Kevin McBride’s Basic Biography

University of Utah College of Law
J.D., 1984
Member, Utah Law Review
Joseph H. Leary Scholar

University of Utah
B.A. magna cum laude, Economics, 1981

I have 25 years experience in complex commercial and IP litigation, mediation and negotiation, and general counsel advisory roles. I have represented and advised information technology, software and bioinformatics firms; real estate development and construction firms; manufacturing and distribution firms; investment banks, insurers and venture capital firms in resolving a wide variety of business disputes through litigation as well as through negotiations and various ADR formats.

Member: California State Bar, Utah State Bar, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals; US District Court Central District of California, Southern District of California and Northern District of California; US District Court, District of Utah.

Personal Interests and Philosophy

I greatly enjoy the practice of business conflict resolution. It is a challenge to see the underlying nature of a conflict objectively. This is particularly difficult when opposing counsel and parties sometimes seem to ignore ethical rules and seek advantage by any means possible. I have found that a steadfast focus on preparation and common-sense arguments usually carry the day in the face of any opposition.

My professional mentor, Glenn Hanni, taught me early on that “the law is a jealous mistress.” He meant that being a good lawyer requires a seemingly endless amount of hard work and dedication. Indeed, the skills of a lawyer are almost always directly correlated to his or her level of preparation.

Abraham Lincoln once said that “the difference between using the ‘right’ word and ‘almost the right word’ is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.” I have seen this truism played out in briefs and courtrooms time and time again over the course of my career. For a lawyer, finding the “right word” to use in a brief or argument requires an extra level of commitment; an extra level of focus.

I strive to provide this level of expertise and focus to my clients in every case we handle. The contribution we make to the world is significantly expressed in the quality of our legal work. It is important to me, at a personal level, that our work is always the highest quality.

Over the years I have also been drawn to outdoor activities; primarily skiing, SCUBA and horse riding. Having grown up in a small rural area of Utah, I learned to love nature in all its expressions. I currently spend a great deal of time near the ocean and can’t imagine a more beautiful place to live and work than the Palos Verdes peninsula. From my early years hunting and shooting, I also grew up with respect and appreciation for firearms. I enjoy tactical training with local groups in the Los Angeles area. There is nothing like the controlled chaos of live-fire team training to learn focus in any situation. Indeed, almost any other situation seems easy, by comparison.

I also enjoy ocean-side meditation and spiritual study. My favorite books are The Power of Now, by Eckhart Tolle and The Spiritual Journey of the Warrior, by Brendan Michaels. Humans have an enormous capacity to awaken to life in ways far beyond the experiences of normal life, and these books speak to that possibility. Trying to bring a spiritual focus into the workplace is a worthy challenge; a goal I try to accomplish a little better each day.

I hope to discern the right solution to conflict in every situation; treat everyone with respect and appropriate recognition; and give unbending focus and preparation to my clients’ causes. This, to me, is a career worth living.