Beth M. Conran

As leader of the firm’s Financial Services Industry Group, Beth represents financial institutions, investment professionals, and other businesses in high-stakes litigation and arbitration. Clients turn to Beth for results in their most consequential disputes. An experienced first-chair trial lawyer, she has tried cases to verdict in court and through final hearing before arbitration panels and has handled appeals in state and federal appellate courts. Beth develops and executes litigation strategies that advance her clients’ legal and business objectives, whether that means achieving an early resolution or taking a case through trial. She also serves as a trusted adviser to clients, providing practical counsel on business decisions, risk management, and strategies to avoid or minimize future disputes.

Beth focuses her financial services practice on disputes arising from the movement of financial advisors and investment professionals. She regularly represents broker-dealers, registered representatives, and other financial institutions in matters involving trade-secret misappropriation, misuse of confidential information, employee and client solicitation, unfair competition, raiding, and breaches of restrictive covenants and fiduciary duties. Her work includes seeking and defending against temporary and permanent injunctive relief in court and before Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration panels.

Beth also defends financial institutions and investment professionals in FINRA customer arbitrations involving claims of fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, suitability, churning, negligent supervision, and violations of state and federal securities laws.

Beth served as lead litigation and trial counsel for a global energy company in high-stakes antitrust, pricing, franchise, and trade-regulation disputes. She successfully defended claims challenging motor-fuel pricing practices and deed restrictions and brand covenants associated with the sale of retail gasoline stations, including matters involving hundreds of millions of dollars in claimed damages.

Beth also has extensive experience litigating disputes among shareholders, members, and business partners involving ownership, control, management, and the separation of closely held businesses. These matters include claims involving breaches of fiduciary duty, shareholder oppression, corporate governance, valuation and buyout rights, dissolution, and disputes over company assets and opportunities.

Beth has written and spoken on complex business litigation, legal ethics, data-breach law, and developments in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.