Carlos Becerra

My focus

I focus my practice on high-stakes business disputes involving executive mobility, breach of fiduciary duty, labor and employment, intellectual property, and business divorce-related issues, across many industries including healthcare, entertainment, and financial services. I also work with hedge funds and private equity firms, providing them with advice on regulatory market, litigation developments, and divisive operational support for key assets.

I litigate and defend cases and class actions in connection with contracts, trade secrets, non-competes, unfair competition law, discrimination allegations, and wage and hour issues involving misclassifications and independent contractors. Clients trust my novel approaches toward early and efficient dispute resolution, which have eliminated the distraction and expense of continued litigation.

In addition to my significant litigation experience, I am a trusted advisor for my clients, tackling and resolving their toughest problems through creative solutions that help them avoid or limit lawsuit exposure and put them in the best position to meet their goals.

My business influence and achievements across many spectrums (as a residential real estate developer, former private equity executive, entrepreneur, healthcare business leader, and philanthropic leader) have made me one of California's go-to lawyers.

Representative experience

Before joining Nixon Peabody, Carlos was in private practice, including at three other AmLaw 200 firms. Carlos also worked in the private equity area as a corporate development director. In addition, he served as the executive director of Freedom Is Not Free, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that aids wounded troops and their families.

The below representative experience includes representations from prior firms.

• Achieved a successful jury verdict in state court in favor of a financial services firm sued by a former commodities broker. Carlos disproved the broker’s claim that the financial services firm had misclassified him as an independent contractor.
• Obtained summary judgment in federal court on behalf of a Fortune 500 employer against a former employee. Carlos successfully demonstrated that there was not an actionable case made by the employee’s alleged disability discrimination-related claims arising from an inflexible leave of absence policy.
• Successfully filed a motion on behalf of a high-tech employer for judgment in California against a competitor based in Massachusetts. Carlos’s motion invalidated a non-compete agreement entered into by and between the competitor and an executive for the high-tech employer.
• Successfully appealed the California Employment Development Department’s tax and penalty assessment levied against a California nonprofit employer. The department had alleged that the employer misclassified certain independent contractors. As a result of Carlos’s efforts, the department reduced the overall assessment by 98 percent.
• Obtained a temporary restraining order in state court in favor of a California employer against a former employee and competitor who had misappropriated the California employer’s confidential customer contact information. The TRO prohibited the former employee and competitor from unlawfully competing. Carlos negotiated a favorable settlement shortly thereafter.
• Settled a case favorably on behalf of a medical group where the primary issue was whether a physician’s obligation to comply with AMA § 7.03 trumped a medical group’s right to protect its trade secrets.
• Defeated an anti-SLAPP motion brought by a former employee and competitor against a California employer asserting breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duties, misappropriation of trade secrets, and the violation of California's unfair competition laws against the same. Carlos then negotiated a favorable settlement for his client.

Insights

Carlos has been a featured speaker on healthcare, employee mobility, California’s Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) matters at the Los Angeles County Medical Association, the Orange County Medical Association and various business associations and chambers of commerce.