The Women Attorneys Achieving Some of Pomerantz’s Greatest Successes

Jennifer Pafiti, Murielle Steven Walsh and Emma Gilmore.

Pomerantz is a preeminent law firm celebrated for representing defrauded investors and championing shareholder and consumer rights. Some of the firm’s most challenging and ultimately successful cases have been led by a triumvirate of powerhouse women partners: Emma Gilmore, Murielle Steven Walsh and Jennifer Pafiti.

In going up against deep-pocketed, powerful corporations in for such issues as the Deutsche Bank “Know Your Customer” misstatements, the Wynn Resorts sexual abuse cover-up, and the scandal surrounding Petrobras, Brazil’s largest oil company, these women demonstrate fearlessness in their dedication to stand up and fight for what is right.

A Bank Turns a Blind Eye

Emma Gilmore, a partner at Pomerantz, was no stranger to high-profile cases when she filed a case against financial juggernaut Deutsche Bank. She had, after all, previously taken on Barclays in a closely watched securities class action over the bank’s use of so-called “dark pool” trading systems, among other highly challenging cases.

“We alleged that Deutsche Bank and its top executives misrepresented to investors that the bank had implemented a robust and strict Know Your Customer program,” says Gilmore. “In truth, what we found out was that Deutsche Bank's executives repeatedly exempted high-net-worth individuals and politically exposed persons from any meaningful due diligence, enabling their criminal activities through the bank's facilities.”

Gilmore’s investigations into the claims of the case unearthed some damning internal bank documents. One particularly egregious example of Deutsche Bank’s misconduct was its preferential treatment of notorious child sex abuser Jeffrey Epstein, whom the Bank internally designated an “Honorary PEP” because of the millions in fees and referrals he was generating for the Bank. Unscrupulously, even after it learned that 40 underage girls had come forward with testimony of Epstein sexually assaulting them, Deutsche Bank’s Reputational Risk Committee agreed to keep Epstein as a client and was “comfortable with . . . continu[ing] business as usual” with Epstein, “not[ing] a number of sizable deals recently.” During the course of his relationship with Deutsche Bank, Epstein and his related entities withdrew huge amounts of money and wired millions of dollars to his victims for the stated purpose of covering hotel expenses, tuition and rent.

Deutsche Bank came to the table with fire, hiring top defense counsel with almost unlimited resources in an effort to challenge Pomerantz’s claims.

“One of the biggest challenges was surviving the defendants’ efforts to dismiss the case,” says Gilmore. “They fought really hard to dismiss the case at the preliminary stages because they knew they had very bad documents internally that they’d have to produce in discovery.”

When the judge denied defendants’ motion to dismiss the claims, Deutsche Bank settled quickly. Pomerantz pushed for a big settlement given the extreme nature of conduct that was involved and the judge’s order, finding that plaintiffs adequately alleged that the bank and its executives knew that specific processes were being systematically undermined. The court’s opinion pointed to the bank’s pervasive practice of exempting ultra-rich and politically connected clients. Gilmore secured nearly 50 percent of the recoverable damages for investors – an extremely high premium for the palpable misconduct and an unusually high recovery percentage for securities class action settlements.

As a woman, Gilmore felt this win personally. “The Deutsche Bank litigation and settlement serve as important legal precedents aimed at deterring financial institutions from enabling the wealthy and powerful to commit crimes in return for financial benefits,” says Gilmore. “I believe that banks have learned that they can and will be held accountable for failing to implement appropriate Know Your Customer procedures, particularly with respect to ultra-wealthy clients.”

The Deutsche Bank litigation and settlement serve as important legal precedents aimed at deterring financial institutions from enabling the wealthy and powerful to commit crimes in return for financial benefits.

A Scandal That Rocked a Nation

In 2014 a massive scandal related to Brazil’s largest oil company, Petrobras, sent shockwaves through the country, when Venina Velosa de Fonseca – a female whistleblower – was brave enough to come forward.

At the time Fonseca shared her story, Petrobras was the fifth-largest company in the world – and 51 percent of it was owned by the Brazilian government. To say that she was putting her life on the line by speaking up is not an overstatement. The case involved politicians who appointed executives alleged to have colluded with a cartel in a massive, multi-billion-dollar kickback and bribery scheme that wiped out approximately $90B of the company’s value in the blink of six months.

In investigating the claims of the case, Gilmore traveled to Brazil to uncover evidence of fraud. She met with members of the Brazilian police and press and discovered several articles pointing to Fonseca’s account. At Gilmore’s request, Fonseca agreed to come to the U.S. to be deposed; she would wind up being the key witness in the case.

“Fonseca was really a big piece of why we were so successful in the case,” says Gilmore. “She certainly didn't have to come to the U.S. for a deposition, but she felt like she was doing the right thing by going after the bad guys.”

Fonseca’s testimony exposed the company's corruption, stating that she was threatened at gunpoint by an unknown assailant after revealing financial irregularities to the energy company’s governing board. She was reportedly then transferred by Petrobras from Brazil to Singapore and was ultimately fired in retaliation for speaking up.

“Not only was Fonseca threatened at gunpoint,” says Gilmore, “she was also receiving calls late at night, with threats being made against her and her daughter. She is a very brave woman and she is lucky to be alive.”

