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Client Representation Philosophy |
Eric C. Lang’s General Background |
Helping people we care about solve problems and achieve goals is more than just a "ten-word" mission statement. I believe that every legal matter presents a problem, the solution to which depends entirely on defining goals. If the problem is a $50,000 lawsuit, and a win costs $100,000, then winning might not be the solution. When client and counsel focus on a goal and not just an outcome, everyone can win. |
After graduating first in his law school class from the University of Florida in 1990, Mr. Lang practiced with Long, Aldridge & Norman (n/k/a Dentons). He left partnership there in 1998 to join Paul Hastings and formed his current firm in 2003. His practice is devoted to serving the business-related litigation and general counseling needs of companies and individuals who desired sophisticated services but were outside of the target market of the larger firms. He has handled a wide range of matters, ranging from multi-million-dollar litigation to simple business formation. Further details can be found at About Eric C. Lang. |
EARLY 2024 HIGHLIGHTS -- MAJOR VICTORIES, LAW REVIEW ARTICLE, STATE BAR PODCAST
Lang Legal (Atlanta) and Olshan (New York) Score $10.6 Million Victory for Securities Placement Agent in Dispute with Chinese Cryptocurrency Company |
Mercer Law Review Publishes Eric Lang's "Going Beyond Fear in Addressing Attorney Mental Health" as the Opening Paper in its Lead Articles Edition |
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FT Global was hired as a placement agent by Future Fintech (NASDAQ: FTFT) under an agreement with a three-month term and a twelve month "tail period." Two investors brought to Future Fintech by FT Global during the term ultimately invested during the tail period. Future Fintech, however, paid no fee to FT Global. FT Global sued Future Fintech, and on April 11, 2024, a jury in the Northern District of Georgia awarded FT Global $7,895,365.31 in damages for breach of contract, $1,723,136.44 in prejudgment interest, and $980,000 in attorney's fees arising out of Future Fintech's bad faith. Mr. Lang represented FT Global along with Olshan's Thomas Fleming and Jacqueline Ma.
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Going Beyond Fear in Addressing Attorney Mental Health culminates a year-long effort to change the well-intentioned (and partially successful) "one size fits all" approach that the legal profession has taken to address mental health issues. The article urges three things: (a) focusing on things we can change as opposed to things we cannot; (b) drawing lines between appropriate and inappropriate areas of institutional involvement; and (c) distinguishing between the 80 percent of population who do not have potential mental illness issues and the 20 percent who do. The most novel or even controversial sections of the article reject current conventional wisdom on suicide and depression statistics in the profession. It is the only article on David Foster Wallace, Pete Davidson, Bill James, the Book of Exodus, a Rolling Stone review of a Supertramp Album, and a Petula Clark song that is not “Downtown.”
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Eric Lang Joins State Bar of Georgia's Lawyers Living Well Podcast to Discuss Attorney Discipline and Mental Health |
American Bar Association Publishes Eric Lang's Essay on Suicide in Nationally Released Book |
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The American Bar Association's Woman Advocate Committee recently published Her Story (2): The Resilient Woman Lawyer's Guide to Conquering Obstacles, a wide ranging collection of essays on the challenges of being a woman practicing law. Eric Lang was asked to contribute an essay on suicide. Why? The lead editor explained: The book contains essays from women lawyers from various backgrounds but also includes a few essays from male lawyers. What was the thinking behind that? "In some cases, it was because we had a lack of authors on the subject. We tried to get women, for example, on the subject of suicide. It turns out the person who could write the essay for us was a guy, and we thought that was fine." To read this and other excellent essays, purchase the book on the ABA website. |
2023 HIGHLIGHTS -- BIG WINS, NEW PRACTICE AREAS, VALUED SPEAKER
Lang Legal Achieves Rare Appellate Reversal of Jury Verdict |
New Practice Area Announced and Achieves First Victory -- Attorney Discipline Defense for Lawyers with Mental Health Concerns |
In Grae Hospitality LLC v. LL Atlanta LLC, Lang Legal was hired after the client (Grae) lost a $750,000 jury verdict and after unsuccessful post-verdict motions. Adding to the challenge of seeking to overturn a jury's verdict on appeal was the contention that trial counsel had not moved for directed verdict or preserved other possible objections. We succeed in convincing the Court of Appeals of Georgia that "under the circumstances of this case, the evidence did not support the jury's breach of contract verdict.
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This year, Lang Legal began representing clients in a very narrow but important niche: attorneys navigating the State Bar's disciplinary process as a result of actions taken while dealing with mental health issues. Eric Lang is perhaps the leading expert on this issue in the state (as explained by the State Bar's General Counsel at 23:55 in this podcast) so it was a natural expansion of his practice. The first case (In re Matteson) was a success, achieving a nunc pro tunc treatment of suspension for the client.
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Eric Lang Featured as Speaker on the Future of the Practice of Law at Mercer Law Review 75th Anniversary Symposium |
Eric Lang's Expert Opinion on Attorney Mental Health Featured in ALM's Daily Report Commentary, Going Beyond Fear: The Next Phase in Addressing Attorney Mental Health |
During the 2023-24 academic year, the Mercer Law Review is commemorating its 75th anniversary. Their theme: A Course of Action: Shaping the Next 75 Years: "Challenges and Solutions in the Practice of Law." Eric Lang was invited to be one of the four members of the profession who spoke at the symposium lectures and will be published in the law review. Eric spoke on, and will be publishing on putting fear behind us as we approach the challenges relating to attorney mental health. |
As the first of a three-part initiative to take the legal community's approach on mental health into its next phase, this column outlines what is to come in a January 2024 essay being published by the ABA and very detailed Law Review article coming in April. The thesis: we have spent too much time on fear and numbers and not enough time addressing those at the higher levels of risk. |
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Core Competencies
Lang Legal has three practice emphases: dispute resolution, business representation, and consulting attorney. Though these practice areas are explored in depth on the corresponding pages, they can be briefly summarized as follows:
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Dispute Resolution: Jury trials, non-jury trials, and arbitrations taken fully to verdict or award. Motion practice and oral argument resulting in dismissal or judgment in advance of trial. Pre-litigation counseling and negotiation resulting in early endings to disputes. Broad subject matter litigation experience including contracts, insurance, real property, technology, business duties and breakups, intellectual property, executive/managerial employment disputes, and technology.
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Business Representation: Agreements, including employment agreements, purchase/sale agreements, rights transfers, and various corporate documents.
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Consulting Attorney: Brief / pleading writing and assistance; focused legal research; trial preparation; training.