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. Alison regularly speaks on attorney ethics for local and statewide organizations.
Alison was named a “Northern California Rising Star” for 2012, as chosen by her peers and through the independent research of Law & Politics and San Francisco Magazine.
Representative Matters
- Represents law firms and lawyers in actions involving allegations of professional malpractice and breach of fiduciary.
- Significant trial experience, including successfully defending lawyer clients in bench and jury trials involving malpractice and related claims.
- Provides advice and counsel to law firms and lawyers on ethics issues, such as conflicts, confidentiality, and fee disputes with clients.
- Represents corporate clients prosecuting and defending contract, fraud, misappropriation, and unfair business practice claims.
- Briefed and argued matter before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
- Federal court jury trial experience involving allegations of unfair competition and false advertising.
Representative Clients
- ConnectU, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Facebook, Inc.
- EMQ FamiliesFirst
- The City of San Jose
- Valin Corporation
Professional Activities
Alison is currently serving a three-year appointment to the State Bar’s Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct (COPRAC). She teaches Professional Responsibility at Lincoln Law School in San Jose and is a member of APRL (Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers). She is an active member of the Santa Clara County Bar Association, previously serving on its Civil Practice, Business Law/Business Litigation Committees (2010 and 2011 Chair), 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
Alison 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 Articles
- Co-moderator and panelist, Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones, But Your Own Words (and Conduct) Might Really Hurt You, presented at the California State Bar’s Seventeenth Annual Statewide Ethics Symposium, April 20, 2013
- Speaker, Ethics Updates for Legal Professionals, presented by the Santa Clara County Legal Professionals Association, April 18, 2013
- Speaker, Ethics: Non-Traditional Payment Methods, presented by the Bar Association of San Francisco, March 14, 2013
- Speaker, Ethics and Social Media, presented by the Bay Area APALSA (Asian Pacific-Islander American Law Students Association) Annual Meeting, January 26, 2013
- Speaker, MCLE Live Day 2013: Legal Ethics, presented by the Santa Clara County Bar Association, January 25, 2013
- Speaker, Elimination of Bias: From the Woman Lawyer’s Perspective, presented by the Sunnyvale-Cupertino Bar Association, January 14, 2013
- Speaker, Legal Ethics for Solo Practitioners, presented by Santa Clara Law's How to Start a Solo Practice program, December 14, 2012
- Speaker, Ethics of Social Media for Lawyers, presented by the Bar Association of San Francisco, November 27, 2012
- Speaker, Conflicts 101: How to Identify and Deal with Them, presented by the State Bar of California, 85th Annual Meeting, October 13, 2012
- Speaker, Legal Series: Ethics for Attorneys: Hot Topics in 2012 LIVE Webcast, presented by The Knowledge Congress, August 29, 2012
- Speaker, Ethics Updates for Legal Professionals, presented by the Santa Clara County Legal Professionals Association, March 22, 2012
- Speaker, State Bar Discipline System: How to Avoid it, How to Deal With it if You Must, presented by the Santa Clara Bar Association, January 20, 2012
- 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