Hueston Hennigan Promotes Arianna Demas to Counsel

“We couldn’t be prouder of Arianna,” said Moez Kaba, managing partner of Hueston Hennigan. “She is a skilled litigator who has played a significant role in some of our firm’s highest-profile cases and has demonstrated exceptional dedication to our clients and the firm. As she steps into her new role as counsel, we look forward to her continued leadership and contributions to the team.”

Ms. Demas represents clients in high-stakes business disputes, complex litigation, and white collar investigations. She was on the team that secured a first-of-its-kind decision in New York on behalf of Amazon and Twitch where the state appellate court dismissed lawsuits alleging the firm’s clients and other social media companies were liable for a fatal mass shooting in Buffalo, New York. Ms. Demas also represented McDonald’s in securing the dismissal of a $100 million fraud suit brought by Byron Allen over ad spend through a motion under California’s “anti-SLAPP” statute, and she has represented Monster Energy in various federal lawsuits concerning marketing and advertising.

Prior to joining Hueston Hennigan, Ms. Demas was a William J. Brennan First Amendment Fellow for the American Civil Liberties Union. She served as a law clerk for the Hon. Ronnie Abrams of the U.S. District for the Southern District of New York. She earned her J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of Michigan Law School, where she was Order of the Coif and executive editor of the Michigan Law Review. Ms. Demas obtained her B.A., magna cum laude, in Political Science from Dickinson College.

Hueston Hennigan Secures Denial of Class Certification in Thomas Fire Case

One of the largest wildfires in California, the Thomas Fire burned over 280,000 acres across Santa Barbara and Ventura counties in December 2017 and January 2018, destroying more than 1,000 structures and damaging over 250 structures.

The initial class complaint was filed in 2018. Since then, the plaintiffs repeatedly narrowed their proposed class definition, including because Hueston Hennigan filed a successful demurrer attacking their proposed class definition. In December 2023, the plaintiffs moved to certify a class of individuals seeking loss-of-use damages in connection with soot and ash on their properties. The plaintiffs’ proposed class sought to include more than 100,000 properties in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.

In a 99-page decision issued on Nov. 21, the court granted Hueston Hennigan’s motions to exclude the plaintiffs’ two key experts and denied class certification. The court emphasized that even if it had not excluded these experts, it nonetheless would have denied certification because the class certification factors favor SCE. The court’s ruling sets an important precedent in California wildfire cases.

Hueston Hennigan has obtained a series of highly successful results for SCE and Edison International in connection with Thomas Fire proceedings. Edison International has been dismissed from all cases, and the firm has resolved over 99% of individual plaintiff claims against SCE through an innovative resolution protocol.

The team includes Douglas Dixon, Andrew Walsh, Craig Fligor, Spencer Schmider, Melanie Hess and Collin Yeung.

Zaccaro and Vo Publish Article on SEC Disgorgement Remedy

The article looks at how disgorgement of ill-gotten gains in securities violations is one of the SEC’s most powerful remedies, but courts are split when it comes to whether the SEC needs to show pecuniary harm to justify it. In their piece, Mr. Zaccaro, former regional trial counsel of the SEC, and Ms. Vo examine how courts have struggled with implementing Liu v. SEC in the five years since the landmark SCOTUS decision and argue it’s time for much needed clarification. Please see their article here. 

Hueston Hennigan Earns Multiple Tier 1 Rankings By Best Law Firms

The firm also garnered Tier 1 regional rankings in Commercial Litigation, Bet-the-Company Litigation, Criminal Defense: White Collar, Criminal Defense: General Practice, Intellectual Property Litigation, Securities Litigation and Media Law.

In August, 16 Hueston Hennigan lawyers were honored on the “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America” list, and 14 were named to “The Best Lawyers in America” list. Additionally, John Hueston was recognized as a 2026 “Lawyer of the Year” in Los Angeles in two categories: Criminal Defense: White Collar and Trade Secrets Law. Only a single lawyer in each practice area and designated metropolitan area is honored as the “Lawyer of the Year,” so it’s quite rare for one lawyer to be recognized with two “Lawyer of the Year” accolades.

Hueston Hennigan Secures Top Benchmark Rankings

The firm was also ranked Tier 1 nationally in General Commercial Litigation and White Collar Crime. In addition, Hueston Hennigan earned the “Highly Recommended” ranking, the highest tier, in California.

John Hueston and Moez Kaba were both recognized as among the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in the country.

The individual attorneys recognized include:

  • Marshall Camp (Litigation Star)
  • Vicki Chou (Litigation Star)
  • Doug Dixon (Litigation Star)
  • Padraic Foran (Future Star)
  • Brian Hennigan (Litigation Star, National Practice Area Star)
  • John Hueston (Top 100 Trial Lawyers, Litigation Star, National Practice Area Star)
  • Brittani Jackson (40 & Under)
  • Moez Kaba (Top 100 Trial Lawyers, Litigation Star)
  • Robert Klieger (Litigation Star)
  • Allison Libeu (Litigation Star, Top 250 Women in Litigation)
  • Sourabh Mishra (40 & Under)
  • Alison Plessman (Litigation Star)
  • Christy Von der Ahe Rayburn (Future Star)
  • Joseph Reiter (Future Star, 40 & Under)
  • Rajan Trehan (40 & Under)
  • Andrew Walsh (Future Star)
  • Christine Woodin (40 & Under)

Hueston, Kaba Land Daily Journal Top 100 Accolades

The Top 100 list honors “the most exceptional attorneys who have demonstrated outstanding leadership and impact through their work.” Distinguished Counsel is devoted to attorneys who have been on the Top 100 at least 15 times and “have demonstrated, year after year, that they are operating at the very highest level of California’s legal profession – one of the most dynamic, complex, and globally influential in the world.”

Mr. Hueston’s video interview with the Daily Journal is here. Mr. Hueston’s and Mr. Kaba’s profiles are here and here (subscription required).