|
Whitty Somvichian is a partner in the Litigation department and resident in the San Francisco office.
Mr. Somvichian's practice focuses on representing clients in complex commercial litigation, class action litigation, and insurance coverage disputes.
As a member of the Firm's Commercial Class Action practice, Mr. Somvichian has defended clients in a broad variety of class actions in federal and state courts, including consumer class actions brought under California and other state consumer laws and complex multi-district litigation challenging industry-wide business practices. These matters have involved numerous industries (including online advertising, online commerce, graphics processing, and health care) and include representations on behalf of several Firm clients (including NVIDIA, eBay, and PacifiCare Health Systems).
As a member of the Insurance Coverage practice, Mr. Somvichian represents clients in various coverage-related disputes, including matters involving claims for breach of contract, bad faith, and policy reformation. These matters have involved a variety of different insurance coverage, including general liability, directors and officers, and errors and omissions policies. Mr. Somvichian's practice also includes counseling clients on a broad range of insurance-related issues.
Mr. Somvichian is active in the Firm's pro bono practice and helped lead Cooley's efforts in matters argued before the California Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court. As a third-year lawyer, Mr. Somvichian successfully argued a petition for rehearing to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal sitting en banc in a pro bono matter. In the Spring of 2005, Mr. Somvichian worked as a Deputy Public Defender in San Francisco and tried six misdemeanor and felony jury trials on behalf of indigent clients.
Mr. Somvichian received his J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law, where he was a member of the Order of the Coif. Mr. Somvichian received a B.A. in Government from Pomona College, graduating cum laude.
Mr. Somvichian was born in Bangkok, Thailand. As a member of the Firm's Diversity Committee, Mr. Somvichian is active in minority recruitment and retention efforts. Mr. Somvichian also serves as the Hiring Partner for the San Francisco Litigation Department.
Education- University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall)
JD, 1997, Order of the Coif - Pomona College
BA Government, 1994, Cum laude
Admissions
|