“A federal judge on Tuesday approved Daimler AG’s $1.5 billion settlement to resolve a U.S. government probe into the German automaker’s use of undisclosed software that allowed excess diesel pollution to be emitted by 250,000 of its vehicles in the United States,” reports David Shepardson in Reuters’ Autos.

“The settlement with the U.S. Justice Department and California Air Resources Board, which was announced in September, includes an $875 million civil penalty levied under the Clean Air Act, $70 million in additional penalties and $546 million to fix the polluting vehicles and offset excess emissions, court papers show.”

“As part of the settlement, Daimler will pay California $285.6 million.”

Read the article.

Seattle – March 11, 2021 – Davis Wright Tremaine LLP was honored today by U.S. Bank’s Law Division with its “Invested in Diversity” award. The firm is the second recipient of the annual award, which recognizes one of the bank’s preferred law firms that has made a significant impact on advancing diversity in the legal profession.

Last year, U.S. Bank selected a talented group of diverse professionals from Davis Wright Tremaine to present at its Spotlight on Talent program, which gives early-career women and diverse lawyers from outside law firms the opportunity to learn more about U.S. Bank, meet with the Bank’s legal team, and present educational content to the entire legal department. The topic – “Diversity and Inclusion in Coastal Big Law: the Inside Story” – was timely and the DWT team gave a presentation that was both thought-provoking and practical. The team comprised a group of associates and counsel that included Christina Antoun, Maryam Casbarro, Juliana Gerrick, Xiang Li, Jonathan Mark, Danielle Toaltoan and Dsu-Wei Yuen, with input from partner Tiffany Switzer.

Davis Wright Tremaine has been a legal industry leader in diversity, equity and inclusion for years, having been recognized by clients and industry groups for putting in place effective programs to recruit and help retain and develop diverse lawyers and to promote them into leadership. The firm’s decision to hire Yusuf Zakir as its first chief diversity, equity, and inclusion officer is the culmination of the firm’s efforts to date under its strategic plan to more deeply embed DEI into the firm’s operations. The firm has also committed to ensuring an inclusive workplace in the legal profession by becoming Mansfield Certified Plus in 2020.

U.S. Bank has been recognized as a champion for diversity, equity and inclusion and most recently launched U.S. Bank Access Commitment, a long-term approach to help build wealth while redefining how it serves diverse communities and provides more opportunities for diverse employees. Under Chosy’s leadership, the company’s Law Division has shown a particular focus on building and promoting diversity, to strengthen its own culture and also help further a more equitable legal profession.

Charter school network Success Academy, which touts its commitment to children “from all backgrounds,” has been ordered to pay over $2.4 million on a Judgment in a case brought by families of five young Black students with learning and other disabilities who sued after the children were pushed out of a Success Academy school in Brooklyn. Success Academy’s efforts to oust the children even included the creation of a “Got to Go” list, as reported by the New York Times in October 2015, which singled out the students they wanted to push out, including the five child plaintiffs.

The lawsuit, brought by New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, Advocates for Justice, and Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, concluded on March 10, 2021 with Senior United States District Judge Frederic Block’s ruling, which included a precedent-setting determination that federal disability discrimination laws authorize reimbursement of expert fees.

The case charged that Success Academy engaged in practices targeting students with disabilities, in order to force them to withdraw. The practices detailed in the suit included regularly removing the children from the classroom and calling the parents multiple times daily.

The litigation centered on five children, then a mere 4 to 5 years old, with diagnosed or perceived disabilities. Success Academy did not provide appropriate accommodations, and frequently dismissed the students prior to the end of the school day – often for behaviors like fidgeting and pouting. Success Academy also threatened to call child welfare authorities to investigate the children’s families, and even sent one child to a hospital psychiatric unit. Each family eventually removed their child from the Success Academy network.

Hawkins Parnell & Young is pleased to announce the addition of maritime lawyer Brian J. Schneider.

Schneider is a go-to litigator for corporations facing toxic tort and product liability claims under maritime law. With more than 20 years of experience with admiralty jurisdiction, he navigates a wide range of state, federal, and constitutional issues coast-to-coast for manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, vessel interests, and commercial shipyards. Schneider also frequently speaks and writes on the intersection of maritime law and product liability claims and is cited by commentators, advocates, and courts alike.

