Practice Areas

WCG | Wright, Cortesi & Gilbreath

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Wright, Cortesi & Gilbreath

Business & Commercial Law

Business & Commercial Law

Whether you are starting a business, needing advice on your rental contract, or needing to execute a multi-million-dollar sale of your company, WCG’s attorneys are capable and willing to assist you with your needs. Our team of skilled lawyers have advised many businesses over their decades of experience in areas, among others, such as business formation (e.g., LLC, corporation, or other), mergers and acquisitions, non-profit corporations, corporate governance, anti-trust and trade regulations.

Experience to help you:
With their many years of experience, they can help guide you and your company through the complicated regulatory structures that you are facing.

Civil Litigation

Civil Litigation
We represent business and people in all walks of litigation, ranging from simple contract disputes to beat-the-bank litigation for multi-million-dollar companies. Our attorneys understand the challenges and risks involved with dispute management—whether in state or federal court, mediation, arbitration, or other administrative court—and they have the skills and ability to help their clients achieve the goal that is best for each individual client. WCG’s attorneys practice litigation in the following areas:
Practice areas:
  • Commercial Litigation
  • Labor and Employment
  • Patent and Trademark
  • Wills and Trusts
  • Real Estate
  • Construction Disputes
  • Property Damage
  • Products Liability
  • Insurance
  • Personal Injury
  • General liability

Employment Law

Employment Law

WCG’s experienced attorneys routinely serve as corporate counsel for clients seeking employment advice. Whether they are answering questions relating to hiring practices, terminations, or analyzing ADA or FMLA issues, WCG’s attorneys assist their clients by giving them a detailed and issue-specific analysis of how to best tackle the question at hand.

The goal is to reduce the risk of lawsuits:

The goal is to reduce the risk of lawsuits for our clients. When litigation does occur, our attorneys zealously defend our clients in all manners of litigation, ranging from EEOC charges to class-action disputes in federal court.

IP Litigation

IP Litigation

WCG has over 20 years of experience in IP litigation. Our recent victories include a summary judgment of infringement and a favorable Markman ruling in the District of Utah for long-time client My Sweet Petunia, Inc. and a favorable early ruling on damages that led to settlement.

Unlike many large firms, a small team will be assigned to your matter, which allows us to provide individualized attention and cost-efficiency.

Team-based approach:

WCG provides a team-based approach to IP litigation, with experienced commercial litigators Stephan Wright and Charles Gilbreath handling court appearances and depositions and registered patent attorney Shane V. Cortesi providing input and support in all phases of the case.

Outside General Counsel

Outside General Counsel Services

Many businesses need in-house counsel but are not able to fully staff a legal department. As most small business owners know, litigation and legal issues are not just faced by large companies that have entire dedicated legal departments.

Without in-house legal departments, many small business owners are often left facing legal issues alone. 

Responding to legal issues:

Responding to legal issues takes time away from managing and growing the business. Even if the small business owner has outside attorneys to handle ad hoc legal matters, the owners often are faced with having to spend a great deal of time managing these matters and juggling various firms for specific legal needs (e.g., labor and employment, intellectual property, collections, litigation, etc.). If there are numerous issues going on simultaneously, the business owner’s time will quickly be consumed by communicating with each attorney and managing the files. This is not the highest and best use of the business owner’s time. Rather, running and growing the business is.

An option to avoid this hassle is for businesses to utilize and rely upon outside counsel to act as their in-house and general counsel.
The attorneys at Wright, Cortesi & Gilbreath can serve as outside general counsel for businesses who lack in-house attorneys. Working closely with our clients, we gain an in-depth understanding of their business activities and objectives. Because of this, WCG attorneys are able to provide focused, client-centered, and cost-effective advice and counsel on legal issues confronting clients on a daily basis.
We understand our client’s current business operations, needs, and goals when serving in this role to provide efficient and creative solutions to our client’s legal issues.
As outside general counsel, we can coordinate and oversee:

  • Corporate and LLC compliance
  • Contract negotiations and drafting
  • Litigation and arbitration management
  • Corporate governance, board and shareholder resolutions, consents, directors’ meetings, shareholder meetings, and minutes
  • Employment and human resources issues
  • Risk management
  • Counseling officers and directors on fiduciary duties and strategic considerations
  • Real estate purchases and commercial leasing
  • Intellectual property issues

Each of our outside general counsel relationships are managed on a monthly fee basis and depend on each client’s legal needs, which may evolve over time. As with all billing, we are transparent in our approach and if a client’s needs change, so can the fee arrangement. The goal of the outside general counsel arrangement is to reduce a business owner’s stress, not add to it.

Patent Filings

Patent Filings
WCG attorney Shane V. Cortesi has been a registered patent attorney since 2005 and has obtained allowance of over 150 U.S. patents. Shane has obtained patents in a wide variety of technologies, including medical devices, toys, consumer products, and highly specialized industrial products.
We take pride in our work:

Shane is particularly proud of his work for My Sweet Petunia, Inc. for whom he has obtained allowance of over 10 patents (several of which were unsuccessfully challenged in ex parte reexamination proceedings and third-party protests) and Vesalio for whom he has obtained over 25 U.S. patents and over 15 patents in foreign countries, such as Europe, China, Japan, Korea, and Canada.

Probate & Trust Administration

Probate & Trust Administration
The attorneys at WCG routinely handle probate and trust administration for their clients. Probate administration is the public process the surviving heirs go through to formally pass ownership of their loved one’s property. Trust administration is similar to probate administration, but it is done privately and follows the provisions of the trust agreement.
Going through the process:
Whether a loved one dies with a will (testate) or without a will (intestate), the attorneys at WCG can help the personal representative identify and collect the deceased loved one’s (the decedent) property, identify the appropriate creditor claims to pay or which ones to challenge, identify the heirs, and help distribute the decedent’s property for distribution. Both Tennessee and Georgia law have several important deadlines (statutes of limitations) to follow during this process, all of which can be managed by the attorneys at WCG.

Additionally, the attorneys at WCG have been appointed by local courts to serve as a Receiver to safeguard business assets after a business owner passes away. In this capacity, the attorneys are tasked with operating the business in a way to allow such a valuable asset to transfer to the appropriate heirs.

Whether the process is more routine or frustratingly complex, the attorneys at WCG welcome the challenge and enjoy providing guidance to the personal representative and relief to the surviving heirs.

Trademarks

Trademarks
WCG attorney Shane V. Cortesi has obtained allowance of over 150 trademark registrations and works with clients to develop and maintain their trademark portfolios in the United States and foreign countries. Typical clients include consumer product companies with multiple marks, inventors with trademarks on core products, and celebrities and influencers who license their marks.
Over 150 Trademarks obtained:

Our Attorneys Have Obtained Allowance of Over 150 Patents & 150 Trademarks

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