
Overview
Seth Jessee brings extensive experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants in complex business litigation in state and federal court. He has considerable knowledge in all aspects of the litigation process from pre-trial case development through discovery and trial. He has particular expertise in litigation involving trademark infringement, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract and securities fraud.
Prior to joining Rutan & Tucker, Seth worked at WilmerHale, where he defended financial institutions and companies in complex business litigation and government investigations, and Labaton & Sucharow LLP, where he prosecuted securities fraud class actions.
Experience
Representative Matters:*
- Obtained multiple trademark infringement judgments as part of ongoing representation of leading automotive industry company.
- Obtained favorable settlement in defense of leading custodian bank in state court action alleging damages for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, and Uniform Securities Act violations arising from securities lending practices.
- Obtained favorable settlement of tort and breach of contract claims brought by two groups of hedge funds against their former hedge fund administrator.
- Obtained confirmation of $25 million arbitration award issued in favor of European bank in a matter involving account holder claims arising from fraud committed by investment advisor whose clients kept assets with the bank.
- Obtained favorable settlements for Citibank in multiple consumer class actions and State Attorneys General lawsuits arising out of credit card add-on products.
- Obtained class certification and rejection of defendants’ motion for summary judgment on behalf of lead plaintiffs and class members in prosecution of securities fraud class action challenging disclosures by Liquidity Services, Inc. related to the organic growth of the company.
- Represented lead plaintiffs and class members in securing a $20 million settlement against Genworth Financial, Inc. challenging disclosures regarding the financial stability and adequacy of loss reserves in the company’s Australian mortgage insurance subsidiary.
- Defense of underwriting syndicate in securities fraud class action challenging disclosures in the initial public offering of Refco stock. The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed certain claims on the grounds that the Securities Act of 1933 did not apply to Rule 144A private placements.
- Obtained a favorable civil settlement that was 13x less than regulatory settlement with the SEC in defense of Goldman Sachs in securities fraud class action concerning allegations of self-dealing by conducting proprietary orders for their own accounts to the disadvantage of public orders.
- Represented construction management firm in DOJ investigation of historical labor union billing practices.
- Represented J.P. Morgan in connection with investigations relating to “London Whale” trading losses in its synthetic portfolio.
- Represented financial institution in response to OCC supervisory letters and investigatory requests concerning mortgage servicing and vendor management.
*Includes matters handled prior to joining Rutan & Tucker, LLP.
News & Insights
Awards & Affiliations
Memberships & Associations
- Orange County Bar Association
- American Bar Association