Professional Experience

Current Positions

Mediator and Arbitrator (2008 to present)

Lecturer at UCLA School of Law (2011 to present) (International Commercial Arbitration and International Commercial Arbitration Advocacy)

Independent Consultant to Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom on Franchise and Distribution Law Issues (2009 to present)

Member, ICC Commission on Arbitration (2008-2012, 2016 to date); Member, ICC Task Force on the Production of Electronically Stored Information in International Arbitration.

Affiliated Faculty Member, Lowell Milken Institute for Busines Law and Policy, UCLA School of Law

Affiliated Faculty Member, The Global Public Affairs Program at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs

Fellow, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (2012)

Member, Executive Committee, North American Branch, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (2014 to present)

Co-Chair, Southwest Arbitration Subcommittee, USCIB (2008-2012, 2014 to present)

Secretary and Past Chair, ADR Subcommittee, Litigation Section, State Bar of California (2013- present)

Member AAA (mediation and commercial arbitration), ICDR, ICC, CPR (franchise, employment, cross-border) panels and Korean Commercial Arbitration Board

Past Positions

Member, Supreme Court of California International Commercial Arbitration Working Group (2017)

Adjunct Professor of Law at Loyola Law School of Los Angeles (2002 - 2011) (Trial Advocacy and Franchise Law)

Past Co-Chair, Franchise Law Standing Committee, Business Law Section, State Bar of California

Past Member, Executive Committee, Business Law Section, State Bar of California

Litigation and International Arbitration Partner and Member of Franchise Law Group, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom (1986 - 2008)

Litigation Associate, Loo, Merideth & McMillen (1983 - 1986)

Regional President, Vice President, and Local President, Council of Social Security District Office Locals, American Federation of Government Employees (1978 - 1983)

Primary Practice Areas

Franchise and Distribution law

Oil and gas energy contracts, unitization and equity disputes

Employment-related and ADA class actions

Consumer class actions

Complex business/commercial multi-party disputes, including issues arising out of mergers and acquisitions

Personal injury and premises liability

Education

J.D., Loyola Law School of Los Angeles (1983) (Cum Laude) (9th Circuit    Editor, Loyola Law Review)

M.A., UCLA (1978)

B.A., UC Davis (1974) (With Honors)

Advanced Mediation, Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution (2012)

Mediating the Litigated Case, Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution (2008)

Bar and Court Admissions

California Bar (1983)

United States Court of Appeals for Fourth Circuit (2005), Sixth Circuit (1993), Eighth Circuit (1991), and Ninth Circuit (1984)

United States District Courts for Central District of California (1984), Northern District of California (1987), Eastern District of California (1995), Southern District of California (1996), Eastern District of Wisconsin (1987), District of Arizona (1998)

Awards

Legal Leaders, Southern California’s Top Rated Lawyers of 2013 and 2014 (Franchise Law)

Outstanding Volunteer Contributions, Los Angeles Superior Court ADR Program (2009)

Southern California Super Lawyer Franchise and Distribution Law (2004)

Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent rated

Publications

“Religious Arbitration Agreements In Contracts Of Adhesion,” Penn State Yearbook On Arbitration And Mediation, Vol. 8, pg. 45 (2016).

“Is it Time to Awaken the New York Convention’s Dormant General Reciprocity Clause?,”  The American Review of International Arbitration, Vol. 26, pg. 542 (2016).

“International Commercial Arbitration for Law Students”  (2014).  Use the following web address to browse contents: http://www.amazon.com/International-Commercial-Arbitration-Law-Students-ebook/dp/B00LYTBTQU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1406166565&sr=8-1&keywords=dasteel

“The Ethical Obligations of Party Representatives in International Arbitrations Seated in the United States,” Paper presented at the LACBA & ICDR 3rd Annual International Arbitration Conference (2014)

Co-Author, “Crossing Borders: The Legislature Should Allow Parties In International Arbitrations In California To Choose Their Preferred Attorneys,” Los Angeles Lawyer (November 2013). Click here to view article: http://www.lacba.org/Files/LAL/Vol36No8/3088.pdf

“California Arbitration Act Update: CCP § 1281.2(c) After AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion,” California Business Law Practitioner, Vol. 28/Number 2 (Spring 2013)

“Arbitration Agreements That Discriminate In The Selection And Appointment of Arbitrators,” 11 Rich. J. Global L. & Bus. 383 (2012) Click here to view article: http://rjglb.richmond.edu/index.php/arbitration-agreements-that-discriminate-in-the-selection-and-appointment-of-arbitrators/

Co-Author, Chapter on Franchising, Business and Commercial Litigation in the Federal Courts (multi-volume treatise) (West 2012)

