Todd has been practicing domestic and international private fund law for over 25 years. He concentrates his practice on corporate, securities and general business law related to private equity, venture capital, real estate and hedge fund clients. He regularly counsels such funds, as well as funds-of-funds, Small Business Investment Companies, Opportunity Zone funds and other related investment vehicles, in connection with the formation, fundraising, operation and liquidation of such funds and vehicles. Todd also has extensive experience counseling and drafting the legal agreements governing the general partners, investment management companies and special purpose vehicles related to such funds.
Todd also has substantial experience representing funds in connection with the acquisition and disposition of portfolio companies, properties and other assets, and with investments by limited partners and other investors in connection with investments in funds and related investment vehicles.
Prior to joining M&H, Todd was a partner at Polsinelli PC and K&L Gates, LLP, of counsel at Pepper Hamilton LLP and a senior associate at Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP.
Todd holds a B.A. in English and Political Science from Colgate University, and a J.D. from Chicago-Kent College of Law.
Todd is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia.
Tony assists clients with entity formations, mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, and equity and debt financings. Prior to joining M&H, Tony practiced as a patent agent and an intellectual property litigation associate at boutique law firms.
Tony holds a J.D. from UCLA School of Law and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from UC Davis. While in law school, Tony worked as a patent clerk at the UCLA Patent Clinic and participated as a finalist in the Lowell Milken Business Venture Competition.
Cristina is licensed to practice law in New York and California. She is recognized by Super Lawyers as a New York Rising Star in business and corporate law.
In her practice, she counsels start-ups and venture capitalists in a variety of corporate transactions, including incorporations, SAFE and convertible note issuances, preferred stock financings, general corporate governance, strategic investments and asset sales, and mergers and acquisitions.
Representative firm clients that Cristina has advised include VMware, GoodRx, Industry Ventures, X/Seed Capital, Mighty Capital, Learn Capital, Bay Grove, Taiwania Capital Management, Wilson Hill Ventures, Definition Capital, Align Ventures, RS11, SaasLink (Seam), Raise Robotics, and California Naturals.
Cristina holds a J.D. from the UC Davis School of Law, where she served on the law school’s Appellate Advocacy Board and Business Law Journal, and earned her B.A. from UC Davis, where she graduated with Honors in Economics and International Relations and completed a minor in Managerial Economics.
Cristina is fluent in Romanian.
In this webinar presented by Worldwide ERC, Cristina provides an overview of M&A structures and corporate pre-planning considerations, while immigration attorneys from WR Immigration discuss common immigration issues that affect foreign national employees in the context of M&A.
Callie advises start-up and established companies across a broad range of industries, as well as angel and institutional investors, on a variety of corporate transactions and investment matters. Her practice includes entity formations, venture financings, secondary sales, investments in limited partnerships, securities law compliance, and mergers and acquisitions. She also provides strategic counsel on general corporate governance and regulatory matters.
Callie is committed to helping individuals, investors, and companies identify and resolve their business and legal challenges in an efficient, creative, and collaborative manner. Drawing on both legal expertise and real-world business experience, she offers clients pragmatic, solution-oriented guidance aligned with their long-term goals.
Before joining M&H, Callie was a member of the Corporate Technology group at Goodwin Procter, where she represented emerging growth companies and investors through various stages of the business lifecycle. Prior to practicing law, she spent five years in Bay Area software sales, where she developed a strong understanding of business operations and cultivated both technical and interpersonal skills. This experience sparked and deepened her passion for the intersection of law, technology, and innovation—perspectives she brings to her legal practice today.
Callie holds a J.D. from the UC Davis School of Law, where she earned the Intellectual Property Certificate and served on the editorial board of the Business Law Journal. She received her B.A. from Gonzaga University, graduating with Honors in International Relations and English Literature.
In one aspect of her corporate/securities practice, Cathy represents high net worth investors, entrepreneurs and C-level executives faced with complex and far-reaching decisions and transactions involving their business investments and assets. Cathy’s clients are leaders in Silicon Valley high technology industries who seek her unique blend of expertise in securities law and independence from conflict for thoughtful advice focusing on protecting their individual interests in critical transactions, such as financings and mergers/acquisitions.
Cathy also has over 20 years of experience in counseling early and mid-stage public and private companies on growth strategies such as raising capital through private and public equity and debt financings. She provides guidance on corporate governance and SEC reporting issues, counsels entrepreneurs who are starting new businesses, and helps clients grow their businesses through strategic partnerships, joint ventures and mergers and acquisitions.
