Jaime B. Herren
Associate
Overview
Jaime Herren is a private wealth services attorney in Holland & Knight's San Francisco office. Ms. Herren is a litigator, patent attorney and experienced trial attorney whose practice focuses on managing complex assets, technology, digital assets and intellectual property (IP) for individuals, from wealth and tax planning to litigation and licensing. Assets can be complex for any number of reasons, and Ms. Herren assists clients in maximizing asset value for themselves and their next generation or charities of their choosing.
Ms. Herren's experience includes high-value trust litigation and IP litigation in state and federal courts. Having served as in-house counsel, she values business ideals and advocates for early implementation of dispute avoidance and resolution strategies. She represents individuals and fiduciaries who manage unique assets – including trademarks, rights of publicity and cryptocurrencies. As a seasoned litigator, Ms. Herren views wealth planning as pre-conflict resolution. When litigation is the right choice, Ms. Herren is well versed in all aspects of state and federal trial practice, including representation before governing tax bodies and disputes involving high-net-worth trusts or estates.
As a patent attorney admitted before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), clients turn to Ms. Herren for advice on development and patentability of new technology, as well as monetization and protection of existing IP portfolios. She represents individuals, startups, fiduciaries and entrepreneurs in her nationwide practice. When creative or business resolution cannot be found, she has appeared pro hac vice in courts across the country and has engaged and managed local counsel throughout the course of litigation in multiple venues.
An active member of the legal community, Ms. Herren is co-chair of the Litigation Section of the Contra Costa County Bar Association (CCCBA), an active member of The Bar Association of San Francisco, a volunteer author for California Lawyers Association Trust and Estates Section, and an active member of the San Francisco Intellectual Property Association (SFIPLA). She has been named Rising Star by Northern California Super Lawyers magazine from 2016 to 2020 and is an active member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE).
Prior to joining Holland & Knight, Ms. Herren was an intellectual property litigator and trial attorney for a boutique litigation law firm in the San Francisco Bay Area. Before beginning her legal career, Ms. Herren was a rocket scientist who provided thermal engineering and hot fire test support for the main engines of the U.S. Space Shuttle.
Representative Experience
- Advised a client on methods of recovery of account information from a large San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange following death of the parent-account holder
- Developed procedures and knowledge base trainings to expand internal skills and procedures regarding virtual assets, blockchain and intellectual property for a cutting-edge trust company
- Represented a professional fiduciary as estate administrator in defense of a $10 million civil action on a creditor's claim involving allegations against the decedent for breach of contract, fraud, specific performance and declaratory relief; prevailed on demurrer on basis of statute of limitations, non-compliance with probate estate creditors' claims procedures and standing
- Represented a trust beneficiary in recovering sentimental tangible personal property of his deceased parent while successfully avoiding intrafamily litigation
- Represented an ultra-high-net-worth client to establish conservatorship and modify trust after spouse experienced a debilitating accident
- Represented a trust beneficiary against conspiracy claims made in federal court, including allegations of breach of fiduciary duty, elder abuse and unfair business practices
- Represented a claimant in breach of fiduciary duty action involving multiyear litigation and a 20-day bench trial
- Represented a trust beneficiary seeking conveyance of his joint interest in his deceased mother's copyrights for the purposes of continuing to produce and offer for sale her famous collection of sculptures
- Represented a co-trustee and beneficiary in collecting his interest in his mother's estate and resigning as co-trustee, successfully avoiding intrafamily litigation
- Representing a claimant for oral promise to make a will in multiyear litigation involving multiple appeals to California's First District Court of Appeal and 10-day bench trial
- In California's First District Court of Appeal (2013), prevailed in defense of fiduciary action to protect trust property against claims by non-beneficiary creditor asserting a right of first refusal to purchase trust property
- In California's First District Court of Appeal (2013), prevailed in multiyear litigation, involving two appeals and partial settlement, concerning family trusts created by the decedent, a revocable trust and two irrevocable trusts; prevailed in asserting release contained in settlement agreement against a beneficiary seeking enforcement of a promissory note after settlement
- In the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (2013), represented client to favorable resolution, involving appeal of the issue of whether two claims asserted in a California probate action were preempted by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA)
