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Lawyer Profile

Image of William L. Stern

William L. Stern

Morrison & Foerster LLP
  • Recognized Since:
    2010
  • Recognized in:
    Commercial Litigation
    Litigation - Banking and Finance
  • Website:
    https://www.mofo.com
  • Location:
    425 Market Street
    San Francisco, CA 94105-2482
"William Stern is an excellent business lawyer. He understands our business and helps apply his advice to it. He is an excellent strategist, is cost effective, and gets results. I highly recommend him."

-David Long (Reckitt Benckiser)

  • Lawyer Bio
  • Client Comments
  • Firm Details
  • News & Media

Lawyer Bio

William Stern is the recognized authority on California's Unfair Competition Law, Business & Professions Code section 17200 et seq. and one of the nation's leading experts on consumer class actions.

Mr. Stern specializes in the defense of consumer class actions. He regularly handles litigation and trial of suits brought by private litigants and law enforcement officials for unfair business practices and false advertising claims against banks, retailers, manufacturers, insurers, finance companies, pharmaceutical companies, cable television operators, telemarketing companies, mortgage lenders, public utilities, film producers, advertisers, high-tech companies, nursing home operators, publishers, literary agents, franchisors, equipment lessors, and others. 

Mr. Stern also has extensive trial and appellate court experience defending commercial clients in cases involving privacy and data breach, trade secrets, first-party insurance bad faith, franchise, intellectual property, lender liability, and prejudgment remedies. In January 2013, he won a complete defense victory after an eight-week jury trial in a case that went to verdict seeking more than $250 million in compensatory damages plus punitive damages on behalf of 128,000 potential class members. This case was named one of the Top Defense Verdicts in 2013 by the Daily Journal.

Mr. Stern is the author of The Rutter Group's treatise, and dozens of published articles on the subject, and a principal author of the amendment to section 17200 known as Proposition 64 (approved by California voters on November 2, 2004). He has been a contributing editor to the Consumer Financial Services Law Report(LRP Press) since 1998, and is the Editor in Chief for the firm's award-winningFinancial Services Report, published quarterly.

He is a fellow of the American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers, an advisor to the California State Bar's section on Antitrust and Unfair Competition, a member of the Legal Affairs Committee for the California Bankers Association, and an organizer and panelist for The Rutter Group's annual program on California's Unfair Business Practices and False Advertising statues. From 2006 to 2009, Mr. Stern was a member of the California State Bar's Business Section and it's Financial Institutions Committee.

Mr. Stern is recommended by Legal 500 US in the areas of Product Liability Litigation, Data Protection and Privacy, and Marketing and Advertising.  He is also recognized by Best Lawyers in America in the field of Commercial Litigation.  Since 2004, he has been listed as a leading attorney by Super Lawyers in the fields of Consumer Law, Business Litigation, and Banking. In 2006, the American Tort Reform Association honored Mr. Stern by naming him as a “Legal Reform Champion.”

Read more on firm website
  • Bar Admissions
  • Award List

Bar Admissions:

  • California, The State Bar of California

Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America for work in:

  • Commercial Litigation
  • Litigation - Banking and Finance
 

Attorney Client Comments

"William Stern is an excellent business lawyer. He understands our business and helps apply his advice to it. He is an excellent strategist, is cost effective, and gets results. I highly recommend him."

David Long, Reckitt Benckiser

Firm Details

Image for Morrison & Foerster LLP View Firm Profile
Morrison & Foerster LLP
https://www.mofo.com
 
Headquarters
250 West 55th Street
New York, NY 10019-9601
(212) 468.8000
16 Office Locations
in 8 Countries

Belgium

Belgium

Brussels, Belgium

Boulevard Louis Schmidt 29

Brussels 1040

Belgium

32 2 347 0400

Get Directions

China

China

Beijing, China

China Central Place,22nd Floor, Tower Three

No. 77, Jianguo Road

Chaoyang District

Beijing 100025

China

011 86 10 5909 3399

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Shanghai, China

Bund Center, Suite 3501-3502

Yan An East Road No. 222

Shanghai 200002

China

86 21 2322 5200

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Germany

Germany

Berlin, Germany

Potsdamer Platz 1, 13th Floor

Berlin 10785

Germany

49 30 72622 10

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Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Edinburgh Tower, 33/F

The Landmark

15 Queen's Road Central

Hong Kong

Hong Kong

852 2585 0888

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Japan

Japan

Tokyo, Japan

Shin-Marunouchi Building, 29th Floor

5-1, Marunouchi 1-chome

Chiyoda-ku

Tokyo 100-6529

Japan

81 3 3214 6522

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Singapore

Singapore

Singapore, Singapore

50 Collyer Quay

#12-01 OUE Bayfront

Singapore 049321

Singapore

65 6922 2000

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United Kingdom

United Kingdom

London, United Kingdom

CityPoint

One Ropemaker Street

London EC2Y 9AW

United Kingdom

44 20 7920 4000

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United States

United States

California

California

Los Angeles, CA

707 Wilshire Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90017-3543

United States

(213) 892.5200

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Palo Alto, CA

755 Page Mill Road

Palo Alto, CA 94304-1018

United States

(650) 813.5600

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San Diego, CA

12531 High Bluff Drive, Suite 100

San Diego, CA 92130-2040

United States

(858) 720.5100

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San Francisco, CA

425 Market Street

San Francisco, CA 94105-2482

United States

(415) 268.7000

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Colorado

Colorado

Denver, CO

Republic Plaza, Suite 4200

370 Seventeenth Street

Denver, CO 80202-5638

United States

(303) 592.1500

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District of Columbia

District of Columbia

Washington, DC

2000 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 6000

Washington, DC 20006-1888

United States

(202) 887.1500

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Virginia

Virginia

McLean, VA

1650 Tysons Boulevard, Suite 400

McLean, VA 22102-4220

United States

(703) 760.7700

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