Caroline C. Vincent, Esq.

• Numerous audit cases, including music recording contract accounting dispute; multi-million dollar breach of contract and audit issues between municipality and programs subcontractor.
• Accounting dispute in amount owed on promissory note secured by Deed of Trust where no one had complete records, issues included shifting burdens of proof.
• Several accounting malpractice cases, involving a variety of accounting allocation, taxation, auditing and reporting issues.
• Multiple real estate foreclosure matters involving proof that plaintiff lender owned the secured note.
• Multiple disputes between borrowers and guarantors as to the amount owed, applicable security, exoneration issues and disputes re ownership in business or property subject to the loan/security.

• Financial elder abuse and non-elder financial fraud claims (one common example is that a family member transfers real property title into their name to borrow new money, but fails to honor their promise to transfer the property back to the original owner).
• Numerous work outs of real estate and commercial indebtedness.
• Expertise in forging solutions for parties where defendant needs assistance with a payment plan including in camera review of financial statements; assessment of company financials; discussions with accountant/CFO; mediator proposals based upon multiple levels of company approval in larger companies where indebtedness is an issue.
• Design of and participation in dispute resolution programs between automobile manufacturers/parent and dealerships with respect to franchise relationship, advertising allocations, credits for sales and other financial issues.
• Mediation between father and son involving restructure of $2,000,000 long term buyout of shares and long term employment agreement which was terminated due to economic downturn in business.
• Mediation of dissolution of 3 person law partnership, and agreement about allocation of receivables, payables, and on-going client matters.
• Mediation between public company and former CEO/founder over a variety of financial claims and issues valued at over $200 million.

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• Mediation of dispute concerning litigated claims and counterclaims regarding interpretation of CAR form Section 18.3 re mediation fees where request for mediation is filed with the complaint even though offered earlier, and whether monies can be collected by seller who incurs unanticipated costs in removing a contingency of buyer.
• Dispute between company and former employees who started a competing company.
• Dispute between friends who formed company to design to build homes, which venture was negatively impacted by the pandemic and rising mortgage rates during need to refinance.
• Dispute about cancellation of escrow due to failure to perform loan contingency provision, between tenant and owner who had a long-term contract allowing option to purchase by tenant.
• Breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation and fraudulent misrepresentation claim based upon failure to disclose that food manufacturing business was licensed for only retail and not wholesale business as allegedly represented in purchase and sale transaction.

• Family business and real estate assets held by corporation with shares owned by siblings, with allegations that shares transferred to less than all sibling shareholders under fraudulent means. Resolution issues involved accounting and restitution.
• Dispute over management of LLC, claims for fraud and mismanagement, resolution involved sale of building, audit and accounting, and exploration of buyout from members of the LLC by other members.
• Attorney Fee Dispute where primary issue was statute of limitations.
• Mediation between supplier of wood flooring to high end retail store with history of delays and litigation; issues included conduct under commercial code to provide notice of defects and opportunity to cure; solutions include providing new wood supplier sources and money.
• Mediation of dispute over whether an obligation by one family member had been forgiven by other family members, where there was a long history of family business ventures.
• Dispute over payment of deposit monies placed in escrow by purchaser of coin laundry business, based upon evidentiary dispute alleging failure of seller's landlord to meet purchaser's condition regarding lease terms.
• Dispute between corporations with common principles and long-term relationships over monies owed.
• Dispute over interpleaded liquor license escrow amount by claimant and cross-defendant, and additional damages claimed by plaintiff from defendant over failed transaction.
• Cannabis case involving management agreement in LLC with defendant as the primary owner, where the termination agreement depended on a prior 50-50 vote of the board to maintain control. Issues also involved failure to provide accounting and a power struggle over recreational marijuana licensing.
• Escrow dispute over retained amount for adjustments after sale of a hospital, due to differences in excess of a specified amount of Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable.
• Mediation of medical billing dispute between a doctor and billing company over collection efforts and lack of evidence of where receivables went.
• MEDIATION between public company and former CEO/founder/ inventor over a variety of financial claims, primarily over ownership and control of the development to market of proprietary software key to the company’s future valued at over $200 million.
• MEDIATION of dissolution of 3 person law partnership, resulting in agreement about allocation of receivables, payables, and on-going client matters.
• ARBITRATION of issue regarding liability of buyer for invoices generated prior to sale, assumed in writing by buyer, but representing prior relationship with seller; award for seller.
• MEDIATION of dispute between father and son involving restructure of $2,000,000 stock purchase agreement.
• Facilitation of ARBITRATION panel and also MEDIATION of various disputes between dealerships and manufacturers.
• MEDIATION between major Southern California grocery chain and governmentally mandated "spin off" purchaser of store, resulting in dispute over use clause in long term low rent commercial lease assigned by tenant/grocery chain seller.
• MEDIATION of multi-million dollar development joint venture where agreement was silent on payment of construction cost overrides.
• MEDIATION of legal malpractice claims involving advice to trustee of trust found by State of California to be a charitable trust, and representation in litigated matter.
• MEDIATION of several family business trust and estate matters, including dispute over management and control of multimillion-dollar business trust, between partner of deceased husband (business trustee) and wife and children of deceased husband’s estate, residuary beneficiaries of business trust.

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• Mediated delicate dispute between a contractor and homeowner who were friends but disputed the amount owed on a home construction contract between the two. Resolved (seemingly while leaving the friendship intact).

• Mediation between supplier of wood flooring to high end retail store with history of delays and litigation; issues included conduct under commercial code to provide notice of defects and opportunity to cure; solutions include providing new wood supplier sources and money
• Dispute over amount due for additional work on contract of home improvement where invoices and itemization of time and materials were disputed.
• PAGA claim involving approximately 100 employees settled for $140,000, and individual claim for retaliatory termination settled for $35,000.
• Wage & Hour claim by restaurant worker alleging failure to pay overtime, double time and permit required meal and rest breaks. Issues involved failure to keep time sheets to establish hours worked and meal and rest breaks.
• Wage and hour claim including settling claims of disputed meal and rest breaks and lack of accessible data on dates of call time in order to properly calculate overtime pay rates.

• Negotiation of severance package over dispute regarding alleged retaliation for reporting violations of company policy and hiring practices.
• Mediation of pre-arbitration with claims of sexual harassment in restaurant industry by co-worker, disputes about timing of report to supervisor and commencement of investigation, wrongful termination claim during governmental Covid-19 shutdown.
• Mediation of wrongful termination claim based upon alleged failure to accommodate plaintiff's disabilities as a result of workplace and prior injuries; together with alleged failure to have interactive process where pattern of accommodation lasted for multiple months and was eventually determined by employer to be unduly burdensome.
• After shutdown of business due to extensive damage caused by fire, key employee claims was promised to be paid through insurance recovery, but there was a dispute as to communication regarding whether or not insurance company paid or denied coverage for salaries of employees. Issues included extent of damage and time to rebuild, filing for unemployment, and wait time penalties for unpaid paid time off.
• Employment claim for lost wages and emotional distress by former employee truck driver against trucking/delivery company for racial discrimination, failure to accommodate, and retaliatory termination
• Disability discrimination and intentional infliction of emotional distress claim regarding a retaliatory termination after six months of employment. There were evidentiary issues regarding failure to report to work as a legitimate business reason for the termination.
• Property manager claimed wrongful termination, unpaid overtime, and missed meal and real breaks.
• Disability discrimination and sexual harassment claims.
• Race discrimination after alleged termination due to age and race discrimination, harassment, demeaning behavior, and disability discrimination.
• Retaliatory termination due to medical leave with mixed motive defense due to performances issues with long-term employee.
• $200 million trade secret mediation between public company and former CEO/founder.
• Pre-suit claim by managerial employee against publicly known CEO involving allegations of sexual
  assault & battery.
• $1.5 million wage and hour class action settlement involving over 3,000 nationally based employees.
• Numerous individual, class and mass action wage and hour claims in a variety of industries.
• Sexual harassment in the workplace alleged by 3 females against manager of a national restaurant chain, and wrongful termination due to whistleblower claims.
• Wrongful termination based upon faulty drug testing, invasion of privacy & investigation and termination without notice to employee.
• Numerous wrongful termination mixed motive cases including disability and failure to accommodate, family leave, age, ethnic and gender discrimination, whistleblowing, including under Harris v. City of Santa Monica.
• Failure to promote long term manager of large city office of national delivery organization based upon sexual orientation discrimination; defamation.
• Sexual discrimination claim by 3 heterosexual male plaintiffs alleging harassment by gay male supervisor of college residential facility.
• Numerous race and sex discrimination cases involving hostile work environment, termination and failure to promote.
• Termination of principal under management contract; issues involved fraudulent inducement, competency, interference with economic advantage.
• Several internal dispute mediations between employees in workplace disputes, and between employees and human resources professionals concerning transfers, accommodations and termination.
• Numerous wrongful termination mixed motive cases where age discrimination was the alleged basis for termination, including cases where the replacement employee for plaintiff’s position was younger, where there were reductions in force, where a position was eliminated but a younger person was later hired in an allegedly similar position.
• Several cases where age discrimination was alleged and employee who was either terminated or not promoted no longer performed as efficiently or energetically as in earlier years, and claimed newer employees were favored simply based upon their age, and/or simply so that the company could save money.

