Month: September 2023

Reiter Named to List of Top 40 Under 40

Joseph Reiter clerked for the Hon. Andrew J. Kleinfeld of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit who keeps chambers in Fairbanks, Alaska. Mr. Reiter, who loves the outdoors, explained, “we’d be working in the dead of winter when there’s not much daylight, then fly down to Pasadena for oral argument sessions in sunny California. I was exposed to a lot of different approaches to legal decision-making. It really benefitted my writing as a lawyer.”

Mr. Reiter is prepping for a major antitrust jury trial in November against Google LLC in a “bet-the-company” suit for Match Group LLC. Last year, he scored a major win by obtaining injunctive relief for Match. “It’ll be a high-profile jury trial, and our arguments will benefit all app developers and consumers,” explained Mr. Reiter to the Daily Journal.

Mr. Reiter recently won a favorable mid-trial settlement for a hospital chain for claims for hundreds of millions of dollars in alleged underpayments. “We go into every trial with the goal of winning ever day, and we effectively rebutted every element of their case,” explained Mr. Reiter.

Earlier this year, Mr. Reiter prevailed on appeal for Amazon.com in a suit under California’s “taxpayer waste” law. He persuaded a Los Angeles County trial court to dismiss the case on the grounds that the state tax agency has discretion to decide who a retailer is. A state appellate panel agreed.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Wins Round in Diversity Bout With Diageo

Judge Joel M. Cohen of the Supreme Court of New York for the County of New York denied Thursday Diageo’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit and its motion to force the case into arbitration.

Combs will now be able to engage in “broad discovery” aimed at uncovering evidence that the company didn’t support Combs’ liquor brands—Ciroc Vodka and DeLeón Tequila—in the same manner that it support its other brands, according to John Hueston, Combs’ attorney.

“This case has always been about getting fair and equal treatment,” Hueston said in a statement. “Today’s decision is an important step in the right direction. Diageo tried to end this action. Today the judge soundly rejected that effort.”

Click here to read full Bloomberg Law article.

Case Against Masimo Founder and CEO Joe Kiani Dismissed

“Plaintiffs’ dismissal represents an important victory for Mr. Kiani,” said John Hueston. “This was a baseless attack on Mr. Kiani’s compensation agreement that was adopted eight years ago, on a clear day, and which was publicly disclosed and relied upon for years. We are glad that the Plaintiffs finally understood this.”

In October 2022, after acquiring an 8.4% ownership stake in Masimo, activist investor group Politan Capital Management initiated this litigation in the Delaware Court of Chancery. Initially, the focus of Politan’s lawsuit was on Masimo’s advance-notice bylaws, which Politan claimed were invalid and unenforceable due to their purportedly adverse effects on stockholder franchise. But soon after Masimo repealed those bylaws, mooting Politan’s claims, Politan dramatically shifted the focus of its lawsuit to focus on Mr. Kiani’s employment agreement with Masimo.

In March 2023, Politan filed an amended complaint, in which another Masimo investor, the California State Teachers Retirement Systems (CalSTRS), joined as Plaintiff, seeking to invalidate core provisions in Mr. Kiani’s employment agreement. Specifically, Plaintiffs claimed that certain compensation terms of that agreement—including those that entitle Mr. Kiani to receive, upon the occurrence of certain conditions, a one-time grant of 2.7 million restricted stock units in Masimo (equal to approximately 5% of Masimo’s market cap) and a $35 million cash payment—are invalid under Delaware law. Hueston Hennigan appeared in the litigation to represent Mr. Kiani against Plaintiffs’ challenge.

On August 18, 2023, Mr. Kiani, along with the other Defendants, filed a motion to dismiss all of Plaintiffs’ claims. Shortly thereafter, on September 6, 2023, Plaintiffs filed a motion to dismiss their lawsuit in its entirety, and the Court granted the motion the following day.

