Ben has taken over a dozen cases to trial, and several through appeal, including both routine and bet-the-farm disputes and in both civil and criminal matters. He has helped his clients navigate and succeed in administrative tribunals, state and federal courts, and domestic and international arbitration panels. He also has collaborated with foreign counsel in coordinating legal strategy for multinational disputes.
His clients have spanned a range of industries, including energy, software and e-commerce, healthcare, real estate, automotive, internet, clothing/apparel, semiconductors, chemicals, food and beverage, agriculture, hemp/cannabis, and biotechnology.
Having grown up near Silicon Valley as the son of an elementary school teacher and an electrical engineer/entrepreneur, and having taught and tutored high school students, Ben attributes much of his success in the courtroom and with his clients to his ability to understand complex technologies and concepts at their most technical levels while being able to explain those same concepts in so that lay persons can easily grasp them. Coming from a family of entrepreneurs, and having run his own businesses, Ben also understands and implements successful strategies for budgeting and cost containment while still ensuring his clients’ objectives will be met and their expectations exceeded.
Before joining Holland & Hart’s Intellectual Property practice group, Ben practiced intellectual property litigation, complex commercial litigation, and bankruptcy litigation at Irell & Manella LLP in Los Angeles, California, and spent two summers as a law clerk with Boies, Schiller, & Flexner LLP in Armonk, New York where he worked on litigation and arbitration matters involving claims related to copyrights, trade secrets, contracts, and fraud.
In addition to his usual practice, Ben maintains an active pro bono practice. On summary judgment in one such case, he obtained a first-in-the-nation ruling holding that the Fair Housing Act prohibits housing discrimination against same-sex couples and transgender persons. He also has successfully litigated claims for and against artists and guided nonprofit and religious organizations in contract negotiations, in obtaining copyright clearances, and in addressing various other legal concerns.