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Angela H. France
Recognized as one of Virginia's "Legal Elite" by Virginia Business Magazine, a "Rising Star," by Virginia Super Lawyers, and a "Rising Star" by Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers*, Ms. France is highly regarded for her legal counsel to businesses and clients in the Washington Metropolitan area.
Ms. France is a seasoned litigator, who regularly appears in state and federal courts on behalf of business clients in complex commercial disputes, business torts, and employment actions, including the well-known "Rocket Docket" of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. Additionally, Ms. France offers a wealth of corporate transactional experience on a wide-range of legal disciplines, including business contracts, corporate formation, mergers and acquisitions, employment matters, bankruptcy, and creditor's rights. Prior to joining PCT, Ms. France was a partner at one of Virginia's largest law firms.
Ms. France is a respected lecturer and author. She has lectured at the National Business Institute and served as a guest lecturer at the George Washington University Law School. Her writing credits include articles in Atlantic Coast In-House and the Society for Human Resource Management.
Ms. France is a primary contributor and the Co-Editor of the
Virginia Business Law Update Blog,
which is published by PCT Law Group.
Experience
- Litigation counsel for businesses in various industries regarding contractual, business torts, trademark infringement and other intellectual property disputes.
- Appears regularly in the federal and state courts located in Virginia and the District of Columbia on behalf of clients.
- Represented local business against a global conglomerate in its defense of a multi-million dollar trade secret dispute, which resulted in a favorable settlement.
- Represented a large professional association in Canada in its defense of a trademark action, which resulted in the dismissal of the case on jurisdictional grounds.
- Successfully pursued and obtained a multi-million dollar debt payment on behalf of a lending institution.
- Represented real estate developer in its defense of a contract action filed by an architect, which resulted in the dismissal of the case.
- Represented government contractor in its defense of a patent infringement claim, which resulted in a favorable settlement.
- Represented financial institutions in the collection of unpaid loans.
- Represented creditors in bankruptcy matters.
- Represented creditor in a multi-jurisdiction collection of a multi-million dollar judgment against an architect and real estate business, which involved novel legal issues such as the use of computer data obtained from seized computers.
- Represented trustee in an adversary bankruptcy matter in its prosecution of a multi-million dollar fraudulent conveyance matter against the debtor, which resulted in a favorable trial verdict.
- Represented client in an employment matter before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, which resulted in a favorable appellate ruling.
- Successfully resolved employment matters and obtained dismissals of employment discrimination charges.
- Represented one of the top 100 largest U.S. government contractors in connection with its acquisition of a Virginia technology company.
- Represented a government contract company in a multi-million dollar sale of a business division’s assets.
- Represented and advised clients on business formation and governance issues, including C corporations, S corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships, articles of incorporation, bylaws, partnership agreements, shareholder agreements, employee incentive programs, stock plans, and fiduciary responsibilities.
- Represented government contractors and other business entities in the preparation of various commercial agreements, non-disclosure agreements, executive employment agreements, non-compete and non-solicitation agreements, severance agreements, licensing agreements, SBA issues including minority-owned and women-owned business set-asides and mentor-protégé relationships, teaming agreements, strategic alliances, and joint venture agreements.
Representative Publications
- "7th Circuit: FMLA, ADA Claims Fail Where Employee Violated Company’s Substance Abuse Policy," Society for Human Resource Management Court Report (January 2011)
- "7th Circuit: Employer Not Required to Maintain an Existing Position to Accommodate Employee," Society for Human Resource Management Legal Report (April 2010)
- "9th Circuit: Settlement by Class Representative Does Not Bar Certification Appeal," Society for Human Resource Management Legal Report (January 2010)
- "State Statutes of Limitations Apply to Federal Whistleblowers Claims," Society for Human Resource Management Court Report (July 2005)
- "Cell Phone Use While Driving Can Pose Real Problems for Employers," Atlantic Coast In-House, A Quarterly Publication of Lawyer's Weekly, Inc. (January 2005)
- "Decision-Maker's Hate Speech was Direct Evidence of Discrimination," Society for Human Resource Management Court Report (March 2004)
- "Mental Disorders did not Substantially Limit Major Life Activity," Society for Human Resource Management Court Report (July 2004)
- "Employer Not Liable for Nondecision-Maker’s Influence on Employment Action," Society for Human Resource Management Court Report (January 2004)
- "Mental Disorders did not Amount to Disability: Rohan v. Networks Presentations LLC, 4th Cir.," HR Magazine (October 2004)
- "Workplace Monitoring: Balancing Business Interests with Employee Privacy Rights," Society for Human Resource Management Legal Report (May-June 2003)
Education
- George Mason University School of Law, J.D.
- James Madison University, B.S.
Bar Admissions
- Virginia
- District of Columbia