Practice Overview
Alison Buchanan is a Shareholder in the firm’s Silicon Valley office, where she focuses on business litigation, professional liability/professional malpractice, and legal ethics. Her additional experience in employment and real estate litigation makes her a valued resource for her clients.
Representative Matters
- represents lawyers and law firms in actions alleging professional malpractice
- provides advice and counsel to law firms and lawyers on ethics issues
- represents corporate clients prosecuting and defending contract, fraud, misappropriation, and unfair business practice claims
- briefed and argued matter involving civil rights violations before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
- served as trial counsel in a week-long jury trial in federal court involving allegations of unfair competition and false advertising
- served as trial counsel in a seven-day jury trial defending allegations of employment discrimination; obtained a defense verdict on all claims
Representative Clients
- ConnectU, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Facebook, Inc.
- The City of San Jose
- U.S. Bank
- Valin Corporation
- Valleycare Health System
Professional Activities
Ms. Buchanan was recently appointed to serve a three-year term on the State Bar’s Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct (COPRAC). Read the full article on this here. Ms. Buchanan teaches Professional Responsibility at Lincoln Law School in San Jose. She is also a member of APRL (Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers). Ms. Buchanan is an active member of the Santa Clara County Bar Association, serving on its Civil Practice and Business Law/Business Litigation Committees (2010 and 2011 Chair). Ms. Buchanan previously served on the Finance, Law Related Education (2008 Chair) and Barristers Committees. She is also a past co-chair of the Amicus Committee for the Silicon Valley Campaign for Legal Services.
Community Involvement
Ms. Buchanan is a graduate of the Community Leadership San Jose-Silicon Valley Class of 2008. She served on the Board of Directors for Cambrian Center, a nonprofit independent living facility for the elderly and disabled, from 2008 through 2010.
Speaking Engagements and Professional Activities
- Speaker, Eliminating Bias: Exploring Practical Solutions for Real Life Situations, Presented by the Sunnyvale-Cupertino Bar Association, January 9, 2012
- Author, Be Tech Smart: Protecting Your Client Communications, San Francisco Daily Journal, September 14, 2011
- Speaker, Attorney Ethics: New Developments and Old Concepts Revisited, Hoge, Fenton, Jones & Appel Brown Bag, September 14, 2011
- Speaker, Ethics & Hot Topics, Presented by the Santa Clara County Bar Association Women Lawyers Section, November 18, 2010
- Speaker, Ethics & Hot Topics, Presented by the Santa Clara County Bar Association Women Lawyers Section, December 8, 2009
- Speaker, Ethics & Hot Topics, Hoge, Fenton, Jones & Appel Brown Bag, December 1, 2009
- Speaker, Associates and Ethics: Examining the “Subordinate Lawyer’s” Dilemma, Presented by the Santa Clara County Bar Association Barristers Committee, November 4, 2009
- Panelist, Career Discovery Days, Summer Search San Francisco, August 12, 2009
- Panelist, Santa Clara University Make a Difference Week, September 24, 2008
- Speaker, Attorney Advertising: How the Ethics Rules Apply to Marketing Your Practice on the Internet and Beyond, Presented by the Santa Clara County Bar Association Solo and Small Firm Section, July 16, 2008
- Speaker, Dealing with a Difficult Adversary, Hoge, Fenton, Jones & Appel Brown Bag, June 30, 2008
- Speaker, 2008 Ethics Update, Hoge, Fenton, Jones & Appel Brown Bag, January 31, 2008
- Speaker, 2007 Ethics Update, Presented by the East Alameda County Bar Association, October 26, 2007
- Co-Author, Time to Give Your Fee Agreement a Check-up?, CEB’s Telephone Topic Newsletter for the Continuing Education of the Bar, Volume 25