Michael D. Young, Esq.

Cannabis Breach Of Contract

• Mediated a breach of oral contract dispute between former partners over a claimed finder’s fee in the cannabis industry, involving startup equity issues, and explored both business and equity solutions in reaching settlement.
• Mediated a partnership/contract dispute between parties competing in the cannabis space.
• Mediated a business dispute in the cannabis industry involving claims of breach of contract, promissory estoppel, and fraud, where a $500K investment agreement failed to materialize despite arranged investor meetings, and successfully resolved the matter.
• Mediated a $3.5 million dispute in which a plaintiff sued multiple investors and partners who had started a competing business, addressing claims of breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, unlawful business practices, and intentional interference.
• Mediated a dispute over a fee agreement between cannabis cultivator and a seller of the cannabis license, which resolved with renegotiated payment terms.

Cannabis Industry

• Mediated a three-year litigation involving a large cannabis producer and five other parties over irrigation and water issues, conducting a hybrid in-person and Zoom session with 15 participants that led to a business-based settlement acceptable to all.

Construction Breach Of Contract

• Mediated a construction dispute over demolition and concrete removal in a major public project, complicated by the absence of a written agreement, conflicting testimony on scope, and disputed evidence on work quality, reaching settlement before full discovery.

Construction Defects

• Arbitrated a case between the owner of an iconic restaurant and the contractor over the scope and quality of construction work on an addition.

Construction Delay Claims

• Mediated a construction dispute between an owner and project manager over costs, delays, and alleged defects in building a food processing facility, with related insurance issues addressed as part of the resolution.

A D A

• Mediated a wrongful termination dispute involving an employee alleging disability discrimination for missing mandatory training, with additional claims that the employer concealed incriminating emails showing prior knowledge of the disability.

Breach of Contract

• Mediated a dispute where all four employees of a small office left to open a competing business, leading to claims of breach of loyalty, contract, and duty, interference, trade secret misappropriation, conspiracy, and related business torts, with mediation addressing complex legal issues, damages, and strong emotions.
• Mediated a dispute over a breach of a Marvin Agreement: The parties had been engaged in a long-term romantic relationship, though had never married. When the relationship ended, one party sued the other for financial support, alleging the existence of a so-called Marvin Agreement, a promise to provide financial support similar to the rights given a spouse. Adding to the factual complexity was the procedural posture of the dispute. By the time the parties reached mediation, a default judgment had been entered for millions of dollars, and the court was considering a motion to vacate the judgement.

Disability

• Mediated an employment dispute involving associational disability accommodation claims, along with CFRA and FMLA issues, where an employee refused to work at a location he believed posed risks to his medically sensitive child, raising novel questions about an employer’s duty to accommodate based on a family member’s disability.

Discrimination

• Mediated a dispute brought by a minority doctor alleging decades of institutional racism, harassment, and unfair treatment by hospital administrators and colleagues.
• Mediated a pregnancy discrimination and wrongful termination case against a local sports store, resolved through both monetary and non-monetary terms.
• Mediated a civil rights and FEHA dispute between a public school district director and the district, involving claims of race and age harassment and retaliation tied to Skelly hearings, with direct discussions between the director and superintendent. Negotiations explored both continued employment and retirement options, concluding in a successful resolution pending Board approval.
• Mediated a case involving a novel USERRA claim asserting wrongful termination in retaliation for a spouse entering military service.

Hostile Environment

• Mediated a sexual harassment dispute where a female employee alleged she was coerced by her boss into exchanging explicit photos, while the boss claimed the relationship was consensual, and the employer asserted lack of knowledge and prompt corrective action.

Labor Code

• Mediated a dispute between a former female partner and her prior law firm under the California Fair Pay Act, involving claims of unequal pay compared to a male counterpart, with contested issues over merit, contributions, and the scope of the Act.

PAGA

• Mediated a combined wage and hour PAGA and individual disability case, complicated by disputes between the defendant and its insurer over defense and indemnity allocation. The mediation simultaneously resolved insurer–insured coverage issues and the plaintiffs’ claims.
• Mediated a misclassification class action and PAGA claim in the trucking industry, which involved questions of federal DOT preemption, application of AB5 and the business-to-business exception, and the Borello factors.