Schneider is a member of the Virginia Bar Association Litigation Section Board of Directors. As the former chair of the Appellate Advocacy section and the Legislative Committee of the Virginia Association of Defense Attorneys, Schneider has made significant contributions through appellate and legislative advocacy. He is also a former president of the Henrico County Bar Association.

Prior to joining Hawkins Parnell, Schneider was a shareholder at Moran Reeves & Conn PC. He began his product liability litigation practice at Hunton & Williams. Before entering private practice, Schneider clerked for the Honorable James P. Jones in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia.

Schneider is licensed in Georgia and Virginia. He obtained his J.D., cum laude, from the University of Richmond School of Law. He received his B.S., cum laude, from Virginia Commonwealth University.

“UNITY Biotechnology, Inc. (“UNITY”) [NASDAQ: UBX], a biotechnology company developing therapeutics to slow, halt or reverse diseases of aging, today announced that Alexander Nguyen has been appointed general counsel,” posts Unity Biotechnology in their Press Releases.

“Mr. Nguyen previously worked for three Roivant Sciences companies where he served as general counsel at Alyvant, head of legal at Axovant, and as head of compliance at Roivant Sciences. His responsibilities included all corporate legal work, SEC filings, equity financings, venture debt deals, licensing agreements, corporate governance at board meetings, litigation, internal investigations, asset recovery, HR, IT, compliance, and risk management. He also led the drafting and negotiation of term sheets and oversaw due diligence for acquisition of commercial-stage assets. Before that, he handled a wide range of high-stakes litigation and investigations in the private as well as the public sector, including as deputy section chief and federal prosecutor at the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Alexandria and Philadelphia, respectively, successfully leading dozens of cases involving cybercrime, data breaches, IP and trade secrets violations, FDA regulatory offenses, illegal importation of adulterated and misbranded pharmaceuticals, prescription drug diversion, white collar crime, identity theft and tax violations.”

Read the release.

“DLA Piper LLP (US) is pleased to announce a number of firm and practice leadership changes,” released DLA Piper in their Newsroom.

“The firm has formed an 11-person Management Team, which will support Frank Ryan, who assumed the role of Americas chair January 1, in the leadership of the firm.”

“‘I’m a strong believer in the power and importance of the team, and I’m pleased that this talented and diverse group has chosen to join me in the leadership of the firm,’ said Ryan. ‘Each of them has demonstrated a strong commitment to DLA Piper, developed a notable reputation in the marketplace, provided exemplary service to clients and has a solid record of mentoring others. I look very forward to working with them to the benefit of the firm, our clients, our people and our communities.'”

Read the article.

An “Ohio attorney has been disbarred after stealing more than $2 million from clients and spending it on cosmetic surgeries, child support, gambling, property, a boat and jewelry,” reports Eileen McClory of the Dayton Daily New in Journal-News’ Crime section.

“Brian Wiggins, 37, pleaded guilty to 16 felony counts on Feb. 12 in Greene County Common Pleas Court, including aggravated theft, money laundering and possession of cocaine. He was sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay back about $1.9 million in restitution.

“The Ohio Supreme Court issued the disbarment on Monday.”

“Wiggins originally was charged with 55 criminal counts, enough to end up with more than 70 years in prison. The other counts were dismissed in the plea deal.”

Read the article.

“Lawyers who negotiated a $641 million settlement for victims of Flint’s lead-contaminated water are asking a judge to carve out as much as $209 million for fees and expenses for years of work on the case,” writes Ed White of the Associated Press in ABC News.

“If granted, the request would take nearly one-third of the overall deal made by dozens of attorneys who sued the state of Michigan, Flint, a hospital and an engineering firm, according to a court filing Monday.”

“Regulators in then-Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration allowed Flint to use the Flint River in 2014-15 without treating the water to reduce corrosion. As a result, lead in old pipes broke off and flowed through taps. The catastrophe in the majority-Black city, population 95,000, has been described as environmental racism.”

