Celebrating Over 75 Years of Serving Nevada’s Legal, Business, Government, and Civic Communities
Professional Background
Clients rely on Brian for his practical and thoughtful legal advice on a wide range of matters relating to their business and commercial interests. Brian is Chair of McDonald Carano’s Business Entities & Transactions Practice. Brian shared his insights on M&A trends and developments in an interview with Nevada Business Magazine available here.
In 2026 and 2024, Brian received the Lawyer of the Year award in Corporate Law for the Northern Nevada region from The Best Lawyers in America. Since 2024, Brian has also received the highest AV Preeminent Peer Review rating from Martindale-Hubbell as well as top ranked Band 2 recognition in Corporate/Commercial Law in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business. Chambers’ ranking process includes confidential surveys and interviews with clients. Following are comments about Brian that our clients provided to Chambers researchers during annual client feedback reviews.
- “Brian is really knowledgeable, proactive and asks the right questions.”
- “He’s extremely professional, knowledgeable, and responsive. We highly value Brian’s advice and counsel.”
- “Anytime we have a need for Brian we know we can be fully confident with his direction. It’s a great burden lifted off of us knowing we have his knowledge and experience at our disposal.”
- “Brian is everything that I could hope for in an attorney. He is smart, well versed, humble, and logical.”
Brian assists Nevada and Northern California companies with commercial business transactions, business formation and governance issues, financing transactions, real estate transactions and development, franchise law, and mergers and acquisitions. Whether Brian is representing one of his Fortune 500 clients or a small local company, his focus remains on providing his clients with efficient and effective solutions. Brian also regularly serves as local Nevada and California counsel for complex multi-jurisdiction transactions with Nevada and California corporate and real property components.
Education and Certifications
- J.D., University of California at Davis School of Law, 2004 (Articles Editor, U.C. Davis Law Review)
- B.A., cum laude, Colby College, 1998
- University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand, Spring 1997
- School for International Training, Chile, Fall 1996
Bar Admissions
- Nevada
- California
- New York
Representative Experience
- Serves as outside counsel to regional privately-held petroleum company, generally providing advice on various transactional, corporate governance, real estate and operational matters.
- Represented a regional healthcare nonprofit as outside general counsel, providing advice on corporate governance, real estate and operational matters.
- Served as Nevada counsel to, and advised, a Fortune 500 gaming company on various issues related to corporate governance, real estate and development, securities offerings and financing.
- Acted as Nevada counsel to an NYSE listed financial institution generally providing advice on various corporate governance and securities issues.
- Served as Nevada counsel to a NYSE listed Canadian multinational restaurant chain in connection with its internal reorganization.
Awards and Recognition
- Martindale-Hubbell – AV Preeminent Peer Review Rating (since 2024)
- Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business – Band 2 in Corporate/Commercial Law (2024-2026)
- The Best Lawyers in America – Corporate Law (2021-2027), “Lawyer of the Year” (2026, 2024)
- The Best Lawyers in America – Real Estate Law (2020-2027)
- The Best Lawyers in America – Corporate Governance Law (2024-2027)
- The Best Lawyers in America – Mergers & Acquisitions Law (2024-2027)
- The Best Lawyers in America – Commercial Finance Law (2025-2027)
- The Best Lawyers in America – Commercial Transactions / UCC Law (2025-2027)
- The Best Lawyers in America – Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships) (2027)
- The Best Lawyers in America – Land Use and Zoning Law (2027)
- Nevada Business Magazine – “Top Rank Attorneys” (2013, 2015-2017, 2021-2023, 2026)
- Nevada Business Magazine – “50 Best Up & Coming Attorneys” (2012)
- Sanctuary for Families, “Excellence in Pro Bono Advocacy” 2006
- King Hall Legal Foundation, “Public Interest Fellow” 2002
Publications
- Signatory, “Response to Michal Barzuza’s Draft Article Nevada v. Delaware,” (Michal Barzuza, Nevada v. Delaware: The New Market for Corporate Law, Harv. L. Sch. F. on Corp. Governance, Feb. 26, 2026)
- Feature Story Interview – “Mergers & Acquisitions: Less Harrowing, More Helpful in Reality Than in Popular Fiction,” Nevada Business Magazine, November 2024
Professional Affiliations
- Member, Washoe County Bar Association
- Member, Tahoe Truckee Bar Association
- Member, Truckee Donner Chamber of Commerce
- Graduate, Leadership Reno-Sparks, Chamber of Commerce, Class of 2012 (nine-month program on communication, developmental organization, and community participation)
Community Involvement
- Director, Truckee Trails Foundation
- Director, Fresh Start Charities
News
DExit: Nevada vs. Delaware Corporate Law and Practice
With increasing national attention focused on Nevada corporate law as an alternative to the corporate laws of other jurisdictions, such as Delaware and Texas, we write to provide information to…
What Do Clients Say About Our Top Ranked Attorneys?
McDonald Carano proudly announces that Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business 2026 and Chambers High Net Worth Guide (Private Wealth Law) 2026 awarded top rankings to 14 attorneys in…
Brian Schusterman Receives Prominent Ranking in Chambers USA 2026
McDonald Carano congratulates Brian Schusterman on receiving his third consecutive top ranking of Band 2 in Corporate/Commercial Law from Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, the legal profession’s highly…