Wage and Hour

• Mediated a wage and hour dispute involving misclassification and unpaid overtime claims, with the defendant asserting a cross-claim for patent infringement.
• Mediated a wage and hour dispute in the healthcare industry involving claims of misclassification of nurse practitioners.
• Mediated a class action challenging the pizza industry’s practice of reimbursing delivery drivers with a set per-delivery fee, along with related individual and PAGA claims, all successfully resolved.
• Mediated a wage and hour and PAGA case in the trucking industry challenging the piece-rate compensation system, application of Labor Code §226.2 to rest and meal breaks, and wage statement issues, with defense raising federal preemption arguments. Successfully resolved PAGA, class, and individual claims.
• Mediated a wage and hour misclassification dispute between brothers in a family business, where underlying decades-long family dynamics drove the conflict. Resolution was reached by addressing both the legal issues and the relational context, enabling constructive dialogue moving forward.
• Mediated a case involving a transgender man and his former employer, which had a strong diversity and inclusivity identity in the LGBTQ+ community. It was addressed and amicably resolved challenging claims of harassment and discrimination based on the employee's gender identity.

Wage and Hour Class Action

• Mediated three consolidated class actions alleging wage and hour violations, including challenges to meal and rest break policies under CBAs, wage statement claims, and donning and doffing issues.
• Mediated a complex wage and hour class action in the airline industry, using a two-session approach: the first to identify key issues and direct information exchange, and the second to achieve settlement.
• Mediated a PAGA action alleging failure to reimburse employees for home office expenses incurred while working remotely.
• Mediated a class action wage and hour dispute involving a manufacturer and staffing company over meal and rest breaks, with potential cross-claims against a payroll company for wage statement violations, and addressed overlapping representation issues between two sets of plaintiffs’ attorneys.
• Mediated disputes involving 16 truck drivers alleging misclassification as independent contractors and unlawful lease agreements with improper deductions for fuel and other costs. Despite overlapping Labor Commissioner awards on appeal, organizational challenges were resolved and all cases settled.
• Arbitrated a wage and hour class action in the restaurant industry.
• Mediated a decade-long dispute between doctor members and managing members of a medical organization involving alleged breaches of non-compete and conflict-of-interest provisions, fiduciary duties, and membership share valuation, resolving through negotiated sales, purchases, and management changes to preserve organizational stability.
• Mediated three related lawsuits against a gig economy tech company—one by the State and two by private plaintiffs alleging state, class, and individual claims—achieving a global resolution after two days of mediation that included business model modifications to satisfy the State and a financial settlement of class and individual claims.
• Mediated claims brought by a joint labor-management cooperation committee under Labor Code Section 218.7 against a prime contractor related to the wage and hour practices of a defunct sub-contractor.

Whistleblower Wrongful Term

• Mediated a complex commercial dispute over an innovative tech startup funding and incubation model, involving claims of misuse of funds, wrongful termination, and breach of duty, resolved through a settlement including insurance contributions, equity adjustments, and other non-monetary terms.

Wrongful Term & Discrimination

• Mediated a disability discrimination case brought by a terminated sales associate who admitted to sexually harassing co-workers but claimed his conduct stemmed from COVID-related cognitive impairment. The employer argued termination was based on misconduct, not disability. Mediation followed the denial of summary judgment, creating risk for both sides.

Wrongful Termination

• Arbitrated an employment dispute where an employee alleged wrongful termination for refusing to undergo a drug test the employer deemed necessary.
• Mediated a civil rights case alleging racial profiling by a store cashier who conducted a non-consensual bag search, focusing on the cashier’s motivations and the company’s staff training practices.

Entertainment Issues

• Mediated an entertainment dispute between producers of a horror film involving allegations of fraud, collusion, conspiracy, and misappropriation of funds, further complicated by a related conflict over efforts to expel a member from one of the entities.
• Mediated a pre-filing dispute between a startup gaming company and a founder who alleged securities, employment, and business tort claims after being stripped of vested shares and terminated, complicated by familial relationships among the founders, and resolved with both financial and non-financial terms.

Environmental Issues

• Mediated a public policy dispute over a municipality’s authority to impose employment regulations on truckers under a clean-air initiative.
• Mediated a longstanding environmental lawsuit brought by a county water district against about 50 defendants, alleging their historical operations contributed to widespread soil and groundwater contamination.
• Mediated an environmental dispute between a landlord and manufacturing tenant over soil contamination near a Superfund site, with the focus on contractual rather than tort liability. Despite complexities involving other potentially responsible parties, orphan shares, and the tenant’s limited resources, resolution was reached through creative payment terms, indemnities, and limited releases.