Cathy holds an A.B. from Stanford University and a J.D. from the UCLA School of Law. She is a member and the current Secretary of the State Bar of California Business Law Section’s Corporations Committee, and a member and former Chair of the Board of the Silicon Valley Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth. She has been named by the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal as a Woman of Influence, and has received a YWCA Tribute to Women in Industry (TWIN) Award from the YWCA of Silicon Valley. For the past seven years, as a proud member of Stanford University’s 12th Man Club (a group that secures summer employment for members of the Stanford University football team – Go Cardinal!), Cathy has sponsored and mentored a number of football players as summer law clerks, several of whom are now practicing attorneys.
Dan has been practicing law in Silicon Valley for over 25 years. He concentrates his practice on corporate and securities law for early stage companies and investors. He represents clients in all aspects of corporate transactions, including formation, equity and debt financings, option plans, employment agreements, subsidiary formation, license and technology agreements, spin outs, asset sales, and mergers and acquisitions. He also has experience in intellectual property matters and dispute resolution; and in forming and advising limited liability companies.
Dan represents venture capital funds, angel investors and other investors in investment transactions, partnership matters and other transactions. Dan’s investor side practice is unique in that he works regularly with a number of angel groups in Silicon Valley, including The Angels’ Forum, Sand Hill Angels, and Band of Angels, as well as many individual high net-worth angel investors.
Prior to co-founding M&H, Dan was a partner at Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison, LLP in Palo Alto, California, where he practiced for 10 years.
Dan holds a B.S.M.E., an M.B.A., and a J.D. from the University of Utah and an L.L.M in Trade Regulation from New York University. In addition to California, he is also admitted to practice in the United States Patent & Trademark Office.
For over a decade, Joe has focused his practice on transactional matters, including venture capital finance (including convertible debt and equity investments), private offerings of securities, and mergers and acquisitions. As primary outside counsel to a number of privately held companies, Joe frequently helps boards of directors and management teams in complex and challenging transactional and governance matters. Joe’s clients have included a wide variety of companies, from start-ups to established companies, and they span a variety of industries, including software, consumer products, logistics, information technology, and semi-conductor. In the merger and acquisitions area, Joe has advised numerous companies in structuring and negotiating a wide variety of transactions involving strategic buyers.
Joe holds a J.D. degree from The UCLA School of Law and B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of California at Berkeley.
Joe was formerly an associate at Baker & McKenzie. He has lived and worked in China and Japan and speaks and reads Chinese and Japanese.
Gary joined M&H, LLP in 2015. He advises start-up and established companies across a broad range of industries, as well as angel and institutional investors, in a variety of corporate transactions, general corporate governance matters and investment matters, including entity formations, debt and equity financings, secondary sales, investments in limited partnerships, securities law compliance, and mergers and acquisitions. Gary also advises employees in matters related to equity compensation.
Gary seeks to assist individuals, investors, companies, and boards of directors with identifying and solving their business and legal issues in an efficient, creative, and collaborative manner.
In his free time, Gary is an avid San Francisco 49ers fan and enjoys playing golf and spending time with his family.
Patrick advises investors and early stage companies in a variety of corporate and intellectual property transactions, including formation of start-up ventures, equity and debt financings, mergers and acquisitions and complex commercial transactions. Patrick seeks to provide clients with practical, thoughtful advice to help solve their business and legal issues and assists clients in structuring, negotiating and closing business transactions effectively and efficiently. His practice also includes providing day to day counseling to companies and boards of directors on a wide range of other corporate matters. Representative clients include Diskover Data, Epoch AI, Hakkoda, Industry Ventures, Jolli.ai, MIPS, Primer Labs, Proxy Bio, More Better Industries, Thintronics.
Prior to joining M&H, LLP, Patrick held positions in-house and as an attorney with Fenwick & West, LLP.
Patrick holds a J.D. from the Santa Clara University School of Law and a B.A. from Duke University.
Erin manages the employment department at M&H LLP and has been practicing law in Silicon Valley since 2005. Erin’s practice focuses on Employment Law and pre-litigation dispute resolution. She regularly advises companies of all sizes in a wide range of industries, from large tech companies to small businesses and household employers.
Erin represents corporate clients, start-ups, and professionals and business owners in all aspects of employment, including employment practices and compliance; compensation and benefits; non-compete and non-solicit matters; leaves of absence and disability accommodations; performance management and coaching; wage-and-hour analyses and claims; contractor misclassification; harassment, discrimination, and retaliation claims and prevention; remedial executive training; and terminations, reductions in force, and severance determinations. Erin continues to represent employers in matters before California agencies such as wage complaints with the Labor Commissioner/DLSE and EDD contractor misclassification audits.