- Acting as general counsel and intellectual property asset manager for cutting-edge wildfire research company; acting as legal advisor for the company on all aspects of its business operations, including corporate governance, data privacy, licensing agreements, vendor contracts and protection of intellectual property
- Represented an heir in obtaining and clearing title on his deceased parent's copyright portfolio
- Represented an artist to secure copyrights for reproduction and sale of artistic works jointly created with and derived from a deceased famed San Francisco artist
- Acted as general counsel and lead litigation defense counsel for a multistate underground locating company; defended dozens of tort and contract claims, including pre-dispute resolution and developing a litigation defense strategy by fostering a business reputation in the industry; acted as legal advisor for the company on all aspects of its business operations, including corporate governance, data privacy, labor and employment issues, licensing agreements, vendor contracts, protection of intellectual property, on business combinations, on due diligence and on an asset sale of business assets in three states
- In the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (2016), in a patent infringement and trade secret theft case, prevailed on appeal client's right to pursue state law counterclaims; in a second appeal, successfully vacated adverse ruling of the low court regarding method patent eligibility and passing muster under Alice
- In the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California (2013), obtained favorable resolution for co-inventor of therapy related to diabetes treatment
- In the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (2010), defended claims of copyright and design patent infringement to business resolution involving asset purchase
- In Los Angeles Superior Court, represented an administrator of a decedent's estate in defending civil claims against the decedent for breach of contract, fraud, specific performance and declaratory relief; prevailed on dispositive demurrer finding defendant was a suspended entity at all relevant times
- Represented a third-party retained professional in multiple technical fact depositions occurring in a series of tort liability and negligence class action lawsuits
- Represented a California business client in updating their online privacy policy and procedures to be in compliance with new laws
- In the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, defended an individual client against a plethora of claims, including conspiracy to commit elder abuse, breach of fiduciary duty and unfair business practices
- Represented a nonprofit mental health support startup to develop and implement privacy policies and procedures to be in compliance with new laws
- Represented a prevailing party in a Texas-based arbitration trial to collect judgment in California
- In the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (2018), prevailed on dispositive motion for summary judgement defending U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act claims
- In the U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota (2017), prevailed on dispositive motion for summary judgment defending counts of trespass, negligence and violation of state laws
- In the Court of Appeals of Arizona (2016), prevailed on appeal of a motion for summary judgment limiting the amount of damages that could be recovered from client in the underlying negligence lawsuit
- In the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (2014), prevailed in asserting an arbitration clause in a commercial-investment clause relating to sales and marketing of cannabis edibles
Credentials
- University of San Francisco School of Law, J.D., cum laude
- University of California, Berkeley, M.S., Thermal Sciences and Combustion
- University of California, Berkeley, B.S., Mechanical Engineering
- California
- Supreme Court of California
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
- U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
- U.S. Tax Court
- American Bar Association, Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law, Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee, Vice Chair
- California Lawyers Association, Trust and Estates Executive Committee
- Contra Costa County Bar Association, Litigation Section Chair, 2018-Present; Board Member, 2016-2022
- Little Wishes, Board Member
- San Francisco Intellectual Property Law Association (SFIPLA)
- Bar Association of San Francisco
- Society of Women Engineers (SWE)
- University of San Francisco Law Review, Staff Editor
- Intellectual Property Law Bulletin, Managing Editor and Technical Editor
- University of San Francisco School of Law Moot Court Team, Giles S. Rich Moot Court Semi-Finalist
- Pro Bono Honor Roll, Contra Costa County Bar Association, 2020-2022
- Holland & Knight Pro Bono All-Star, 2020-2022
- Rising Star, Northern California Super Lawyers magazine, 2016-2020
- Advanced Course on Intellectual Property Management, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Academy
- Arthur Ziff Junior Scholarship, University of San Francisco School of Law, 2007-2010
- CALI Excellence for the Future Award, Intellectual Property Litigation, University of San Francisco School of Law, 2009
- CALI Excellence for the Future Award, Construction Law, University of San Francisco School of Law, 2009
- French