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  • Donald R. Brown
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Donald R. Brown

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Partner

Litigation
Contact
  • dbrown@manatt.com
  • Phone: 310.312.4318
  • Download vCard
  • Los Angeles
Bar Admissions
  • California
Education
  • New York University School of Law, J.D., 1989
    Member, Journal of International Law & Politics

    Swarthmore College, B.A., Economics

    London School of Economics & Political Science

Services
  • Advertising Litigation
  • Advertising, Marketing and Media
  • Antitrust and Competition
  • Appellate
  • Class Actions
  • Consumer Protection
  • Employment and Labor
  • Entertainment Litigation
  • Financial Services Litigation and Enforcement
  • Litigation
Industries
  • Consumer Financial Services
  • Games and Esports
  • Hospitality and Leisure
  • Manatt Entertainment
  • Manatt Financial Services
  • Manatt Retail and Consumer Products

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  • Profile
  • Experience
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Memberships
  • Publications
Profile

Profile

Don Brown handles complex trial and appellate litigation for e-commerce, direct marketing, consumer product and financial services companies, with a focus on consumer protection and false advertising claims and discrimination claims under California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act. Don has substantial experience in all aspects of class litigation, including dispositive motions, class certification, complex settlements and objectors, trial, and appeal. He also handles mass arbitrations and assists clients in crafting and enforcing arbitration agreements.

In addition, Don has deep compliance and regulatory experience concerning the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other disability access laws. In more than 100 distinct matters, he has helped retailers, banks, media and software companies, property developers, equipment makers, hospitality and transportation companies, health insurers, nonprofit foundations and museums, and educational institutions address disability access issues in a variety of contexts, including stores, housing, lodging, websites, interactive media and media streaming, product design, and health plan benefits. Don defends disability access lawsuits and helps clients navigate and resolve prelitigation demands and federal and state government investigations.

Don also helps companies protect websites and other digital properties from illegal bots, successfully litigating claims under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and California Penal Code Section 502. And he has successfully represented plaintiffs and defendants in defamation cases.

Experience

Experience

Representative Class Action and Mass Arbitration Experience

O’Donovan v. CashCall, Inc. (N.D. Cal.). Defense of borrower class action claiming finance lender violated Electronic Funds Transfer Act and Unfair Competition Law. Case settled favorably for lender following trial of class claims.

Robinson v. Sterling (Los Angeles County Superior Court). Defense of tenant class action claiming apartment building was uninhabitable due to fire code violations. Prevailed at trial on all claims following class certification.

Kim v. Tinder, Inc. (C.D. Cal.). Defense of putative class action against dating app claiming age discrimination based on pricing for app features. Motion to compel arbitration granted based on arbitration clause in TOU. Case then settled on class-wide basis despite aggressive challenge by objectors.

In re Ticketmaster Sales Practices Litigation (C.D. Cal.). Defended consolidated putative class action against Ticketmaster and TicketsNow alleging deception in online sale of tickets. Action settled favorably for defendants on class-wide basis.

Mancini v. Ticketmaster (C.D. Cal.). Defended putative class action alleging violations of Consumer Legal Remedies Act and Unfair Competition Law regarding post-transaction enrollment process. Defeated class certification in trial court. Case settled favorably for defendants on class-wide basis following reversal on appeal.

Warner v. Tinder, Inc. (105 F. Supp. 3d 1083 [C.D. Cal. 2015]). Defense of putative class action against dating app under Electronic Funds Transfer Act, Unruh Civil Rights Act, Automatic Purchase Renewal Statute and Unfair Competition Law. Case dismissed for failure to state a claim.

Mass arbitrations. Handled defense of more than 350 related arbitration cases in AAA and more than 450 related arbitration cases in JAMS.

Representative ADA Experience

Guided ticketing company through Department of Justice (DOJ) investigations regarding process for purchasing accessible seating. Guided same company through extended negotiations with National Federation of the Blind regarding accessibility of company’s website and mobile app. Defeated putative class action at pleading stage regarding accessibility of company’s website. Defeated putative class action regarding company’s accessible seating sales practices.

Guided streaming content provider through successful three-year negotiation with National Association of the Deaf regarding closed-captioning of IP-streamed content.

Defend retailers and financial institutions in lawsuits and prelitigation negotiations regarding accessibility of facilities, websites and mobile apps.

Advise city-affiliated bike-share operators and parking meter providers on disability issues, ADA strategy and potential ADA claims.

Assisted Fortune 500 health insurer in development of ADA compliance plan.

Guided producer of popular network musical competition series through DOJ investigation regarding disability access to its auditions. DOJ closed investigation without taking action.

