Overview
Jeffrey M. Csercsevits is a Partner in the Philadelphia office, where he focuses his national practice on restrictive covenants and trade secrets.
Financial Services
Jeff regularly represents Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) firms, FINRA member firms, financial advisors, investment advisors, and financial planners in employment-related matters throughout the United States.
Jeff has represented clients in several hundred matters involving the transition of financial professionals to competitor firms. He has represented FINRA member firms and registered representatives in over 100 FINRA arbitration actions. He has also handled advisor transition matters in court, the American Arbitration Association, and JAMS Arbitration.
In the financial services space, Jeff has experience with employment agreements, non-competes, non-solicits, trade secrets, transition loans/promissory notes, retention loans, sunset/retirement agreements, teaming agreements, raiding, the Protocol for Broker Recruiting, unfair competition, wrongful termination, constructive discharge, compensation issues, and Form U5 defamation.
Injunctive Relief Litigation
Jeff has prosecuted and defended injunctive relief actions in state and federal courts throughout the United States, litigating claims of trade secret misappropriation and restrictive covenant breaches.
Employee Recruitment and Defection Counseling
Jeff routinely counsels clients on employee recruitment and hiring. He evaluates potential legal risks associated with hiring employees from the competition and offers strategic guidance for minimizing legal risk while still advancing business interests and promoting corporate growth.
Jeff also has extensive experience counseling clients on the loss of an employee to the competition. He has worked with clients to investigate breaches of post-employment obligations and to develop and implement enforcement strategies.
He has also investigated employees who are perceived flight risks and develops anticipatory strategies to minimize the impact of the expected departure. Jeff is also experienced with forensic investigations to assess an employee’s removal of trade secret information through electronic means in preparation for departure.
Upon completion of law school, Jeff served as a law clerk for the Honorable Paul T. Koenig, Jr., the Honorable Paul Innes, and the Honorable Bill Mathesius in the Superior Court of New Jersey. Jeff earned a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree in Trial Advocacy and is currently pursuing an additional LL.M. in Taxation.