Peter R. Afrasiabi

As a lawyer, Peter handles primarily patent, copyright, trademark and trade secret disputes. Peter was selected by his peers as a Southern California Super Lawyer™ Rising Star. Less than 5% of attorneys in Southern California have received this prestigious honor.

Intellectual Property Litigation

Peter’s primary practice focus has been litigating patent, copyright, trademark and technology trade secret disputes. Some notable cases are as follows:

Patents

● Representing a publicly traded company in patent infringement litigation involving hand-held celestial object locator devices and computerized telescopes.
● Representing an advanced anti-proton physics company regarding inventorship of patents.
● Representing a company regarding marching band carrier technology in a patent infringement lawsuit involving multiple patents and anti-trust claims.
● Representing a company in patent infringement litigation involving consumer shelf-liner products.

Copyrights

● Representing a Hollywood entertainment company in a copyright infringement lawsuit involving protection of photographic images.
● Representing a renowned artist and illustrator in copyright infringement suits involving protection of unique art and artistic style against several multinational media conglomerates.
● Defending a prominent Southern California architect in a novel and high-profile copyright infringement suit under the Architectural Works Copyright Protection Act involving two multi-million dollar Tuscan-style mansions.

Trademarks

● Representing the owners of a famous restaurant chain in a dispute involving trademark ownership and infringement of the restaurant’s name, where litigation occurred in the courts and before the Trademark Trial and Appeals Board.
● Representing a famous Yoga personality in a trademark infringement dispute involving DVD’s and apparel.
● Representing a large regional marina and recreational site in trademark infringement lawsuits regarding performing and name rights to particular industry and public display shows, which lawsuits were in both the state and federal courts.
● Representing a leading consumer product company in the extreme sports space regarding protection of its marks.

Technology Trade Secrets

● Representing a national security software company in a theft of trade secrets dispute involving a competitor and employees, with federal (FBI) involvement also.
● Representing a national software utility-measuring software supplier for housing communities in protecting its trade secrets from theft from a competitor.
● Representing one of the largest home equity mortgage companies in protecting business model and lead generation trade secrets from theft from employees and competitors.

Appellate Litigation

Peter also has particular expertise in appellate litigation. Peter has argued appeals before the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals (for patent cases), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the California Courts of Appeal. While an attorney at O'Melveny & Myers LLP, where Peter started his litigation career, Peter co-founded and co-directed the O'Melveny & Myers Ninth Circuit Pro Bono Project. Under that program, Peter directed and participated in numerous federal appeals, obtaining almost a 90% reversal for clients that had lost at the trial court.

In addition, Peter has secured published opinions in several federal and state appellate cases, including the Supreme Court: McCormick v. Amir Construction, 279 Fed. Appx. 470 (9th Cir. 2008); City of Hope Nat'l Medical Center v. Genentech, Inc., 43 Cal. 4th 375 (Cal. Supreme Court 2008); Carbonell v. INS, 429 F.3d 894 (9th Cir. 2005), Nonnette v. Small, 316 F.3d 872 (9th Cir. 2002), Crow Irvine #2 v. Winthrop California Investors Limited Partnership, 128 Cal. Rptr. 2d 644 (Cal. Ct. Appeal 2002), Vargas-Garcia v. INS, 287 F.3d 882 (9th Cir. 2002), Taylor v. DeLatoore, 281 F.3d 884 (9th Cir. 2001), and Mabe v. County of San Bernardino, 237 F.3d 1101 (9th Cir. 2001).

Peter is also a volunteer District Coordinator for the United States Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit Pro Bono Program. In that capacity since 2000, Peter aids the Ninth Circuit by locating counsel to take pro bono appeals before the Ninth Circuit. Peter has been commended by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals for his efforts.

Teaching

Peter has taught at the Chapman University School of Law since 2001. He teaches a Federal Appellate Advocacy Clinic and has taught an Art of Persuasion class.

Federal Clerkships

Peter clerked at the federal trial court level in the United States District Court for the Central District of California for the Honorable Alicemarie H. Stotler, now the Chief Judge of the Central District of California.

Peter also clerked at the federal appellate court level in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit for the Honorable Ferdinand F. Fernandez.

Board, Government and Community Work

Peter was a member of the Board Directors of the Legal Aid Society of Orange County from 2001-2005, and is currently a Board Member of the Democratic Foundation of Orange County and the Federal Bar Association of Orange County. Peter has also been involved in local government efforts, ranging from being a Special Prosecutor for the City of Redondo Beach, where he first-chaired numerous criminal jury trials, to being a Member of the City of Costa Mesa's Human Relations Committee in 2000-2001 where he worked on local policy issues. Peter also regularly litigates pro bono civil rights and immigration cases in the federal trial and appellate courts. In 2002, Peter was awarded the Public Counsel "Advocate of the Year" Award for his efforts in federal immigration litigation, and more recently, Peter was awarded the 2006 USC Paul Davis Memorial Award by the Public Interest Legal Foundation for his appellate litigation work.

Sample Publications

Peter has published many articles. A sampling includes

"Superman's Latest Episode: The Rights of Authors and their Families to Terminate a Copyright Grant and Recapture the Copyright"
Orange County Lawyer, September 2008

"The Growing Circuit Split Over Whether Premature Notices of Appeal Preserve Appellate Review"
The Federal Lawyer, July 2008

"Private Enforcement of Government Patents Under the Bayh-Dole Act: Standing"
Federal Bar Association/OC, July 2007

"Patent Tying,"
Orange County Lawyer Magazine, August 2005

"When An Actor is Not Part of the Action"
Orange County Lawyer Magazine, Dec. 2004

"The Ninth Circuit Pro Bono Program"
Federal Bar Association 2002

"Federal Civil Rights Liability for Physicians"
Southern California Physician Magazine, 2001

"Property Rights in Ancient Human Skeletal Remains"
Southern California Law Review 1997

Peter’s litigation efforts have also been profiled in the Los Angeles Daily Journal and Peter has also been profiled by the Federal Bar Association of Orange County.

Education

University of Southern California: J.D.; Order of the Coif; Law Review Articles Editor.

University of California Los Angeles: B.A. Economics, magna cum laude.