Bankruptcy

• Mediated an unfair business practices dispute in the mortgage industry involving the State, multiple banks, and service entities arising from the 2008 financial crisis, facilitating complex settlement negotiations among numerous contentious parties over an extended period.

Class Actions

• Mediated a federal wage and hour class action involving donning and doffing, off-the-clock work, on-call compensation, and meal and rest breaks, complicated by overlapping individual state lawsuits from class representatives and sensitive allocation issues between co-defendants with national business ties. The fluid, unconventional mediation process led to a successful resolution.

Employment Issues

• Mediated a Qui Tam case under the False Claims Act in which a nurse alleged a hospital billed the government for unnecessary services. After the government declined to intervene, the private parties reached a settlement pending government approval.
• Mediated a complex business dispute over the development of a hotel and retail center, involving contested partnership terms, financial entitlements after a sale to Chinese investors, and claims of breach of fiduciary duty and fraud. With investors added as defendants and filing indemnity cross-claims, all matters were resolved in a marathon session, allowing the project to move forward unencumbered.

Environmental

• Mediated 2200 individual cases brought by residents against local industry alleging decades of exposure to toxic chemicals. The dispute was complicated by the number of insurers and disparate insurance policies, some with and some without pollution exclusions.

Patent Issues

• Mediated a complex patent dispute over computer software and hardware spanning four lawsuits in two states and two countries, plus two IPR challenges and a licensing dispute, resolved after years of litigation and just weeks before trial through a mix of caucuses and direct business owner discussions exploring business and financial settlement options.

Trade Secret Matters

• Mediated a multifaceted dispute in the fabrication industry involving allegations of trade secret theft by a former employee, who countered with claims of harassment, misclassification, and constructive termination, while Clean Water Act cross-claims further increased complexity and leverage in the case.

Trademark Issues

• Mediated over 250 cases through the USDC ADR panel and privately, including intellectual property (patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secrets), TCPA, employment, ADA, environmental, civil rights, computer fraud, Qui Tam, and False Claims Act matters, drawing on trial experience in state and federal courts while in private practice at an international law firm.
• Mediated a trademark infringement dispute involving alleged counterfeit goods, wrongful takedown notices to major online marketplaces, and claimed damages from delayed reinstatement of a vendor’s account.
• Mediated a complex trademark dispute between two expanding technology companies with similar names, involving contested PTO proceedings and allegations of questionable registration tactics. A joint session enabled business leaders to recognize aligned goals and craft a settlement that met both parties’ objectives while avoiding costly litigation.
• Mediated a counterfeiting dispute involving a well-known consumer brand, complicated by a prior civil contempt judgment for violating an earlier settlement and multiple defendants shifting blame. Resolution was achieved with creative payment terms and non-monetary protections for the brand owner.
• Mediated a pre-discovery federal intellectual property dispute where a cosmetics artist sued a cosmetics company in the U.S. and Europe for copyright and trademark infringement, with issues including liability, overlapping damages, and reach to foreign profits and entities. A marathon mediation produced a global resolution with both monetary and business terms.
• Mediated a virtual trademark dispute between a global corporation and a small local entity, resolving infringement and dilution claims through a settlement centered on adopting a mutually acknowledged non-infringing alternative mark.
• Mediated a case involving a trademark dispute with e-sports and gaming.
• Mediated a case involving a global fashion retailer who brought a Lanham Act trademark action against a supplier of the product claiming that, after hundreds of purchase orders had been canceled due to the Covid pandemic, the supplier surrepticiously sold the branded products on the international market without authority. 

Public Policy

• Mediated a consumer protection dispute involving alleged violations of consumer protection statutes by a global technology company.

Regulatory

• Mediated civil rights claims by foster children against a County for alleged abuse by foster parents, with negotiations involving life plans and direct engagement with the County Board of Supervisors.
• Mediated a public policy dispute concerning the construction and widening of a freeway.

Coverage

• Mediated an insurance coverage dispute in the farming industry hinging on the interpretation of “error” and the impact of omitted commas, ultimately leading to a reasonable settlement satisfactory to both insured and insurer.

Property Damage

• Mediated a complex dispute arising from a truck explosion at an oil facility involving injured drivers, lien holders, and the property owner, successfully coordinating 25 competing interests to equitably allocate limited insurance funds and reach a global settlement.