Masimo is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures, and markets a variety of life-saving noninvasive patient monitoring technologies, hospital automation solutions, home monitoring devices, ventilation solutions, and consumer products. Masimo is best known today for its proprietary pulse oximetry technology, which is currently used to monitor over 200 million patients per year, and it is the primary pulse oximetry technology used in many of the top hospitals in the United States.

Since founding Masimo 34 years ago, Mr. Kiani has developed a proven track record as a leader and innovator whose contributions have been critical to Masimo’s success. Mr. Kiani is the co-inventor of measure through motion pulse oximetry, and his ideas and inventions have been integral to nearly every major product and service that Masimo offers. His accomplishments have been widely recognized by stockholders and others, as Masimo has substantially outperformed the market since its initial public offering in 2007.

The Hueston Hennigan team included John Hueston, Marshall Camp, Yegor Fursevich, Rajan Trehan, Lauren Johnson, Adam Minchew, Karen Ding, and Stephen Andrews.

Hueston and Kaba Repeat on List of Top 100 Lawyers

“It’s been busy,” said John Hueston, understating matters to the Daily Journal. He won a combined half-billion dollars in 2022 for Monster Energy in a jury trial and arbitration against Vital Pharmaceuticals (VPX). While VPX has attempted the bankruptcy route, the CEO is still liable. “And that gave us the opening for Monster to buy Bang for hundreds of millions of dollars less than it would have been worth.”

Mr. Hueston has new challenges ahead for McDonald’s, Medtronic, and Brittney Spears’ former manager Lou Taylor, where he has replaced existing trial counsel.

“We specialize in trial work,” Mr. Hueston explained. “We are often asked to come in when serious cases look like they’re going to trial, not settle.” He went on to explain, “they’re known as ‘higher yield to trial’ matters.”

McDonald’s hired Hueston Hennigan in a bet-the-company race discrimination case brought by billionaire media mogul and entertainer Byron Allen. The suit seeks $10 billion in damages. Medtronic, facing hundreds of millions in damages, hired Hueston Hennigan to defend it in a patent infringement suit over heart valve technology. And last, Mr. Hueston replaced another law firm in upcoming conservatorship litigation, where we represent Britney Spears’ former manager and Tri Sports and Entertainment group.

Moez Kaba is co-founder of Hueston Hennigan and “a courtroom star.” After winning a number of high-profile matters, including $293 million for Monster Energy, he was voted in as Managing Partner. With a busy trial schedule ahead, Mr. Kaba explains “the prize for winning a pie-eating contest is you get more pie.”

Mr. Kaba’s success with his commercial clients parallels his success with his pro bono work. As an out gay man, he helps with LGBTQ+ advocacy. As Muslim, he fought off a threatened ban on an anti-Islamophobia program in San Diego Schools. And when authorities shut down a hotline for persons in immigration detention, he sued ICE and got the hotline restored.

“My great professional joy is to take complex cases all the way to trial,” said Mr. Kaba. “My great personal joy is to represent causes near to my heart.”

Not every case goes to trial, however. Recently, Mr. Kaba secured a settlement, after replacing a major law firm, in a $50 million claim of fraudulent inducement and breach of contract case. Mr. Kaba “later learned from the jury that his opening and cross provided a compelling defense.” He also obtained a similar mid-trial outcome for Kaiser as it faced demands for hundreds of millions of dollars in alleged underpayments. After replacing existing counsel, and delivery a compelling opening statement, and cross-examining several witnesses, the case settled.

“My aim is to tell our story through their witnesses and try to keep impeachment very tight,” Mr. Kaba said. “It only works because of our amazing colleagues and staff. I’m the conductor, but they drive the train.”

 

The list recognizes the very best California attorneys who have made an impact on the law and society within the last year. Mr. Hueston has been named to the prestigious list for over a decade, and Mr. Kaba has been on the list for seven consecutive years.

Click here to read Mr. Hueston’s full profile.

Click here to read Mr. Kaba’s full profile.