Representative Experience
Drafted Washington Reporter Shield Law, RCW 5.68.010 (effective July 22, 2007)
Browne v. Avvo, Inc., 525 F. Supp. 2d 1249 (W.D. Wash. 2007) (in lawsuit defending attorney evaluation website, court granted motion to dismiss on First Amendment opinion grounds, also holding that distribution of information is not “commerce” under state consumer protection laws)
Zango, Inc. v. Kaspersky Lab, Inc., 2007 WL 1655217 (W.D. Wash., Aug. 29, 2007) (summary judgment dismissing lawsuit against distributor of anti-malware products, recognizing “robust” immunity under 47 U.S.C. § 230(c)(2) enabling consumer access to information about potentially “objectionable” software)
Paterson v. Little, Brown & Co., 502 F.Supp.2d 1124 (W.D. Wash. 2007) (granting summary judgment based on opinion privilege and failure to prove actual malice, and dismissing defamation and false light claims by “father of DOS” computer operating system against book author, researcher, and publisher)
Powers v. City of Seattle , 242 F.R.D. 566 (W.D. Wash. 2007) (opposition to motion to join media entities as indispensable parties in defamation lawsuit filed by terminated city employee against City of Seattle)
Clapp v. Olympic View Publishing Co., LLC , 137 Wn. App. 470, 154 P.3d 230 (2007) (favorable application of public reports privilege by Division II in defamation lawsuit, affirming dismissal of case on the pleadings)
Berry v. Penguin Group (USA), Inc. , 448 F. Supp. 2d 1202 (W.D. Wash. 2006) (dismissal of copyright lawsuit against book publisher on jurisdiction grounds)
Spafford v. EchoStar Communications Corp ., 448 F. Supp. 2d 1220 (W.D. Wash. 2006) (First Amendment challenge to regulations barring telephone solicitation)
Mundahl v. Seattle Times Co ., No. 05-2-07885-5 SEA (King County Super Ct. Nov. 29, 2005) (court dismissed false advertising claims against newspaper and imposed sanctions award of $25,434 on plaintiff and plaintiff’s lawyer)
Vaughan v. Seattle Post-Intelligencer , No. 05-2-07545-2 (Pierce County Super. Ct. Aug. 26, 2005) (represented Tacoma daily newspaper in successful motion to dismiss defamation claims based on opinion and fair comment privilege)
Fidelity Mortgage Corp. v. Seattle Times Co ., 131 Wn. App. 462, 128 P.3d 621 (2005) (affirming dismissal of lawsuit alleging unfair trade practice liability by newspaper’s real estate news articles and mortgage rate advertising policies, resulting in sanctions award against plaintiff)
Expeditors International of Washington, Inc. v. Expeditors ( Japan) Ltd ., 224 F.R.D. 661 (W.D. Wash. 2004) (dismissal of Japanese contract claims for lack of federal diversity jurisdiction)
Harris v. City of Seattle , 315 F. Supp. 2d 1105 (W.D. Wash. 2004) ( granting summary judgment dismissing false light, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and outrage claims by former public official ), aff’d, 152 Fed. Appx. 565, 2005 U.S. App. LEXIS 21543, 33 Media L. Rep. 2473 (9th Cir. 2005)
Grassmueck v. Barnett , 281 F. Supp. 2d 1227 (W.D. Wash. 2003) (director protection provision in corporation’s articles does not shield defendant directors and officers from liability for breach of duty of care)
Viacom Outdoor, Inc. v. Clallam County , 2003 WL 21781131 (W.D. Wash. 2003) (successful challenge to county sign ordinance)
Fidelity Mortgage Corp. v. Seattle Times Co ., 213 F.R.D. 573 (W.D. Wash. 2003) (plaintiff must plead fraud with particularity in allegations against newspaper and mortgage companies regarding publication of mortgage interest rates)
Nike, Inc. v. Kasky , 539 U.S. 654 (2003) (submitted amicus brief on behalf of 42 media entities in support of First Amendment commercial speech rights)
Grassmueck v. Ogden Murphy Wallace, P.L.L.C. , 213 F.R.D. 567 (W.D. Wash. 2003) (applying “crime-fraud” exception to attorney-client privilege in discovery dispute)
Harris v. City of Seattle , 2003 WL 1045718, 32 Media L. Rep. 1279 (W.D. Wash. 2003) (district court granted motion to dismiss RICO, defamation, and intrusion claims arising from use of hidden camera in newscast, and struck punitive damages allegations)
Ercolano v. The Baseball Club of Seattle, L.P ., No. 02-2-24421-1 SEA (King County Super. Ct. Feb. 3, 2003) (obtained summary judgment for Seattle Mariners baseball team in lawsuit by disgruntled fan claiming contractual and free speech right to sit behind home plate and scream at every pitch, resulting in “a never-ending assault to opposing batters”)
