RSHC in the news

RSHC congratulates San Francisco Partner Meghan McMeel on her selection as a 2021 Northern California Rising Star, and Partners Steve Hankins, Jeff Williams, and Of Counsel Bruce Wagman on their selection as 2021 Northern California Super Lawyers. Super Lawyers and Rising Stars are highly regarded by their peers for professional achievement and excellence in the practice of law. Super Lawyers represent five percent of the attorneys in the state, and Rising Stars represent 2.5 percent of the attorneys in the state.

RSHC Partner Matthew Kennison explains the significance of the Supreme Court's recent 5-4 ruling on the case: Has a plaintiff suffered a real, concrete, non-abstract harm if there is incorrect and embarrassing information in the plaintiff’s credit file, but that information is never disclosed to a third party? Or, as the Supreme Court put it, “if inaccurate information falls into a consumer’s credit file, does it make a sound?" Last Friday, in a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court answered no. In doing so, the Court reigned in broad views of the Court’s language in Spokeo, reaffirmed long-standing concepts related to Article III standing, and provided helpful precedent and guidance for defendants defending against future class actions.

RSHC’s environmental attorney Brian Dodds is presenting on “Environmental Justice: What the Developing EJ Standards Mean for You” at the June 29 Perrin Environmental Risk & Litigation Conference.

RSHC Partner Josh Lee will be a panelist on the “Class Action, MDL or Bankruptcy: What is the Best Option for Global Resolution?” at the June 24 Perrin Mass Tort Litigation Conference virtual event. Topics covered will be the history of mass tort resolution of current and contingent liabilities, changes in class certification, and the advancements and disadvantages of global resolution.

RSHC’s Sandy Musumeci and Brittney Denley are speaking at the National Association of College and University Attorneys (NACUA) 2021 Virtual Conference June 21 session, “Bias Incidents and Student Codes of Conduct.” Brittney will moderate an informative discussion by a panel of industry-leading speakers about the effect of bias on institutions, current statistics on campus trends, current law concerning bias incidents on campus, examples affecting schools, policies and training, and legal exposure.

RSHC Partner Josh Lee is the featured products liability and mass torts panelist at the June 17 Black In-House Counsel (BIHC) Elevating Black Excellence Regional Summit virtual event. Josh will provide an overview of considerations for high-stakes products liability and mass tort cases as well as explore how changes in technology and the events of 2020 will impact litigation and trials.

RSHC congratulates and celebrates Raymond Rushing’s dedicated leadership and commitment to the Cook County Bar Association (CCBA) and his installation as the new Vice President of Committee on Committees. For a second time, Raymond has been awarded the Presidential Award (2018, 2021) and Meritorious Service Award (2017, 2021) for his dedicated service. He received the Junior Counselor Award in 2019.

RSHC has been listed in the Chambers USA 2021 directory of leading lawyers and firms across the nation. The directory points to our Government Enforcement, Investigations & White Collar Criminal Defense practice as a ‘Band 2’ provider, among the highest-ranked in the country.

RSHC Managing Partner Patricia Brown Holmes answers five questions about lessons learned during the pandemic.

RSHC’s Bruce Wagman partnered with an elite team from Latham & Watkins, representing the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and other plaintiffs in a groundbreaking lawsuit seeking to permanently remove restrictions on California pet owners’ and veterinarians’ First Amendment rights to use pet telemedicine. This important case asserts that the California state veterinary board limits on telemedicine are unconstitutional and violate the First Amendment.

In their Built In article, "Detect Fraud and Other Misconduct With Data Analytics," Kelly Warner and Andrew Wu report that regulators expect organizations to include a data analytics component in their compliance programs. Moreover, organizations find analytics to be a powerful tool to proactively identify fraud, theft of IP, harassment, and other misconduct. Data analytics can assist in reducing risk and liability for an organization and demonstrate to regulators that a company takes ethics and compliance seriously.

Brenna Woodley co-authored Trade Secret Remedies and the Inevitable Disclosure Doctrine, which appears in the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education’s 2021 Edition of Intellectual Property Law. The IICLE provides continuing legal education for Illinois attorneys. Brenna’s piece, published on April 20, 2021, discusses the latest developments regarding remedies in cases involving trade secret misappropriation and related claims under state and federal law, including claims under the Illinois Trade Secrets Act and federal Defend Trade Secrets Act.

Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila has been recognized by Chambers as “a true diversity and inclusion pioneer for the legal profession.” RSHC has been shortlisted as one of 12 U.S. finalists for the Chambers D&I North America 2021 “Outstanding Firm for Furthering Diversity and Inclusion” award, which aims to recognize a firm that is demonstrating broadly measurable impact in advocating for and implementing an inclusive work environment with originality and deep commitment. The winner will be announced at a June 17 award ceremony.

Bruce Wagman and Erin Gasparka represented Return to Freedom in efforts to stop inhumane and illegal surgeries being performed by the federal government on wild horses. In response to the lawsuit, the Bureau of Land Management has agreed not to begin the controversial and dangerous sterilization surgeries.

Greg Curtner provided commentary on recent arguments in the Supreme Court case that will decide the future of amateurism in college athletics. In his piece "Amateurism Is Not a Horizontal Price Fix," Curtner unpacks what took place during the March 31 arguments, noting that the discussion included a "jumble of half-baked antitrust concepts, polemics rather than facts, and lack of focus on the legitimate issues before the Court."