5 notable GCs in the news
Tracking some of the most-significant quotes from general counsel in the mainstream media
February 03, 2012 at 02:15 AM
3 minute read
The original version of this story was published on Law.com
Twitter Troubles
“[The announcement] has nothing to do with China.”
- Alex Macgillivray, general counsel for Twitter
Twitter announced on Jan. 26 that it would be censoring tweets in certain countries at the request of foreign governments. Macgillivray said this decision was unrelated to China, where Twitter is currently blocked.
Oily Appeal
“Throughout the course of this litigation, judges corruptly operating in concert with the plaintiffs' lawyers have created, rather than corrected, injustice.”
- Chevron vice president and general counsel Hewitt Pate
Oil giant Chevron was ordered by an Ecuadorian judge in February 2011 to pay $8.6 billion for allegedly polluting the Amazon jungle, an amount which was then raised to $18 billion when Chevron failed to make a public apology. The company is now appealing the fine to Ecuador's National Court of Justice.
Facebook Fraud
“Security is an arms race. It's important to stay a step ahead against spammers and scammers.”
- Ted Ullyot, Facebook's general counsel
On Jan. 26, Facebook and the state of Washington filed a lawsuit against the Delaware-based ad company Adscend Media, which allegedly has been using Facebook's “Like” button to trick victims into visiting advertising sites and divulging personal information, a practice Facebook dubs “clickjacking.”
California Carcinogens
“The federal FDA needs to ban formaldehyde as an ingredient in these popular products so consumers and salon workers are not inhaling a known human carcinogen. Period.”
- Heather White, chief of staff and general counsel for Environmental Working Group.
The state of California settled with the makers of Brazilian Blowout hair products on Jan. 30, requiring that the company cease deceptive advertising that suggests its products are formaldehyde-free and safe. The Environmental Working Group's GC responded, saying that while the California case is a step in the right direction, it won't be enough to fix the problem of formaldehyde in hair products.
Petition Privacy
“Few processes in the electoral system or elsewhere are more public than the signing of recall petitions against state elected officials.”
- Kevin Kennedy, director and general counsel of the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board.
On Jan. 31, the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board posted electronic copies online of 1 million signatures from the effort to recall Gov. Scott Walker in spite of privacy concerns raised by advocacy groups.
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Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
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