John J. Atallah is a partner with Foley & Lardner LLP, where he has litigated cases in both state and federal courts across the country and represented clients in a variety of consumer protection, fraud, misappropriation, and breach-of-contract disputes. John has extensive experience litigating claims and counseling clients regarding compliance under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), California’s Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act (ICRAA) and Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies Act (CCRAA), the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA), California’s Automatic Renewal Law (ARL), and other federal and state unfair trade practice, consumer protection, and product labeling laws. He regularly handles complex commercial and class action litigation matters on behalf of consumer reporting agencies, insurance brokers, manufacturers and distributors of commercial and consumer products, online retailers, financial institutions, and local government agencies, among other clients. John is a member of the firm’s Consumer Law, Finance & Class Action Group.
Pro bono service makes up an important part of John’s practice. He has represented clients in connection with disability rights and immigration matters, including asylum appeals, applications for adjustment of status, and petitions for alien relatives, as well as various arts-related matters.
John was a summer associate with Foley in 2012. He previously worked as a legal specialist for the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Surface Transportation Board, as a legislative assistant for Wheat Government Relations in Washington, D.C., and as an intern for the United States Senate. Before beginning his legal career, John was an IT systems administrator for a medical services provider and has substantial experience in building and repairing enterprise computer systems.
Community Involvement
John is the Chair of the Associates Advisory Board for the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles, one of the largest public interest law firms in the country. He previously served as AAB’s Vice Chair and Social Chair. John is also the firm’s pro bono liaison with California Lawyers for the Arts.
Presentations and Publications
- Co-author, “Auto-Renewal Class Actions on the Rise,” Daily Journal (January 2023)
- Co-author, “FTC Strengthens Data Security Requirements,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (November 2021)
- Co-author, “Courts Hold Contract Disputes Not Actionable Under FCRA,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (September 2021)
- Co-author, “How to Lose a Class Action Settlement in 10 Ways,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (July 2021)
- Co-author, “Supreme Court Rules Injury at Law Insufficiently Concrete to Establish Injury in Fact,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (June 2021)
- Co-author, “A Reminder that Power Purchase Agreements may be Subject to Consumer Protection Laws,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog, Foley’s Renewable Energy Outlook (February 2021)
- Co-author, “HHS Expands and Clarifies Scope of Immunity under the PREP Act,” Foley’s Coronavirus Resource Center, Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog, Foley’s Manufacturing Industry Advisor (December 2020)
- Co-author, “Supreme Court to Consider Actual Injury Requirement for Absent Class Members,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (December 2020)
- Co-author, “PREP Act Immunity in the COVID-19 Era: Recent Decisions Impacting Your Defenses to Coronavirus-Related Claims,” Foley’s Coronavirus Resource Center, Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog, Health Care Law Today, Foley’s Manufacturing Industry Advisor (November 2020)
- Co-author, “Proposed SAFE TO WORK Act Offers Protections to Businesses Impacted by COVID-19,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog, Foley’s Coronavirus Resource Center: Back to Business, and Manufacturing Industry Advisor (August 2020)
- Co-author, “Creditors Must Continue to Take Proper Care under the CARES Act,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog and Foley’s Coronavirus Resource Center: Back to Business (August 2020)
- Co-author, “Survey Results Confirm Foley & Lardner LLP’s Prediction Regarding Uptick in Class Action Lawsuits,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog and Foley’s Coronavirus Resource Center: Back to Business (July 2020)
- Co-author, “California’s Ascertainability Requirement Following Noel v. Thrifty Payless, Inc.,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (June 2020)
- Co-author, “Tackling Legal and Business Challenges Caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (June 2020)
- Co-author, “Protecting Your Business from COVID-19 Class Action Lawsuits,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (April 2020)
- “Heightened Ascertainability Remains a Formidable Requirement to Achieving Class Certification in the Third Circuit: Administrative Feasibility Following City Select v. BMW Bank of North America,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (May 2018)
- Co-author, “Taking the Pulse of Ascertainability in the Ninth Circuit after Briseno v. ConAgra Foods, Inc.,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (October 2017)
- Co-author, “Not Your Product? Not Your Duty To Warn,” Law360 (August 2012)
- “Smartphone Wars,” The Columbia Science and Technology Law Review Blog (April 2012)
Foley Announces 23 New Partners
Sufficiently Conspicuous: Arbitration Agreements and Class Action Waivers for Subscription-Based Businesses
FTC Strengthens Data Security Requirements
Courts Hold Contract Disputes Not Actionable Under FCRA
“How to Lose a Class Action Settlement in 10 Ways” – Recent Decisions Reflect a Trend of Applying Greater Scrutiny to Attorneys’ Fees Requests in Class Action Settlements