The Daily Journal has named Eric Akira Tate, co-chair of Morrison & Foerster’s Global Employment and Labor Group, a Top Trade Secrets Lawyer in 2020.
Previously recognized as one of Daily Journal’s “Top 20 Under 40” and one of Daily Journal’s Top California Employment Lawyers for 2019, Eric was recognized for his work representing companies in high-stakes trade secrets, restrictive covenants, and employee raiding and mobility matters. Eric also represents companies in whistleblower, wage-and-hour, and other employment discrimination and harassment litigation, and Boards of Directors in #MeToo and other sensitive workplace investigations and disputes, as well as other transactional matters at the intersection of employment and IP. Eric also is called upon to advise companies in the employment aspects of mergers and acquisitions and other transactional matters, particularly those involving C-level executive employment and separations.
Eric represented companies in trade secrets and employee mobility disputes not just in California, but across the country, including Shermco Industries in state and federal court actions in Louisiana and Ohio and Shaklee Corporation in state and federal court actions in Idaho (including a successful motion to dismiss claims filed against and preliminary injunction) and China filed by a competitor based on alleged breaches of non-compete clauses in Shaklee’s hire of a competitor’s executive in China to run Shaklee’s China operations. Additionally, Eric previously helped lead Uber’s defense of the trade secrets misappropriation and patent infringement suit filed by Waymo based on Uber’s acquisition of a self-driving car startup founded by former Google engineers, which settled four days into trial in February 2018.
In addition to his work on client matters, Eric continued his thought leadership as a Board of Review Associate Editor for leading BNA treatises Trade Secrets: A State-by-State Survey; Covenants Not to Compete; Employee Duty of Loyalty; and Tortious Interference in the Employment Context, and works for the legal practice generally on the governing Council for the ABA Section of Labor and Employment as a mediator for the Northern District of California ADR Program, as well as his commitment to promoting diversity in the legal profession, an active pro bono practice, and other community endeavors.
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