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With 25 years of experience, Jeff is an accomplished trial lawyer who advises clients in litigation across a broad range of matters – representing plaintiffs as often as defendants. Jeff co-leads Ropes & Gray's commercial litigation practice. He has taken national consumer fraud class actions to trial, litigated multi-district actions in the health care and securities areas, and led cases involving technology, professional malpractice, sports and entertainment law, and white-collar crime. Jeff has particular expertise in litigation related to private equity transactions, health care fraud, and disputes where those two areas overlap. Drawing from his litigation experience, Jeff leads internal investigations of portfolio companies for private equity clients to assess and minimize risk to fund managers and their investors. He also advises on deals for private equity clients regarding litigation risk and due diligence, as well as the negotiation and drafting of terms bearing on post-closing disputes. Jeff’s class action expertise began when he was a second-year lawyer, with his ultimately dispositive examination of the Illinois class representative and his post-trial briefs in the landmark case Avery v. State Farm.
Jeff is committed to pro bono work. In early 2014, he led a pro bono team in the first civil rights case under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. That effort secured new anti-discrimination protections for people living with HIV. Jeff also handles consumer fraud and family law matters for indigent and disabled individuals, as well as asylum cases.
Experience
- East v. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana, et al. (M.D. La. 2014): successful action under the Affordable Care Act's civil rights provisions, including a TRO enjoining insurer discrimination, addressing the disparate impact on people living with HIV from insurers' rejection of federal Ryan White funds.
- Won dismissal with prejudice for leading private equity firm GTCR on the eve of a bellwether trial in the highly publicized toxic tort litigation, In re Willowbrook Ethylene Oxide Litigation (Cook Co. Illinois 2022).
- Representing national pharmacies and grocers in federal and state courts against insurers alleging false prescription drug price reporting.
- United States ex rel. Cho v. HIG Capital, LLC (11th Cir. 2022) establishing standards for the False Claims Act’s first-to-file bar and upholding dismissal of a case alleging fraudulent practices by a private equity-owned health care company.
- Led a confidential ADR proceeding, favorably resolving a 9-figure transactional dispute between private equity funds (2022).
- Coca-Cola Beverages Florida v. Goins (Hillsborough Co. Fla. and Del. Ch. 2019): dismissal of Florida action and counterclaims in Delaware litigation by former executive alleging ownership stake in beverage company.
- Shahinian v. Stryker (C.D. Cal. 2018): dismissal with prejudice of a national class action alleging fraudulent marketing of client’s surgical devices; Rule 12 dismissal based on innovative FDA preemption and jurisdictional defenses.
- Mayberry v. Walgreens, et al. (N.D. Ill. 2017): dismissal with prejudice of a national class action alleging fraudulent billing and reimbursement practices against leading pharmacies in the sale and distribution of insulin.
- Capella Holdings v. Anderson (Del. Ch. 2017) and Anderson v. GTCR (D. Del. 2016): secured full dismissal of plaintiff’s alleged 9-figure claim and won summary judgment for our client, a private hospital system, in a dispute challenging the client’s recapitalization and sale. Also won dismissal of plaintiff’s related federal claim against Capella’s former private equity sponsor.
- Immucor v. Fairview Health Services (N.D. Ga. 2018): prosecution and favorable resolution of contract and misrepresentation claims by client blood services provider against defendant hospital system after prevailing on a motion to dismiss.
- Milwaukee Brewers v. ATI (E.D. Wis. 2017): defense and favorable resolution of a contract dispute regarding stadium sponsorship rights, including indemnification claims by client ATI against its sports marketing agent.
- Coordinating litigation counsel advising and representing the independent directors of a leading health care company in disputes arising from alleged product defects, including consumer fraud class actions, securities claims, False Claims Act cases, fiduciary duty claims, and indemnification disputes.
- Representing a major lodging company as plaintiff in litigation against its former credit card processor and clearing bank related to a data breach.
- Successfully represented private equity-owned national logistics company in disputes with warehousing firm.
- Resolved multiple disputes between private equity-owned health care and technology companies and their former executives regarding confidentiality and competition obligations.
- Successfully represented the American Kidney Fund nationwide in various matters related to insurers’ attacks on charitable health care assistance and allegations of improper “steering” of Medicare-eligible dialysis patients onto private plans, including civil litigations and interactions with CMS and state insurance regulators. See, Dialysis Patients Citizens v. Burwell (E.D. Tex. 2017) (enjoining a CMS interim final rule permitting insurers to refuse charitable premium assistance from our client).
- Zolna-Pitts v. ATI (Cook Co. Ill., 2014): full dismissal of one of the first major cases brought under Illinois’ “private payer qui tam” statute, alleging fraudulent billing practices.
- Mortenson Family Dental v. Heartland Dental Care (6th Cir. 2013; W.D. Ky. 2012; S.D. Ill. 2011): prevailed on removal, dismissal, and federal appeal of retaliatory Kentucky litigation filed by adversary in fiduciary duty and misrepresentation dispute, settling jurisdictional issues of first impression in the 6th Circuit and permitting Heartland’s successful Illinois case to proceed.
- Successfully represented dozens of private health care systems in arbitrations and litigations arising from disputes with group purchasing organizations, private insurance payers, joint venture partners, and other commercial disputes in the areas of dentistry, physical therapy, home infusion, dialysis, hospitals, physician practice groups, nursing homes, drug and addiction treatment, and mental health services.
- Successfully represented dozens of private equity funds and their portfolio companies in arbitrations, litigations, mediations, and other disputes related to indemnification claims for alleged breaches of representations and warranties, post-closing working capital adjustments, and other disputes relating to fund-to-fund, fund-to-strategic buyer, and take-private transactions.
- Prosecuted pharmaceutical industry trade secrets litigation against client's competitors in European arbitration before the ICC.
- Recovered an 8-figure arbitration award for a private equity client defrauded in a fund-to-fund portfolio company sale.
- Recovered over $20 million for a celebrity client defrauded by longtime financial, accounting, and legal advisers; Jeff led the investigation into and ensuing civil litigation regarding the defendants’ criminal scheme.
- Defense and favorable settlement of a $300 million post-closing claim by a public company buyer against private equity clients for allegedly concealing their former portfolio company's liabilities in Asia.
- Obtained dismissal of a $50 million federal action against a major Internet company in the Northern District of Illinois alleging violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
- Obtained dismissal of a multistate consumer fraud class action against a national insurer in Madison County, Illinois alleging unfair claims practices.
- Obtained dismissal of a federal consumer fraud class action against a well-known food manufacturer in the Northern District of California.
- Defeated numerous state and federal consumer class actions against hospital systems related to billing and collection practices.
- Defeated a string of arbitrations brought by investors alleging securities fraud against a leading financial services company.