ELLIOTT H. STONE

Elliott H. Stone is managing partner of STONE LLP, a firm founded by his late father, Harry N. Stone, in 1970. Like his late father, mentor and law partner, Elliott’s practice focuses on business, construction and real estate litigation.  Elliott also practices airport and aviation law. Mr. Stone represents business owners, construction companies, developers, lenders, property owners and aviation-related organizations in resolving complex business disputes.

Mr. Stone has successfully resolved cases involving: breach of construction contracts (both private and public works), breach of loan agreements, personal guarantee disputes, mechanics liens, real estate fraud; real estate identity theft; real estate title theft, borrower-lender disputes; bankruptcy nondischargeability adversary proceedings; fraudulent (voidable) transfers; defense of receiverships; breach of construction contracts; breach of promissory notes; Penal Code §496 disputes; quiet title to real property; cancellation of instruments (on real estate); business partner disputes, court-supervised business dissolutions, FAA grant assurance compliance enforcement disputes and more.

Mr. Stone has successfully taken numerous cases to trial over his career and freely admits to his clients that litigation is the worst way to resolve disputes, but sometimes it may be the only option. As such, Mr. Stone is a strong advocate of alternative dispute resolution, such as mediation and is a Pepperdine Strauss Institute trained mediator. Mr. Stone finds his mediation background invaluable in representing clients in mediation, arbitration and litigation. 

Representative matters handled by Mr. Stone have included winning a trial for an architect who was not paid for his services in Aarons Architects v. Ibrahimi; winning a breach of construction contract trial for a solar contractor in Best Solar Power v. Unzuetta; winning an arbitration for a roofing contractor in Pride Roofing v. Abernathy; obtaining a judgment after a 4-month trial in a high-stakes public works breach of construction contract action representing a low-voltage subcontractor against a large national prime contractor in WnG Construction Inc. v. AAA Network Solutions Inc.; obtaining a favorable settlement for a media-company client after filing a game-changing cross-complaint against their commercial landlord for breach of lease in M&A Gabaee Properties v. Prager University; obtaining an adversary proceeding  judgment of nondischangeability against a debtor for operating a fraudulent business scheme in the matter In Re Valente; obtaining an outstanding result for a mortgage lender client after years of litigation, including detours through bankruptcy court, in Haba v. Vicino Limited Partnership; and representing a pilot association against the Orange County Airport based on the airport’s violation of multiple FAA grant assurances. Mr. Stone also takes pro bono matters, time permitting, in his core practice areas as well as in consumer protection (Auto dealer frauds and schemes, FDCPA, FCRA and Unfair Business Practice claims under Ca. B&P 17200).

Mr. Stone holds a Bachelors of Science degree in Agribusiness from Arizona State University and a Juris Doctor degree. After earning his undergraduate degree, but before going into the family business practicing law, Elliott was in the technology and later the real estate industries enjoying brief careers with Pacific Bell and Lucent Technologies. 

Mr. Stone holds a law license, real estate license, pilot license, sailing license and driver license. Outside of the office, Mr. Stone enjoys bad jokes, flying airplanes, classic cars, and raising his children (all of whom are under 9 years old), but not always in that order.