Maria has represented clients being sued or investigated by state attorneys general (AGs), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and other government entities for more than 25 years. She understands the procedural, substantive, and reputational complexities unique to government investigations, and helps her clients navigate the terrain and preserve their rights.
A significant portion of Maria’s practice centers on issues relating to product or service marketing, customer service, labeling, and other consumer protection issues; hazardous waste, electronic waste, and other environmental issues; data privacy and security; consumer privacy and data breaches; business licensing and regulation; and unclaimed property. She represents clients in a wide variety of industry sectors, including pharmaceuticals, nutrition/dietary supplements, data management, consumer debt, consumer lending, telecommunications, hospitality, automotive, retail, grocery, security, and real estate. Her clients include Fortune 100 companies, local businesses, charities, nonprofit organizations, and trade associations.
Whether guiding a client through the unique pre-litigation investigations that state AGs can conduct (including negotiating the governments’ requests for business documents and interviews), handling government litigation, or anything in between, Maria seeks creative solutions to mitigate her clients’ risk and reach a favorable resolution. She also has crafted legislative and other public policy solutions to legal challenges.
Maria’s other focus is on class action settlements. She has negotiated settlements of product liability claims and developed the administrative framework for national settlement programs. Maria also has defended class settlements against attacks on appeal and collaterally.
Maria works in close partnership with her clients, building relationships with key personnel to develop a granular understanding of the client’s business, challenges, and goals so that she can craft a tailored strategy, both to resolve the immediate matter at hand and help pave the way forward. Her goal is to address regulator interest arising from customer complaints and resolve government inquiries while allowing clients’ businesses to continue operating with as little interruption as possible.