Read the article.

10 March 2021- Luminance has announced a 75% surge in uptake of its pioneering ‘Discovery’ platform as businesses experience a huge influx of Data Subject Access Requests (DSARs) arising from data protection legislation such as the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and the CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act).

DSARs give individuals the opportunity to request access to all of the information an organisation holds about them. Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the number of requests has risen significantly as increasing numbers of employees are laid off or furloughed. Without technology, conducting a DSAR review is a time-consuming, complex task and despite the impact of Covid-19, organisations are still expected to complete a request within 30 days or face a fine of up to 4% of the company’s annual global turnover. The number of DSARs is expected to increase even further as the UK Government’s furlough scheme starts to be scaled back and employers have to consider terminating employment, leading to many former employees exercising the right of access to understand why they have been selected for redundancy.

Leading law firms such as Dentons and Burness Paull are turning to Luminance’s AI technology, which can automatically identify personally identifiable information within vast datasets, to cope with this rise in demand for DSARs. For some law firms, their adoption of Luminance has now allowed them to offer their clients a specialised DSAR service that was previously not possible due to the amount of resource required for such a review, in turn giving rise to new sources of growth and profitability.

Most recently, Burness Paull used Luminance to conduct a DSAR, searching through over 6,000 documents. Luminance’s unique combination of supervised and unsupervised machine learning could read and form an understanding of the dataset, helping the lawyers cull 80% of the dataset and quickly focus in on what mattered. With Luminance’s advanced search tools, the team were then able to quickly identify information relating to the subject, reducing their overall review time by half, instilled with the utmost confident that nothing had been missed.

Speaking at an event hosted last month by Luminance, Sam Moore, Innovation Manager at Burness Paull, commented: “We recently saw a spike in DSARs from our clients who had received such requests from former employees. A lot of our clients were struggling with the amount of resource they needed internally to ensure compliance. Technology like Luminance Discovery allowed us to very quickly to get high level view of what’s in that data source… This meant that within 24 hours be able to say to the client what was needed for the review. We found that to be very popular with clients and really helped with their budget.”

Speaking at this year’s Legal Week, Tanja Podinic, Global Director of Innovation Programs at Dentons, was already using Luminance for a number of other reviews. She explained that whilst “the volume of DSARs before the GDPR was much lower”, the impact of the regulation caused the number to surge. Turning to technology to assist them, “our in-house team repurposed Luminance for the DSAR problem and it was a breath of fresh air, helping us to cut time spent on a DSAR review significantly.”

Eleanor Weaver, General Manager at Luminance, added: “Today, people are incredibly ‘data aware’ and this raises the stakes significantly for organisations in terms of data privacy compliance. As the only technology that can be used from the first day of deployment, Luminance’s AI technology transforms a potentially costly and time-consuming exercise, allowing users to identify key information almost instantaneously and comply with the stringent requirements set out under legislation such as the GDPR and the CCPA.”

Luminance is currently used in over 300 law firms and organisations worldwide. This includes all of the ‘Big Four’ accounting firms and over one-fifth of the ‘Global Top 100’ law firms such as Holland & Knight, Bird & Bird and Slaughter & May.

LOS ANGELES – March 10, 2021 – Davis Wright Tremaine continues growing in California with the addition of Michelle Quijano to its Los Angeles office. Michelle joins the firm’s entertainment practice as of counsel, bringing extensive in-house experience from NBC Entertainment where she most recently served as vice president of legal affairs.

Quijano served as the primary show lawyer for many NBCU scripted and unscripted television projects. Her practice focuses on the full spectrum of production issues, including above-the-line talent agreements, acquisition and rights agreements, day-to-day production agreements and trademark and other intellectual property issues. In addition to her experience at NBC Entertainment, she worked at NBCUniversal’s Universal Studios Home Entertainment and ITV Studios, Inc., and served as vice president of legal affairs at NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment and production company, All3Media America, LLC.

Quijano received her B.A. in Law and Society from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and received her J.D. from Loyola Law School.

Davis Wright Tremaine recently reported that it had another strong year in 2020, its seventh consecutive year of record performance. Revenue increased by more than 7% and net income rose by nearly 12%. Chambers and Partners confirmed Davis Wright Tremaine’s standing as the national leader in media and entertainment litigation, with more lawyers ranked than any other firm in 2020.

Michael Best Strategies LLC announced today that Congressman Steve Israel, the eight-term congressman and former member of the U.S. House of Representatives Democratic leadership, has joined the firm as Senior Counselor and is expanding his role with the Michael Best Board of Advisors.

Representative Israel served in Congress as a member of the New York delegation from 2011 – 2017. While in Congress, Israel served as Chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee from 2011 to 2015 where he was the chief political strategist and the lead architect of House Congressional campaign strategies. During his sixteen years in Congress, Rep. Israel served on a number of House Committees and Subcommittees including the powerful Appropriations Committee, Armed Services and Financial Services.

In his expanded role at Michael Best Strategies, Rep. Israel will provide strategic advice and counsel to clients and continue to facilitate business development efforts on behalf of the firm. Representative Israel will lend his strategic viewpoint and expert knowledge of federal policy development to help clients across key markets and industry sectors.

Michael Best Strategies has seen steady growth over the last two years across its multi-state platform and in Washington, D.C. The firm has most recently added significant new talent and increased visibility in the D.C. market. The recent additions of Lucia Alonzo and Mike Dankler as Principals expanded the ranks of the bipartisan federal policy team in Washington, D.C., which also includes Reince Priebus, Denise Bode, Tami Jackson Buckner, Anne Canfield, and Sarah Helton.

Washington, DC (March 10, 2021) – Venable LLP is pleased to announce that Yardly M. Pollas-Kimble has joined the firm as a partner in the Legislative and Government Affairs Practice in the Washington, DC office. Pollas provides strategic counsel on legislative and regulatory matters affecting the telecommunications, media, intellectual property, finance, and healthcare industries.

Pollas utilizes her extensive experience on Capitol Hill to represent client interests before Congress, the executive branch, and various regulatory bodies. Prior to joining Venable, she served as the chief of staff to U.S. Congressman Bobby L. Rush. In addition to acting as a senior advisor and overseeing the development and implementation of Congressman Rush’s political and policy initiatives, she was the liaison to Region IV of the House Democratic Leadership’s Policy and Steering Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. She also has substantial experience operating within the private sector. She previously served as the head of congressional affairs for a major multinational telecommunications company, during which she oversaw the company’s legislative staff and political action committee and developed and implemented its legislative agenda before the U.S. Congress, the executive branch, and state legislatures. She also developed key relationships with trade associations, grassroots and grasstops organizations, and consultants to ensure the company remained a leader on pivotal issues and initiatives impacting the industry. In addition to her domestic policy expertise, Pollas has a wealth of international experience, having monitored elections in West and Central Africa and represented artists and business leaders in Africa and the Caribbean.

Pollas received her in J.D. from American University’s Washington College of Law and her B.A. in Political Science from the University of Houston.

Solas OLED enforces tech patents with help from Ward, Smith & Hill attorneys

MARSHALL, Texas – An East Texas jury has awarded $62.7 million to Ireland-based Solas OLED Ltd. after finding Samsung Display Company Ltd. willfully infringed on two screen display patents used in Samsung Galaxy phones.

The six-day trial resulted in a verdict that Samsung had infringed on U.S. patent numbers 7,446,338 and 9,256,311 related to active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) functions used in OLED displays for Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy Note smartphones. The jury determined a third patent, U.S. Patent Number 6,072,450, to be invalid.

According to the verdict form, Samsung must pay a lump sum of $27.3 million for the ‘338 patent and $35.4 million for the ‘311 patent.

Ward, Smith & Hill attorneys Johnny Ward, Claire Abernathy Henry and Andrea L. Fair were part of the legal team that also included Marc Fenster, Reza Mirzaie and Neil A. Rubin of Russ August & Kabat as well as Sean A. Luner, Gregory S. Dovel and Jonas B. Jacobson of Dovel & Luner LLP.

The case is Solas OLED Ltd. v. Samsung Display Co. Ltd. et al., case number 2:19-cv-00152, before U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

Longview, Texas-based Ward, Smith & Hill, PLLC, has tried more than 350 cases to verdict, earning a national reputation in high-stakes claims involving complex commercial litigation, intellectual property law, oil and gas matters, bad faith insurance claims, and serious personal injury claims. The firm frequently assists lawyers nationwide in complex cases before Texas juries. To learn more about the firm, visit http://www.wsfirm.com.

Dykema, a leading national law firm, today announced that Jane E. Bockus, San Antonio-based member in the firm’s Litigation Department, was inducted as a Fellow into the American College of Trial Lawyers during an online Induction Ceremony for the College’s 2021 Spring Meeting.

The American College of Trial Lawyers is one of the premier legal associations in North America. Founded in 1950, the College is composed of the best of the trial bar from the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Fellowship in the College is extended by invitation only and only after careful investigation, to those experienced trial lawyers of diverse backgrounds, who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility and collegiality. Lawyers must have a minimum of fifteen years trial experience before they can be considered for Fellowship.

Membership in the College cannot exceed 1 percent of the total lawyer population of any state or province. There are approximately 5,800 members in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, including active Fellows, Emeritus Fellows, Judicial Fellows (those who ascended to the bench after their induction) and Honorary Fellows. The College maintains and seeks to improve the standards of trial practice, professionalism, ethics, and the administration of justice through education and public statements on independence of the judiciary, trial by jury, respect for the rule of law, access to justice, and fair and just representation of all parties to legal proceedings. The College is thus able to speak with a balanced voice on important issues affecting the legal profession and the administration of justice.

Bockus has tried more than 35 cases to verdict in a variety of complex matters in her 41 years of practice. Focusing primarily on products liability litigation, she has tried cases all over Texas and in other states as well. Outside of her practice, Bockus is involved in many professional and civic organizations. She is a Life Member and Former Chair of the San Antonio Bar Foundation, a former President of the San Antonio Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates, and a Board Member for the San Antonio River Foundation.

Bockus earned a J.D. from St. Mary’s University School of Law and a B.A. in History from Southern Methodist University.

Michael Best Strategies (Strategies) is partnering with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to recruit for its first Public Policy Internship. The program will offer an educational and supportive experience for students to gain exposure to public policy and government affairs. “Michael Best is committed to the development of leaders of color and leading more students to starting new careers in this sector in need of more diversity,” stated Rob Marchant, Michael Best Strategies President and Partner.

Starting in late May, the chosen interns will work directly with Michael Best Strategies leadership, being assigned a mentor and a sponsor for the duration of the ten-week program. Interns will also collaborate with clients to achieve common goals between companies and the state or federal government, which will expose them to the full public policy process, as well as issues related to the law. The program is open to 2022 and 2023 graduates.

The internship program will start in May and run into July; interns will be located in either the Washington D.C. or Chicago offices, with the opportunity to travel to Springfield, IL as well. The main goal of the program is for interns to pursue a career in the field, whether it be with Michael Best Strategies or in government.

To apply, students can reach out to Alexandra Tillmann, Senior Recruiter at actillmann@michaelbest.com. Requirements and further program details can be found at link.

John S. Polzer has joined Duane Morris LLP as a partner in the firm’s Trial Practice Group in its Dallas office. Prior to joining Duane Morris, Polzer was a partner at Cantey Hanger LLP. Duane Morris announced its opening in the Dallas market February 9 with an initial group of four partners with long-standing roots in the Dallas metroplex area – litigators Robert M. Castle III, Randy D. Gordon, Jamie R. Welton and Lucas “Luke” Wohlford.

Joining Polzer in his move to Duane Morris is his Cantey Hanger colleague Jason E. Boatright, who will be special counsel in the Trial Practice Group.

Polzer represents clients nationwide and has litigated cases in more than 20 states. His practice focuses on bankruptcy, commercial litigation, construction, energy litigation and real estate. Polzer has represented numerous clients in asset purchase litigation in Delaware. He also represented an international food company in class action litigation in California. Additionally, Polzer represented an E&P company in title litigation involving more than 200 parties. He represented a global technology company in an antitrust suit filed by a major airline and an international oil and gas producer in shareholder litigation filed after the announcement of a merger. Polzer is an adjunct professor at Texas Christian University.

Polzer is a graduate of the University of Houston Law Center (J.D., 2005), where he was articles editor of the Houston Business and Tax Law Journal, and the University of Texas at Austin (B.S., 2002).

Boatright has held senior legal positions in state government in both Dallas and Austin. He is a former justice of the Texas Fifth District Court of Appeals, the appellate court that reviews trial court decisions in Collin, Dallas, Grayson, Hunt, Kaufman and Rockwall counties. Previously, he was director of the general counsel section of the Texas Railroad Commission, the agency that regulates the Texas oil and gas industry. He was also director of the Texas Attorney General’s opinions division, which issues official written legal opinions to government officials on the meaning of state laws and regulations.

Boatright is a graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, (J.D. 2003) and Middlebury College (B.A. 1998). He also received a Postgraduate Diploma in Latin and Ancient History from the University of St. Andrews in 2000.

“HanesBrands (NYSE: HBI), a leading global marketer of branded everyday apparel, today announced that Tracy Preston has been named general counsel, corporate secretary and chief compliance officer, effective March 29, 2021,” announced HanesBrands in their Newsroom.

“Preston brings more than 25 years of experience in leading corporate legal teams and serving in international law firms. She will be responsible for HanesBrands’ global legal and compliance functions and will report to Chief Executive Officer Steve Bratspies.”

“Preston joins HanesBrands from The Neiman Marcus Group, where she was executive vice president, chief legal officer, corporate secretary and chief compliance officer. Prior to joining Neiman Marcus in 2013, Preston worked for Levi Strauss & Co., where she held a number of senior legal positions, including chief counsel, global supply chain; chief compliance officer; and chief counsel, global human resources and litigation. Earlier in her career, Preston was a partner at Orrick Herrington and Sutcliffe, an international law firm founded in San Francisco.”

Read the announcement.

“An Indianapolis lawyer who was suspended more than 20 years ago has been conditionally reinstated to the Indiana bar,” reports The Indiana Lawyer.

“The Indiana Supreme Court on Thursday reinstated Scott R. Jones on the condition that he remain on probation for two years. During that time, Jones will remain under a monitoring agreement with the Indiana Judges and Lawyers Assistance Program.”

“Jones was suspended in October 2000 for at least six months without automatic reinstatement for repeated convictions of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. Online court records show Jones previously petitioned for reinstatement in 2018, but that petition was denied in 2019.”

Read the article.

“Novartis AG announced Friday that its global head of litigation, Thomas Kendris, will on an interim basis succeed its outgoing chief legal officer Shannon Thyme Klinger,” reports Brian Baxter in Bloomberg Law’s Business and Practice.

“Novartis said in a statement that Klinger will depart the Swiss drug giant March 15 to return to the U.S. and take a job at ‘a biotechnology company.’ Novartis didn’t identify the company and declined to discuss Klinger’s new role. Klinger didn’t respond to a request for comment on the matter.”

“Her move is the latest in a series of comings-and-goings by law department leaders working for biotechnology startups, drug developers, and medical equipment manufacturers. The health care, life sciences, and pharmaceutical sectors have been busy hiring lawyers within the past year, in part due to the increased demands on some companies stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.”

Read the announcement.

“State Attorney General Jeff Landry authorized a $100 million settlement with one of dozens of oil and gas companies accused of destroying Louisiana’s coast,” reports Dan Copp on The Courier in Houma Today’s News.

“Lawsuits were filed by seven parishes alleging 42 energy companies damaged wetlands and marshes through drilling and other projects. The agreement releases Freeport-McMoRan Inc. from liability for any current claims and dismisses the company from the coastal parish lawsuits.”

“In exchange, the Phoenix-based company has agreed to deposit the first payment into a trust, followed by several smaller yearly payments, Landry said. Payments will not be distributed until the state Legislature creates an oversight board to hold and manage the money.”

Read the article.