Hamilton Jordan represents plaintiffs and defendants in all facets of commercial litigation, from initial investigation through dispositive motion practice, trial, and appeals. His practice focuses on breach of contract matters, business torts, and employment disputes.
In a major arbitration about self-driving vehicle technology, Hamilton recently helped secure one of California’s top verdicts of 2019 on behalf of his client, who sought to hold two former senior employees accountable for unfair competition and for breaching contract and tort duties. Following a two-week hearing, a JAMS arbitration panel awarded a nine-figure award, which Hamilton helped convert into a judgment in California Superior Court.
Apart from his civil litigation work for Keker, Van Nest & Peters, Hamilton maintains an active criminal-defense appellate practice, through which he serves as appointed counsel for indigent criminal defendants in state and federal appellate courts. A graduate of Berkeley Law, Hamilton clerked for then-Judge Neil M. Gorsuch of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit and Judge Richard Seeborg of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. During law school, Hamilton served as an editor of the California Law Review and assisted military veterans in administrative proceedings as a member of the Veterans Law Practicum.
Google v. Anthony Levandowski, et. al.
We successfully represented Google in an arbitration against former employees Anthony Levandowski and Lior Ron, obtaining a ruling that they breached their duties and employment agreements in connection with their founding of a competing self-driving car business while working at Google. Their competing business, Otto, was sold to Uber for a reported price of $680 million. Following a two-week arbitration hearing, a three-judge panel awarded Google a $179 million judgment that was later confirmed by the San Francisco Superior Court.
Diabetes Research Restitution, LLC v. Ronald Katz et al.
We secured summary judgment for our client, the former Chairman of a biotech start-up company that tried to develop and commercialize an islet-cell suspension treatment for people with insulin-dependent diabetes. The lawsuit was brought by the company’s former CEO and certain shareholders against the company’s officers, directors, and creditors and sought over $100 million in damages.
May 01, 2020
A group of Lyft drivers in California lost their latest bid to convince a state court judge to immediately reclassify them as employees with paid sick leave to help fight the spread of Covid-19. Read more
May 01, 2020
San Francisco Superior Judge Ethan Schulman denied a motion that would have reclassified Lyft drivers as employees, so that they can reap the state’s paid sick leave, agreeing with a federal judge who found that such a ruling would jeopardize drivers' access to federal coronavirus relief. Read more
February 19, 2020
In a major arbitration over self-driving vehicle technology, plaintiff Google LLC sought to hold former employees Anthony Levandowski and Lior Ron accountable for alleged breaches of contract and unfair competition. Read more