Overview
Alexander Erwig joined Dovel & Luner after graduating magna cum laude from Harvard Law School.
Alexander is currently working on several high-profile matters, including a suit against a business owner refusing to honor a contract to provide his partner with an interest in the business, a suit for breach of fiduciary duty against directors who misappropriated the property at the core of their company’s business, and a suit against a company for deceiving minority shareholders into selling their interest at a much lower price than it was worth.
In his first two years at the firm, Alexander took over 30 depositions (including depositions of experts, named defendants, and high-level executives), argued and won a critical summary judgment motion, and briefed over a dozen important motions on various issues.
Alexander was born and raised in Germany and moved to Oregon when he was five. He attended the University of Oregon, where he was extensively involved in debate, both as a competitor and a coach. After graduating, Alexander worked for an environmental non-profit organization in Eugene in the year before attending law school.
In his free time, Alexander enjoys playing basketball, hiking, skiing, and spending time in the outdoors.
Education
- Harvard Law School, (J.D., magna cum laude, 2020)
- University of Oregon Clark Honors College, (B.A., cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, 2016)
Notable Cases
Collecting unpaid fees. Our client, 1440 Sports, connects sports organizations with potential sponsors. When 1440 Sports makes a successful introduction, it should get paid for its work. But, after successfully introducing one major sports organization to a sponsor, the organization refused to pay our client. We represented 1440 Sports to right this wrong. After defeating the other side’s summary judgment motion, the case settled on confidential terms a few weeks before trial.
Justice for medical repair company. Intuitive Surgical inserts a “use counter” on certain medical robotic instruments that causes them to stop working after a certain number of uses, which forces hospitals to throw those instruments away and buy new ones at exorbitant prices. Our client, Rebotix Repair, offers a proprietary service that can repair those instruments and reset the use counter, thereby saving hospitals thousands of dollars. Intuitive used its power in the marketplace to prevent Rebotix from offering its services to hospitals. Rebotix came to us for help. We filed suit, alleging antitrust violations. After we defeated Intuitive’s summary judgment motion (and multiple Daubert motions), the case settled on confidential terms.
Recovery for creditors. Alexander represented the Toys “R” Us Creditor Litigation Trust in a lawsuit against former directors and officers of Toys “R” Us alleging various claims arising out of the Toys “R” Us bankruptcy. Alexander helped Dovel & Luner successfully secure a global settlement on behalf of the Trust before trial.
Personal Facts
- One of Alexander’s greatest new-found irrational fears is scuba diving.
- Alexander has never pumped his own gas (it’s illegal in Oregon).
- Alexander’s favorite music is German rap.
Joining Dovel & Luner
As a debater, I was drawn to the process of strategizing with my team, crafting arguments, and most importantly, practicing to hone our skills. When I transitioned to coaching a high school team, I worked hard to teach my students the value of regular practice and I saw firsthand how it improved their arguments.
I split summers both my first and second year of law school, and worked at prestigious big law firms in New York and D.C. as well as at Dovel & Luner. I was searching for a firm that would allow me to quickly shoulder responsibility and trust me to meaningfully contribute to its cases. In particular, I wanted a firm that would emphasize the deliberate and repeated practice of oral argument skills.
At Dovel & Luner practicing trial skills was at the core of the firm’s identity, and I was a member of the team from my first day as a summer associate. I can’t imagine feeling more at home.