies to make certain all of our collective employees and their families stay safe and healthy.

Sincerely,

David W. Skinner
Managing Principal

Meyers Nave proudly announces the elevation of Jenny Riggs to Principal – “On January 1, 2020, this outstanding attorney will join the leadership team that guides the future of our firm, mentors the professional development of our Associates, and inspires our commitment to provide the best service to clients throughout California,” said David Skinner, Managing Principal of Meyers Nave.

JENNY RIGGS
Jenny Riggs joined Meyers Nave in 2013 as a member of the Trial and Litigation Practice Group. She has extensive state and federal court litigation experience on behalf of municipalities, counties, special districts, businesses and non-profit organizations. Jenny’s expertise includes single- and multi-plaintiff cases involving constitutional law, government corruption, land use, zoning, catastrophic disasters, eminent domain and inverse condemnation, coastal issues, environmental claims, Public Records Act and Brown Act compliance, Americans with Disabilities Act, employment law, and civil rights claims for violations of substantive and procedural due process. In addition to her skills in the courtroom examining witnesses and arguing motions, and her expert aptitude for taking and defending depositions, Jenny leads the development and management of Meyers Nave’s systems and protocols for discovery plans in complex matters and document intensive litigation. Jenny handles pre-trial litigation (including dispositive motions), pre-trial discovery, various stages of motion practice, and trial. Her complex litigation experience also includes multi-district cases and civil litigations that are intertwined with criminal actions. Jenny is a member of California Women Lawyers and the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles.

Meyers Nave proudly announces that Bryan Brown has joined the firm as Senior Of Counsel in the Land Use and Environmental Law Practice Group. Based in the Los Angeles office, Bryan is an important addition to the ongoing expansion of this statewide Practice Group. He has more than 20 years of experience with transactional, regulatory, administrative and litigation matters involving land use and environmental law.

Bryan’s experience includes CEQA, NEPA, the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, Toxic Substances Control Act, RCRA, and CERCLA, among numerous other local, state and federal land use and environmental laws and regulations. A significant part of his practice involves assisting clients in preparing EIRs and EISs under CEQA and NEPA. Bryan also regularly defends clients against citizens’ suits and claims brought under the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act. Bryan also has extensive experience handling soil and groundwater contamination enforcement matters before courts and state agencies. He provides counsel regarding regulatory and permitting matters, including Sections 401 and 404 of the CWA, and advises on due diligence and disclosures in transactional matters.

Bryan earned a JD from Yale Law School and a BA in Anthropology from Arizona State University.

Meyers Nave proudly announces that Gorev Ahuja has joined the firm as an Associate in the Labor & Employment Law Practice and the Workplace Investigations Practice. Based in the Oakland office, Gorev is an important addition to the ongoing statewide expansion of these two Practice Groups.

Gorev has a broad range of experience in different areas of labor and employment law, including wage-and-hour, discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, labor-management relations, workplace investigations, unfair competition, class actions, and ERISA matters.  He has conducted workplace investigations, drafted responses to complaints filed with various agencies, participated in depositions in discrimination cases, assessed potential witnesses for trial, and drafted and prepared pleadings, motions, responses to and propounded discovery in preparation for trial.

Gorev earned a J.D. from the University of California at Davis, King Hall School of Law, and a BA in Political Science and Psychology from the University of California at Davis. He is biliterate in Hindi and bilingual in Punjabi.

The Meyers Nave Construction and Facilities (CFG) Practice Group launched in July 2013 to provide specialty construction law expertise from lawyers who know the construction industry – the issues, the technologies, the language. We understand the challenges faced by owners, designers, contractors, subcontractors, construction managers, and specialty consultants. In addition to the information outlined below, please visit our Construction and Facilities Practice page for more details about our experience, expertise and results. The statewide practice is led by Principal Eric Firstman.

We Try Cases. That’s What Sets Us Apart.

In its first six years, CFG already tried five complex construction disputes to final judgment or award – more than 80 “in court” days of witness examination, more than 130 depositions and more than one million separate documents. Prior to joining, the trial experiences of our CFG lawyers includes trials involving power plants, wastewater treatment plants, water conveyances including tunnels and associated power facilities, libraries, and detention facilities, adding another 100 “in court” days in trials of complex construction cases. With construction trial experience comes efficiency in case preparation and depth of judgment in making assessments of case value, cost and utility of discovery, managing experts, assessing strategies and settlement points.

