Alison L. Plessman

Plessman represents clients in high-stakes matters, including white collar defense, trade secret theft, mass torts, breach of contract and professional negligence matters.

Plessman said this year, in particular, is a great example of just how varied her legal practice is. “I’m very grateful,” said Plessman, a partner and co-founder of Hueston Hennigan, a Los Angeles-based trial boutique.

“Our firm is just starting its fourth year, I believe. But, so early on, we’ve handled such important cases,” Plessman said. “This year I’ve had three international disputes; and now, the largest wildfire litigation in California history.”

Plessman is co-lead counsel for Edison International and Southern California Edison in dozens of cases asserting claims arising out of the Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties and in litigation arising out of the recent Montecito mudslides.

“Everyone in California worries about the next fire and how it might impact them,” Plessman said. Although the cases are in a very early stage, she said, “there’s no doubt that this litigation will impact many, many people.”

In cases of such magnitude, Plessman said people often jump to conclusions and are quick to point fingers.

“That’s exactly what you can’t do. You have to get it right because it matters to so many,” she said. “That’s what we’re determined to do, but we’re just starting out. So, we’ll see how the litigation proceeds.”

Plessman recently served as co-lead counsel for T-Mobile USA Inc. in a trade secrets lawsuit against the smartphone maker Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. Plessman’s client alleged the manufacturer conspired with its Chinese corporate affiliates to steal T-Mobile’s smartphone testing robot. T-Mobile USA, Inc. v. Huawei Device USA, Inc., et al., C14-1351 (W.D. Wash., filed Sept. 2, 2014).

Plessman said challenges in the case included “very complicated facts,” hard-to-grasp technology and language barriers.

“What we really had to do there was distill these complicated facts into a compelling narrative or story,” she said. Although the case may have looked like a simple business dispute, it was really about protecting innovation, invention and creativity, she explained.

“Really, it was a return to the basic kindergarten principle: you can’t take what isn’t yours without permission,” she said. During trial, Plessman had the inventor of T-Mobile’s robotic testing system sit in court.

“As a reminder that this isn’t just a business dispute. This is a story about a real person who spent years developing a very special robot, only to have it stolen,” Plessman said.

“That was something that I think a jury could understand and get upset about as opposed to just thinking this is a dispute between major, international, billion-dollar companies.”

— Skylar Dubelko