Welcome

Law Office of Neil M. Sunkin, A Professional Corporation, provides businesses and individuals with the same high quality, superior skills, and experience that the largest corporations expect and receive from the nation’s largest law firms, but not at big firm prices.  Unlike at a large law firm every legal matter is handled only by an attorney with at least 35 years of experience; never by a junior attorney.  Our clients receive personalized service; every client is important. We understand that every client — large corporations, small businesses, and individuals — are sensitive to the cost of legal services, and our firm was created because we believe that all clients should have access to the highest quality of legal services for a manageable cost.

Neil Sunkin, a former Litigation Partner at the national law firm of Arter & Hadden and former Counsel at First Interstate Bank of California, formed Law Office of Neil M. Sunkin in 2003 after practicing in the large law firm and corporate law environment for about 20 years.  Neil has been practicing law and focused on business litigation since 1985.  Neil has earned an AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rating by Martindale-Hubbell® for his high ethical standards and professional abilities.  Our clients have been often referred by attorneys in large, national law firms who wish to provide their clients with the same quality of representation that such firms offer, but at a lower cost on particular matters.  We also are engaged by other attorneys to represent them in litigation.

Our practice focuses on:

• Business and Commercial Disputes. Business and commercial litigation involves every kind of dispute that arises in a business context, whether it be between companies or between a company and individual or otherwise. This can involve contract disputes, including issues about the terms and interpretation of contracts, and breaches of contracts in a wide variety of circumstances. Business disputes includes matters involving fraud in connection with transactions, as well as fraud in investments, including securities fraud. Business disputes can concern conversion of property, misappropriation of trade secrets, unfairly competing, unfair business practices, anti-trust and restraints of trade, and infringing on trademarks and trade names. Business and commercial disputes may involve enforcing and violating non-compete agreements and fiduciary duties, wrongfully soliciting employees, and trade libel. Business disputes can involve issues of professional malpractice (such as accountants and appraisers), PACA (Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act) claims, RICO (Racketeer Corrupt Organizations Act). Business and commercial disputes involve a wide range of remedies, such as damages, indemnity, injunctions, specific performance, declaratory judgments, accountings, partitions, and constructive trusts.
• Corporate Litigation and Shareholders and Partners Rights and Disputes. This involves matters concerning corporate governance, liability of officers and directors, rights of minority shareholders, and disputes amongst shareholders, LLC members, and partners. We have handled matters involving “business divorces”, the removal and appointment of directors, stock transfers, inspections of books and records, accountings, and restricted stock. We also have handled shareholder derivative claims.
• Real Estate Litigation. We handle disputes involving real property, including breach of contract, fraud, fiduciary duty, habitability issues, accountings, partition, boundaries, easements, quieting title, cancelling deeds, slander to title, non-payment of rent, termination of tenancies, and a host of legal and factual issues involved in the purchase and sale of real property, commercial leases, the landlord-tenant relationship and co-ownership of real property. We also represent clients in the construction industry. We have represented developers, subcontractors, and suppliers in disputes related to construction of residential and commercial property, including disputes concerning breach of contracts, liens, and defective construction, including under California’s Right to Repair Act.
• Creditor’s Rights. This includes collecting for non-payment of debt, suits on promissory notes, and pre-and post-judgment collection, including fraudulent conveyances, enforcement of sister-state and foreign country judgments, pre-judgment writs of attachments, writs of possession, garnishments, post-judgment discovery, receiverships, placement of “keepers”, and debtor exams. We represent creditors and debtors.
• Banking and Financial Institutions. This includes matters concerning issues and claims between a bank and its customer, such as forged or counterfeit checks, and the negotiation of checks, indorsements on checks. These matters could involve how the bank deals with its borrowers, such as, for example, causing damage to the business, giving rise to lender liability. This could include matters involving promissory notes, deeds of trust, security agreements, and letters of credit. These matters could involve actions and relations with banking regulators.
• Employment Litigation. This includes litigation and advice regarding cases of harassment and wrongful termination based on someone’s gender, religion, age, or disability, for example. This also involves non-payment of wages or bonuses owed to employees. This also involves violations and enforcement of non-compete agreements and non-solicitation agreements, such as when a former employee wrongfully solicits an employer’s customers or existing employees, or misappropriates an employer’s trade secrets or other confidential information. We also draft, negotiate, review and counsel clients regarding severance and employment contracts, for example.
• Defamation, Trade Libel, Privacy Rights. This includes damage to a person’s or business’s reputation, invasion of a person’s privacy, exposing or disclosing a person’s private or embarrassing information, portraying a person in a false light, and misappropriating without permission one’s name or likeness for financial gain.