Deutsch v. Turner Corp. , 317 F.3d 1005 (9th Cir. 2003) (application of Constitution in connection with California claims against Japanese companies)
Fraternal Order of Eagles v. Grand Aerie of Fraternal Order of Eagles , 148 Wn.2d 224, 59 P.2d 655 (2002) (amicus brief submitted in connection with First Amendment right of association case)
Wright v. Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center , 206 F.R.D. 679 (W.D. Wash. 2002) (application of journalist’s privilege in connection with subpoena in pending lawsuit)
Publications and Presentations
Moderator, Panel Discussion, “The Emerging Privacy Challenges: Social Networking,” The Privacy Symposium, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA (Summer 2008)
Co-author, “Fair Housing of San Fernando Valley v. Roommates.com: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Announces a New Legal Test for Mixed-Content Websites,” NYSBA Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Journal (Summer 2008)
“Advertising and Commercial Speech, A First Amendment Guide - Second Edition,” by Steven G. Brody and Bruce E. H. Johnson, New York, NY: Practising Law Institute (2007)
“Amendment XXVIII? Defending Corporate Speech Rights,” 58 South Carolina L. Rev. 855 (Summer 2007)
“A Marketplace of Ideas or ‘Continuous Partial Attention’?” The Masthead (NCEW), Vol. 59, No. 2 (Summer 2007)
“Conflict Issues in Confidential Source Cases: New Dangers from the Model Rules?” Media Law Resource Center Bulletin, 2005 No. 4, Part B (January 2006)
“The Rights of Telemarketers, Faxers, and Spammers are Subordinated to the Rights of Consumers,” The Computer & Internet Lawyer, Volume 22, Number 7 (July 2005)
“Why Formatting, Not Content, is the Key to Identifying Commercial Speech” Case Western Reserve Law Review, Volume 54, No. 4, (Summer 2004)
“Is There a Constitutional Right to Bombard the Public with Penis Enlargement Proposals?” Communications Lawyer, Volume 21, No. 2 (Summer 2003)
“Representing Media Clients and Their Employees in Newsgathering Cases: Traps f or the Unwary” Communications Lawyer, Volume 20, No. 2 (Summer 2002)
“Shhh, Don’t Tell Anyone I’m a Lotus-Eater! Washington State’s Battle over Internet Privacy and the First Amendment,” ABA Media Law and Defamation T orts Committee News (Fall 2000)
“The Internet and 21 st Century Newsgathering: Lessons from the Last Millennium,” ABA Media Law and Defamation Torts Committee News (Spring 2000)
“No Emus is Good Emus: ‘Worrying About Nothing’ as Agricultural Disparagement Laws Proliferate,” ABA Media Law and Defamation Torts Committee News (Winter 1998)
“Will the Cattlemen’s Defeat Spell the End of Efforts to Create Other Sacred Cows With State Veggie Libel Laws?” ABA First Amendment and Media Litigation Newsletter (Winter 1998)
“CBS Inc. v. Davis: Oddball Lessons from a Typical Prior Restraint Case,” ABA Communications Lawyer (Summer 1995)
“Does Life Exist on Mars? Litigating Falsity in a Non-‘Of and Concerning’ World,” ABA Communications Lawyer (Summer 1994)
Memberships and Activities
Washington State Bar Association, 1977-present
State Bar of California, 1992-present
Selected to "Super Lawyers," Washington Law & Politics, 2008
Named as one of the “Best Lawyers in America” in First Amendment Law by Woodward/White, 1993-1994; 1995-96; 1997-98; 1999-2000; 2001-02; 2003-04; 2005-06; 2006; 2007; 2008
Named as one of “Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business” in First Amendment Litigation (National) by Chambers USA, 2007-present
Received Avvo Rating (www.avvo.com) of 10.0 (“Superb”), 2007-present
Listed in Who’s Who in America, 1996-present
Chair of the Media Law and Defamation Torts Committee, American Bar Association’s Tort and Insurance Practice Section, 1999-2000
Member, Executive Committee, Defense Counsel Section, Media Law Resource Center, 2000-2005; President, 2004
Member, Media Law Reporter Advisory Board, 2005-present
Board member, Seattle Repertory Theatre Board of Trustees, 1993-present; President, 1999-2001; Chair, 2004-2006; Chair Emeritus, 2006-present
Board member, Seattle Repertory Theatre Foundation Board of Trustees, 2006-present
Member, National Council for the American Theatre, 2005-present
Member, King County Government Access Channel Citizens Oversight Committee, 1996-2001
Board member, Huntington’s Disease Society of America, Northwest Chapter, 2001-2006
Education
M.A., Cambridge University, 1978
J.D., Yale University, 1977
B.A., First Class Honours, Cambridge University, 1974
A.B., magna cum laude, Harvard University, 1972
