Biography
David is currently recognized by Chambers USA for General Commercial Litigation in California, where he is highly reputed for his abilities in defending corporate clients facing class action and other complex litigation. Clients note he is “meticulous, well organized, and laser-focused on identifying and securing the best, earliest outcome,” and “able to jump right in and know the issues inside and out, and can step back and look at the bigger picture.” He is also nationally recognized by Legal 500 as a “Leading Lawyer” for Product Liability, Mass Tort & Class Action and as a “Recommended Lawyer” for General Commercial Disputes and Advertising & Marketing: Litigation. Clients have noted in Legal 500 that he is “smart, practical, client-focused,” “an excellent and hardworking lawyer…dedicated to advancing the profession,” and that “[h]e knows class action litigation cold and is a thought leader in that area.” In 2023, David was named a Class Action MVP by Law360 after earlier being honored by that same publication as a Class Action “Rising Star” in 2017. In 2017 and 2018, David was named to Benchmark Litigation’s “40 & Under Hot List,” after being named a 2017 Minority Corporate Counsel Association “Rising Star” and among the Daily Journal’s 2016 “40 Under 40.”
David’s recent notable class action experience includes:
- Successfully representing a leading public technology company in numerous consumer class actions in California and other courts regarding several of its flagship products, including phones, smart watches, and laptops. He has prevailed on early motions to dismiss in many of these cases.
- Winning the dismissal with prejudice of all claims brought against a leading coffee company in a consumer class action in New York federal court alleging violation of New York General Business Law sections 349 and 350 relating to alleged false representations and false advertising.
- Prevailing on a motion to dismiss a class action complaint brought against Sanofi in Illinois federal court regarding its epinephrine injection product, Auvi-Q; rather than filing an amended complaint, plaintiff abandoned the lawsuit.
- Prevailing on a motion to dismiss a putative class action brought against Panasonic in California federal court related to the sale of allegedly defective Sanyo-branded solar panels, and successfully resolving a follow-on class action in New Jersey federal court.
- Successfully resolving claims against ExxonMobil in a multidistrict litigation centralized in Kansas federal court involving more than 30 putative class actions alleging that retailers of gasoline and diesel fuel should have adjusted the size or cost of gallons of fuel sold to account for thermal expansion.
- Successfully representing Walgreens in a high-profile consumer class action litigation in California and Arizona federal courts related to Theranos Labs’ blood testing technology, securing dismissal of core claims and indemnification from Theranos.
- Successfully resolving claims against AdColony, a leading mobile video advertising and monetization platform, in a putative class action in California federal court alleging that the collection of personal information on various smart phone‐based apps violates federal and state privacy laws.
- Representing and resolving claims against Alibaba in a putative class action in California federal court alleging that it has not adopted and reasonably implemented measures to prevent the sale of unauthorized copies of copyrighted works on its e‐commerce platforms.
- Representing Procter & Gamble in a putative class action in Ohio federal court relating to its probiotic supplement Align©; the Weil team secured a favorable settlement on the eve of trial.
- Successfully defending Toyobo, a major Japanese fiber manufacturer, in consumer fraud class actions throughout the United States, False Claims Act actions, suits and investigations by states attorneys general, claims and lawsuits by body armor manufacturers, and personal injury claims arising from the sale of a high‐performance fiber used in the manufacture of hundreds of thousands of bullet‐resistant vests.
- Successfully representing multiple food and beverage manufacturers against claims of deceptive product labeling, including alleged violations of California’s consumer protection laws.
David’s other recent notable commercial litigation experience includes:
- Representing BASF against claims by Honda Trading America (HTA) in California federal court that BASF tortiously interfered with contracts between HTA and third parties and aided and abetted a purported conversion of catalytic materials.
- Successfully defended Rent the Runway (RTR) against allegations by FashionPass in California federal court that RTR’s contracts with fashion designers allegedly harmed competition and tortiously interfered with business opportunities. After obtaining dismissal of the initial complaint, the matter was successfully resolved.
- Leading the litigation team for 24 Hour Fitness and its affiliated debtors in their chapter 11 cases.
- Successfully defended The Gores Group (TGG) against a lawsuit brought by PlusPass in California federal court alleging that TGG violated antitrust laws in providing consultation in connection with a SPAC transaction. Following the filing of a motion to dismiss, the matter was successfully resolved, resulting in dismissal of TGG from the case.
- Representing Nuance Communications in a declaratory judgment action against IBM in New York federal court in relation to the software powering IBM’s Watson, DeepQA.
- Representing Pandora Media, Inc. in a proceeding before the Copyright Royalty Board to determine reasonable rates and terms for making and distributing phonorecords for the period beginning January 1, 2018, and ending December 31, 2022.
- Obtaining a complete victory at trial for Disney affiliates ESPN and ABC Cable Networks Group, Inc. in a case brought by Echostar Satellite L.L.C. (n/k/a Dish Network) seeking over $100 million in damages. Echostar claimed the rights to four high definition television networks, including the Disney Channel HD and ESPN News HD, under existing licensing agreements. After a two‐week jury trial, the jury issued a verdict in favor of Disney and its affiliates.
- Obtaining a bench trial victory for Sanofi in a contractual dispute with Sun Pharmaceutical Industries over a settlement in a Hatch‐Waxman patent infringement litigation related to Sanofi’s branded colorectal drug treatment, Eloxatin, with annual sales in excess of $1 billion.
- Defeating a motion for preliminary injunction against C‐III Asset Management with respect to an event of default in a commercial mortgage secured against property owned by plaintiffs.
- Successfully defended the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority in a challenge brought by Madison Square Garden over the rights to build the New York Sports and Convention Center on Manhattan’s West Side.
David is a recognized leader at the Firm and in Silicon Valley and the legal community as a whole, with particular contributions to the areas of class actions, diversity, and pro bono. David has long-served as a leader in the ABA, Section of Litigation in numerous capacities. Currently, he serves as Co-Chair for the Class Actions & Derivative Suits Committee. He previously served in various other roles including Division Director and Co-Chair of the Corporate Counsel Committee. David is a leader of Weil’s Class Action Task Force and editor of the Firm’s Class Action Monitor, and he regularly speaks and writes on significant class action issues. He is a member of Weil’s Diversity Committee, a former Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD) Fellow, and a member of the South Asian Bar Association (SABA) Northern California Chapter. He has been recognized as a “Pro Bono Legend,” a recognition of attorneys at Weil who have performed more than 50 hours of pro bono service for five or more consecutive years.