Seth Aronson defends corporations and their directors, officers, and professionals in securities class actions, shareholder derivative actions, SEC enforcement proceedings, RICO, and mergers and acquisitions litigation. Seth is nationally recognized in his field and was recently named California Securities Litigation Attorney of the Year by Benchmark Litigation California and Los Angeles “Lawyer of the Year” for the second time by Best Lawyers in America (2013 and 2018).
Seth served as firmwide chair of the Securities Litigation practice from 2002-11 and as the managing partner of O’Melveny’s Los Angeles office from 2000-08.
From the trial court to the court of appeals to the US Supreme Court, many of the world’s leading companies in a variety of industries call on Seth to handle their most complex litigation, including Lockheed Martin, Skechers USA, Broadcom, E-commerce China Dangdang, Montage Technology Group, and Giant Interactive.
Seth recently argued and won a US Supreme Court victory for China Agritech in a much-watched securities litigation case, obtaining a unanimous Court decision that significantly narrows the tolling provisions established decades ago in the Court’s landmark American Pipe decision. This victory will have a wide-ranging impact on securities litigation and on class actions generally, and Benchmark Litigation recently named it a National Impact Case. China Agritech v. Resh, 2018 WL 2767565 (decided June 11, 2018).
Seth is recognized as a “phenomenal” securities litigator by Chambers USA, owing to his “strong record of defending … shareholder class actions and derivative lawsuits” and “stellar reputation” as a “go-to person and a strong advocate.” He has been named a “Top 100 Lawyer” by Daily Journal (“Around the country, he’s known as a perspicacious hard-nosed litigator who can go toe-to-toe with the most aggressive plaintiff lawyer”); is recognized by Best Lawyers in America (2006-17) in four categories: Bet-the-Company Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Litigation - Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy), and Litigation - Securities; and earned the singular distinction of being selected as a “Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers in 2013 and 2018.
Honors & Awards
- Named Securities Litigation Attorney of the Year by Benchmark Litigation California (2019)
- US Supreme Court victory for China Agritech named a National Impact Case by Benchmark Litigation California (2019)
- Ranked by Chambers USA as a leading lawyer in three categories: General Commercial Litigation (California), Securities Litigation (National), and Securities Litigation (California; Band 1)
- Named a “Top 100 Lawyer” by Daily Journal (2008)
- Listed in Legal 500 United States for Securities Litigation
- Named a leading California litigator and a “National Litigation Star,” and ranked among the top 50 securities litigators by Benchmark Litigation
- Listed as a “Highly Recommended” lawyer in Dispute Resolution by PLC Which Lawyer?
- Recognized by Who’s Who Legal: California (2009) as one of the top 34 commercial litigators in the state
- Recognized by the Los Angeles Business Journal (2007) in its “Best of the Bar” special report as one of the top 12 litigators among Los Angeles County’s 48,000 lawyers
- Recognized by the Los Angeles Daily Journal (2005) as one of the top 30 securities litigators in California
- Named by Lawdragon as one of the “500 Leading Lawyers in America” (2006-09) and one of top “100 Securities Litigators You Need to Know” (2008)
- Recognized by Best Lawyers® in America (2006-2019) in three categories: Bet-the-Company Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Litigation - Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy), as well as Litigation - Securities (2006-2018), and earned the singular distinction of 2013 Los Angeles Securities Litigation “Lawyer of the Year” and 2018 Los Angeles Litigation - Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy) “Lawyer of the Year”
Admissions
Bar Admissions
Court Admissions
- US District Court for the Central, Northern, Eastern, and Southern Districts of California and the District of Colorado
- US Court of Appeals for the Second, Third, Eighth and Ninth Circuits
- US Supreme Court
Education
- Loyola University, J.D., 1981
- Ohio University, B.B.A., 1978
Professional Activities
Board of Directors
- Association of Business Trial Lawyers (1992-2002) (President, 2001-02)
- Loyola Law School (2001-present)
- Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce (2003-2008)
- Ninth Circuit Historical Society (2000-present)
- Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (1993-2000) (President 1998-1999)
- California Club (Secretary, 2007-2008)
- Southern California Leadership Network (2009)
Board of Advisors
- UCLA School of Public Affairs (2001-2011)
Chair
- Los Angeles County Bar Association -- Complex Courts Committee (2000-2005)
Co-Chair
- Practising Law Institute Securities Litigation and Enforcement Institute (2011)
Member
- Los Angeles County Bar Association, Litigation Section Executive Committee (1999-2003)
President
- Chancery Club of Los Angeles, California (2016-17)
Author
- “A Decade in Review: The Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act,” The Review of Securities & Commodities Regulation, Vol. 42, No. 8, co-authored (April 15, 2009)
- “Future of Advancement and Indemnification Rights,” Securities Law360, co-authored (July 10, 2009)
- “Shareholder Derivative Actions: From Cradle to Grave,” Practising Law Institute, co-authored (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2017)
- “Recent Developments and Trends in Securities Litigation,” Practising Law Institute, co-authored (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011)
- “Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act: 2008 Update,” Practising Law Institute, co-authored (2008)
Lecturer and Panelist
- Practising Law Institute
- American Bar Association
- Los Angeles County Bar Association
- Association of Business Trial Lawyers
- Directors Roundtable
- Association of Corporate Counsel
- CLE International, National Business Institute
- Federal Bar Association
- UCLA Law School
