合伙人

Joshua D. Yount

诉讼及争议解决, 最高法院及上诉, 银行及金融诉讼

概览

Businesses rely on Josh Yount for cutting-edge class certification defense, top-notch appellate representation, and sophisticated legal analysis, careful strategic thinking and vigorous advocacy in a wide variety of litigation.

Major corporate clients leverage Josh’s 20 years of experience defending against class actions in mass tort, product liability, securities, consumer and insurance class actions in state and federal courts. He has obtained trial court denials and appellate court reversals of class certification. He has handled petitions for interlocutory appeals from class certification rulings. He has defeated class actions at the dismissal and summary judgment stages. He has served as preservation counsel at a class action trial. And he has litigated jurisdictional issues under the Class Action Fairness Act.

Clients also look to Josh for help with critical appellate matters. They have retained him to brief and argue appeals in numerous federal and state courts. And they have sought his assistance with trial and post-trial strategies to develop and preserve arguments for appeal. Josh's work has been instrumental in achieving significant successes for major corporate clients in the US Supreme Court and other appellate forums.

Beyond appellate and class action matters, clients have retained Josh to help handle a wide variety of significant business litigation in the areas of mass torts, products liability, bankruptcy adversary proceedings, securities, insurer defense, antitrust, fraud-related torts, breach of contract, and commercial disparagement. In addition, Josh has worked on a number of pro bono appeals through Mayer Brown's Seventh Circuit Project.

Before joining Mayer Brown in 2001, Josh worked at the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit—first as a staff attorney and a temporary law clerk for Circuit Judge Diane P. Wood, then as a law clerk to Circuit Judge Ann Claire Williams.

执业经验

Achieved victory in the US Supreme Court for major investment banks, persuading the Court that an alleged agreement to rig the initial public offering process was immune from antitrust challenge.
Obtained reversal of class certification for major investment banks in a securities fraud suit alleging manipulation of stocks recently taken public.
Handled class certification and merits briefing for chemical company sued over contamination in dozens of cases across the country.
Secured a series of voluntary and involuntary dismissals in putative class actions against a leading insurance company over allegedly improper reductions in payments for medical treatment.
Defeated class certification and won summary judgment for a bank in a case alleging wrongful overdraft fees.
Represented a pair of banks in an MDL class action challenge to certain bank fee practices.
Handled strategy for opposing class certification in district court and briefed a petition for interlocutory appeal in a securities suit against underwriter and broker.
Represented an appliance manufacturer in challenging class certification rulings in the US Supreme Court, as preservation counsel at trial, and on appeal from favorable verdict.

Served as counsel for a paint company in an MDL multistate class action alleging product defects, ultimately negotiating favorable settlement.
Represented an appliance manufacturer in a class action over changes to retiree healthcare benefits.
Handled appeals from excessive attorneys’ fee awards against an appliance manufacturer following class settlements.
Prevailed on appeal in a suit against an auto manufacturer, defeating a product liability claim based on a vehicle crash incompatibility theory.
Obtained affirmance for an investment firm in an appeal that upheld the dismissal of a class action complaint challenging mutual fund practices.
Won summary judgment and appellate affirmance for an on-line brokerage, defeating class action claims regarding the timeliness of on-line securities prices.
Obtained denial of class certification and dismissal for an on-line brokerage in a suit challenging the promptness of on-line securities transactions.
Secured denial of class certification and summary judgment for an on-line brokerage where the plaintiff alleged improper delays in the execution of securities transactions.
Achieved victory for an operator of movie theaters, persuading the appellate court to dismiss a class action challenge to the accuracy of movie start times.
Represented a bank in series of suits arising out of the collapse of a Ponzi scheme.
Obtained an appellate victory for debtor vehicle dealers in dispute with state tax authority over tax credits
Prevailed at trial and on appeal in a suit against a major bank subsidiary over the proper interpretation of lease and remarketing contracts.
Obtained judgment for a turbo blower manufacturer, prevailing on defamation claims and defeating various counterclaims in a suit over allegedly false and disparaging statements about the parties and their products.
Obtained judgment for an auto finance company in a state court and related bankruptcy action arising out of the auto dealer’s failure to repay loans.

出版物及演讲

出版物
查看全部见解
- 文章
  7th Circ. Overrules Precedent in Enforcing Appeal Deadline Missed Due to Mistyped Email Address
  2020年4月13日
- 文章
  Preserving Insufficiency: Tips for Avoiding Forfeiture of Sufficiency of the Evidence Arguments Under Rule 50
  May 2009

教育背景

Illinois Wesleyan University, BA, summa cum laude
The University of Chicago Law School, JD, with honors
Executive Editor, University of Chicago Legal Forum

执业资格

伊利诺伊州

出庭资格

美国最高法院
美国第二巡回上诉法院
US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
美国第九巡回上诉法院
US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

语言

英语

专业及社区参与

Associate Editor of The Circuit Rider (the Bar Journal of the Seventh Circuit)
Author of the motions chapter of the Attorney's Guide to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals
Author of the attorneys' fees and costs chapter of Federal Appellate Practice
Co-author of a chapter on class certification in the treatise, Litigating Securities Class Actions
Contributor to Class Defense, Mayer Brown’s blog on key issues affecting class action law and policy.