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• Mediation between public company and former CEO/founder/ inventor over a variety of financial claims, primarily over ownership and control of the development to market proprietary software key to the company’s future valued at over $200 million.
• Mediated business buy out of stock, with underlying claims for trade secret violations, and cross-complaint for constructive discharge.
• Numerous mediations, as well as legal representation, of clients with disputes in partnership and other entity dissolutions concerning misappropriation of trade secrets and other intellectual property, often involving customer lists, methodology and know how. Entities include talent agencies, agents for insurance and real estate firms, distribution and licensing entities for computer software, clothing and fabric designers, manufacturers, and wholesalers.
• Mediated dissolution of production venture, involving disputed ownership to creative and development rights related to underlying copyright, and long-term relationship of co-venturers.
• Mediation of dispute alleging knock-offs of garment designs by Chinese manufacturers importing to the US.

• Mediation of wrongful termination case where plaintiff, a model in a pool of models, alleged she was unable to return to work after having her baby due to television show’s “creative” decision.
• Mediation of litigated dispute brought by foreign producer of overseas tour in North America against local promoter alleging failure to perform and account. Issues involved disputes during tour, regarding methods and markets for promotion; control disputes over various performance details.
• Mediation by well-known recording artist claiming that management company’s failure to account was a breach of the management contract, thereby allowing artist to release control of his final album under the contract.
• Several mediations involving celebrity invasion of privacy as primary claims and as cross claims.
• High profile entertainment-connected businessman claimed defendant’s pursuit of script deal lead to businessman’s loss of script and future prospective deals, alleging self-dealing and defamation.
• Numerous instances where mediation focused in part upon negotiation of gag orders and mutual press releases due to celebrity status of parties.
• Alleged misrepresentations by broker/seller in sale of talent agency, including issue of affirmative oral representations by broker conflicting with written “as is” and “no representations” clauses in written sales agreement.
• Dozens of employment mediations involving companies in the entertainment industry and special issues pertaining to contracts unique to the entertainment industry. Codesigned and presented a conflict-resolution skills training program for human resource and management professionals for Warner Bros.

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• Case involving unfunded liability due to workers for which dues were not paid. The matter was settled with a related case involving withdrawal contributions, with payments over time.

• MEDIATION of over 50 divorces, resulting in satisfactory resolution of property, child custody and relationship issues. Mediations involve parties with and without attorneys participating in the mediation. Marital settlement agreement points are delivered to parties, whose counsel generally prepare agreements for filing with the court.
• MEDIATION between father and son involving enforcement of refinancing agreement involving depressed real property; issues involved acknowledgement of personal vs. business relationships; economic workout of $1,000,000 claim to satisfy party’s respective positions and needs.
• MEDIATION between father and son involving restructure of $2,000,000 long term buyout of shares and long term employment agreement which was terminated due to economic downturn in business.
• MEDIATION of dispute between sisters over care of mother with Alzheimer’s disease and management of several hundred thousands of dollars of assets. Issues involved acknowledgement of differing opinions on home care vs. nursing home, appropriate expenditures for sister caring for mother in home, mistrust due to lack of communications and lack of accounting and other information. Mediation resulted in appointment of children of sisters as “Family Mediators” to help sisters implement agreements reached in mediation.
• FACILITATED meetings between family members over proposed disposition of estate, focusing primarily on wishes and concerns of children over proposed distribution of father’s business to both children; meeting revealed differing management and life style goals of children which resulted in a plan that satisfied the needs of all family members.

