Eugene Ashley

Practice Overview

Eugene (Geno) Ashley chairs the firm’s Litigation and Trial practice group and is also a member of the Business Litigation, Real Estate, and Construction practice groups. Geno has built his career counseling and advocating on behalf of his business clients in significant matters. As a veteran trial lawyer, he has handled “bet the company” lawsuits with multi-million-dollar outcomes, as well as actions arising from contracts and business torts, unfair business practices and trade secrets claims, construction and real estate disputes, and employment law litigation.

Geno represents public and privately held corporations, businesses, and individuals with intellectual property litigation and counseling, as well as general business and real estate litigation such as mechanic’s liens.  He has extensive experience in all facets of litigation, including trial. Geno has chaired numerous bench and jury trials, in addition to helping to guide clients through arbitration and settlements:

• In 2009, Geno tried a jury trial representing a plaintiff in a breach of contract lawsuit against the local division of a Chinese manufacturer of industrial materials. Geno’s client was awarded everything they asked for by the jury, including a multi-million-dollar verdict.
• Geno helped win a multi-million-dollar bench trial verdict for a homeowner in San Francisco County.
• Geno won three trials representing a business owner going through a contentious divorce. The trials focused on the control, operation, and management of the owner’s businesses.
• Successfully arbitrated a million-dollar mechanic’s lien and breach of contract action for a Bay Area client, a large multi-unit residential development.

Background

Before to joining Hoge Fenton, Geno was a shareholder at Hopkins & Carley where he served as the firm’s General Counsel and was a member of their Litigation practice group.

He is a member of both the Santa Clara County Bar Association and the Rotary Club of Pleasanton. Geno also taught Continuing Legal Education lectures on Mechanics Lien law.

Geno is an active member of his community. He is currently a board member for the San Jose Chamber of Commerce and the Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce. Over the last 20 years, he has served on several boards, including Junior Achievement, Moreau Catholic High School’s Board of Trustees (where he was Board Chair for two years), and a variety of child sports groups. Geno also coached little league baseball and lacrosse for many years.

Practice Areas

• Agriculture
• Apparel
• Banking & Mortgage
• Business Litigation
• Cannabis
• Class Action
• Construction
• Employment Law
• Intellectual Property
• Intellectual Property Litigation
• Life Sciences & Medical Devices
• Litigation and Dispute Resolution
• Manufacturing
• Real Estate and Land Use
• Software

Education

• J.D., University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, with distinction
• B.A., Political Science, University of California at Santa Barbara and Richmond American University London

Admissions

• California
• United States District Court, Northern, Central, Southern, and Eastern Districts
• Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals