Class Actions

Recent News:

Cozen O’Connor Recognized as a “Best Law Firm” in 31 Practice Areas Nationwide, 54 Practice Areas Regionally

In 2024, Best Lawyers received more than 100,000 client references and observed a 65% increase in client participation in their survey.

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Our dedicated team has extensive experience representing clients in class actions and other aggregate litigation. We have an outstanding record of success defending some of the most significant class actions in courts across the country by employing strategies grounded in deep knowledge of consumer protection statutes and Rule 23.   

We work together with our clients to devise effective exit strategies early on in litigation. We repeatedly obtain early dismissals with no payments to plaintiffs and, where appropriate, successfully move to compel individual arbitration, transfer venue, dismiss actions on the pleadings and, at summary judgment, strike class allegations, and defeat certification. We pursue thoughtful and creative approaches aimed at prevailing on the merits, eliminating class exposure, and avoiding protracted and costly litigation. Our skill, experience, and professionalism have been cited by our peers, adversaries, and judges. We successfully defend cases prosecuted by the most formidable opponents in the most plaintiff-friendly jurisdictions in cases that challenge key business practices. And we do so while carefully managing public relations considerations and brand protection and minimizing disruption to our clients’ operations. 

We represent leading companies across industries — including retail and fashion, hospitality, food and beverage, technology, communications, health care, pharmaceuticals/life sciences, insurance, gaming, energy, and higher education — in class actions and other consumer litigation. 

These cases involve complex legal and regulatory issues pertaining to privacy, advertising, marketing, pricing, labeling, environmental, product performance and efficacy, customer communications, informational and marketing calls and text messages, credit reporting, and consumer protection. While we often appear in the hotbeds for class actions, including federal and state courts in California, Illinois, Florida, New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts, we have litigated in virtually every jurisdiction. We go wherever our clients are sued.   

The plaintiffs’ class action bar is particularly active in California. With our offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and San Diego, our team has boots on the ground and relationships with the bench, bar, and government across the state. We routinely defend actions and address compliance related to the California statutes including the Unfair Competition Law, Consumers Legal Remedies Act, False Advertising Law, Song-Beverly Credit Card Act, California Invasion of Privacy Act, Shine the Light Law and the California Consumer Privacy Act. We coordinate with our colleagues who address inquiries and actions by the California Attorney General, District Attorneys, and state agencies, as there are often overlapping issues in private litigation. Our team also represents businesses in class actions challenging policies and practices related to the COVID-19 pandemic.    

Our team is also a voice for the business community in seeking to combat class actions abuse. We represent leading industry groups in class action-related proceedings before regulatory bodies and in district and appellate courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court. Our efforts have helped shape meaningful developments for industry, including with respect to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and the Truth-in-Consumer Contract, Warranty and Notice Act (TCCWNA). Our litigators are often called upon to speak and write on issues pertaining to class actions practice and have been recognized with numerous awards and accolades.

We have a unique focus on class action risk mitigation. We identify and assess areas of emerging risk for our clients so they can see around the corner. By identifying the next waves of class action litigation we are able to effectively guide our clients through practical — and often simple — solutions to deter litigation and ensure strong defenses to future claims. We help craft, interpose and enforce consumer-facing policies and disclosures, including terms and conditions, terms of use, privacy policies, and arbitration agreements with class action waivers, and review and revise agreements with third-party vendors to maximize contractual protections. We are trusted partners to our clients, and work hand-in-hand with in-house counsel and internal stakeholders to ensure that areas of potential risk are appropriately addressed.

We work closely with our colleagues across complementary practice groups, including our State Attorneys General Practice, Institutional Response Group, Technology, Privacy & Data Security Group, and Public Strategies group.   

 

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Publications

Ninth Circuit Confirms: Text Messages NOT “Prerecorded Voice Messages” Under TCPA [Alert]

August 11, 2023

The ruling is a substantial win for Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) defendants after plaintiff argued text messages qualify as “an artificial or prerecorded voice.”

Talk to the Machine! AKA Revoking TCPA Consent by “Talking” to a Recording [Alert]

May 10, 2023

Can a TCPA plaintiff revoke consent to be contacted by “talking” to a pre-recorded message? Probably not.

The Turning of the Tide? Price-Fixing Class Actions in the Canadian Courts

February 27, 2023

Michael Osborne contributed an article to Lloyd’s List Intelligence Competition Law Insight, discussing the potential change for a more balanced, less plaintiff-friendly approach to the certification process for price-fixing class actions.

Biometrics Update: Class Plaintiffs Have 5 Years to Bring Claims Under Illinois’s BIPA [Alert]

February 06, 2023

Max Kaplan discusses the Supreme Court of Illinois's decision in Tims v. Black Horse Carriers, Inc., ruling that BIPA is subject to the five-year, catch-all statute of limitations.

Callers Beware: Court Finds Avatar Technology Is Subject To TCPA Regulation [Alert]

December 29, 2022

Brett Watson discusses recent district court decisions discussing Avatar technology as pre-recorded messages under TCPA.

In The News

Cozen O’Connor Recognized as a “Best Law Firm” in 31 Practice Areas Nationwide, 54 Practice Areas Regionally

November 07, 2024

In 2024, Best Lawyers received more than 100,000 client references and observed a 65% increase in client participation in their survey.

Best Lawyers Honors More Than 200 Cozen O'Connor Attorneys in its Best Lawyers in America 2025 Edition

August 15, 2024

Best Lawyers selected 242 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 24 of the firm’s U.S. offices for inclusion in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America.

Eleven Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Recognized as Washington, D.C., Super Lawyers and Rising Stars

April 22, 2024

Seven attorneys were recognized as Super Lawyers and four were named Rising Stars, a list that recognizes attorneys under the age of 40.

Toronto Real Estate Class-Action Could Affect Billions of Dollars in Commissions

October 05, 2023

Michael Osborne was quoted in a Financial Post article discussing a class action lawsuit that alleges major brokers and real estate organizations in Toronto implemented rules that essentially stifled competition for buyer brokerage services, resulting in higher prices.

Law360 Names Cozen O’Connor a Pennsylvania Powerhouse

August 23, 2023

Cozen O’Connor was previously named a Pennsylvania Powerhouse in 2022, 2018, and 2014.

Best Lawyers Honors More Than 200 Cozen O'Connor Attorneys to its Best Lawyers in America 2024 Edition

August 17, 2023

Best Lawyers selected 232 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 24 of the firm’s U.S. offices for inclusion in the 2024 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

Cozen O’Connor Adds Two of the Country’s Leading Data Privacy Litigators to its Commercial Litigation Practice Group

March 06, 2023

Melissa A. Siebert and Erin Bolan Hines — data privacy litigators with renowned track records of successfully defending employers and technology enterprises entangled in major data privacy class actions and appellate cases — to its award-winning Commercial Litigation Practice Group.

Veteran Litigator Miguel Pozo Returns to Minneapolis Office

October 18, 2022

Cozen O’Connor is pleased to announce veteran litigator Miguel Alexander Pozo has returned to its fast-growing North American Commercial Litigation Department.

Veteran Litigator Michael Osborne Joins Commercial Litigation Department

October 17, 2022

Osborne has defended leading pharmaceutical, banking, and technology enterprises based in Canada, the U.S., and Asia in high-stakes litigation.

More Than 200 Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named Best Lawyers and Ones to Watch

August 22, 2022

210 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 24 of the firm’s nationwide offices for inclusion in the 2023 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

Litigation Leaders: Cozen O’Connor’s Jim Heller on Building Trial-Ready Product Liability, White Collar and Class Action Teams

March 29, 2021

The American Lawyer profiled Jim Heller as part of its Litigation Leader series, which features the country's biggest firms' litigation practice leaders.

Philadelphia Business Journal's 2020 in Review: Philadelphia-area Lawyers Who Made the Biggest Moves This Year

January 12, 2021

The article stated, “... the biggest winner this year was Cozen O'Connor, which had three of the top 10 lateral hires.”

Contacts

Michael B. de Leeuw

Vice Chair, Business Litigation

mdeleeuw@cozen.com

(212) 908-1331

John J. Sullivan

Member

jsullivan@cozen.com

(212) 453-3729

People

Awards

Cozen O’Connor Recognized as a “Best Law Firm” in 31 Practice Areas Nationwide, 54 Practice Areas Regionally

November 07, 2024

In 2024, Best Lawyers received more than 100,000 client references and observed a 65% increase in client participation in their survey.

Law360 Names Cozen O’Connor a Pennsylvania Powerhouse

August 23, 2023

Cozen O’Connor was previously named a Pennsylvania Powerhouse in 2022, 2018, and 2014.

Best Lawyers Honors More Than 200 Cozen O'Connor Attorneys to its Best Lawyers in America 2024 Edition

August 17, 2023

Best Lawyers selected 232 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 24 of the firm’s U.S. offices for inclusion in the 2024 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

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