January 1, 2021
Irvine, CA (January 1, 2021) – Rutan & Tucker LLP has elected Allina Amuchie, Mohammed Elayan, Lucas Hori, Seth Jessee, Carrie MacIntosh, Jon Nomura, Kyle St. James, Bryan Wilbert and Meredith Williams Sivakumar to the firm’s partnership effective January 1, 2021.
“Each of our new Rutan & Tucker partners exemplifies the lawyering skills, character, and leadership abilities essential to superior client service and excellence in the practice of law,” says firm Managing Partner Mark B. Frazier. “By adding these nine new partners, we strengthen our capability to pursue opportunities and overcome challenges in 2021 and beyond.”
Allina Amuchie represents clients in a wide range of civil litigation matters, including disputes involving contracts, construction, real property, fraud, negligence, class actions, business and intentional torts, and bankruptcy in both state and federal court. Ms. Amuchie counsels clients through the litigation process, including dispositive motion practice, depositions, mediations, arbitrations, trials, and appeals. Her dedication to professional excellence led to Best Lawyers in America recognizing her as one of the “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch” for 2021.
Ms. Amuchie also is actively engaged in pro bono work and has achieved outstanding results for her clients. Her commitment to pro bono work led to her receiving the Excellence in Pro Bono Service Award from Rutan & Tucker, Spirit of Volunteerism Award from OneOC, and the Wiley W. Manuel certificate from the State Bar of California.
Ms. Amuchie is a graduate of University of California, Berkeley, School of Law. Ms. Amuchie competed on Berkeley Law’s trial team and won the Western Region Championship for both the National Trial Competition and the Thurgood Marshall Mock Trial Competition.
Mohammed Elayan works with individuals and companies on a variety of transactions, across multiple industries, including software, healthcare, manufacturing, technology, food and beverage, and retail. He advises on mergers & acquisitions, SEC reporting and compliance, financings, commercial and licensing agreements, corporate governance, and entity structuring. Mohammed has experience in venture financings, SPAC transactions, IPOs, and SEC compliance. He also has experience representing both lenders and borrowers in debt financing transactions. He is a graduate of University of California, Irvine School of Law, University of Michigan, and Kalamazoo College.
Lucas Hori practices in the firm’s trial department. He is a member of the firm’s Unfair Competition and Class Action Defense Group which represents businesses in class actions, mass actions, and unfair business practices litigation. He has also been litigation counsel to real estate developers and other local and national businesses in a variety of industries. Mr. Hori served as a law clerk to the Honorable Karen E. Scott of the U.S. District Court, Central District of California and as a judicial extern to the Honorable Stephen V. Wilson in the Central District. He attended law school at UCLA and received his undergraduate degree from Pepperdine University, summa cum laude.
Seth Jessee brings extensive experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants in complex business litigation in state and federal court. He has considerable knowledge in all aspects of the litigation process from pre-trial case development through discovery and trial. He has particular expertise in litigation involving trademark infringement, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract and securities fraud. Seth is a graduate of University of Virginia School of Law and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; cum laude.
Based in the firm’s Palo Alto office, Carrie MacIntosh represents contractors, owners, and developers on matters involving construction law. Ms. MacIntosh counsels clients in connection with a wide variety of construction-related matters, including contract negotiation and drafting, contract administration, claims management and avoidance, and complex construction litigation. As a litigator, she has represented clients in a variety of high-value disputes and claims, including a complex litigation involving in excess of $71 million in claims arising out of a high-rise project in Los Angeles. In addition, Ms. MacIntosh has represented builders on notable infrastructure projects, as well as a number of public-private partnerships, including the Phoenix Sky Harbor airport project, the LAX consolidated rental car facility project, and the Los Angeles Convention Center project. In recent years, Ms. MacIntosh has presented on complex issues related to design-build project delivery at a number of nationally-attended seminars. Ms. MacIntosh is a graduate of Santa Clara University School of Law; cum laude; order of the coif and a graduate of San Diego State University; magna cum laude.
Jon Nomura is devoted to the representation of lenders and borrowers in connection with single lender and multi-lender acquisition, construction, bridge and term financing, secured by all real estate asset types, including retail, industrial, multifamily, mixed-use, affordable housing, senior living facilities and medical office buildings. Jon advises clients through all aspects of a transaction, focusing on providing practical guidance that couples risk mitigation with flexibility given the business deal and relationship. He is a graduate of University of California Los Angeles, School of Law and University of California, San Diego.
Kyle St. James’ practice includes advising early stage and established companies regarding patent portfolio development and patent prosecution strategies. Kyle assists clients by developing and scaling their patent portfolios domestically, and internationally, based on an understanding of clients’ short and long-term goals. He also counsels clients in licensing agreements and freedom-to-operate and patentability analyses.
Kyle focuses his practice on data analytics, internet technologies, wireless network technologies (IoT devices) as well as medical devices. Additionally, he has developed an expertise in technological innovations pertaining to the wine industry. He is a graduate of Santa Clara University School of Law and Pennsylvania State University, College of Engineering.
Bryan Wilbert’s practice includes representing financial institutions, private equity funds, developers and owners of commercial real estate on a broad range of commercial real estate matters, including the acquisition, disposition, development, leasing, and financing of commercial, industrial, and multifamily residential properties, and other general real estate matters. He received a Bachelor of Science cum laude in Business Administration from the University of Southern California and a Juris Doctor with distinction from the University of Iowa College of Law, where he was a member of the Iowa Law Review.
Meredith Williams (Sivakumar) focuses on representing and advising clients in protecting their intellectual property rights. Meredith’s practice emphasizes trademark and copyright litigation, trade secret misappropriation, false advertising, and unfair competition, and she advises clients on how best to promote and defend their brands and other IP assets. Her experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants in federal and state court, in ex parte and inter partes proceedings before the USPTO and TTAB, and in domain name dispute and other takedown procedures gives Meredith a variety of tools to assist clients in both enforcing and defending their rights. She is a graduate of Stanford Law School, where she was Senior Editor of the Stanford Law Review and recipient of the Gerald Gunther Prize for top grade in Civil Procedure. She also graduated magna cum laude from Yale University.
