Back

Founder
Portland, Seattle & California Office
He/Him

503-734-2480
dsands@bradleybernstein.com

Darin Sands

Darin is a founding partner of BBS.  A member of the California, Oregon, and Washington bars, Darin has nearly two decades experience advising companies in the successful resolution of complex commercial disputes. He has successfully litigated complex disputes involving trade secrets, claims of unfair competition, business and partnership disputes, antitrust, fiduciary duties, and novel issues of constitutional law. He also helps his clients reduce their litigation risk by helping them develop tailored data privacy, security, and trade secret strategies.

Darin’s practice is built on listening to his clients, understanding their organizations and industries, and working collaboratively with them to efficiently achieve their legal and business goals. To that end, Darin also serves as a mediator and arbitrator for complex commercial disputes throughout the West Coast.

After litigating on behalf of some of the world’s biggest companies at Gibson Dunn in California and Heller Ehrman in Seattle, Darin returned to his hometown of Portland to work at Lane Powell (now Ballard Spahr) in 2010. There, he led the firm’s litigation department as well as the class action and privacy and data security groups. He founded the firm’s electronic discovery practice group and served as the firm’s “Innovation Chair,” where he was responsible for modernizing the firm’s client services.

Darin regularly serves as pro bono counsel to individuals and to organizations such as the ACLU, Basic Rights Oregon, and Compassion & Choices in emerging areas of federal and state constitutional law.

Darin is based in Oregon, but regularly litigates matters for clients across the United States.

He is the current Board Chair of the Civics Learning Project and member of the ACLU of Oregon’s Lawyer’s Committee.

Education

  • Harvard Law School (2004)

    • Teaching and Research Assistant to Carl M. Loeb University Professor Laurence Tribe (Constitutional Law)

    • Teaching and Research Assistant to Visiting Professor Murray Dry (Harvard College) (Constitutional Law)

    • Editor, Harvard Journal of Law & Technology

  • Middlebury College, magna cum laude (2000)

  • London School of Economics (1998-1999)

Clerkships

  • Hon. Robert S. Lasnik, United States District Court, Western District of Washington

Admissions

  • Oregon

  • California

  • Washington

  • Represented high profile Portland business in high stakes dispute with website developer.

    Represented fast growing recycling company in efforts to challenge unlawful and unconstitutional actions by local government entities blocking its ability to serve customers

    Represents majority partners in partnership dispute involving a profitable northwest medical practice

    Represented company in fraud case against terminated CEO

    Represented family in ongoing business dispute involving issues of LLC governance

    Advised international company with regard to indemnification and litigation exposure arising from eight figure product liability trial

    Successfully represented family-owned local food manufacturing company in contractual dispute with major supplier

    Represented five executives accused of breaching their fiduciary duties in connection with the purchase and sale of a company in a three-week trial

    Obtained favorable settlements in federal and state court on behalf of a public utility pursuing fraud and breach of fiduciary duty claims against a former executive

    Represented California cannabis grower in breach of contract dispute against international cannabis company

    Represented numerous individuals and companies in trade secret/non-compete litigation involving novel issues of Oregon and Washington law

  • Represented Japanese and Taiwanese clients in MDL class action litigation arising out of allegations of price fixing in the auto parts, CRT screen and LCD industries

    Represented a large national retailer in complex wage and hour class action litigation in Oregon and California

    Successfully defeated class action claims against California hospitality provider based on alleged consumer protection violations related to pricing

  • Serving as lead counsel representing public company in ongoing cartel investigation by Department of Justice

    Represent company in class action antitrust lawsuits involving property rental software

    Represented Japanese and Taiwanese clients in MDL class action litigation and Department of Justice criminal investigations arising out of allegations of price fixing in the auto parts, CRT screen and LCD industry

    Representing major real estate software company in defense of multiple antitrust class actions pending in Western District of Washington alleging conspiracy in multi-family real estate market

    Successfully achieved dismissal of Sherman Act and RICO claims against major mortgage servicing company in the District of Oregon

  • Successfully challenged Oregon state statute which unconstitutionally discriminated against out of state residents seeking end of life care in Oregon (pro bono)

    Co-counsel with ACLU and ACLU of Oregon in successfully defeating a lawsuit (in the District of Oregon, Ninth Circuit, and in Supreme Court’s denial of cert) seeking to strike down policies designed to protect transgender students (pro bono)

    Cooperating counsel with ACLU of Oregon in numerous cases seeking to recognize and protect student speech rights (pro bono)

    Drafted amicus brief for United States Supreme Court on impact of First Amendment case on end of life care

    Cooperating counsel with ACLU of Washington in landmark case challenging the conditioning of the restoration of former felon voting rights on the payment of legal financial obligations (pro bono)

    Counsel to Compassion & Choices in amicus brief submitted to the United States Supreme Court (pro bono)

  • Represents social media company in ongoing data security compliance efforts

    Represents fast-growing, publicly traded software company in ongoing trade secret and non-compete litigation in federal courts across the country

    Obtained preliminary injunction on behalf of a publicly traded software company seeking to block a former contract partner from illegally distributing confidential, trade secret material

    Successfully defended publicly traded software company in a New York lawsuit involving breach of contract and novel CCPA/California unfair trade practices claims

    Co-counsel for health insurance company in data breach-related MDL class action in the District of Oregon

    Represent some of the country’s largest technology and pharmaceutical companies arising from public records act disputes related to attempted disclosure of trade secret and other confidential material

    Outside data security and privacy counsel to a publicly traded financial services client and two of the largest privately held companies in the northwest

  • Oregon Super Lawyer (2018-2025)

    Oregon Rising Star (2012-2017)

    Best Law Firm, U.S. News (Tier 1 in commercial litigation in Portland)

    Benchmark Litigation’s “40 & Under Hot List” (2016-2018)

    Board Chair, Board of Directors, Civics Learning Project

    Former Coach, Lincoln High School Constitution Team

    Member, ACLU of Oregon’s Lawyer’s Committee

    Global Competition Review, Litigation of the Year—Cartel Defense Award (2019)

    Former Chair of the Federal Bar Association’s Antitrust and Trade Regulation Section

    Former Chair of the Executive Committee of the Oregon Bar Association’s Antitrust and Trade Regulation Section.

    “International Criminal Cartel Handbook,” American Bar Association, co-author of chapter on U.S. Department of Justice Price Fixing Investigations (2019)

    “Big Data: Big Deal,” Annual EEOC Training Seminar, Seattle, Panelist (September 2018)

    “The Intersection of Data Privacy, Security and Investigations: What Law Firms Need to Know,” LegalWeek, New York, Panelist (January 2018)

    “Cybersecurity for Corporate and Outside Counsel: Responding to Data Breaches to Minimize Impact,” Legaltech West Coast, San Francisco, Panelist (June 2016)

    “How Technology Is Changing the Rules of Complex Business Litigation,” Oregon State Bar Litigation Section, Panelist (March 2015)

    “Criminal Antitrust Enforcement,” Washington State Bar Association Annual Seminar, Seattle, Panelist (November 2014)

    “Man v. Machine: Benefits and Perils of Automated E-Discovery,” American Bar Association’s Antitrust Law Spring Meeting, Washington D.C., Panelist (March 2014)

    Former Member, Multnomah Association Judicial Selection Committee