Since its genesis in 2015, Los Angeles litigation boutique Hueston Hennigan has had an ascent that can only be described as astonishing. Formed by a group of commercial litigators who peeled off from California institution Irell & Manella, Hueston Hennigan has forged itself a coveted position as a local litigation shop that has achieved state-wide and even national prominence. The firm is noted for its mission of putting a premium on trial work, a mission that has been fulfilled with rapid momentum on several high-level appointments. “They have just been massively successful,” sums up one East Coast litigator, stating a consensus shared by many. The firm’s client base is remarkably diverse, ranging from individuals to a variety of entities encompassing tech giants, Native American tribes, the Boy Scouts and the California State Bar (to name but a few), with very little repeat business and virtually no “routine” cases. “Hueston Hennigan doesn’t do the ‘cookie-cutter.’ They do really cool, cutting-edge work,” declares a peer, who goes on to confide, “I admit it makes me jealous, and I’m sure I’m not alone.” Seemingly not content with dominating the Los Angeles area, the firm has, within the past year, discreetly planted a flag in the New York market as well, with a further buildout expected.
Firm founder and lead trial lawyer John Hueston is a trial trailblazer who has carved himself an enviable position even among others in the elite trial lawyer circuit. “I have seen trial lawyers rise and fade but John is young and vibrant enough to be in this for the long haul,” says one peer. Hueston’s proven activity as lead counsel on a number of high-level appointments more than supports this near-unanimous view.
Hueston is not alone in his trial prowess and activity, however.
Moez Kaba has staked himself a position as another of the firm’s lead trial counsel, acting in tandem with Hueston or on his own on some of the firm’s most high-stakes disputes – and he has accomplished this still well before his 40th birthday. Kaba made his debut as one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in last year’s edition of Benchmark, a coveted status made all the more impressive by the fact that he is the youngest appointee to this prestigious list by some distance. More impressive still, his position on that list remains secure again this year – as does that of Hueston, who has appeared every year since the list’s inception.
Hueston and Kaba have logged substantial triumphs together over the years, and that record continues this year. Working together, they represented Monster Energy Company in a high-profile lawsuit that resulted in a ground-breaking, nine-figure verdict against competing energy drink manufacturer, Vital Pharmaceuticals (VPX) and its owner and CEO. At trial, which began in August 2022, Monster alleged that this owner and CEO built VPX by lying, cheating, and stealing – namely, advertising that his energy drink, BANG, contains creatine, a popular sports nutrition supplement known for its physiological benefits, when it actually contains “Super Creatine,” a completely different compound that VPX prominently markets as the key differentiating ingredient in BANG. Monster further alleged that VPX gained an edge on its competitors by misappropriating Monster’s trade secrets and tortiously interfering with Monster’s contracts for shelf space in retail locations across the country. This same pair also was tipped to represent CeOpCo LLC/Combs Enterprises in a dispute against Diageo North America. The dispute arises out of Diageo’s allegedly inferior treatment of the DeLeon tequila brand, which music icon Sean “Diddy” Combs launched in 2009. Diageo has failed to meet its contractual obligation to treat the DeLeon brand as favorably as other tequila brands Diageo owns, instead typecasting DeLeon as an “urban” spirit that belongs only in night clubs. A lawsuit was expected to be filed in the spring of 2023.
Douglas Dixon, based in the firm’s Newport Beach office, has also been generating a rising level of acclaim. Dixon has been particularly active in the intellectual property arena, scoring a patent win for ClearOne concerning its audio-conferencing technology. Acting with Hueston, he won a $25 million jury verdict for incubator entity Acorn Technologies against Samsung after a five-day trial in the Eastern District of Texas. The jury found that Samsung infringed all claims of all four semiconductor-related patents at issue.
Dixon, Kaba and future star Christy Rayburn obtained summary judgment of non-infringement in a patent matter asserted against Amazon by serial patent litigant MasterObjects, who sought tens of millions of dollars for Amazon’s alleged infringement.
Another future star, Joseph Reiter, acts with Kaba in representation of Kaiser in a lawsuit and related arbitration with more than $500 million at stake. The lawsuit was brought by one of the largest for-profit hospital systems in the country – HCA Healthcare – for payments Kaiser made to a group of California hospitals for emergency health services. Trial began in 2023, with the Hueston Hennigan pair eventually obtaining a favorable settlement for Kaiser.