• FACILITATED meetings between friends and couples who plan to live together in a non-marital situation. Issues have included management and control of assets, joint checking accounts, and disposition of assets on death or termination of relationship.
• FACILITATED meetings between couples planning a marriage, discussing the “default” community property rules and engaging parties in conversations about community and separate property, separate and co-mingled assets, how to have conversations about marriage and property, caring for step-children, and other issues.
• MEDIATION of several probate disputes, involving family and other persons in will contest situations, disagreements about the deceased’s intent, resulting in creative problem solving and mutually satisfactory resolutions minimizing adversarial court litigation.
• FACILITATION of dozens of meetings with 2 or more persons purchasing real property together, where some or all of them live in the property. Issues involve management and control, what happens if someone wants to leave or can’t pay their share of the mortgage, disposition of proceeds on a sale, buy and sell rights and what happens upon death. Agreements prepared based on the meetings for review by each party’s legal counsel.
• Parties in a co-habitation settlement agreement disputed whether the estate, or the "payable on death" designee, was entitled to proceeds in a bank account upon death the co-habitant who owned the bank account; where issues included waiver and release of all claims in settlement agreement, continuing post-settlement agreement relationship, and applicability of waiver and release language to Probate Code Sec. 5302 "payable upon death" designation.

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• Property damage claim due to a water leak in an art dealer tenancy. The insurance company claimed the roof was not kept maintained so the settlement amount was nuisance value.
• Mediated settlement of subrogation claim to recoup monies paid by insurance company for homeowner's fire and property damage, based upon alleged failure of prior owner of home to disclose unlicensed and unpermitted improvements related to fireplace, against home inspector for failure to identify defects, and against insured for implied, equitable and comparative indemnity and contribution. Issues included homeowner asserted contractor claimed he was licensed and that no permit was required, as well as financial ability to pay by defendants and cross-defendants.

• Mediated settlement of automobile collision that caused contusions and bruises to Plaintiff, and also resulted in a fractured ankle which healed after 7 months of conservative care.
• Settlement of personal injury claim where plaintiff bit down on a foreign sharp object in food served by a fast food chain restaurant.
• Mediated and arbitrated numerous types of injury and insurance related disputes, ranging from simple auto accident and slip and fall cases to complex matters, including overlapping injuries, premises and toxic tort liability issues, UM/UIM, multiple defendants, first party claims, coverage, bad faith and SIU matters.
• Personal injury due to disabled plaintiff tripping over pallet of goods while parking in strip mall parking lot, where pallet was in part of the handicap parking space. Issues included open and obvious and prior warnings to owner of shop using handicap parking space as a loading zone.
• Accident at crosswalk where placard was in the sidewalk during construction of train tracks, but was also open and obvious.

• Trip and fall case where the only evidence was that plaintiff fell, plaintiff sought medical treatment, and plaintiff had pre-existing knee conditions. Evidentiary issues involved many disputed and contradicted facts including plaintiff's own actions v. defendant’s timeline of events. Case resolved at early stage of factual development in order to save expected large costs of retaining experts.
• Several nursing home care cases/elder abuse.
• Several sexual assault and molestation cases, in the employment context by employer representatives, by co-workers, by a patient against doctors a gynecologist.
• Intentional and negligent transmission of sexually transmitted disease.
• Loss of consortium claims.
• Wrongful arrest and imprisonment.
• Wrongful death.
• Assault Claims – plaintiff claimed defendant intentionally hit him in event seating area.
• Hundreds of third party claims with automobile insurance carriers, including subrogation, fraud, UM/UIM and policy limit issues (mediations and arbitrations).
• Injury and damages claims with commercial insurance carriers, from $20,000 to $500,000 settlements, involving complex liability, multiple parties and insurers, damages and first party claims.
• Disability policy coverage claims; interpretation of business expenses; fraudulent claims.
• Workers compensation issues in employee accident alleging negligent maintenance of warehouse facility.
• Loss and bad faith claims between insurer and insured over adequacy of records, involving several hundred thousand dollars of inventory losses due to theft.
• Coverage disputes under reservation of rights in a variety of types of claims, including employment, real property and environmental disputes.
• Mediation of several professional liability claims involving legal and medical malpractice; underlying issues included estate planning, business transactions, and negligent care.
• Mediation of numerous fraud/SIU claims, occasionally resolved with a waiver of costs.
• Medical and dental malpractice mediations.
• Numerous mediations involving bad faith claims by insured.
• Van hits a bicycle. Van entered the bicycle lane and the collision occurred. There were claims of liability and damages.

