Leading Class Action Defense Counsel Thomas Gilbertsen Joins Venable's Washington Office

Veteran litigator defends leading companies against consumer class actions, with long list of additional success handling intellectual property, antitrust and Lanham Act/false advertising claims

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Venable LLP

Sep 08, 2010, 02:53 ET

WASHINGTON, Sept. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Thomas Gilbertsen, a highly-regarded commercial trial and appellate attorney who regularly defends major companies in antitrust and consumer class actions, has joined Venable LLP as a partner in its Washington office. He was previously a partner in the Washington office of Kelley Drye & Warren LLP.

Mr. Gilbertsen serves as lead counsel to major consumer product, technology and service companies in a broad span of litigation contexts, including antitrust, intellectual property, privacy, Lanham Act and false advertising and consumer class actions. He has appeared in federal and state trial and appellate courts across the country, and has represented clients in matters pending before the Federal Trade Commission, United States Department of Justice, International Trade Commission and various state attorneys general. Mr. Gilbertsen is a frequent presenter and author on class action litigation trends.

"Tom is a versatile trial lawyer with tremendous range and a proven track record – he fits right into our nationally recognized litigation practice with complementary skills and experience," said Douglas Baldridge, who chairs Venable's Washington, Virginia and Rockville, MD litigation practices.

"We're especially excited to add his antitrust and class action defense talents," Mr. Baldridge noted. "Antitrust, privacy and other consumer class actions are a growing concern to our clients. The emerging privacy statutory and regulatory regimes, the recently-passed financial reform legislation, and formation of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau are putting renewed emphasis on our ability to successfully defend class actions. Tom's consistent success in this area will be invaluable to Venable clients."

Baldridge also noted Gilbertsen's skills will add to Venable's already considerable depth in advertising-related litigation. The firm's advertising litigation team was recently ranked among the best in the nation by Chambers USA and revived the 2010 Chambers Award for Excellence.

Mr. Gilbertsen has defended clients in several notable class action suits. Recently, he represented a controversial behavioral advertising company in a class action suit involving Internet privacy. As lead counsel in another federal class action suit, he secured summary judgment in favor of a call center company accused of invasion of privacy. And he recently defeated class certification in New Jersey federal court in a case challenging a major publisher's subscription renewal practices.

"I was attracted to Venable's outstanding reputation in litigation and competition law, as well as its nationally-renowned practices in consumer protection, advertising and privacy," Mr. Gilbertsen said of his move. "The firm has always been a leader in Washington, and its substantial presence in California and New York make it a perfect fit for my consumer protection and class action litigation practice."

Mr. Gilbertsen received his J.D. from Cornell Law School and a B.A. in Economics from The Ohio State University.

Note: An American Lawyer top 100 law firm, Venable LLP has attorneys practicing in all areas of corporate and business law, complex litigation, intellectual property and government affairs. Venable serves corporate, institutional, governmental, nonprofit and individual clients throughout the U.S. and around the world from its headquarters in Washington, D.C. and offices in California, Maryland, New York and Virginia. For more information, visit www.venable.com.