Founder's Biography

Peter C. McMahon is the founder of the McMahon Law Group (“MLG”). He established MLG because he believed there was a strong need in Silicon Valley for a distinguished litigation boutique law firm dedicated to providing its clients with exceptional service, creative legal solutions, and passion and excellence in representation. In addition to managing the firm, Mr. McMahon also currently provides counseling and litigation representation to a broad range of companies located within Silicon Valley and beyond.

Prior to founding MLG, Mr. McMahon was with the preeminent law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP (“Orrick”) for seven years in its Employment Law Department, where he gained extensive experience in employment and intellectual property litigation. Mr. McMahon’s litigation excellence was recognized in June 2001, when he was tapped by Orrick to defend the firm in a disability discrimination case filed against Orrick in San Francisco. Mr. McMahon co-chaired the two-week jury trial, wherein the trial team obtained a jury verdict in favor of Orrick. In 1998, Mr. McMahon appeared as lead trial counsel in a two-week workplace violence jury trial, where he also prevailed for his client.

Mr. McMahon has extensive experience in counseling employers regarding cutting-edge legal issues presented by the introduction of the Internet into the workplace, and the impact of technological advances on workplace privacy and its potential for liability to employers. Because of Mr. McMahon’s interest in high-tech legal issues, he also provides counseling to clients in software licensing and trade secret matters.

From 1990 through 1996, Mr. McMahon was an Assistant General Counsel with the Department of Defense (Defense Investigative Service) in Washington, D.C., where he was responsible for Industrial Security oversight, litigation, and advice and counseling. During his tenure he successfully obtained numerous defense verdicts in lawsuits tried before the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which included claims of sexual harassment, discrimination, and wrongful termination. Mr. McMahon was recognized with a Distinguished Service award in recognition of his distinguished service and significant contributions to the Office of General Counsel.

In addition to his extensive litigation experience, Mr. McMahon has authored and published several papers, including:

• Wrongful Termination: Whistleblowing & Retaliation (Nov. 2002) (NELI Employment Law Conference 2002).
• Fall-Out After Enron: An In-Depth Analysis of Sarbanes-Oxley and Whistleblower Law (Oct. 2002) (21st Annual Seminar for Employers).
• Retaliation Under the EEO Laws (Oct. 2002) (21st Annual Seminar for Employers).
• Race, Religious and National Origin Discrimination (Oct. 2001).
• Enforcement Issues in Securities Law & The Internet: Doing Business in a Rapidly Changing Marketplace, at 265 (PLI Corp. L. & Prac. Course Handbook No. B-1127 June-July 1999).
• Chapter 3: Wage and Hour. (1998)(California Employment Law Deskbook).
• Sexual Harassment Investigations for Employers (1998) (Annual Seminar for Employers).
• Expert Polygraph Evidence and Questioned Document Experts (co-author) (Aug. 1998) (American Bar Association – Section of Labor and Employment Law).
• An Employer’s Right to “Private” Information (Oct. 1997) (Personnel Law Institute).
• Recent Developments Re: The Family Medical Leave Act (co-author) (May 1997) (NELI Employment Law Conference).

Mr. McMahon earned his B.A in Law Enforcement from the University of Maryland in 1986, and his Juris Doctor from Catholic University in 1992. In 1995, while he was with the Department of Defense, Mr. McMahon was a Master’s Degree candidate at Georgetown University, in the National Securities Studies Program (School of Foreign Service). Mr. McMahon abandoned the pursuit of his Master’s Degree when he moved to the West Coast in 1996 to join Orrick.