Kathleen Balderrama is a counsel in Crowell & Moring's Litigation Group in the Los Angeles office. Her practice focuses on complex financial cases such as securities, corporate, partnership and fiduciary disputes, class actions, and intellectual property litigation. She represents Fortune 500 companies, privately held companies, and investment funds in diverse industries, including banking, telecommunications, affordable housing, manufacturing, environmental services, engineering, fitness, and hospitality.
Katie has experience with all phases of litigation from obtaining preliminary injunctions at the inception of a case through trial and post-judgment motions. Recently, Katie represented a private equity fund that rescinded multimillion dollar affordable housing investment contracts. At the conclusion of a hotly contested trial, the court affirmed the rescission, relieving the fund of any further obligation to finance the projects, and ordered the defendants to repay the fund's initial investment and the attorneys' fees expended in bringing the lawsuit.
Additional representative matters Katie has handled include:
Financial Litigation
- Obtained an expeditious and favorable resolution of breach of fiduciary duty claims between partners in a venture capital firm.
- Defended founders of a successful environmental services company in derivative suit against claims of breach of fiduciary duty.
- Defended officers and directors of financial institution in derivative suit against claims of breach of fiduciary duty.
- Represented portfolio company in dispute with former director regarding compensation and director's compliance with fiduciary duties.
- Obtained favorable resolution of private investor's breach of contract and breach of fiduciary claims against solar company.
Intellectual Property Litigation
- Prevailed on motion for summary judgment for engineering company, obtaining complete dismissal of all claims, including copyright infringement and breach of contract.
- Represented electronics manufacturer in intellectual property licensing and enforcement program.
- Obtained preliminary injunction preventing defendant from selling real property to protect availability of assets for judgment in patent litigation.
- On behalf of the plaintiff, obtained summary judgment establishing defendant's infringement of plaintiff's patents.
- Obtained post-eBay injunctions on behalf of electronics manufacturer in patent litigation.
- Obtained temporary restraining order preventing defendant's imminent international transfer of assets in patent litigation.
Class Action Litigation
- Obtained approval by a federal district court and the Ninth Circuit of a consolidated settlement of five class actions over objections lodged by professional objectors on behalf of nationwide wireless provider.
- Obtained a favorable and expeditious dismissal of class claims for violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, protecting telecommunications company against claims for billions of dollars in statutory penalties.
- Defeated a motion for class certification on behalf of health insurer.
Katie served as a law clerk to the Honorable William J. Rea of the United States District Court for the Central District of California in 2003-2004. She graduated as valedictorian from Loyola Law School of Los Angeles in 2002, and she obtained a B.A. in music from Loyola Marymount University in 1998. Southern California Super Lawyers magazine has five times named Katie to its "Rising Stars" list.
Affiliations
Admitted to practice: California, Central District of California, Southern District of California, Northern District of California
Speeches & Presentations
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"Don't Sign that Yet!" Workshop 2, Crowell & Moring, Washington, D.C.
(March 5, 2013).
Presenters: Kathryn D. Kirmayer, Kathleen Balderrama, Bryan Brewer, Karen C. Hermann, and Jessica Thompson.
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"Trade Secret Protection," Crowell & Moring's USPTO Seminar
(January 2013).
Presenters: Douglas W. Sullivan, Mark A. Romeo, Terence P. Ross, and Kathleen Balderrama.
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"Don't Sign that Yet!" Workshop 1, Crowell & Moring, Washington, D.C.
(November 15, 2012).
Presenters: Kathryn D. Kirmayer, Kathleen Balderrama, Bryan Brewer, and Karen C. Hermann.
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"Intellectual Property for Successful Exporters and International Businesses," Crowell & Moring's USPTO Seminar
(January 2012).
Presenters: Douglas W. Sullivan, Mark A. Romeo, Terence P. Ross, and Kathleen Balderrama.
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"Building Trial Skills," National Institute for Trial Advocacy, Loyola Law School
(2010-2012).
Faculty Member: Kathleen Balderrama.
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"Update on Fiduciary and Investment Law Decisions," CALAPRS Attorney Roundtable, Burbank, California
(June 2011).
Presenter: Kathleen Balderrama.
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"Investment Litigation Issues for Public Pension Systems," CALAPRS Attorney Roundtable, San Jose, California
(January 2011).
Presenters: Michael L. Cypers and Kathleen Balderrama.
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"DOJ on Line One, WSJ on Line Two: How to Make the Right Calls in the Worst Case Scenario," Association of Corporate Counsel, Southern California Chapter, August ACCess MCLE program
(August 2010).
Presenters: Kelly Currie, Michael Cypers, Janet Levine, Jeff Rutherford, Mark Troy, and Katie Balderrama.
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"Working with Forensic Accountants on Financial Cases," California Society of Certified Public Accountants, Executive Board, San Francisco
(2008).
Presenters: Michael L. Cypers and Kathleen Balderrama.
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