Overview
John J. Atallah is senior counsel 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 substantial experience litigating claims under and counseling clients regarding compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act and other federal and state unfair trade practice and consumer protection laws. He regularly handles complex commercial and class action litigation matters on behalf of consumer reporting agencies, insurance brokers, manufacturers, research institutions, health care plan providers, financial institutions, and local government agencies, among other clients. John is a member of the firm’s Business Litigation & Dispute Resolution Practice.
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.
Education
John earned his law degree from Columbia Law School (J.D., 2013), where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone scholar and the managing editor of the Columbia Science and Technology Law Review. He graduated magna cum laude as a member of Phi Beta Kappa from University of California, Riverside in 2009 with a B.A. in political science and international relations, and a minor in English.
Admissions
John is admitted to the California Bar and the United States District Courts for the Central and Northern Districts of California, as well as the Eastern District of Michigan. He is an active member of the Association of Business and Trial Lawyers (ABTL).
Community Engagement
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.
Publications
- 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 21, 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 21, 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 29, 2020)
- Co-author, “California’s Ascertainability Requirement Following Noel v. Thrifty Payless, Inc.,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (June 10, 2020)
- Co-author, “Tackling Legal and Business Challenges Caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (June 4, 2020)
- Co-author, “Protecting Your Business from COVID-19 Class Action Lawsuits,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (April 28, 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 2, 2018)
- Co-author, “Taking the Pulse of Ascertainability in the Ninth Circuit after Briseno v. ConAgra Foods, Inc.,” Consumer Class Defense Counsel Blog (October 10, 2017)
- Co-author, “Not Your Product? Not Your Duty To Warn,” Law360 (August 3, 2012)
- “Smartphone Wars,” The Columbia Science and Technology Law Review Blog (April 2012)