Patricia L. Glaser

This year Glaser sought to expand her horizons by forging a strategic alliance with two New York-based firms headed by a former FBI director.

The former director, Louis J. Freeh, also was a federal judge in the Southern District of New York. He leads the law firm Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan LLP and a global consulting enterprise, Freeh Group International Solutions LLC. The plan, announced in May, is to put in place a one-stop shop for clients seeking counsel regarding risk management, securities, cyber security and white collar investigations.

“Louis Freeh has an impeccable reputation for integrity,” Glaser said. “This is working out fine. Yes, there are matters we are working on together and no, I can’t mention what they are.”

In March, Glaser won a significant appellate reversal after a Los Angeles County judge denied a jury trial for client Himelsein Mandel Fund Management LLC. In the subsequent bench trial the judge ruled against Himelsein’s complaint that defendant Fortress Investment Group LLC reneged on a promise to provide $65 million in additional funding. A 2nd District Court of Appeal panel held that California law, not New York law, governed the jury-waiver issue. Himelsein Mandel Fund Management LLC v. Fortress Investment Group LLC, B281210 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed March 3, 2017).

“We’re feeling triumphant because this clears the way for us to take the matter to a jury,” said Glaser, who is lead co-counsel. “I love juries in business cases. They get it right 99 percent of the time.” Last year Glaser represented Guess Inc.’s board of directors after it appointed a committee to investigate allegations of improper conduct by the clothing company’s executive chairman and chief creative officer, Paul Marciano. The probe led to Marciano’s resignation.

“In the world we live in, the #MeToo world, a lot of companies shoot first. They fire people and ask questions later,” Glaser said. “I’m proud that our client waited on our investigation. There are bad actors, but there are also people accused wrongly.” In an ongoing case, Glaser represents pizza-maker John Schnatter in several lawsuits. In one, a Delaware chancery court ruled that Schnatter’s former company, Papa John’s International Inc., must give Glaser’s client numerous documents. Schnatter v. Papa John’s International Inc., 2018-0542 (Del. Chan. Ct., filed July 26, 2018).

“That outcome on documents provided us with ammunition for our position, and we now have essentially come to a business resolution,” Glaser said.

— John Roemer