Current Role
  • Senior Counsel, Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
  • Concentrates on appeals as well as consumer rights, securities and employment litigation
  • Certified Appellate Specialist, State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization (since 2006)
Recognition
  • Super Lawyer (since 2008)
  • Legal Aid Society of San Diego, Outstanding Service Award (2015)
  • Consumer Attorneys of California, Presidential Award of Merit (2013 & 2016)
Notable Cases
  • Colbert v. Rio Tinto PLC, 824 F. App’x 5 (2d Cir. 2020) (vacating dismissal of securities fraud complaint)
  • Mayall v. USA Water Polo, 909 F.3d 1055 (9th Cir. 2018) (viable claims alleged concerning duty to implement concussion and return-to-play protocols) 
  • Hernandez v. Restoration Hardware, 4 Cal. 5th 260 (2018) (agreeing with CAOC as amicus curiae that unnamed class members must intervene for standing to appeal)
  • Friedman v. AARP, Inc., 855 F.3d 1047 (9th Cir. 2017) (UCL claim stated that AARP unlawfully transacted insurance without license)
  • George v. Urban Settlement Serv., 833 F.3d 1242 (10th Cir. 2016) (reinstating RICO class complaint against Bank of America)
  • Duran v. U.S. Bank, 59 Cal. 4th 1 (2014) (CAOC amicus curiae addressing representative evidence in class actions)
  • Wong v. Accretive Health, 773 F.3d 859 (7th Cir. 2014) (upholding $14 million securities settlement)
  • Harris v. Superior Court, 207 Cal. App. 4th 1225 (2012) ($65 million resolution for employee class after reversal)
  • Lynch v. Rawls, 429 F. App’x 641 (9th Cir. 2011) ($15 million derivative settlement after first Ninth Circuit reversal on presuit demand requirement)
  • Kwikset Corp. v. Superior Court, 51 Cal. 4th 310 (2011) (rejecting stringent interpretation of UCL standing prerequisites)
  • Luther v. Countrywide Fin. Corp., 195 Cal. App. 4th 789 (2011) (Securities Act class actions permitted in state court,  leading to $500 million settlement)
  • In re F5 Networks, Inc. Derivative Litig., 207 P.3d 433 (Wash. 2009) (Washington follows demand futility standard, not universal demand rule)
  • Troyk v. Farmers Group, 171 Cal. App. 4th 1305 (2009) (auto insurance policy violated disclosure statute; settled on appeal for $100 million monetary relief)
  • Smith v. Am. Family Mut. Ins. Co., 289 S.W.3d 675 (Mo. Ct. App. 2009) (reinstating $17 million jury verdict for plaintiff class)
  • Alaska Elec. Pension Fund v. Brown, 941 A.2d 1011 (Del. 2007) (en banc) (intervening shareholders who show corporate benefit may seek attorney fees)
  • Ritt v. Billy Blanks Enters., 870 N.E.2d 212 (Ohio Ct. App. 2007) (reversing on class certification, leading to $40 million settlement)
  • McKell v. Washington Mutual, 142 Cal. App. 4th 1457 (2006) (reversing and holding federal lending regulations did not foreclose UCL claims)
  • Lebrilla v. Farmers Group, 119 Cal. App. 4th 1070 (2004) (reversing and ordering certification of California class; settled at trial for substantial classwide relief)
  • Lavie v. Procter & Gamble Co., 105 Cal. App. 4th 496 (2003) (seminal precedent on California’s reasonable consumer standard)
Publications
  • Amicus Curiae Update, Forum (regular column for CAOC’s periodical) (since 2012)
  • Distinguishing Mayor McCheese from Hexadecimal Assembly Code for Madden Football: The Need to Correct the 9th Circuit's ‘Nutty’ Rule barring Expert Testimony in Software Copyright Cases (Oct. 2017) (with David Nimmer and Peter S. Menell) (available at SSRN)
  • Forfeiture at the Pleading Stage: Ask Permission First, Don’t Apologize Later, California Litigation (Vol. 28, No. 1, 2015) (with Rupa G. Singh) (Journal of State Bar Litigation Section)
  • Closing the Appellate Justice Gap, Los Angeles Daily Journal (Feb. 10, 2015)
  • Appellate Review in California Class Actions, California Litigation (Vol. 24, No. 2, 2011) (Journal of State Bar Litigation Section)
  • A Tool for Mischief: Preemptive Defense Motions Under BCBG Overtime Cases to Reject Class Certification, Forum (Vol. 39, No. 1, Jan./Feb. 2009) (with Kimberly A. Kralowec)
  • The Unfair Competition Law After Proposition 64: The California Supreme Court Speaks, Competition (Vol. 15, No. 2, Fall/Winter 2006) (Journal of State Bar Antitrust & Unfair Competition Law Section)
Presentations
  • Judicial Council CJER Webinar (Expanding Access to Justice in Appellate Courts, June 2020)
  • Bridgeport Class Action Conference (Appellate Review of Issues in Class Actions, Jan. 2020)
  • CAOC Webinar (Evidence at Class Certification: The Evolving Appellate Landscape, June 2019)
  • San Diego County Bar Association (New Mandatory Disclosures Before Mediation, Jan. 2019)
  • Bridgeport Class Action Conference (Expert Evidence at Class Certification, Jan. 2019)
  • California Lawyers Association Webinar (New Mandatory Disclosures Before Mediation, Dec. 2018)
  • Bridgeport Class Action Conference (Consumer Protection Cases Predicated on Omissions, Jan. 2018)
  • State Bar Webinar (Material Omission Claims Under California’s UCL, FAL and CLRA, Sept. 2017) 
  • Bridgeport Consumer Litigation Conference (Material Omissions, Jan. 2017)
  • CAOC Webinar (Ninth Circuit Practice: Everything but the Brief, Nov. 2016)
  • Bridgeport Class Action Litigation Conference (Objectors, Sept. 2016)
  • CAOC Annual Convention (Class Action Update, Nov. 2014)
  • San Diego County Bar Association (Moderator, Pleasing the Court: Making Your Oral Argument Count, Oct. 2014)
  • State Bar of California Annual Meeting (Forfeiture: A Four-Letter Word in the Court of Appeal, Sept. 2014)
  • Consumer Attorneys of San Diego, Class Action Symposium (Appellate Perspective on Class Actions, May 2014)
  • State Bar of California Golden State Institute (California Supreme Court Panel, Oct. 2012)
  • State Bar of California Annual Meeting (Moderator, Preparing an Appellate Record, Sept. 2009)
  • CAOC Annual Convention (Employment Litigation Panel, Nov. 2008)
Personal Insight

Concerned a legal career meant taking life too seriously, Kevin spent several years after college blending work and travel. He taught English in Switzerland, toiled as a luggage porter in Australia and scaled a live volcano in Guatemala. He ran with the bulls at Pamplona before easing into a monastic life of appellate practice.