Brian A. Wright

In more than a decade as a trial lawyer, Brian has obtained nearly $100 million in combined awards and judgments for his clients. Brian has significant trial experience and treasures the opportunity to make his clients’ cases in courtrooms and other forums. Simply put, Brian loves going to trial, whether he represents the plaintiff or the defendant.

When litigation becomes necessary, Brian relies on his experience representing corporate clients in a wide array of commercial disputes—including construction litigation, contract claims, corporate torts, insurance claims, trademark infringement claims, and post-M&A disputes—to position each case well for presentation to a judge, jury, or arbitrator. He recently honed these skills as a participant at the nation’s premier trial-lawyer training program: the National Trial Advocacy College at the University of Virginia School of Law.

Just as importantly, Brian is skilled in helping clients identify smart business solutions to resolve their commercial disputes without the hassle, expense, and uncertainty of prolonged litigation.

Brian demonstrates the same versatility in his pro bono practice. He has been a steady presence in Richmond-area general district courts, where he represents low-income tenant-defendants facing eviction. Brian is proud to have helped keep many tenants in their apartments over the years by defeating their landlords’ eviction actions. He has also won a number of favorable verdicts and secured cash settlements for tenant-plaintiffs who were wrongfully evicted or whose landlords failed to return their security deposits. From 2019 to 2021, Brian served as the housing-law “champion” for the Greater Richmond Bar Foundation-Central Virginia Legal Aid Society’s Triage program, for which he recruited, trained, and mentored attorneys new to housing cases.

Brian is admitted to practice before the US District Court for Eastern District of Virginia, the US District Court for the Western District of Virginia, the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth and Ninth Circuits, and all Virginia state courts.

Prior to joining the firm, Brian served as a law clerk for the Honorable Norman K. Moon of the US District Court for the Western District of Virginia, working in the court’s Lynchburg and Charlottesville Divisions. Before law school, he worked for the US Department of Defense and for a management consulting firm.

• Trademark Litigation: As trial counsel in a federal trademark dispute, Brian delivered the opening statement, cross-examined a key witness, and defeated a Rule 52(c) motion for judgment on partial findings. The trial team obtained a permanent injunction to stop the infringement, won a $42.9 million damages award, and proved that this was an “exceptional case” under the Lanham Act, resulting in an additional $3.85 million award of attorneys’ fees and costs.

• Commercial Arbitration: As co-lead counsel responsible for the opening statement, direct examination of all client witnesses, and cross-examination of the opposing expert witness, Brian obtained a $51.5 million award (every penny sought) for a wireless-telecommunications client after a five-day arbitration, completely defeating counterclaims exceeding $19 million.

• ICC Arbitration: Served as lead counsel through an accelerated briefing and discovery process, resulting in a 7-figure pre-hearing settlement.

• AAA Consumer Arbitration: Led motions practice resulting in dismissal with prejudice of consumer claims.

• M&A Litigation: Argued for and obtained dismissal of claim for punitive damages in Delaware Superior Court, leading to favorable settlement of remaining claims for breach of contract and fraud in a post-M&A dispute.

• ERISA Litigation: Argued for and obtained summary judgment for individual defendant named as a fiduciary in an ERISA action brought by the US Department of Labor.

• Accounting Defense: Obtained dismissal for client accounting firm facing claims of malpractice, breach-of-contract, and fraud.

• Construction Litigation: Defended owners in major-project construction litigation against contractors’ claims for additional compensation, schedule extensions, inefficiencies, and acceleration costs.

• Construction Litigation: Pursued project owners’ counterclaims against contractors for liquidated damages and other remedies for construction delays.

• Energy Litigation: Defended a natural gas utility in carbon-monoxide-exposure action involving multiple plaintiffs and defendants.

• Financial Services Litigation: Represented private equity firm asserting claims against seller for indemnification under an Asset Purchase Agreement.

• M&A Litigation: Represented a holding company in a net-working-capital dispute after a corporate acquisition.

• Contract Litigation: Consulted in the drafting of a User Agreement to reduce litigation risk.

• Copyright Litigation: Advised on the application of the Copyright Act, including the Fair-Use Doctrine.

• Selected as One to Watch for Commercial Litigation, Construction Law and Mergers and Acquisitions Law, The Best Lawyers in America, 2024
• Recognized as a Runner Up for Litigator of the Week, American Lawyer, Litigation Daily, April 2022