General IP

• Mediated a complex copyright infringement dispute involving famous characters through co-mediation, achieving a successful resolution.
• Mediated a trademark infringement dispute involving conflicts between federal trademark registration rights and prior state statutory and common law trademark rights.

IP Copyright

• Mediated a publishing industry dispute in which major textbook publishers brought claims against alleged infringers accused of unlawfully selling counterfeit products in Asia.
• Mediated a music industry dispute in which a major record label alleged that an individual was unlawfully reselling certain musical recordings.
• Mediated a copyright and business dispute between former partners in a psychology consulting firm involving rights to use copyrighted materials, alongside business dissolution and employment issues.
• Mediated a copyright dispute brought by photographers alleging wrongful use of their images.
• Mediated disputes over the rights to publicly display large copyrighted sculptures and other artwork outside commercial buildings.
• Mediated an entertainment dispute between producers and directors over rights to a documentary on a famous athlete, involving competing copyright registrations, contract claims, and common law issues, ultimately resolving through a settlement structure that aligned interests around monetizing the completed film.
• Mediated a global e-commerce development contract dispute involving functionality concerns, delays, and contract cancellation, with contract and business tort cross-claims pending arbitration. In a pre-discovery mediation with business leaders and counsel, business solutions were explored and a satisfactory resolution reached.
• Mediated a dispute in the gift industry where a growing startup asserted trade dress, design patent, trademark, and unfair competition claims against an online retailer, raising novel issues on the scope of trade dress and design patent protection, and resolved through a mix of principal-only and attorney-only discussions.
• Mediated a copyright dispute between a street artist and a major fashion brand over an ad campaign incorporating portions of the artist’s mural, addressing issues under the Architectural Works Copyright Protection Act along with contested causation and damages, and reaching a successful resolution.
• Mediated a copyright and trade secrets dispute brought by an installation artist alleging misappropriation of interactive art concepts, focusing on profit rights, scope of copyright protection, and definitions of “trade secret.”
• Mediated a copyright dispute between an artist/content provider and an ISP involving DMCA compliance, damages, and injunctive remedies, resolving through selective joint sessions and a settlement incorporating business terms acceptable to all parties.
• Mediated an intellectual property dispute against an internet marketplace involving trademark, copyright, and trade dress claims based on third-party seller conduct, focusing on the platform’s liability and obligations under the DMCA, and resolved with monetary and creative non-monetary terms.
• Mediated 15 consolidated copyright cases involving alleged infringement of over 40 registered and unregistered works of art, successfully resolving all matters in a single day.

IP Patent

• Mediated a long-running litigation over a systems patent in computer technology.
• Mediated a dispute between a doctor-inventor of specialized surgical tools and the company that acquired the rights to patent and commercialize the inventions.
• Mediated a design patent dispute involving claims by patent holders against an alleged infringer over wheel designs.
• Mediated patent disputes involving method patents for an online marketing tool asserted against global consumer companies.
• Mediated a utility patent dispute involving exercise equipment.
• Mediated a utility patent dispute involving swimming pool equipment.
• Mediated a utility patent dispute involving underwater equipment.
• Mediated a utility patent dispute involving security technology.
• Mediated a utility patent dispute involving recreational devices.
• Mediated a pre-filing patent and licensing dispute over sporting equipment, involving trade secret claims, complicated by one party’s acquisition by a European equity firm and the involvement of a key witness and former principal convicted of embezzlement.
• Mediated a dispute between a tech company and a software platform developer over the scope and quality of development work and industry personnel standards, reaching resolution through candid discussions between business leaders and private caucuses, avoiding a costly federal jury trial.
• Mediated the third patent lawsuit between construction industry competitors, focusing on resolving the root causes of recurring conflict as well as the patent issues, leading to a lasting resolution after a full-day mediation.
• Mediated a combined patent and employment/disability discrimination dispute within a family-owned technology company, where the plaintiff was related to the founders and board members. The mediation balanced legal claims with family dynamics to reach a resolution addressing both legal and personal needs.

IP Right Of Publicity

• Mediated a misappropriation of likeness case where a model accused a web designer of secretly operating a subscription website featuring her photographs, including nude images.