Erin also has extensive experience with workplace investigations as external counsel overseeing external and internal investigations, providing investigator training, conducting investigations as external counsel, and representing workplace investigators at deposition.
Prior to joining M&H, LLP Erin spent 14 years litigating employment claims, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of loyalty claims, trade secret disputes, partnership disputes, and general business litigation. Before attending law school Erin worked in technology publishing in the SF Bay Area.
Erin holds a J.D. from Santa Clara University where she was a Cali award-winner in Employment Law and a Comments Editor for the Santa Clara Law Review. She holds a B.A. with honors in Communications/Journalism from Mills College.
Jon retired as a full-time partner at M&H and transitioned to Partner Emeritus in 2023. In this role he serves as a resource to M&H attorneys and clients. His practice includes the formation and representation of private investment funds, fund managers and special purpose investment entities; the representation of issuers and investors in equity and debt financings of privately-held companies; the structuring and negotiation of secondary transactions in private company securities and investment fund partnership interests; mergers & acquisitions; and securities laws and investment adviser compliance.
Jon holds an B.A. from UC Berkeley, an M.B.A. from the Haas School of Business and a J.D. from the UC Berkely School of Law.
Since 2003, Sara has managed sensitive, complex matters and counseled executives and management on a variety of issues. Her employment practice focuses on advising individuals and companies regarding issues relating to establishing or ending employment relationships. She regularly prepares and negotiates offer letters, employment agreements and separation agreements. In addition, Sara conducts workplace investigations as an external attorney investigator.
Prior to joining M&H as Of Counsel, Sara practiced as a commercial litigator and employment attorney at Bergeson, LLP.
Sara holds a J.D. from the UCLA School of Law and a B.A. in Human Biology from Stanford University.
Experienced advisor to technology companies on intellectual property licensing, AI data services agreements, SaaS contracts, and technology transactions. Extensive in-house/general counsel experience with publicly traded digital media and telecommunications companies. Expertise in patent pools and licensing programs, cross-border technology alliances, privacy/data security and open source software compliance.
Practice Area Specializations
Technology Licensing & IP Transactions
AI & Data Services and License Agreements
SaaS & Cloud Services Contracts
Patent Portfolio Commercialization
Open Source Software Compliance
Cross-Border Technology Alliances
M&A Technology Transfers and Due Diligence
Digital Media & Content Licensing
Privacy Compliance
Industries Served
Software & Technology
Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
Semiconductor & Electronics
Life Sciences & Biotechnology
Digital Media & Entertainment
Telecommunications
Cloud Services & SaaS
Transaction Experience
Negotiated 1000+ complex IP licensing agreements for technology companies
Developed AI data services agreements for early-stage and established companies
Advised on technology aspects of hundreds of M&A transactions
Created international distribution and channel partner agreements in 20+ countries
Structured and executed patent licensing programs for major electronics manufacturers
Professional Background
Mike brings dual perspectives to his practice, having served as both in-house counsel and outside advisor to hundreds of technology companies. Prior to joining M&H, his experience includes:
Director of Legal Affairs at Via Licensing Corp. (Dolby Labs subsidiary)
Led development of standards-based patent licensing programs (patent pools)
Monetized IP for global electronics manufacturers and telecommunications providers
Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary at Critical Path, Inc.
Managed legal affairs for public company providing mobile messaging and digital media solutions
Partner and Co-Founder of Technology Transactions and Privacy practice groups at Cooley LLP
Partner and head of the Technology Transactions Group at Brobeck Phleger & Harrison LLP
Education & Credentials
J.D., UCLA School of Law
Managing Editor, UCLA Law Review
B.A., Economics, magna cum laude from UCLA
Berklee College of Music
Studies in Music Performance & Composition
California State Bar
Active Member, member of CLA Intellectual Property Section, Licensing and AI Interest Groups
Professional Insights
Featured in the December 2023 edition of Lawyer Monthly discussing current trends in IP and technology transactions
Frequent speaker at PLI and other MCLE programs; industry events such as SXSW
Personal Background
Before his legal career, Mike was a professional musician, orchestrator, and music publisher, including worldwide tours as a trumpet player with renowned orchestras and jazz artists, including Buddy Rich, Clark Terry, Harry James and Mel Tormé. He has performed with Jimmy Buffett, Kix Brooks, the Zak Brown Band, Steve Miller, Kurt Elling, Stephen Stills, Jim Belushi, MC Hammer, Todd Rundgren, Bob Weir and Mickey Hart, and at the San Francisco, San Jose and Monterey Jazz Festivals.
