International law firm McDermott Will & Emery is pleased to announce the addition of two partners to its Litigation Practice Group: Joel Haims in New York and Jonathan (Jon) Henry in Washington, DC. Joel is a highly respected litigator with vast experience handling securities and complex commercial cases, while Jon represents some of the largest accounting firms across the United States and has served as first-chair trial lawyer in many influential commercial disputes.

“We advise our clients through a wide variety of complex litigation, providing strategic counsel from investigations through trial,” Steven Scholes, global head of McDermott’s Litigation Practice Group, said. “Joel and Jon have achieved exceptional outcomes for their clients, and we look forward to their continued successes here at McDermott representing clients in the professional services, real estate and oil and gas industries.”

Joel focuses his practice on securities litigation, including class actions, shareholder derivative cases and corporate control litigation. He also adds depth to our capabilities representing clients in US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enforcement proceedings and internal investigations. Joel also has extensive experience litigating complex commercial cases, including cases involving commercial real estate transactions, bankruptcies and religious rights.

Joel joins from Morrison & Foerster LLP where he served twice as the firm’s global co-chair of the Securities, Litigation, Enforcement and White-Collar Defense Group. He is recognized by both Chambers USA and Legal 500 for his work in securities litigation.

“I am excited to join McDermott because of its talented team of lawyers, its collaborative culture and its momentum,” Joel said. “I look forward to continued success representing my clients and to expanding the Firm’s existing capabilities.”

Jon brings deep trial experience representing large accounting firms and their professionals, successfully defending them in numerous high profile accounting cases. He also represents large accounting firms and their professionals in regulatory and financial investigations by the US Department of Justice and US regulatory agencies, including the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board and the SEC. He also represents clients in high-stakes, complex commercial litigation.

Jon joins from King & Spalding. He received his BA and JD from the University of Virginia.

McDermott Will & Emery partners with leaders around the world to fuel missions, knock down barriers and shape markets. Our team works seamlessly across practices and industries to deliver highly effective solutions that propel success. More than 1,200 lawyers strong, we bring our personal passion and legal prowess to bear in every matter for our clients and the people they serve.

International law firm McDermott Will & Emery represented Trustpilot, Inc., a leading online business review platform, in obtaining the affirmance of the dismissal of a class action complaint with prejudice by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

“We are gratified that the Second Circuit agreed with Judge Rakoff’s decision to dismiss the class action brought against our client, absolving Trustpilot of all deceptive business practice and related claims brought against them,” Andrew Kratenstein, McDermott’s lead partner in the case and who argued the appeal, said. “Trustpilot is a highly respected company, and we are delighted to have succeeded in achieving this complete victory for our client.”

Trustpilot is a digital platform that brings businesses and consumers together to foster trust and inspire collaboration, allowing users to post reviews of businesses on its website. Businesses are able to contract with Trustpilot to collect and manage information concerning the reviews, providing subscriptions that allow businesses to access consumer insight data and obtain consulting services concerning how reviews of the business are displayed online. Per the terms of the subscription agreement, Trustpilot automatically renews these subscriptions unless the subscriber notifies Trustpilot of its desire to cancel at least 30 days before the end of the subscription’s term.

Plaintiffs sued on behalf of a putative nationwide class of Trustpilot subscribers, asserting claims for deceptive business practices under New York law and other states’ unfair business practices statutes, as well as claims for breach of contract, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing and unjust enrichment.

On June 29, 2021, Judge Jed Rakoff of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York agreed with the McDermott team’s arguments and granted Trustpilot’s motion to dismiss the case with prejudice. The Plaintiffs then appealed. The Second Circuit agreed with McDermott’s argument that the Plaintiffs’ contractual claims failed because the parties’ valid and enforceable subscription agreements clearly disclosed Trustpilot’s auto-renewal policies and did not require Trustpilot to send renewal-reminders. The Second Circuit also agreed that the NYGBL §§ 349-50 claim was properly dismissed because Plaintiffs failed to allege that the conduct was deceptive. Finally, the Second Circuit held that Plaintiffs’ NYGOL § 5-903 claim failed because any connection to personal property was merely incidental to Trustpilot’s provision of consulting, analytical or administrative services and thus the statute did not apply.

The McDermott team was led by Andrew Kratenstein and William Donovan, Jr. and included Caroline Incledon and Kierstin Fowler. The full case name is Trustpilot Damages LLC, et al. v. Trustpilot Inc.

McDermott Will & Emery partners with leaders around the world to fuel missions, knock down barriers and shape markets. Our team works seamlessly across practices and industries to deliver highly effective solutions that propel success. More than 1,200 lawyers strong, we bring our personal passion and legal prowess to bear in every matter for our clients and the people they serve.