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• Resolved interpersonally difficult real property purchase dispute where the spouse of one of the parties refused to sign the purchase agreement and the other side sought specific performance anyway.
• Mediation of commercial lease with issues of permitting for intended use during beginning of Covid, and different lease clauses about deadlines to provide notifications to terminate lease.
• Habitability, harassment, and unlawful entry onto yard part of premises by tenant in 1 of 2 buildings on shared lot with fence in between buildings, against owner resident on the property. Issues involved monetary claims, attorney fees, harassment, property damage and numerous habitability claims to housing authority. Solutions involved move out and monies for damages.
• Property purchase under option agreement was unable to close in time to avoid $500,000 additional payment; dispute over whether delay was caused by escrow company, purchaser, lender or seller regarding documents and signatures needed for closing.
• Failure to disclose case involving abandoned property acquired at an estate sale and given cosmetic remodel, then marketed with "as is" and limited disclosures, followed by a 30 year roof cave in after a heavy rain and discovery of mold in dry wall. Issues involved disclosures and what may have been discovered during the remodel, purchaser building inspection report pointing out signs of water damage and roof issues, and valuation of damages.

• Sale of non-owner occupied improved property with some defective improvements, and dispute re failure to disclose municipality's condition that retainer wall needed for occupancy permit
• Failure to disclose in residential real estate transaction regarding affirmative representation that mother's in law quarters was permitted, where municipality required new permit under threat of tear down; new rules for accessory dwelling units caused additional permitting and costs. Issues were cost of bringing to code and liability.
• Wrongful foreclosure case based upon alleged violation of loan modification laws; issues included long term and continuing non-payment of mortgage in contested litigation; solutions focused on move out dates and payment in consideration of deed to to property.
• Property dispute between siblings who purchased decades ago, with misunderstandings and lack of clear agreements about percentage ownerships, obligations re payments and rental collections
• Family business and real estate assets held by corporation with shares owned by siblings, with allegations that shares transferred to less than all sibling shareholders under fraudulent means. Resolution issues involved accounting and restitution.
• Dispute about cancellation of escrow due to failure to perform loan contingency provision, between tenant and owner who had a long-term contract allowing option to purchase by tenant.
• Dispute over escrow deposit and additional monies following failed escrow due to untimely and unfinished specially agreed upon upgrade items, multiple inspection issues and follow-on work to meet contract requirements.
• Settled a dispute over the nature of a wild deed that was recorded outside of escrow, and before closing, in a real property sales transaction. Legal issue included whether there was communication to escrow officer that monies put into the escrow for closing the transaction were for a capital contribution to buyer's entity, or were for a loan to be secured by a deed of trust.
• Mediation of commercial lease with issues of permitting for intended use during beginning of Covid, and different lease clauses about deadlines to provide notifications to terminate lease.
• Brothers who co-owned and co-habitated real property after mother's death disagreed about shared uses of space, rights and obligations, and sharing rental incomes and paying expenses.
• Real property contract dispute due to alleged failure to disclose about specific items that may not have been permitted, with proposed solution by seller to obtain permits and make improvements.

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• Unmarried parties with two children and two jointly owned parcels of real property agreed to a conscious uncoupling, in order to preserve their relationships with their children while divesting themselves of their joint ownership of the properties.
• Conservatorship dispute between sisters over home care vs. nursing home care of mother with Alzheimer's disease and use of estate assets for improvements in home of the sister caretaker. Estate of Hazel Wittenberg, Los Angeles Sup. Ct. (Central)
• Legal malpractice claim over proper definition and advisement re charitable trust arising from negligent transfer of assets, and subsequent accounting issues brought by State of California on behalf of charitable trust.
• Complex trust dispute over management and control of multimillion-dollar business trust, between partner of deceased husband (business trustee) and wife and children of deceased husband’s estate, residuary beneficiaries of business trust. Lloyd v. Faulkner, Los Angeles Sup. Ct. (Central)
• Dispute between stepmother widow of deceased and children of deceased, to force sale of widow’s residence where trust document presented issue of provision of maintenance and care for widow’s lifetime.

• Numerous will contests, involving family members and disagreements about the deceased's intent.

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