Micha "Mitch" Danzig

Danzig litigates employment disputes and counsels management-side clients on non-compete agreements, the protection of proprietary information and wrongful discrimination, termination and wage and hour claims. He is a former drill sergeant and combat instructor with the Israeli Army and a former New York City police officer.

As with most, Corona-19 concerns have kept him working remotely for months. "My office is not anticipating getting back to work until Labor Day," Danzig said in late June. "Some people still don't seem to be taking this seriously. I just got off the phone with a lawyer who was astonished we don't want to take a deposition with eight people in a conference room breathing on each other. I told him we would be happy to proceed via Zoom."

Just as the pandemic shutdown arrived in March, Danzig obtained a win for his clients, a San Diego-based manufacturer and distributor of high-voltage power conversion systems, and four of its employees, on breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation claims. U.S. District Judge Michael M. Anello of San Diego dismissed the claims, which alleged that the four employees--engineers based in the Philippines who had worked for the plaintiff--breached non-compete and non-solicitation provisions of their contracts and engaged in trade secret theft. Power Integrations Inc. v. Silanna Semiconductor North America Inc., 5:19-cv-02700 (S.D. Cal., filed May 17, 2019).

"It was a great win that provides comfort for California-based employers who wish to hire people from other jurisdictions," Danzig said. "In the Philippines, they allow non-compete clauses in contracts, but California strongly favors employee mobility and competition. This decision clarifies that no matter where your potential employees are, you can recruit as long as you protect trade secrets."

Wrote the judge: "In sum, an out-of-state employee working for a California employer can be considered 'employed in California' to gain the benefit of California's statutory protections against restrictive covenants."

Danzig was successful in an analogous case for client Alphatec Holdings Inc, a medical device maker. In August 2019 a Chancery Court in Delaware granted partial summary judgment in favor of Alphatec's chairman and CEO in a suit by a competitor based on claims that the chairman, a California resident, breached the non-competition and employee non-solicitation provisions in his contract with the competitor, where he worked previously. NuVasive Inc. v. Miles, 2017-0720 (Ct. of Chancery, Del., filed Oct. 10, 2017).

"A fantastic ruling for us," Danzig said. "The issues were similar. It didn't matter whether Mr. Miles was president or not, he was free to compete."

Danzig is a guest commentator on television networks including Vox and the One America News Network, where he discusses matters related to anti-Semitism, Israel and the Middle East. "Apparently they like me on TV," he said, "but I've been a lawyer for 26 years and I think I'll stick with it."

-- John Roemer