Eminent Domain/Zoning
Challenging the abuse of power when laws are used to serve private or political interests.
Eminent domain and zoning today mean more than just valuing property or getting building permits. Local boards and officials are increasingly tapping these extraordinary government powers to serve private rather than public interests, and control access to those with whom we may wish to do business.
Under the rubric of “economic development,” municipalities are taking homes, farms and small businesses – the cores of people’s lives – and transferring them to large, private developers. Zoning is being used to end-run legal protections for politically unpopular businesses (such as the First Amendment for adult uses and preemption laws for firearms-related businesses) in order to restrict people’s access to those businesses. This perversion of the power to regulate land use implicates important civil rights, beyond merely the right to be paid for condemned property.
In addition to litigating zoning issues and valuation proceedings, we have challenged the abuse of power evident when eminent domain and zoning laws are used to serve private or political interests.
back to topNon-Compete Agreements
Balancing Protection of Investment with the Right to Work
“Non-compete” agreements and confidentiality agreements serve a legitimate function. They protect the investment an employer may make in an individual or a process. Quite often, however, employers want to “over draft” their restrictive covenants. They attempt to impose restrictions which serve no legitimate protective function, and serve only to interfere with a departing employee’s ability to make a living in his and her chosen field.
While this is obviously bad for the employee, it is also bad for the employer. Such overreaching by employers will often lead to the invalidation of the entire restriction, causing the employer to lose protection to which he would otherwise be entitled.
We help people find the right balance, regardless which side of the agreement they may be on.
Firearms Licensing and Transfers
Well-intentioned people often violate the law
There is probably no consumer product as heavily regulated as firearms. State and federal statutes govern every conceivable aspect of a firearm transfer. In fact, there are so many laws and regulations governing the ownership, possession, transportation and sale of firearms that almost nobody, including most lawyers, knows them all. As a result, well-intentioned people often violate the law. Mr. Georgiades consults with attorneys, heirs and estate administrators to value and dispose of firearms, and assure the disposition of firearms complies with all statutes and regulations.
Fraud/Breach of Fiduciary Duty/Unfair Competition
“No Man Can Serve Two Masters”
Betrayal of trust in business can have particularly dire personal and financial consequences. For this reason, there are especially powerful remedies in the law to deal with those who would intentionally deceive, or use positions of trust to advance their own interests to the detriment of those they are obliged to serve. Unfortunately, those who engage in these practices tend to be good at covering their tracks, and when exposed they often have no assets with which to make their victims whole again.
We are practiced in dealing with fraud and breaches of fiduciary duty. We invoke a wide range of remedies and solutions to assist clients victimized by dishonest vendors, real estate and home improvement cheats, oppressive majority shareholders, and self-dealing attorneys and agents. We are skilled at digging out the evidence, controlling economic damage, and counseling our clients as to whether the matter ultimately is worth pursuing or futile.
Other Practice Areas
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