Staci Plumleigh focuses exclusively on intellectual property (IP) licensing and related transactions in the technology and entertainment sectors. Dually-admitted to practice in both California and England & Wales, she brings a global perspective to her practice, with specialized expertise in AI-related transactions and emerging technology agreements. Staci began her career in the Business and Technology group of a large international law firm in Palo Alto, served as in-house counsel for an entertainment company managing licensing deals for internationally recognized artists, and later co-founded her own firm with a fellow BigLaw partner to serve startups and private companies.
Technology & Entertainment
Staci has worked on matters for some of the largest and most innovative companies in Silicon Valley, as well as some of the world’s best known artists. Her experience includes:
Licensing and Content:
Software (SaaS) and hardware licensing
Merchandise licensing and copyright buyouts
Digital media and content licensing
Strategic Partnerships:
Strategic alliances, joint ventures, and joint development agreements
Distribution, reseller and international broker agreements
Corporate and Compliance:
Evaluating IP issues in M&A, financings, and IPOs
Non-disclosure, consultant and settlement agreements
Website terms of use and privacy policies
Artificial Intelligence
As AI transforms business landscapes, Staci brings specialized expertise, having earned a certification in Artificial Intelligence and the Law from the University of California College of Law, San Francisco.
AI-native businesses and AI partnering deals present unique challenges. With her understanding of generative AI and the constantly evolving realities of doing business, Staci can help navigate these complexities.
AI market terms are emerging to address risk allocation, data restrictions, pricing and many others. Staci can help:
Reduce friction in commercial AI agreement negotiations.
Develop strategies to create a defensible AI intellectual property moat.
Address privacy concerns specific to unique AI use cases.
Establish AI Governance and Use Policies tailored to your business.
Prior Experience
Prior to practicing law, Staci spent five years in San Francisco at Pacific Telesis Legal Group in the Regulatory Finance and Strategy group where she hired and managed a team of 20 during the Pacific Telesis-SBC Merger proceedings before the CPUC. She also worked at Sedgwick, Detert, Moran & Arnold, where she managed 150+ cases in class action defense litigation. Staci was also an intern in the litigation department at Osborne Clarke in Bristol, England.
Professional Background
Of Counsel, M&H, LLP
Partner & Co-founder, Plumleigh Law
Attorney, Signatures Network (acquired by Live Nation)
Associate, Business & Technology Group, Brobeck Phleger & Harrison LLP
Admissions
State Bar of California
Roll of Solicitors, England and Wales
Education
J.D., University of San Francisco School of Law, Law Review
LSF and CPE (now Postgraduate Diploma in Law), under the Solicitors Regulation Authority, England and Wales
Professional Memberships
American Bar Association, Member Intellectual Property Law Section
Law Society of England & Wales
International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP)
Kerry has more than 25 years experience in the practice of corporate and securities law including at major U.S. law firms and has been CFO of a NASDAQ listed public company. Kerry’s practice is focused on corporate and securities law and has extensive experience with transactions in which he represents companies and investors in venture capital financings, mergers and acquisitions, early liquidity transactions, spin-offs and buyouts, recapitalizations, equity offerings and debt transactions. Kerry has served as lead counsel on hundreds of venture capital, angel and private-equity financings, more than a hundred M&A transactions of all sizes, and a significant number of recapitalizations, public offerings and other transactions. He has represented international and domestic companies, emerging growth corporations, venture capital funds and private equity funds in a broad array of industries including, telecommunications, banking, insurance, high tech, e-commerce, pharmaceutical and medical delivery, energy, business process outsourcing and manufacturing.
Much of Kerry’s practice stems from his startup company practice, where he handles formation, founder-related matters, seed investments and venture capital financings for early-stage companies and then continues to represent them in various matters including later stage financings, M&A and corporate governance matters as they grow into larger private and public companies.
His technology representations include companies in a wide range of markets, including security, artificial intelligence, internet of things, storage, mobile, gaming, cloud, big data, software, social, Internet and clean technology.
Kerry holds a J.D. from Loyola University of Chicago School of Law and a B.S. in Accountancy from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He is a CPA (inactive) and practiced at Deloitte & Touche prior to attending law school.
Prior to joining M&H, Kerry was a partner at DLA Piper US, LLP and other international law firms.
Kerry is admitted to practice in California and Illinois.