Representative Bot Experience

Ticketmaster v. RMG, Inc. (507 F. Supp. 2d 1096 [C.D. Cal. 2007]; 536 F. Supp. 2d 1191 [C.D. Cal. 2008]). Prosecution of claims by online ticketing company against bot manufacturer under copyright law, Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, and state anti-bot statutes. Obtained judgment for $18 million and injunction prohibiting the manufacture, distribution and use of bots. Also obtained dismissal of antitrust counterclaims.

Ticketmaster Broker Cases (C.D. Cal., 2013–2014). Prosecution of claims against numerous ticket brokers based on use of bots to access website and buy tickets. Obtained permanent injunctions, and defendants agreed to make substantial payments.

Ticketmaster v. Prestige Entertainment (315 F. Supp. 3d 1147 [C.D. Cal. 2018]). Prosecution of claims against ticket broker based on use of bots to access website and mobile app to buy tickets. Defeated motion to dismiss; case then settled favorably for client.

Representative Defamation Experience

Yan v. Chinese Daily News (Los Angeles County Superior Court). Successfully defended newspaper against defamation claim by high-profile Chinese dissident. Attorneys’ fees awarded under anti-SLAPP Act.

Weitsman v. Levesque (S.D. Cal.). Represented business owner who sued former employee based on sustained online defamation campaign. Obtained substantial damage award and permanent injunction barring further defamation.

Other Representative Trial Experience

Mankaruse v. Raytheon Company (Orange County Superior Court). Defense of wrongful termination lawsuit based on alleged age and disability discrimination. After four-week trial, jury ruled unanimously in favor of defendant on all claims. Judgment affirmed on appeal.

Cohen v. Beverly Hills Properties (Los Angeles County Superior Court). Successfully represented a defendant in a five-week jury trial after the Court of Appeal reversed the original jury verdict. In the retrial, the new jury reduced the original verdict by more than 90%.

Speaking Engagements

Speaking Engagements

Speaker, “How the ADA Impacts Websites and Mobile Apps, And What Businesses Should Do About It,” MyLawCLE, June 25, 2021.

Speaker, “Ethics and E-Discovery: What You Don’t Know Will Hurt You and Your Client,” Law and Forensics Webinar, July 9, 2018.

Speaker, “Understanding the New ADA Regulations,” International Ticketing Association Annual Conference, 2011.

Memberships

Memberships

AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell

Admitted to practice in the courts of California, the U.S. District Courts in California, and the U.S. Courts of Appeals, Ninth and Eleventh Circuits

Member, Board of Directors of the Disability Rights Legal Center (2014–2019)

Publications

Publications

Authored, “ADA Ruling Highlights Circuit Conflict Over Web Accessibility,” Law360, April 19, 2021.

Author, “Virtual depositions in the time of COVID-19: a personal account,” Daily Journal, April 24, 2020.

Don in the News

  • 10.26.18

    Federal Judge Blocks Government’s Attempts to Deny Vulnerable ...

    A federal district judge issued an order Wednesday blocking the Trump administration’s efforts to deny some abused, abandoned or neglected children...



Don's Articles

  • 04.19.21

    ADA Ruling Highlights Circuit Conflict Over Web Accessibility

    In an article for Law360, Manatt litigation Partner Donald Brown examined a recent U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit decision, which ...



  • 04.24.20

    Virtual Depositions in the Time of COVID-19: A Personal Account

    Manatt litigation partner Donald Brown penned an article for Daily Journal offering his personal account of virtual depositions amid the ...



Don's Newsletters

  • 04.22.21

    ADA Ruling Highlights Circuit Conflict Over Web Accessibility

    On appeal from the first significant federal trial to address whether brick-and-mortar retailers must maintain an accessible website, the U.S. Court ...

  • 07.21.20

    ADA Website Litigation Reaches the Cannabis Industry

    For the past decade, plaintiffs’ lawyers have been trolling the Internet for websites that are incompatible with screen-reader technology used ...

  • 02.05.20

    ‘Krab Mix’ Claims Are Clawless, Court Rules

    A deft use of the letter “k” enabled P.F. Chang’s China Bistro to dodge a false advertising lawsuit alleging it failed to serve ...

  • 11.12.19

    Next Trend In ADA Suits: Gift Cards

    Here’s the latest fad in Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) lawsuits against retailers: demanding that gift cards contain braille.  

Show More


Don's Events and Webinars

  • 06.25.21

    Brown to Speak About ADA Impacts to Websites and Mobile Apps on ...

    Manatt’s Donald R. Brown, litigation partner, will present on a virtual MyLawCLE session titled “How the ADA Impacts Websites and ...

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