San Francisco – Global law firm K&L Gates LLP welcomes Michael Stortz as a partner in its Litigation and Dispute Resolution group. He joins the firm’s San Francisco office from Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP.

Stortz focuses his practice on defending significant consumer and data privacy class actions, including cases for Fortune 100 companies. Throughout his career, he has been retained to defend high profile class actions and other aggregate litigation, including mass arbitration campaigns.

Stortz represents businesses against claims of unfair competition, false and deceptive advertising, labeling and marketing, consumer fraud, and breach of warranty. He has significant experience defending putative actions under federal and state privacy statutes. His clients include companies in the communications, retail, and technology industries. He assists these businesses in their most sophisticated, high-exposure litigation matters, including cases brought in federal and state courts under California’s Unfair Competition Law, Consumers Legal Remedies Act, and False Advertising Law.

Stortz is experienced in addressing privacy-based issues under assorted statutes, including the California Invasion of Privacy Act. He also has defended some of the most significant Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) litigation matters in courts across the U.S., and advocated for important changes under the TCPA before the Federal Communications Commission. Stortz also is a recognized authority on consumer arbitration issues and the Federal Arbitration Act, and regularly counsels companies on updating their arbitration provisions to address evolving strategies from the plaintiffs’ bar.

“We are delighted to welcome Mike to the firm’s San Francisco office,” said Matt Mangan, office managing partner of K&L Gates’ San Francisco office. “He is an accomplished litigator who complements and further strengthens our top tier class action defense team.”

Stortz’s arrival follows the recent additions of San Francisco partners Natalie Rainer (Health Care and FDA), Jason Putnam Gordon (Emerging Growth and Venture Capital), Shab Puri (Power), and H. Thomas Anderton (IP). They are among more than a dozen new partners and of counsel to join K&L Gates’ California offices, and nearly 155 new partners and of counsel across the firm’s global platform, since the beginning of 2020.

Melissa Tea, lead practice area leader for the firm’s global Litigation and Dispute Resolution practice, commented: “Mike’s arrival further strengthens our capabilities in the consumer goods and services industry sector, which is a growth area for us. With the increasing number of consumer class actions being filed, our clients will benefit from having an experienced and trusted litigator like Mike on their side.”

K&L Gates’ Litigation and Dispute Resolution group has the breadth, experience, and sophistication to successfully resolve matters ranging from simple commercial claims to complex multi-party, cross-border litigations, and arbitrations, helping to earn K&L Gates the distinction of Commercial Litigation “Law Firm of the Year” in U.S. News-Best Lawyers’ 2023 “Best Law Firms” report.

With lawyers in the United States, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America, the practice has helped resolve disputes in the most nuanced and complex areas across the globe. A number of lawyers in the practice are recognized as being some of the foremost practitioners in their field, and include fellows of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the American Law Institute, and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers.