Complex Business Litigation
Startup, Technology, and Venture Law
Practice areas
Commercial Litigation
Grellas Shah represents technology companies in the broad range of commercial disputes that can lead to litigation, including breaches of contract, unfair competition, and tortious interference…
Intellectual Property Litigation
Grellas Shah’s litigators have consistently achieved favorable outcomes for their clients in IP litigation, including claims brought for misappropriation…
Trade Secret and Employee Mobility Litigation
A tech-driven economy sets up a seeming conflict – businesses cannot survive without vigorously protecting their trade secrets…
Securities Litigation
Grellas Shah’s litigators have represented numerous companies and their officers and directors in shareholder class actions and derivative actions, as well as litigation arising out of mergers and acquisitions.
Founder Disputes
The co-founder relationship is one of excitement and promise, but also stress and high-emotion. It is not unusual for close co-founders to wind up in a dispute after months or years of working…
Commercial and International Arbitration
Grellas Shah has extensive experience representing clients in binding contractual arbitration, both with domestic arbitration before entities such as the American Arbitration Association (AAA)…
Cross-Border Disputes
Represented a Silicon Valley-based company offering a collaborative content creation and adaptive learning platform in an international arbitration against an Italian partner for breach…
Employment Litigation
Grellas Shah has experience representing employers in dispute with employees asserting claims for unpaid wages, wrongful termination, wage-and-hour disputes, and claims brought under the Private…
Regulatory Investigations and Enforcement Actions
Grellas Shah regularly represents individuals and companies in inquiries, investigations and enforcement actions brought by state and federal agencies.
Internal Investigations and White Collar Defense
Grellas Shah has a robust white collar defense practice and has extensive experience addressing criminal investigations and prosecutions in the areas of securities and accounting fraud…
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Traditional court litigation is not the only, and often not the best, way to resolve a dispute. Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) procedures, either in lieu of or in conjunction with traditional litigation…
Venture Financing
Our attorneys have a depth of experience in representing companies in venture, angel, and strategic investment rounds. We know that fundraising is one of the most important and consequential milestones in the lifecycle of a startup venture.
Mergers and Acquisitions
We regularly represent companies, on both buy-side and sell-side, in M&A and other change of control transactions. Our firm has the in-house corporate, tax, and intellectual property expertise to advise on both domestic and cross-border deals, from simple to the most complex.
General Corporate
We have a depth of knowledge and experience providing tailored corporate law and transactional advice at every stage of the lifecycle of a company, from initial structuring, to corporate governance, recapitalization, and restructuring. And we do so in a practical…
Commercial and Tech Transactions
Our team advises clients on and negotiates the range of commercial and technology transactions, from the simplest to the most sophisticated, and have negotiated agreements with the range of major players in the tech industry.
Patents And Trademarks
For technology-based startups, patents can be critical to maximizing the value of intellectual property and enhancing a business’s competitive position. We have the in-house expertise to help our clients achieve these goals by counseling startups on their patent strategy and filing…
Startup And Founder Disputes
The co-founder relationship is one of excitement and promise, but also stress and high-emotion. It is not unusual for close co-founders to wind up in a dispute after months or years of working closely together. Between our corporate & litigation…
Business Tax
We provide counseling on tax strategy and planning for emerging ventures of all sizes and can help you navigate the tension between your tax and business objectives.
Specific areas of tax assistance that we regularly provide include…
Business Immigration
We offer a full range of business immigration law services in conjunction with our corporate law practice.
Our lawyers provide immigration law counsel and assistance to startups wishing to hire non-U.S.
Announcement
We are proud to announce that Seth Kugler has been elevated to Partner in the firm’s Litigation Practice, effective June 1, 2025. Based in our San Francisco office, Seth’s promotion reflects his outstanding legal acumen, client dedication, and collaborative spirit since joining the firm in June 2022.
Seth brings more than a decade of litigation experience, advising clients across a wide range of complex disputes. Prior to joining the firm, he built a strong foundation in litigation at a well-regarded national firm.
Seth earned his J.D. from NYU School of Law in 2013, following his B.A. from UC Berkeley in 2007.
