Peter C. McMahon
Peter C. McMahon is a founding partner of MCMAHON SEREPCA LLP. He has extensive litigation experience in trade secret, unfair competition and competitive business practices litigation, employment law and workplace violence, and other commercial litigation.
His interest in high-tech legal issues has produced expert counseling in software licensing and trade secret, copyright, trademark, and cutting-edge legal issues presented by the introduction of the Internet into the workplace. Mr McMahon also understands the impact of technological advances on workplace privacy, and its potential for liability to employers.
Trial Experience:
- Sylla v. KatanaMe, Inc. et al. – Lead trial counsel for one of four corporate defendants and two individual director defendants in a 2011 complex shareholder derivative/ breach of fiduciary duty and fraudulent conveyance case stemming from KatanaMe, Inc.’s sale of its intellectual property assets.
- PC Specialists, Inc. (dba TIG) v. FusionStorm et al. – Lead trial counsel for two of seven individual defendants in a 2010 complex trade secrets/departing employee dispute related to the hiring of numerous employees in Tampa, Florida. Obtained pre-trial summary judgment for one defendant and negotiated favorable pre-verdict settlement for second defendant.
- Lampkin v. Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, LLP – Mr. McMahon’s litigation excellence was tapped by Orrick to defend the firm in a disability discrimination case filed against Orrick in San Francisco. He co-chaired the two-week jury trial, wherein the trial team obtained a jury verdict in favor of Orrick.
- Chung v. DeSalvo – Acted as lead trial counsel in a two-week jury trial in San Francisco, representing the defendant in a case stemming from a workplace violence incident. He prevailed for his client, after his pre-trial investigation revealed a pattern and practice by the plaintiff of inciting workplace turmoil at several previous employers, then suing to obtain settlements.
- Other: During his tenure with the Department of Defense, he obtained numerous defense verdicts in lawsuits tried before the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Claims included sexual harassment, discrimination, and wrongful termination. Since leaving the federal government, Mr. McMahon also successfully represented numerous clients in administrative proceedings before the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (“DFEH”).
Other Representation:
- AMD v. Intel – Worldwide and currently pending anti-trust case, where Mr. McMahon has represented Acer, Inc. as a third-party witness since 2005. Overseeing Acer’s production of documents and defending its most senior executives in deposition.
- All Covered, Inc. v. Xonicwave, et al. – Represented plaintiff in a misappropriation of trade secret and unfair competition case, wherein he obtained a comprehensive temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction, preventing defendants from using plaintiff’s trade secrets and from serving or soliciting plaintiff’s current and prospective customers. The breadth of the injunction was upheld on appeal by a unanimous ruling of the appellate court.
- Varian v. Kern – Mr. McMahon represented plaintiff in a misappropriation of trade secrets case wherein he obtained terminating sanctions against the defendant, resulting in judgment against the defendant for $3.5 million dollars. The defendant was also contemporaneously prosecuted under the Economic Espionage Act of 1996.
- Facebook v. Mailblock.com – Represented plaintiff through judgment in a breach of contract matter involving advertising impressions.
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