Tim Cleveland

Practice Areas

Complex Commercial Litigation: Tim regularly handles cases that involve trade secret misappropriation, high-stakes business divorces, fiduciary relationships, intellectual property matters, contractual disputes, and controversies arising out of large commercial transactions. Tim is frequently called on to assist clients in emergency injunction matters, and also to help resolve sensitive matters behind the scenes which never enter the public realm of a courtroom.

Personal

Tim serves on the Board of Directors of All God’s Children International, a trauma care and recovery organization focused on serving the world’s most vulnerable children. Tim and his family are longtime members of Providence Church in Austin.

Work Highlights

- Successfully tried a commercial arbitration matter for a $300+ million investment fund and its founder in a dispute with a former partner over purported control of the fund; after a week-long trial, the arbitrator found that the former partner committed fraud and breached fiduciary obligations in an effort to wrest control from the founder.

- Successfully tried a commercial case in federal court defeating more than $30 million in claims alleging fraud and breach of contract relating to an M&A transaction, and obtaining seven figures in damages and attorneys’ fees.

- Successfully tried and obtained a multi-million-dollar jury verdict in a breach-of-contract and fraud case related to a disputed ownership interest in an Austin technology company.

- Successfully tried a commercial arbitration matter for a shipping and logistics company, defeating nearly $8 million in claims alleging fraud and breach of contract, and obtaining an award of 100% of claimed damages after a four-day evidentiary final hearing in Dallas, Texas.

- Successfully tried a commercial case for an Austin family that sold two companies to a buyer who then sued for fraud related to the acquisition, obtaining a jury verdict rejecting those claims and awarding the Firm’s clients their full attorneys’ fees incurred in defending the case.

- Successfully tried a commercial case for a medical supplies company asserting claims for breach of contract and other business torts claim against a supplier, obtaining a seven-figure award in arbitration after an evidentiary final hearing based in New York, New York.

- Successfully tried a commercial case in federal court concerning alleged tortious interference with an oil & gas transaction and ownership of a pipeline right-of-way in the Haynesville.

- Successfully tried a commercial case in state court in Texas for a sports league that was the victim of a group boycott in violation of antitrust laws, resulting in a multi-million-dollar judgment for the league.

- Successfully tried a commercial case in state court in Chicago for a shareholder of a family-owned business who was the victim of a scheme to wrongfully remove him from the business and force a sale of his shares for a fraction of their value.

- Successfully tried a legal malpractice case defending an international law firm concerning the firm’s representation of a German client in the acquisition of a Texas air parts company.

- Successfully tried a civil rights case in federal court, obtaining a favorable jury verdict for a prisoner against a prison guard for violation of the prisoner’s Sixth Amendment rights.

- Successfully tried a legal malpractice/breach of fiduciary duty case in state court for a national law firm, concerning the firm’s representation of a client in a commercial transaction and litigation arising from that transaction.

- Successfully tried a commercial case on behalf of the son of a deceased Texas oilman, where the decedent’s daughter challenged his final will and testament.

- Successfully tried a malpractice case for a Texas law firm, where heirs of a deceased partner brought claims concerning the distribution of profits from contingency matter.

- Successfully represented an Austin company, and a large international corporation based in the Silicon Valley that acquired the Austin company, in a trade secret misappropriation case relating to advertising analytics technology.

- Successfully represented an Austin company in an arbitration against executives of an acquired company regarding a financial earn-out and alleged trade secret misappropriation in the formation of a competing business.

- Successfully represented an Austin company in an international arbitration against a joint venture partner from China that involved claims of fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, and breach of contract arising from the business relationship.

- Successfully represented an Austin company in an arbitration arising out of a contractual dispute related to the granting of motion picture, television, and other media rights.

- Successfully represented an executive of an Austin company in a dispute related to the executive’s exit from the company and against allegations that the executive breached fiduciary obligations to the company.

- Successfully represented the former chief executive officer of a Fortune 500 company in a dispute related to compensation following the CEO’s resignation.

- Successfully represented an Austin semiconductor company in obtaining injunctive relief to prevent the misappropriation of trade secret information after four employees left to work for a competitor.

- Obtained a favorable ruling for a state university in an evidentiary hearing concerning the termination of an employee for violating the school’s policy against sexual harassment.

- Successfully represented a manufacturer of advanced cosmetic lasers in a patent trial in the Eastern District of Texas.

- Represented a national bank in a patent trial in the Eastern District of Texas related to remote capture of check images.

- Represented a former CEO of a Fortune 500 company in a dispute with his former employer concerning the distribution of stock options and company valuation.

Education

Awards