Tammy A. Tsoumas

Antitrust, Government and Regulatory

• Represented a leading beverage alcohol distributor in putative class action litigation alleging violations of the Robinson-Patman Act and related state law claims arising from alleged pricing practices. Achieved dismissal of the action following arbitration proceedings and a joint stipulation of dismissal.
• Represented an education company in consolidated putative class action litigation arising from an alleged data-security incident, including proceedings before the Ninth Circuit and the California Supreme Court. Kirkland won full dismissal of the initial and amended claims and secured unanimous affirmance by the Ninth Circuit.
• Represented an entertainment investment company and its owners before the California Gambling Control Commission in connection with their applications for gambling licenses.
• Represented a hotel casino operator in a putative class action alleging that several hotel operators colluded to artificially inflate room rates on the Las Vegas Strip. Kirkland won dismissal of the initial complaint in its entirety and subsequent dismissal of the amended claims. Affirmed in full on appeal. Rehearing defeated.
• Represented a leading defense and aerospace company in a DOJ False Claims Act investigation concerning its compliance with certain cybersecurity requirements under various government contracts. Achieved a settlement resolving the claims.
• Represented a leading defense systems manufacturer in a False Claims Act/qui tam action involving cybersecurity, securing summary judgment on the false certification claim and a favorable settlement of the remaining claim.
• Represented a Taiwanese airline in a multidistrict putative class action alleging that domestic and foreign airlines conspired to fix prices and surcharges on transpacific flights. Kirkland won a motion for summary judgment in part regarding the filed rate doctrine, and Tammy argued the appeal on behalf of the joint defense in front of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
• Represented a Japanese electronics manufacturer in a pending putative class action alleging that certain electronics manufacturers conspired to fix and stabilize the prices of inductors.
• Represented DIRECTV in several antitrust class actions brought by residential and commercial subscribers of NFL Sunday Ticket.
• Represented a Taiwanese airline in a multidistrict putative class action litigation alleging that global air cargo carriers conspired to fix, raise, maintain or stabilize prices by coordinating certain surcharges and agreeing to eliminate or prevent discounting of surcharges. A favorable settlement was finalized for the client.
• Represented a glass manufacturer in multidistrict litigation proceedings in which plaintiffs alleged a price-fixing cartel among flat glass manufacturers.
• Represented DIRECTV in a class action antitrust matter regarding out-of-market programming for Major League Baseball games, with fans arguing that MLB’s long-standing policy of only selling league-wide cable and online game packages and its territorial blackout policies ran afoul of federal antitrust law.
• Represented a rental car company in a putative class action lawsuit relating to passenger car rentals at California airport locations. The plaintiffs alleged that the defendant rental car companies violated federal antitrust law by allegedly agreeing to pass on a California tourism assessment fee and airport concession fees to renters of passenger cars at California airport locations. Certain objectors to the settlement filed appeals in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit but subsequently dismissed them.
• Represented a patent holder in litigation in which a competitor asserted federal and state claims for alleged monopolization, Walker Process violations, exclusive dealing, tying and other antitrust theories.
• Represented a Hollywood movie studio in antitrust litigation filed by a distributor alleging a vertical conspiracy to boycott.
• Represented a rental car company in a federal lawsuit in the Western District of Washington brought under Section 7 of the Clayton Act arising out of the rental car company’s proposed acquisition of another rental car company. The plaintiffs sought a preliminary injunction alleging that the proposed acquisition was anticompetitive and would cause injury to their businesses and to individual car renters throughout the United States. Tammy and the Kirkland team argued that the claims were not valid given the Federal Trade Commission’s ongoing review of the proposed acquisition. The district court agreed and granted the motion to dismiss. The plaintiffs did not appeal.

Toxic Tort, Wrongful Death and Product Liability Litigation

• Represented a company in a toxic tort matter involving allegations that plaintiff’s cancer was caused by exposure to purported emissions from the facility.
• Represented a company in a matter involving allegations that the company intentionally interfered with a contract for the sale of a multimillion-dollar property in Southern California.
• Represented an auto part manufacturer in multidistrict litigation alleging breach of warranty, fraud and other claims based on allegedly defective airbag control units.
• Represented The Boeing Company and Aerojet Rocketdyne in a lawsuit brought by two plaintiffs alleging personal injury and property damage arising from purported exposure to radioactive emissions in violation of federal regulations. After one plaintiff voluntarily dismissed his claims, Kirkland moved to dismiss the remaining plaintiff’s claims. In a published decision, the court found that the plaintiff’s claims were preempted by the Price-Anderson Act and that plaintiff failed to state a plausible claim of excess radiation exposure under federal regulations.
• Represented a chemical company in multiple cases involving alleged injuries resulting from alleged asbestos-contaminated talc.
• Represented a commercial aircraft manufacturer in a product liability lawsuit arising from an alleged aviation incident.
• Represented a company in multiple toxic tort cases involving several facilities, in which plaintiffs alleged that certain chemicals caused their cancers.

Other Commercial Litigation

• Represented a real estate entity in post-judgment collection proceedings, involving claims of fraudulent transfers, alter ego and veil piercing theories.
• Represented real estate entities in a lawsuit brought by a homeowners association alleging various claims, including breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty.
• Represented a gasoline retailer in a class action lawsuit brought on behalf of consumers alleging unfair competition and misrepresentation associated with grade of residual fuel in fuel dispensers.
• Represented an insurance wholesale brokerage firm in a dispute over enforcement of restrictive covenants in employment agreements.
• Represented affiliates of a global bank in multiple actions brought by institutional investors alleging violations of federal and state securities laws arising from the sale of residential mortgage-backed securities.