Ralston, Thomas Fleming

Practice Description:

Brad Gatehouse's practice is focused primarily on litigation, with an emphasis on complex business litigation of all types, including construction and real estate litigation, antitrust matters, securities litigation and arbitration, corporate receivership, class and derivative lawsuits and other shareholder disputes, independent investigations and special representations for boards of directors and special board committees, banking and hedge fund matters, enforcement of non-competition and/or non-solicitation agreements, the ownership of proprietary technology and intellectual property, products liability, product market and distribution, trade secrets, unfair trade practices, fiduciary duty, business torts, all manner of contract disputes (including stock option agreements, rights of first refusal, purchases, loan syndications and loan participations, sales of assets or capital equipment, and distribution and representation agreements), commercial foreclosure defense, commercial paper and negotiable instruments, collateral repossession, attachment, garnishment, claim and delivery, injunctions, liens, and contract and commercial disputes.

Brad's practice also includes the representation of clients in connection with investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission and by other government entities.

With respect to more general litigation matters, Brad handles or has handled matters relating to check fraud and forgery, personal injury, arbitrations, discrimination and harassment, whistle-blowers and potential qui tam claims, easements, rights-of-way, zoning/building codes and other land use controversies.

Outside of litigation, he assists clients in negotiating specific business transactions and counsels his clients on legal compliance within the foregoing areas of substantive law, with an eye toward avoiding future litigation.

His clients have included individuals, public and privately-held companies, hedge funds, trusts, banks and municipalities.

Brad was recently recognized for his work in Business Litigation by North Carolina Super Lawyers magazine (2012), and for Litigation in Business North Carolina magazine's "Legal Elite" (2012).

Representative Matters:

Beacon Development Company d/b/a Beacon Partners v. Beacon Investment Properties, LLC., N.C. Business Court (Case No. 12-CVS-18397)(North Carolina state law trademark infringement action; settlement achieved within six weeks of substitution as new counsel).
 
McCullough v. Terminal Trucking Company, LLC, et al., U.S. Dist. Ct., M.D.N.C. (Case No. 1:12-CV-11)(successful defense in WARN Act lawsuit and putative class action; plaintiff voluntarily dismissed case after defendants’ motion to dismiss).  

Signature Development, LLC v. Sandler Commercial at Union, L.L.C., Superior Court, Union County (Case No. 08-CVS-2835) and N.C. Court of Appeals (Case No. COA09-646) (reversing trial court dismissal and clarifying that N.C. licensing statute does not require real estate development managers to hold general contractors license; settled after remand to trial court). 

Redtail Capital Partners One, LLC v. Wachovia Bank, N.A. et al., District Court of Dallas County, Texas (Cause No. 09-00527)(co-counsel representation of financial services company enforcing rights under participation agreement and pooling and servicing agreement, including right to be controlling holder thereunder, against competing holder and special servicer of loan participations).

UNEX Corporation v. Industrial Bolting Technologies, Inc., et al., U.S. Dist. Ct., D.N.J. (Case No. 07-CV-6027)(co-counsel defense representation in intellectual property dispute (patent, trademark, trade dress and related unfair trade claims) arising from manufacture and distribution of industrial hydraulic wrench products).

Wachovia Bank, N.A., et al. v. Harbinger Capital Partners & Master Fund I, Ltd., et al., N.C. Business Court (Case No. 07-CVS-5097) and N.C. Court of Appeals (Case No. COA08-629) (co-counsel representation of hedge funds in litigation arising from loan syndication).

Young et al. v. Golf Trust of America, Inc. et al., U.S. Dist. Ct., D.S.C. (Case No. 4:04-902-25) (successfully represented defendants in complex contract and business tort matter, winning summary judgment as to plaintiffs' claims and obtaining $3.7 million-plus verdict on defendants' counterclaims after five-day jury trial in August 2007).

Dellinger v. Pfizer Inc, and Parke-Davis, U.S. Dist. Ct., W.D.N.C. (Case No. 5:03CV95) (successful disposition of products liability, personal injury and unfair trade practices case on Daubert and summary judgment motions).

Tactical Support Equipment, Inc. v. Tricom Research, Inc., U.S. Dist. Ct., E.D.N.C. (Case No. 5:08-CV-159)(co-counsel representation in contract and intellectual property dispute concerning military-use radio amplifier equipment manufacture and distribution; opposing party's competing federal action in California dismissed in favor of client's prior pending action in North Carolina).

Allen et al. v. Burch Company, Superior Court, Wilkes County, N. C. (Case No. 02-CVS-1516) (successful bench trial to secure the appointment of receiver for technology company).

Aerolator Systems, Inc. et al. v. Poston, U.S. Dist. Ct., W.D.N.C. (Case No. 3:00-CV-277H) (four-day complex business tort jury trial).

Robbins v. Tweetsie Railroad, Inc., et al., Superior Court, Mecklenburg County, N. C. (Case No. 95-CVS-437) and N. C. Court of Appeals (Case No. COA96-587) (successfully defended corporation in derivative action at trial court level and appellate court level; affirmed on appeal in the first published decision fully setting forth North Carolina requirement that a derivative plaintiff be a fair and adequate representative of the corporate interest).

Tweetsie Railroad, Inc. v. Young Realty Investment, et al., Superior Court, Watauga County, N. C. (Case No. 98-CVS-116) and Young Realty Investment, LLC v. Tweetsie Railroad, Inc., Superior Court, Guilford County, North Carolina (Case No. 97-CVS-9245) (successfully represented Tweetsie Railroad in litigation and related matters in connection with the hostile attempt of an outside investor group to take control of the corporation; Guilford County suit voluntarily dismissed; settlement reached in Watauga County case after discovery and favorable rulings on motions for preliminary injunction and motion to dismiss).

Bell, Seltzer, Park & Gibson, P.A. v. Myers, et al., N.C. Business Court (Case No. 97-CVS-9957) (represented plaintiff in breach of fiduciary duty action involving law firm split-up; settlement achieved following mediation).

Nicholson v. Lonza AG et al., Superior Court, Mecklenburg County, N. C. (Case No. 99-CVS-3592) and Picos, et al. v. Lonza AG, Superior Court, Cumberland County, North Carolina (Case No. 99-CVS-5035) (local counsel for domestic and international pharmaceutical corporations defending antitrust actions by class of indirect purchasers).

Harry, et al. v. Crescent Resources, et al., Superior Court, Mecklenburg County, N. C. (Case No. 97-CVS-14726) and N. C. Court of Appeals (Case No. COA98-1598) (represented individual defendant in real property lawsuit and on appeal; affirmance of lower court summary judgment against plaintiffs; directed verdict for defendants after Superior Court jury trial).

Harry, et al. v. Mecklenburg County, et al., Superior Court, Mecklenburg County, N. C. (Case No. 98-CVS-10187) (successfully represented individual landowner defendants before zoning board and before Superior Court on plaintiffs' petition for writ of certiorari).

The Northern Trust Company v. Harris, et al., U.S. Dist. Ct., D. South Carolina (Case No. 6:95-3511-20), (represented defendant developer in federal action concerning troubled residential and recreational real estate development project; favorable settlement reached after discovery and mediation).