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Ernst, Brown & Draper’s attorneys have decades of combined experience representing clients in both state and federal courts, administrative proceedings, state and federal agencies, as well as in corporate matters such as forming an entity, partnership agreements, and buy/sell agreements. Joshua Ernst, Thomas Brown, and Allan Draper have all worked at large regional and national firms, and believe that so-called “biglaw” legal advice and expertise should be available for clients without the associated costs.
To that end, we pride ourselves on understanding our clients’ needs and balancing those needs with the inherent risks and costs associated with formal litigation. We staff matters leanly in order to prioritize excellent legal service without a prohibitive cost that is so often the result of working with a larger firm.
Your legal matter is important to you, and it is important to us. We take pride in providing Timely. Diligent. Legal. Counsel. Please take time to review our practice areas listed below. If you have any questions, or do not know how your specific legal matter fits within our practice areas, please contact us so that we may begin the consultation process.
Individuals and businesses face legal risks every day, and often feel they have no recourse when a problem arises. Our firm has extensive experience identifying and resolving risks our clients face, including, for example:
Ernst, Brown & Draper works to understand our clients’ business in order to provide timely and practical legal advice on a variety of employment issues. In addition, we offer counseling and training on employment handbooks, wage and hour issues, termination procedures, employee discipline, noncompete agreements, harassment, and compliance with state and federal anti-discrimination laws.
Ernst, Brown & Draper represents clients in a variety of cases before state and federal agencies, such as the EEOC and the Department of Labor, as well as in state and federal courts. Our experience includes bringing and defending against wage and hour claims – including unpaid wages, unpaid overtime, and failing to pay wages upon termination – False Claims Act whistleblower and retaliation claims, noncompete claims, wrongful termination, and discrimination claims arising out of Title VII and state anti-discrimination laws.
As a business owner, you want to make sure that your business is positioned for growth and success. Ernst, Brown & Draper is uniquely situated to help you realize your goals. We provide representation in all stages of corporate growth, from preparing founding corporate documents, partnership and joint venture agreements, to representing your business in its various stages of growth, including drafting and revising supplier/vendor contracts and partnership buy/sell agreements. In addition, Allan Draper has spent the last several years successfully starting and growing a number of businesses in Arizona and throughout the country, and he understands the unique issues every business owner faces.
It is never to soon to begin to think about and plan for your future. While some people may feel uncomfortable thinking this subject or believe that they can or should wait until later in life to begin to put a plan in place, the reality is that you never know when a major life event is about to happen. A proper estate plan takes away the worry about what happens to your assets and whether your loved ones will be taken care of following your passing or incapacitation.
Joshua Ernst is a named partner of Ernst, Brown & Draper, PLLC. In private practice at a large Phoenix firm, Joshua represented clients in complex commercial litigation cases, including breach of contract, fraud, misappropriation of trade secrets, and insurance subrogation claims. In addition, Joshua has also represented parties in wrongful termination, wage and hour disputes, and defensed employers against EEOC charging letters. Joshua has practiced in Maricopa County Superior Court, Arizona District Court, the Arizona Court of Appeals and the Arizona Supreme Court, including drafting a successful Petition for Review to the Arizona Supreme Court, ultimately leading to a successful decision in his client’s favor.
For the past five years, Joshua has served as in-house litigation counsel for Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District. While there, Joshua defended multiple personal injury, property damage, and wrongful death claims, as well as unique antitrust and other statutory issues. Joshua’s time in-house deepened his appreciation and ability to get to a workable solution that takes into account the relevant risks, benefits, and importantly, costs to achieve his client’s desired results. While at SRP, Joshua regularly met with executive-level management to provide practical legal advice and provide recommendations on how various business groups might accomplish their goals. Joshua understands that running a business requires a certain level of risk, and he takes pride in partnering with business owners to minimize those risks where possible and defending his clients’ interests when necessary.
Joshua is heavily involved with his family and church, and enjoys spending time with his wife and five children.
Arizona – 2012
District of Arizona – 2013
Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law – 2012 Summa Cum Laude
