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Experience:
Mark Ryan is a litigator whose practice focuses especially on complex commercial litigation and administrative proceedings. Mark represents clients in the course of class actions, securities fraud, accountants' malpractice and antitrust lawsuits in federal and state courts nationwide. He has broad experience with employment and covenant not to compete matters and with construction disputes, and he has practiced before numerous federal agencies in contested proceedings.
Mark is chairperson of Mayer Brown's Washington, DC litigation practice. He joined the firm in 1981.
Notable Engagements:
Represented Wal-Mart in one of the largest class actions ever filed in the State of Maryland. The case was brought on behalf of more than 50,000 present and former Wal-Mart associates in Maryland, alleging various wage and hour violations at Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores throughout the state. After extensive discovery and hearings, the trial court found that there was an insufficient basis for allowing the case to proceed as a class action. The ruling was a substantial victory for Wal-Mart. Pittman v. Wal-Mart Corporation, No. 02-10206 (Md. Cir. Ct. 2004).
Represented one of world's largest food ingredient companies in class action litigation involving claims of price-fixing and $3 billion in alleged damages.
Co-counsel in recent Fourth Circuit decision overturning district court order certifying a class action and establishing important principles in which "fraud on the market" is alleged in securities cases. Gariety v. Grant Thornton, 368 F.3d 356 (4th Cir. 2004).
Counsel to the directors of Lafarge Corporation in a shareholder derivative lawsuit. The critical legal issue involved a shareholder's obligation to make a demand on a board of directors before filing a derivative lawsuit. The directors' successful defense of the case was ultimately affirmed by the Maryland Court of Appeals and is now the leading Maryland case on the demand rule. Werbowsky v. Collomb, 766 A. 2d 123 (Md. 2001).
Obtained a $68 million jury verdict on behalf of an antitrust plaintiff. The dispute involved efforts by LePage's Corporation to compete against the 3M Company for sales of home and office transparent tape. 3M dominated the market with its "Scotch" brand tape for several decades. The case involved the lawfulness of 3M's response to significant inroads LePage's had made at large office supply distributors and retailers in the 1990's. The case has received substantial attention in the antitrust bar because of its focus on the use of "bundled rebates" by a dominant supplier to preclude smaller competitors from obtaining access to critical distribution channels. 3M Company v. LePage's Inc., 324 F.3d 141 (3rd Cir. 2003) (en banc), cert. denied, 124 S. Ct. 2932 (2004).
Represented a major accounting firm in a federal trial arising from one of the largest bank failures in US history.
Argued one of the first cases in the DC Circuit involving the scope of Fed. R. Civ. P.11. Danik, Inc. v. Hartmarx Corp., 875 F.2d 890 (DC Cir. 1989).
Represented a real estate investment firm and one of its principal executives in the wake of the collapse of a proposed public offering of real estate limited partnership interests. Allegations included securities fraud violations, common law fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract.
Represented design and engineering firms and individual engineers in a $100 million lawsuit arising from a major public works project.
Education:
Duke University School of Law, JD, 1981, Syracuse University, BA, magna cum laude, 1977. | 