Partner Jennifer Pafiti was also a leading member of the Pomerantz team litigating against Petrobras. Dually qualified to practice law in the U.K. and the U.S., Pafiti was instrumental in convincing the Universities Superannuation Scheme (“USS”), the U.K.’s largest private pension fund, to serve as lead plaintiff. Notably, it was the very first time that USS chose to participate actively in such a litigation. Pafiti worked closely with USS throughout the case, guiding them through the intricacies of the American legal system.

After years of hard-fought litigation, Pomerantz achieved a record-breaking settlement of $3B for defrauded investors. It was and remains the largest securities fraud class action settlement in over a decade and the largest settlement ever in a class action involving a foreign issuer.

Holding Corporations Accountable for Executives’ Sexual Misconduct

The web of culpability was tangled in the high-profile securities class action case against Wynn Resorts Ltd., led by powerhouse Pomerantz partner Murielle Steven Walsh. The litigation revealed the company's concealment of a long-running pattern of sexual misconduct against Wynn employees by their former boss, billionaire casino mogul Stephen Wynn. The disparity and imbalance of power between CEO and employee is one thing, but in this case, the CEO was backed up by management, and the complaints by female employees steadily streamed in for years.

“The Wynn case was very egregious,” says Steven Walsh. “The more we found out during the case, the more surprised we were. The behavior was covered up using hush money settlements for the victims, with management complicit.”

The complaints and cover-ups had been swept under the rug until 2018, when The Wall Street Journal broke a story recounting dozens of allegations of sexual misconduct against Steve Wynn. The exposé detailed several former employees' accounts of sexual coercion and pressure amounting to a decades-long pattern of misconduct, abuse of power and complicity. When the news broke, investor share prices tanked by 10 percent, Wynn stepped down – and Pomerantz stepped up.

“The case went on for six years, and a number of judges recused themselves, so we faced some pretty serious headwinds,” says Steven Walsh. “Ultimately we prevailed after obtaining a favorable discovery ruling and defeating the defendants’ motions for summary judgment. We achieved a $70M settlement, a significant financial amount for the class. But also important is that we established that this type of issue matters to investors. This case demonstrated in no uncertain terms that a CEO’s personal conduct is important to investors when it affects the company's bottom line.”

This case demonstrated in no uncertain terms that a CEO’s personal conduct is important to investors when it affects the company's bottom line.

Steven Walsh has always been drawn to needle-moving work. She likes to charter fresh territory and plant a flag before she leaves. Not that long ago, sexual misconduct by a corporation’s executives was not considered actionable in securities litigation.

“I've always been interested in taking on the cases that are a little bit more cutting edge,” says Stevens Walsh. “The ones where the law's just not that settled.”

Advocacy From Within

Jennifer Pafiti is a partner and head of client services at Pomerantz, advocating for women both via casework and within the firm. But when she was a young lawyer in the U.K., the law was very much a boys’ club. It was a different time and Pafiti was well trained in the tools of survival in such spaces, as many women are.

“It was really male dominated, and I felt as a woman you had to work twice as hard to prove half as much,” Pafiti says.”

That changed, in part, when Pafiti came to the U.S. where she observed a very different culture and one that has hugely improved in the last ten years, according to Pafiti.”

Pafiti leads Pomerantz’s educational initiatives, which include its highly popular Corporate Governance Roundtables. These unite institutional investors and governance experts to discuss issues that affect institutional investors.

Pomerantz is devoted to fostering a supportive work environment with a team built on trust. With in-house hiring practices, mentorship, and comprehensive anti-harassment and discrimination policies in place, the firm is committed to ensuring the culture stays inclusive and healthy for everyone. A place where all lawyers are supported in an environment that facilitates the excellence that Pomerantz associates and partners are known for.

Paying it Forward

Steven Walsh, who has been with the firm since 1998, had a supportive female mentor when she started. This was invaluable, as the mentor was able to speak specifically to Steven Walsh’s experience as a female newly navigating legal culture. To this day, Steven Walsh is passionate about paying it forward and mentoring young female – and male – associates as they come up. From her position at the firm, and experience in the courtroom, Stevens Walsh likes to challenge the limitations that society likes to place on women. She sees her job as a mentor as being, in part, to inspire these newer lawyers to reach higher.

“The idea that you can't do it all, I think, is a disservice to females in the workforce,” says Steven Walsh. “I think you can do it all. You're just not going to get a lot of sleep and you're not going to have a lot of downtime.”

Gilmore wholeheartedly agrees. She views mentoring the young women coming up in the firm as an opportunity to offer women advice and advantages that she herself may not have received.

“I've always had an interest in promoting women into positions of power, including to partnership,” says Gilmore. “I believe there is nothing in the field of law that a man can do that a woman cannot do – it's just about working hard.”

Pafiti's mentorship of young attorneys demonstrates her commitment to nurturing the next generation of talent while cultivating an inclusive environment for all. Her collaborative spirit and willingness to listen make her an invaluable team member. She embodies the successful integration of a thriving career and motherhood, setting an empowering example for young women.

With powerful, successful women leading cases, shaping Pomerantz’s work culture, and advocating both in and beyond the courtroom, Pomerantz is impacting change on a deep level – one that can work towards positively reforming systemic structures.