Biography

Mr. Butler is a partner in the San Francisco office and leads that office’s Litigation Department.

Mr. Butler’s practice focuses on complex business and commercial litigation and complex products liability litigation. His experience in these areas includes litigating individual and multi-plaintiff suits, including class actions, on the local, statewide and national level. He also has acted as Liaison Counsel for California Coordinated Proceedings. He has handled claims for breaches of fiduciary breaches, including ERISA claims, commercial contract disputes, claims for misappropriation of trade secrets, product liability claims and nationwide and statewide class actions alleging violations of consumer statutes and other claims.

Mr. Butler’s representative matters include representation of an national and international manufacturing and distribution companies and certain directors and officers regarding alleged breaches of fiduciary duty and allegations of Cal. Business and Professions Code 17200 violations; representation of international communications company in commercial contract dispute regarding defective communication equipment alleging breaches of contract and warranties and unfair business practices; representation of international fashion company in consumer class action litigation; representation of international transportation company for fraud and breach of merger agreement; representation of major chain store in dispute over commercial leases; representation of national magazine distributor in a statewide consumer class action litigation; representation of national retailer in statewide consumer class action litigation; representation of major manufacturer of latex products in products liability litigation; representation of corporations and individuals in litigation alleging misappropriation of trade secrets; representation of numerous insured in ERISA litigation.

Education

J.D., Golden Gate University, with highest honors (1983)

Editor, Notes & Comment, Golden Gate University Law Review

B.S., Penn State University (1974)

Admissions

• California

Courts

• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
• U.S. District Courts for all Districts of California