Deborah (Debbie) Jones is a partner in the firm’s Litigation & Trial Practice Group. She is a business litigator whose clients include major financial institutions and servicers, major petroleum companies, a hazardous waste/petroleum hauling trucking company, telecommunications carriers, insureds and insurers, commercial real estate landlords and developers, real estate agents, and other businesses and individual business owners. She has litigated a wide variety of disputes in California state and federal courts, including matters involving commercial and residential foreclosures, unfair debt collection issues (FDCPA, FCRA, Rosenthal Act, etc.), unlawful detainer and commercial leasing disputes, commercial and residential easements, franchise matters involving the Petroleum Marketing Practices Act (PMPA) and real estate broker/agent commissions. Debbie also has experience representing national companies with their employment issues, which involve allegations of wrongful termination based on racial, gender and age discrimination, retaliation and harassment. She has also handled union grievances and advised on labor disputes. In the past, she has also litigated cases involving corporate control/partnership disputes, construction defects, legal and accountant malpractice and fraud, trademark infringement and insurance bad faith.
- Representing a major financial institution concerning the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act/Rosenthal Act and other unfair debt collection laws.
- Representing a major institutional lender with regard to litigation in California and Texas concerning multimillion-dollar CMBS loan secured by an office building located in Dallas, Texas.
- Representing one of the largest bank-affiliated equipment leasing and finance companies regarding the enforcement and collection of various equipment, electronics and other security.
- Representing and advising a major petroleum company regarding complex franchise disputes involving the Petroleum Marketing Practices Act.
- Advising a major petroleum company in exercising right of first refusal and enforcement of construction completion requirements, as well as other miscellaneous real estate disputes with respect to branded gasoline stations and mini-market convenience stores in states west of the Rockies.
- Assisted a major institutional lender with a defaulted $19 million loan secured by retail property in Claremont, California.
- Assisted a major institutional lender regarding a defaulted CMBS loan secured by hotel property in Southern California.
- Represented a major lender with regard to an $85 million loan secured by retail property in Orange County, California, and assisted in its successful sale by the receiver to a third party.
- Handled out-of-state matters concerning defaulted residential loans and home equity lines of credit. Obtained summary judgment on behalf of a lender in Maryland. Negotiated payment by an escrow agent for the entire loan amount for the agent’s failures pertaining to the deed of trust. Defended a wrongful foreclosure action and negotiated full payment.
- Represented a receiver in a lender/borrower dispute concerning commercial real property in Westwood, California.
- Represented the borrower on a defaulted loan on retail property in California and obtained summary judgment on behalf of borrower.
- Represented a landlord of commercial property in unlawful detainer proceedings that resulted in the full payment of past due rent and the successful eviction of the tenant.
- Represented a home builder in actions brought by prospective and actual purchasers of homes based on purchase sale agreement disputes.
- Represented the landlord of an industrial property concerning an unauthorized occupant and defaulting tenant.
- Counseled a client concerning “as is” clauses in commercial real estate sales contracts and corresponded with purchasers to successfully prevent litigation concerning sales.
- Successfully defended a major petroleum company against a gasoline station owner in a breach of contract action in San Diego Superior Court after a three-day bench trial.
- Obtained summary judgment on behalf of a major petroleum company on PMPA and price-fixing claims.
- Successfully opposed numerous preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order motions on behalf of a major petroleum company with respect to gasoline franchise terminations. One such success resulted in the closing of six stations run by one franchisee. Successes also include the dissolution of TROs granted by the court.
- Obtained TRO and preliminary injunction against a gasoline station owner infringing on the trade marks and service marks of a client.
- Successfully defended a national trucking company in a two-day union grievance arbitration involving issues of employment termination in Northern California (a typically pro-union jurisdiction).
- Represented an employer client in a NLRB proceeding.
- Represented an employer client in a DLSE investigation that resulted in the charges being dropped by the terminated employee.
- Successfully litigated insurance bad faith matters involving the Northridge Earthquake and homeowner insurance claims.
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This advisory discusses the background and implications of the September 7, 2012, decision by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or the “Board”) that held that an employer’s social media policy prohibiting statements that “damage the Company, defame any individual or damage any person’s reputation” violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and that employees would reasonably construe the policy to restrict certain protected concerted activities, namely communications, regarding the employer’s treatment of its employees.
September 21, 2012
Advisories
Past Events
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January 17-18, 2013
Seminar
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July 30-31, 2012
Seminar
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March 18-21, 2012
Seminar
- Asian Business League of Southern California - 2010 and 2011 President; 2009 through the present Board Member
- Center for the Pacific Asian Family - Current Board Member
- Sojourn Services for Battered Women and Their Children - Fundraising Board Member
- Los Angeles County Bar Association
- American Bar Association