Kirby Noonan Managing Partner Both Leads and Litigates
5/1/2008

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Charles Hoge has a passion for law.  So much so that he holds the post as managing parnter of the firm Kirby Noonan Lance & Hoge LLP - and is still a full-time litigator.

"It's a nice diversion from the law to manage people. It fell into my lap in October of 2002, and it's great to have an opportunity to manage a 50-person firm," Hoge said. "It doesn't seem like a distraction. Some people want to see movies or read books to round out their day. Managing a business does that for me."

Hoge joined Kirby Noonan in 1988 and became a partner in 1990. His interest in law actually began when he was 16, and he's been practicing for more than two decades. About two years ago, Kirby Noonan was on the community's radar for its name change from Post, Kirby, Noonan & Sweat LLP to include Hoge and another new partner.

"The decision was made then to just look forward at who would be practicing in 10years and branding a name around those people," Hoge said. "It was a challenging step, and people around town asked a lot of questions -- especially since the firm has been around since '76."

More recently, the firm has been growing. This in part prompted a move two months ago from the American Plaza Building, an enclave for several law firms, to the DiamondView Tower downtown.

"We are overlooking the ballpark, and the East Village is so vibrant," said Hoge.

"To be in a new space in a new part of town makes it feel like the firm got a sudden facelift."

Hoge's own practice seems to constantly be injected with a dose of change as well. During his career, Hoge has handled cases ranging from real estate to contract disputes to copyright litigation. Half of his cases were once employment,but now the majority of them lean more toward intellectual property. Hoge believes the increase in the value of intellectual property versus that of manufactured "widgets" has also gone hand in hand with clients getting more educated and sophisticated.

In a current case, Hoge is representing an Orange County pharmaceutical company in a dispute over whether proprietary technology has properly found its way to China. He mentions the international treaties in place to deal with breaches of agreements and commercial arbitration, and he has found recent success for a client in this arena.

In the earlier years of the dot-com era, cybersquatting -- the way dot-com names were being bought -- was a big issue. Today, Hoge handles more and more trade secret and patent litigation, two aspects of intellectual property law.

From an industry standpoint, Hoge predicts the trend over the past several years toward alternative dispute resolution may subside a bit. This alternative to going to court typically comes in the form of mediation -- using independent help to solve the case. It can also mean arbitration, a trial by someone like a judge but paid by the hour.

"There's been a proliferation of arbitration over the last 20 years, and I think it's getting near a peak," Hoge said.  "I think it may settle in because people understand the shortcomings of it. It's on a pendulum swing back; it's still growing, but not as fast as it was a few years ago."

Hoge also expects there to be a push by the court system to continue its trend toward more efficiency via streamlined rules. San Diego was on the leading edge of that when it initiated fast-track in the late '80s, which mandated that when cases were filed they would go to trial within a year. Today, the process of gathering backup trial information has been made even more complicated -- and more time-consuming -- by e-mail.

"There is a lot more policing of the discovery process under the rules limiting the amount of discovery and trying to put monetary disincentives to abuse. The information age has made the discovery process horribly expensivewith the challenges of dealing with e-mail and backup tape," he said. "It's a huge expense: The discovery cost of accessing information can be as high as the case itself."

Outside of law, Hoge does enjoy a few other diversions. He makes time to go fly-fishing and currently champions a professional basketball team in San Diego, the San Diego Wildcats. He is one of the founders, was involved with picking the team, and even sat on the bench as assistant coach in the early days.

"It's been a challenge for people to embrace us," he says of the Wildcats. "There are lots of alternatives to do, so it's a slow movement. But I am hopeful we'll someday have the NBA back in town. There are lots of nuts like me, and hopefully the interest will keep growing."

By JILL BLACKFORD, Special to the Daily Transcript
Blackford is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer.
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