Christopher L. Pitet

Testimonials

As a lawyer, I know what it takes to win in the courtroom.  Simply put, Chris Pitet is one of the best, which is why I refer all my clients to him to handle all aspects of business controversies and litigation.

- Nick Magliarditi

President, DII Capital, Inc.

As a former professional athlete, I know what it takes to win.  And when it comes to the courtroom, Chris Pitet knows what it takes to be a winner.

- Jean Francois Jomphe

Anaheim Ducks, Phoenix Coyotes, Montreal Canadiens, Team Canada Alumni

With over 20 years of personal experience using Chris Pitet on a myriad of legal cases, ranging from a permanent injunction that still stands keeping Pelican Crest from removing their parkway trees, to representing the National Jockey's Guild matters when I was its National Manager, I can wholeheartedly say that he and his firm give each matter a 100% effort and are what I want in a lawyer that is representing me in the court system. 

- Dwight Manley

Experience

With over two decades of experience, Christopher L. Pitet is recognized as an accomplished trial and appellate lawyer. Over the course of his career, Mr. Pitet has litigated and tried a wide range of significant civil matters for corporate and individual clients.  His primary areas of practice include In addition to his busy trial practice, Mr. Pitet regularly handles appellate matters, with several of his cases resulting in published opinions.

Prior to co-founding Adkisson Pitet LLP, Mr. Pitet practiced law with two of the nation’s largest law firms. Mr. Pitet also had the distinction of being Orange County’s first Reserve Deputy District Attorney, where he prosecuted criminal matters at the special request of the District Attorney.   He graduated cum laude from Loyola Law School, where he served as Senior Production Editor for the Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review.  He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Southern California.

Representative Matters

Over the course of his career, Mr. Pitet has litigated and tried a wide range of significant civil matters for corporate and individual clients.  Representative matters include:

Trials, Arbitrations, Settlements and Notable Cases:

• Bedrosian v. Hadid – after a seven-week jury trial in Los Angeles representing famed real estate developer Mohammed Hadid, obtained a verdict rejecting most of plaintiffs’ claims in a real property dispute and their request for over $30 million in damages.

• Zanone v. City of Whittier – after a four-week jury trial in Los Angeles, obtained a seven-figure verdict in favor of a police officer who suffered gender discrimination.

• Romanello v. Ettefagh – obtained the largest dental malpractice jury verdict in San Diego history for an existing corporate client.

• BGC, Inc. v. Rinnovo, LLC – obtained bench ruling finding successor corporation liability; then obtained six-figure jury verdict with punitive damages for holistic technology company.

• Casilio v. Valentine – after seven years of litigation, obtained defense judgment on claims of fraudulent transfer of real property.

• Competitive Capabilities International, Inc. v. Phase 5 Group, Inc. – obtained seven figure arbitration award for failure to pay royalties after overturning a settlement agreement.

• Tarnowski v. Masterpiece Publishing, Inc. – obtained six-figure arbitration award for well-known artist against art publishing company.

• Oakley v. Executive Risk Specialty Insurance Company – obtained multi-million dollar settlement in insurance coverage dispute.
  
  
• Hinds & Shankman v. Lapides – as reported in Forbes, groundbreaking case establishing that a California debtor's non-exempt assets are protected by purchase of Texas's unlimited homestead exemption.

Published Appellate Matters:

• Valley Vista Services, Inc. v. City of Monterey Park, 118 Cal. App. 4^th 881 (2004) (unfair competition)

• Ahmadi-Kashani v. Regents of University of California, 159 Cal. App. 4^th 449 (2008) (sexual harassment)

• Zanone v. City of Whittier, 162 Cal. App. 4^th 174 (2008) (gender discrimination)

Publications

Mr. Pitet has several publications to his credit. He is the author of The Problem with “Money Now, Terms Later“: ProCD, Inc. v. Zeidenberg and the enforceability of “Shrinkwrap” Software Licenses, 31 LOY. L.A. L. REV. 325 (1997). He is also the author of Through the Motions: Effective Defenses to Dispose of an Appeal, Los Angeles Daily Journal (June 2, 1999). Finally, Mr. Pitet contributed to the FEDERAL APPELLATE PRACTICE GUIDE – NINTH CIRCUIT (Lawyers Co-op 1997).

Community Involvement

Mr. Pitet is also active in the community. He served on the Board of Directors of Laura’s House, a non-profit entity dedicated to ending domestic violence in Orange County. He formerly was a member of Irvine Valley College Foundation’s Board of Governors, where he served as Chairman. In addition, Mr. Pitet dedicates a substantial amount of his professional time to worthy pro bono cases for clients who cannot afford an attorney.