Keker, Van Nest & Peters is pleased to announce that the firm has elected associates Nicholas Goldberg, Thomas Gorman, Elizabeth McCloskey, and Erin Meyer to its partnership effective January 1, 2019.
“Lizzy, Erin, Tom, and Nick exemplify our firm’s values – dedication to innovative client work, collaborative team spirit and commitment to serving our communities. Not only are they outstanding litigators who fiercely defend their clients, but they are great people. We are proud to welcome them to the partnership,” Keker, Van Nest & Peters managing partner Steven Taylor said.
Nick Goldberg specializes in high-stakes civil litigation and white-collar criminal defense and has litigated a wide variety of complex cases in federal and state courts. In representing the CEO of an information security company against a co-founder and investor who were trying to push the CEO out of the company, Nick recently crafted a successful pre-litigation resolution. He secured a complete defense victory for a law firm client in a malpractice action arising from an unsuccessful real estate deal. He was also part of the trial team that won the largest plaintiffs’ verdict in California in 2015 for the San Diego County Water Authority in its long-running fight with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.
Mr. Goldberg earned his J.D. from U.C. Berkeley School of Law, and graduated magna cum laude from Brown University with an A.B. in Political Science and History. Following law school, he clerked for Judge Christina A. Snyder of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. He was awarded the 2018 California Lawyer of the Year (CLAY) award by the Daily Journal for his representation of the County of Santa Clara in successfully challenging President Donald J. Trump’s January 2017 Executive Order attempting to defund “sanctuary jurisdictions.”
Tom Gorman’s practice focuses on complex civil litigation, including disputes involving intellectual property, fraud, breach of contract, and antitrust. Mr. Gorman’s work uncovered massive trade secret theft, which ultimately led to a nine-figure settlement for one of his tech clients. In another case his summary-judgment briefing helped simplify a complicated patent case and resulted in a complete defense victory for his client. He was also part of a trial team that won a total defense verdict against the U.S. Department of Justice in a case where the government had sought nearly $1 billion in damages and penalties.
Mr. Gorman earned his J.D. with high honors from the University of Chicago Law School, and his B.A. from Columbia University. Following law school, he clerked for Judge Richard A. Posner of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Before attending law school, Mr. Gorman worked as a baseball writer and consultant specializing in sabermetric analysis. He later worked for MLB’s outside counsel during Senator George Mitchell’s investigation of performance-enhancing drug use in baseball.
Elizabeth McCloskey specializes in high-stakes complex litigation, including white collar criminal defense, intellectual property matters, antitrust and commercial disputes. She has successfully represented individuals and corporations in federal and state courts, including through trial, and in complex investigations brought by the U.S. Department of Justice. She represented Tour de France winning cyclist Lance Armstrong against a False Claims Act case brought by a former teammate and joined by the United States. She also successfully defended Arista Networks in a high-profile patent and copyright trial with its chief competitor Cisco Systems.
Ms. McCloskey earned her J.D. from U.C. Berkeley School of Law and graduated cum laude from Georgetown University with a B.A. in Government and English. Following law school, she clerked for Judge Valerie Baker Fairbank of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and Judge John T. Noonan Jr. of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Before attending law school, Ms. McCloskey worked as a journalist.
Erin Meyer represents clients in challenging class actions and other complex commercial litigation. She has obtained a complete defense verdict in a multi-patent jury trial and successfully defended her clients in a $100 million commercial arbitration. She has represented Lyft, Caviar, and Instacart in cutting-edge sharing economy lawsuits defining the role of employees versus independent contractors. She has also successfully defended against consumer class actions on behalf of Fortune 500 companies and technology startups.
Ms. Meyer earned her J.D. from Yale Law School and graduated magna cum laude from Duke University. Following law school, she clerked for Judge Patti B. Saris of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. She has served on the firm’s pro bono committee and currently handles immigration matters pro bono, representing domestic violence survivors and unaccompanied minors seeking asylum.
About Keker, Van Nest & Peters
For 40 years, Keker, Van Nest & Peters has litigated complex, high-stakes civil and criminal cases throughout the nation. The firm takes the cases where companies, products, and careers are riding on the result. Its clients are high-profile individuals, as well as some of the world’s most successful companies, including Google, Arista Networks, Electronic Arts, Lyft, T-Mobile USA, Genentech, Public Storage, Comcast Cable Communications, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. The firm’s areas of expertise include intellectual property, professional liability, class actions, general contract and commercial litigation, antitrust, white collar, and appellate.