Since opening, CFG has also settled construction claims throughout the litigation and arbitration process, often following dispositive motions, including a summary judgment on an eight-figure contractor claim on a state highway and a dismissal in the face of a summary judgment on a seven-figure contractor claim on a college facility. CFG has defended eight figure claims through discovery that then settled at the amount of the pre-litigation settlement offer, recovered seven figure settlements in mediation, and counseled clients through default terminations, litigation and settlements of claims exceeding $100 million.

Project Counseling

CFG attorneys devote a substantial amount of time to project oversight and pre-litigation counseling on troubled projects, procurement and bidding disputes. We understand each client’s objectives and recommend pragmatic solutions to help move the project forward, whether the goal is project completion, revenue generation, or cost management. Every construction project is different and every construction dispute involves unique facts, technology, processes and contracts. CFG reviews the drawings, walks the project, meets the staff in the trailers, and studies the job photos.

CFG provides realistic assessments of entitlement, damages, litigation costs, litigation risks and uncertainties, and measures these costs against the value of prompt dispute resolution. In project counseling, CFG considers the litigation option as the option of last resort. Just as cost and schedule drive construction projects, cost and timely resolution drive construction disputes. Whether by face-to-face negotiations, facilitated negotiations, mediations, mini-trials, referees or arbitrations, CFG evaluates each case and recommends solutions for cost-effective resolution.  We share our clients’ sense of urgency to find the best solutions to construction problems.  We provide legal solutions that make business sense.

Structuring Construction Projects and Contracts

CFG has worked with clients to plan, structure, and draft baseline construction contract documents for design-bid-build, design-build and construction management at risk; equipment procurement; and design and consulting contracts. CFG attorneys advise on the use of construction contracts on construction projects and how construction contracts work in dispute resolution.  Simple language, express risk allocations and straightforward concepts work. There is no “one size fits all” when it comes to contracts, and while CFG has forms of contracts it recommends, it also has in depth experience with the various standard industry and government forms-including the contracts of the American Institute of Architects, Consensus DOCS, the Engineers Joint Contracts Documents Committee and the Construction Management Association of America.

Representative Matters

• Hospital Project – CFG represented a hospital owner in a complex arbitration following a default termination of a design-build contractor on a $300 million hospital construction project approximately 30% complete. The case required more than 50 depositions and 20 full days of hearing testimony from more than 30 witnesses, including 20 engineering, design, schedule and damage experts. The final award granted the contractor zero on $130 million in contractor claims for lost profits and quantum meruit.
• State Highway – After construction delays and more than $10 million in change orders, the contractor on a $60 million construction contract to rebuild a state highway filed suit seeking more than $14 million in disputed changes, delays and measured mile lost productivity claims. CFG secured a summary judgment on the contractor’s affirmative claims for failure to comply with contractual administrative dispute procedures. The matter thereafter settled in a mandatory judicial conference under CCP §664, with the project owner retaining the contract retention and the contractor receiving zero on its affirmative claims.
• Reservoir Construction – CFG represented the public owner of a reservoir in the defense of $14 million in claims for delay, differing site conditions, extended overhead and lost productivity damages. The case involved more than 30 depositions and 32 days of hearing testimony from more than 20 witnesses. The initial award granted the contractor approximately 25% of the amounts claimed, however CFG tried certain defenses to the superior court by petition to vacate, resulting in a tentative ruling granting a full defense to the State. The matter was remanded for further findings on the project owner’s objections regarding pre-litigation claim requirements and the California Contractor’s License Law, and then further review by the Superior Court after remand. CFG won a second and final ruling denying the contractor’s theories of substantial compliance for a full defense on contractor claims. Appellate proceedings and disgorgement litigation continues.
• Bridge Dispute – CFG represented a public owner in a bridge construction project by navigating the owner through the general contractor’s default and termination for cause at the midpoint of construction, recovering over $450,000 in a settlement with the performance bond surety for the completion of the project by a replacement contractor, and then defending against over $2.0 million in various claims asserted against the owner. After three years of litigation, the CFG team defended against all claims and affirmatively recovered an additional $935,000 for the owner in settlement for a total recovery of over $1.38 million, approximately 98% of the original $1.44 million construction bid amount. The matter included delay and differing site conditions claims.