“Seth has consistently demonstrated exceptional legal skill, strategic insight, and a dedication to achieving outstanding results for our clients. His thoughtful approach, tireless advocacy, and ability to mentor colleagues embody the very best of our firm’s culture.” -Dhaivat Shah
“I couldn’t be prouder to join the partnership at Grellas Shah! We have a fantastic group of very talented lawyers, so it really means a lot to be selected for partnership. More than that though, I’m excited to come in every day and see the people I work with.” – Seth Kugler
When he’s not working, Seth enjoys watching and playing basketball, listening to his extensive record collection, and exploring the unending network of mountain lakes and streams found in the Sierra and Coast Ranges — interests that reflect his energetic and adventurous approach to both life and the law.
Please join us in congratulating Seth on this well-deserved milestone.
Resources
Startup 101
Legal rules and information related you’re your Startup that you can use.
Latest News
Current news topics keeping you apprised of changes in regulations, rules and more.
Client Advisories
Stay up to date with changes related to current events, startup news and more.
Blog
Check out our blog to read about hot topics related to Startups and Small Businesses.
Meet Our Attorneys
George Grellas
Founding Counsel
Dhaivat Shah
Partner
David Siegel
Partner
Mital Makadia
Partner
Seth Kugler
Partner
Titus Lin
Associate Attorney
Erin Adrian
Associate Attorney
Katherine Hart
Associate Attorney
Katherine Hart is a transactional associate with Grellas Shah. A member of the firm since 2017, Katherine advises clients on a range of transactional matters, including corporate governance…
Paul Horstmann
Of Counsel
Mark Grayson
Associate Attorney
Mark Grayson is an associate attorney at Grellas Shah, where he focuses on commercial litigation and intellectual property. Mark handles a wide range of litigation matters, including disputes involving complex contract, employment…
Vivi Lee
Associate Attorney
Vivi Lee is an associate attorney at Grellas Shah, where she focuses on commercial litigation. Ms. Lee has handled a wide range of complex litigation matters, including complex contract, corporate governance…
Leon Liu
Associate Attorney
Joseph W. Guzzetta
Of Counsel
Joseph W. Guzzetta is an attorney with Grellas Shah, LLP. His practice is two-fold – he is a litigator and counselor in privacy law. Mr. Guzzetta has been successfully trying cases in California courts and non-judicial venues for almost 20 years…
Lillian Diallo
Of Counsel
Lillian Diallo is immigration counsel at Grellas Shah, specializing in business immigration law, offering strategic legal solutions for companies, executives, and entrepreneurs navigating U.S. immigration requirements. With extensive experience in securing work visas…
Jack Bussell
Associate Attorney
Jack Bussell is an associate at Grellas Shah, practicing with a focus on commercial litigation. Jack has litigated a wide range of matters, including co-founder disputes, complex contract, employment, intellectual property...
Ryan Plesh
Associate Attorney
Ryan is a litigator whose experience includes advisory and transactional work as well, with a focus on intellectual property law. Ryan is experienced in trade secret, trademark, copyright, patent, antitrust, corporate, contract...
Omer Netzer
Associate Attorney
Omer is a seasoned attorney with a proven track record of providing practical, strategic advice and counsel to stakeholders on a variety of corporate law and transactional matters in the emerging companies and venture...
Who We Are
We are a full-service boutique law firm. We bring a sophisticated, yet practical approach to representing our clients. Our core practices focus on startups, technology, and venture law, as well as complex business litigation.
Our startup, technology, and venture law practice provides wraparound services from structuring, to financings and M&A, and everything in between. But unlike our competitors, our boutique scale allows us to provide a level of client service and attention to early and mid-stage startups that cannot be found at larger firms. We pride ourselves on our founder-focus when representing startups and do not let conflicting loyalties guide our representation.
Our complex business litigation team brings together big-firm litigation experience and the agility of a boutique to provide high-quality representation at more reasonable cost. Grellas Shah’s litigation expertise spans the range of litigation issues impacting tech companies, their directors, officers, employees, and investors, including intellectual property, securities, employment, contracts, and regulatory and internal investigations.
Our Blog
What Is Intellectual Property Litigation?
In a competitive and innovation-based economy, intellectual property (IP) is among the most significant assets a...
The Tilly Norwood Moment: A New Frontier for NIL Law
Not but a few days ago, the character Tilly Norwood burst onto the entertainment scene. Created by the AI-talent...
FTC and States Sue Ticketmaster: What You Need to Know
The Federal Trade Commission, joined by attorneys general from seven states, filed a sweeping lawsuit on September 18,...