Ellyn S. Garofalo

Representative Matters

• Obtained a $32 million judgment for cyber theft by a former officer of a digital Internet advertising company (WebSpectator v. Parreira)
• Lead counsel in international litigation concerning the consignment and sale of fruit shipped from South America to The Netherlands (Fresh Results v. ASF Holland, B.V.)
• Lead counsel in a corporate governance dispute in Delaware Chancery Court (Mora v. Batkin)
• Lead trial lawyer in a real estate dispute involving RowDTLA, a mixed-use development in downtown Los Angeles (Los Angeles Wholesale Produce Market v. Atlas Capital Group, et al.)
• Lead trial lawyer for multiple defendants in a $100 million partnership dispute arising from the acquisition of wellness resort Glen Ivy Hot Springs. Obtained a defense verdict after an eight-week jury trial (Wickline v. GOCO Hospitality Global Opportunity)
• Lead trial lawyer for corporate defendants in four related "MeToo" actions arising from claims of sexual harassment and gender discrimination in the workplace
• Lead counsel for celebrity plaintiff in a professional negligence action against an entertainment business manager (Bugliari v. Hellie Hoffer)
• Lead  trial lawyer for celebrity plaintiff in a trial over a violation of an injunction enforcing an easement agreement. Obtained a criminal contempt conviction against the defendant property owner (Wineberg v. Perelmutter)
• Lead counsel for the defendant in an action involving $12 million in commercial loan guarantees (Farmers & Merchants Bank v. Ukleja)
• Lead counsel for defendants in a professional negligence action (Grau v. Liner)
• Lead counsel for the defendant in an accounting malpractice case involving the production of reality television shows for a media company (LMNO Cable v. Ikegami & Co.)
• Lead trial lawyer in a legal malpractice claim against a national law firm, arising from a dispute over a complex web of family trusts (Karsin v. Sheppard Mullin)
• Lead counsel in a legal malpractice claim involving the misappropriation of client funds (Donley v. Misho)
• Lead counsel for defendants in an action arising from a highly publicized fatal accident on a Starline double-decker party bus (Zisette v. Starline)
• Lead counsel in a high-profile civil action arising from a dispute between the founders of Aletheia Asset Management, a successful asset management firm (Peikin v. Aletheia Asset Management)
• Lead counsel in a lease dispute between a grocery chain and a landlord (Bodega Latina v. Lakeview)
• Lead counsel for the plaintiffs in a legal malpractice action stemming from a law firm's conflicted representation of members of a real estate fund of funds, formed by the plaintiffs and a CEO of a real estate company (SAW-AVP Partners, LLC v. Pircher, Nichols & Meeks)
• Lead counsel for defendants in a shareholder dispute involving an Internet startup (Haden v. Audience Delivered, LLC)
• Lead counsel for the plaintiff in litigation against the Sillerman Companies and an investment banking company, arising from the sale of a celebrity's estate (Global Icons v. Bear Stearns & Co.)
• Lead counsel for the defendant in a fraud case arising from the collapse of an entertainment payroll giant; Goldentree dismissed the case after the defendant demurred (Goldentree Asset Management v. Garber)
• Lead counsel for the defendant in an adversary proceeding brought by the trustee for the debtor, an entertainment payroll giant (Ehrenberg v. Visconti)
• Lead counsel in a $100 million dispute arising from the sale of two consumer reporting agency company Internet subsidiaries (Experian v. Ybrant Digital)
• Lead counsel for the former chief financial officer of a publicly traded jewelry company, against a U.S. $11 million claim by a lender (New Stream Secure Capital, LLC v. Rankin)
• Lead counsel for the defendant, a broker-dealer, in an action for breach of fiduciary duty and fraud (Corona Corporation v. Global Capital Partners, LLC)
• Lead counsel for Daiwa Securities regarding broker-dealer litigation arising from the Orange County bankruptcy Notable Criminal Matters (Orange County v. Daiwa Securities, et al.)
• Defended Sandeep Kapoor, M.D., the defendant in a high-profile trial involving allegations of over-prescribing pain medications to Anna Nicole Smith; after a three-month trial, Dr. Kapoor was acquitted on all six felony counts (People v. Kapoor)
• Defended a lawyer in a 75-count indictment charging conspiracy to commit insurance fraud, money laundering, tax fraud, insurance fraud, and aggravated mayhem, regarding an allegedly massive worker's compensation insurance fraud scheme (People v. Arnold)
• Lead counsel for the defendant in a criminal action regarding worker's compensation premium fraud (People v. Roozbeh)
• Represented the clinic in the government's criminal investigation of alleged over-prescribing of opiates. The matter was dropped without criminal charges being filed (United States v. Lifetree Pain Clinic)
• Represented the defendant in the first federal case involving an indictment for mortgage bailout/foreclosure fraud (United States v. Kideys)
• Lead counsel in a tax fraud prosecution arising from the collapse of an entertainment payroll giant, Axium (United States v. Garber)
• Lead counsel in a criminal securities fraud action arising from activities with a Los Angeles discount broker, connected to the collapse of a brokerage. The case was resolved after a seven-year investigation by the Office of the United States Attorney and the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) (United States v. Kott)
• Lead counsel in a criminal matter involving a hit-and-run that garnered significant media coverage; the matter ultimately was resolved with a probationary sentence (People v. Goldman)
• Lead counsel in a money-laundering action against a bank owned by the Venezuelan government; the U.S. government abandoned the matter on the eve of trial (United States v. Banco Venezuela)

Education

• J.D. cum laude Pepperdine University School of Law 1991
• B.A. Brooklyn College, CUNY 1973

Bar Admissions

• California

Professional Memberships and Activities

• Member, Board of Directors, Federal Bar Association, Los Angeles Chapter 
• Member, Board of Directors, Los Angeles Business Council 
• Member, Book Publishing Board, American Bar Association, Criminal Justice Section

• Super Lawyers
  • Southern California, 2006 – 2021
  • Top 50 Women, Southern California, 2009 – 2010, 2013, 2015 – 2018
• Daily Journal, Top 75 Women Litigators, 2011
• The Recorder, Attorney of the Year, 2011

Volunteerism

• Member, Board of Directors and Advisory Council, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation