Wesley Kinnear is a business trial lawyer whose practice emphasizes business and intellectual property trial court and appellate litigation. He has extensive experience with the challenges facing private and closely held companies and partnerships, high net worth founders and shareholders, and high tech companies. Since 1996 he has been principal outside counsel of one of the fastest growing spirits companies in the world. He has special expertise and relationships in the beverage alcohol industry and regularly represents clients in intellectual property and strategic transactions involving spirits, wine, and beer.

Wesley has twenty-four years of experience as a civil and criminal trial and appellate lawyer. His practice has spanned a wide array of subject matters, including all forms of intellectual property litigation, unfair competition, advertising, complex debt, structured finance, and derivatives litigation, securities litigation, fiduciary liability, lender liability, professional malpractice, directors and officers liability, labor and employment, and environmental law. In his years of practice, Wesley has resolved lawsuits through trials, appeals, administrative proceedings, arbitrations, mediations, summary judgment and negotiated settlements.

Representative Experience:

• Ets-Hokin v. Skyy Spirits (ND Cal. and 9th Cir.). Representation of Skyy in copyright litigation relating to advertising photographs. Ninth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for Skyy. First case establishing copyright defenses for advertising photographs. See, Ets-Hokin v. Skyy Spirits, et al., 323 F. 3d. 763 (9th Cir. 2003) and Kinnear, “A Product Shot Is a Product Shot Is a Product Shot,” Intellectual Property Today, October 2003
• Skyy Spirits, LLC v. Hansen Beverage Co. (ND Cal.). Successful representation of Skyy Spirits in beverage trademark litigation
• CreAgri Inc., v. USANA Inc. (ND Cal and 9th Cir. 2006). Obtained summary judgment for defendant USANA and cancellation of plaintiff’s marks in trademark litigation relating to food additives, affirmed by the Ninth Circuit, ___ F. 3d. ___ (January 2007). Affirmed on matter of first impression in the Ninth Circuit relating to lawful use in commerce of trademarks
• International Demographics v. SF Newspapers LLC (SD Texas, aff’d 5th Cir. June 2007). Obtained dismissal of action against San Francisco Examiner and parent companies in contract action, affirmed by Fifth Circuit
• Kamp-Rite v. Cabela’s (ED Cal. 2006). Defense of Cabela’s in patent action; all claims dismissed in return for nominal settlement payment
• McKibben v. ExIn Inc.; ExIn v. SF Newspaper LLC (San Mateo Superior Court 2005). Successful defense of San Francisco Examiner in litigation by former owners for damages and rescission of purchase of the Examiner and the Independent
• Notification Technologies Inc. v. Parlant Technologies Inc. (SD Cal. 2005). Defeated TRO on behalf of Parlant in Lanham Act unfair advertising case. Motion for preliminary judgment abandoned after Parlant’s opposition was filed (March 2005)
• Magliocco v. Kanbar (SF Superior Court 2001). Defeated all claims in three-week jury trial brought by seven plaintiffs under California's Ellis Act against inventor, company founder, and property owner; won judgment for attorneys' fees
• Successful defense of software developer FrontRange Solutions in patent, trademark, trade secret, and software development actions in federal courts in Texas, California and Colorado
• Negotiated sale of controlling interest of Skyy Spirits to Campari (2002)
• Counsel to San Francisco Film Society/San Francisco International Film Festival