IP Trade Secrets

• Mediated a dispute in the precision instruments industry where a former employee alleged wrongful termination based on race and gender, while the employer countered with claims the employee secretly formed a competing business using trade secrets including customer lists, business plans, and financial data.
• Mediated a trade secret dispute where an employer alleged a former employee misappropriated proprietary product formulations, while the employee contended the formulas were independently reverse-engineered and not identical.
• Arbitrated a trade secret and breach of fiduciary duty dispute between former business partners turned competitors.
• Mediated a trade secrets and breach of loyalty dispute in the cosmetics industry between an uncle and his nephew.
• Mediated a commercial trade secret, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of loyalty case with possible qui tam aspects was filed by a contracting company against a former employee who admittedly secretly formed a competing business, and then remained with the employer for over a year diverting critical and lucrative business opportunities to the secret competing business. After being fired by the employer, the employee formed a third secret corporation and then surreptitiously diverted business opportunities from the second company to the third. The original employer sued the second company and settled for a large sum and an assignment of the rights of the second company against the employee. The original employer thereafter prosecuted two lawsuits against the former employee, one on behalf of itself, and one as assignee of the second company. A mediated settlement was achieved that involved complex business terms.

IP Trademark

• Mediated a family and business dispute between the owner of a famous trademark (father) and the licensee (son) over licensing terms, obligations to promote the mark, unauthorized related trademark registrations, and the brand’s future direction, complicated by the influence of a multinational corporation acquiring the company.
• Mediated a counterfeit clothing dispute.
• Mediated a counterfeit consumer goods industry dispute.
• Mediated a dispute involving counterfeit online products.
• Mediated a dispute involving counterfeit timepieces and other jewelry products.
• Mediated a dispute involving counterfeit products in the home remodeling and decoration industry.
• Mediated a trademark and employment dispute where a former importing company employee registered the employer’s trademarks in Europe to compete with identically named products, with additional claims of wrongful termination, breach of fiduciary duty, and usurpation of corporate opportunities.
• Mediated a potential legal malpractice dispute between a national client and a major New York law firm, facilitating resolution over three months of calls and emails that avoided costly, public litigation and preserved the business relationship.
• Mediated a trademark dispute between a large investment company entering the entertainment industry and a prominent movie producer, using video and audio technology to connect parties nationwide, and resolved through a settlement involving the purchase and sale of the marks.
• Mediated a case involving a global footwear manufacturer and designer who sued a fast fashion retailer over incontestable and contestable trade dress registrations and common law trade dress issues. The focus of the mediation was on helping the parties work together to develop criteria that would permit the retailer to sell while protecting the manufacturer's rights.

Legal

• Arbitrated an attorney fee dispute as lead arbitrator involving an environmental law firm’s work following an FBI raid on a client’s mining facilities, with the client alleging substandard performance and excessive fees.

Breach Of Contract

• Mediated a real estate dispute where the buyer of a multi-tenant building sought indemnity from the seller after a tenant claimed wrongful eviction under Los Angeles rent control laws and blocked demolition permits through a “Mello” hearing. In a pre-filing mediation, direct dialogue between buyer and seller led to a mutually satisfactory resolution.

Home Owners Association

• Arbitrated a Homeowner Association (HOA) dispute with a resident concerning the scope and approval of architectural changes to a residence and their impact on other members of the Association.

Real Property

• Mediated a residential real estate dispute where the buyer discovered the home’s square footage was less than represented by the seller, who also acted as the buyer’s dual agent. Claims included breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, and negligence, and the case resolved pre-suit through settlement options involving a neutral appraiser and high/low caps.

Catastrophic Injury

• Mediated a complex personal injury case where a man was severely injured after being crushed by a tractor-trailer tire on government-owned land, involving multiple parties and complicated facts.

Common Carrier

• Mediated a wrongful death claim against an airline brought by the daughter of a passenger who died in-flight, with the daughter alleging emotional trauma from witnessing her mother’s death.

General Negligence

• Mediated a civil rights case involving a plaintiff who sustained physical and emotional injuries after being mistakenly attacked by a police dog during a pursuit.

Product Liability

• Mediated a legal malpractice dispute where a trustee sued a probate firm for allegedly failing to advise against violating contractual compensation restrictions, leading to the trustee’s removal and claims for lost compensation.

Toxic Torts

• Mediated a soil contamination dispute between neighboring landowners over remediation costs and insurance coverage, incorporating a neutral expert’s cost evaluation.

Wrongful Death

• Mediated a wrongful death case arising from the ingestion of a prescribed pharmaceutical drug.