Chapter III.10-United States, Practitioner’s Handbook on International Arbitration and Mediation, 3rd Ed. (2012)

“International Commercial Arbitration,” California Business Law Practitioner, Vol. 26/Number 3 (Summer 2011)

Co-Author, “What’s Money Got To Do with It?: How subjective, Ad Hoc Standards for Permitting Money Damages in Rule 23(b)(2) Injunctive Relief Classes Undermine Rule 23’s analytical framework,” Tulane Law Review, July 2006

Co-Author, “American Werewolves in London,” Arbitration International, Vol. 18, No.2, October 2, 2002

Speaker, “Multi-Party Arbitration: A Review of Best Practices,” USC-JAMS Arbitration Institute, USC Gould School of Law, 2nd Annual ADR Symposium (2017)

Speaker, “Click Arbitration - A Review Of Online Consumer Arbitration Agreements,” Penn State Law School Symposium on Controversies in Arbitration (2017)

Speaker, “Using a Mock Arbitration to Improve Your Case,” ICC Young Arbitrators’ Forum (2016)

Speaker, “The ABC’s of Arbitration and Mediation,” 2016 Solo and Small Firm Summit, State Bar of California (2016)

Speaker, “Counsel Ethics in International Arbitration: Is Self-Regulation Sufficient?”, USC Gould School of Law, 1st Annual ADR Symposium (2016)

Speaker, “To Disclose Or Not To Disclose: That Is The Question -- The Whens, Hows, Whats and Ethics of Arbitrator Disclosure Obligations,” AAA Roundtable (2016)

Speaker, “Enforcement of Religious Arbitration In Contracts Of Adhesion,” Penn State Law School Symposium on the Politics of Arbitration (2016)

Panelist, “”To Litigate or Arbitrate: When is Arbitration the Answer for International Disputes?,” California Minority Counsel Program Annual Business Conference (2015)

Moderator, “International Arbitration in California,” Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, North American Branch, Centennial Conference (2015)

Panelist, “Getting the Edge in Arbitration: Fees and 998 Offers,” Webinar Presented by the California State Bar, Litigation Section, ADR Subcommittee (2015)

Panelist, “Ethics Across Borders: the Standards that Apply in ICC Arbitration and how they are Enforced,” Young Arbitrators Forum, International Arbitration: Procedure, Ethics and Neutrality (2015)

Moderator, “How to Litigate a Franchise Dispute,” Webinar Presented by the California State Bar, Business Law Section, Franchise Law Committee (2015)

Panelist, “Effective Advocacy in International Arbitration,” California State Bar, International Law Section (2015)

Panelist, “Getting the Edge in Arbitration: Fees and 998 Offers,” Presentation to the California State Bar Annual Meeting (2014)

Webinar Panelist, “Navigating the Rough Seas: When the FAA meets the CAA,” California State Bar, Litigation Section, ADR Subcommittee (2014)

Panelist, “Ethical Standards for Counsel in International Arbitration,” Presentation to the LACBA & ICDR 3rd Annual International Arbitration Conference (2014)

Webinar Panelist, “What California Litigators Need To Know About International Commercial Arbitration,” California State Bar, Litigation Section, ADR Subcommittee (2014)

Panelist, “International Arbitration: The Use of Reliance Documents & Expert Witnesses - Efficiency & Fairness,” Presentation to the LACBA 2nd Annual International Arbitration Conference (2013)

Panelist, “What Every Litigator and Mediator Needs to Know About Expedited Jury Trials,” Presentation to the State Bar of California Annual Meeting (2012 and 2013)

“The 2012 ICC Rules: Efficiency and Flexibility,” Co-Presenter, Los Angeles International Arbitration Forum (2012)

“Legal Foundation for International Commercial Arbitration,”  Presentation to Whittier Law School International Law Symposium (2010)

“Franchisee and Franchisor Insolvencies,” Audio Presentation for the Business Law Section of the California State Bar Focus on the Economy Series (2009)

“E-Discovery and Third Party Discovery in International Arbitration: Current Status,” Los Angeles International Arbitration Forum (2009)

“The Franchise Model,” Presentation to EPA energy Star Symposium (2007)

“Arbitrating the Mega Case: Prehearing Issues - Early Management,” Presentation to ABA Section of Dispute Resolution (2008)

“Renting a Franchise,” Presentation to the State Bar of California Annual Meeting (2008)

“Whose Sandbox Is It anyway? - Jurisdiction to Determine Jurisdiction In International Arbitration,” Presentation to the USCIB Southwest Subcommittee on Arbitration (2008)