Biography

David S. Almeida is a partner in the firm’s Chicago office who focuses his practice on commercial litigation and, most notably, on the defense of class action lawsuits brought under various consumer protection laws.  Mr. Almeida is the co-chair of the firm's Privacy and Data Protection Group, and his substantive practice areas are varied and include all aspects of consumer protection law, including defense of alleged consumer fraud, unfair and/or deceptive business practices claims, many of which are often associated with online and offline privacy issues, direct marketing, mobile and electronic commerce platforms, loyalty programs and various promotions practices.

A significant portion of Mr. Almeida’s practice is devoted to defending Fortune 500 and other companies against class and individual actions brought further to a variety of state and federal consumer protection statutes, including the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), the Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA), the CAN-SPAM Act, as well as various state consumer fraud and unfair business practices acts and other laws.

Mr. Almeida is frequently called upon to defend companies in litigation challenging their privacy and direct marketing practices.  He is well-versed in substantive privacy and marketing laws, regulations and best practices and thus is ideally suited to resolve litigation matters as well as to design and to implement effective, compelling and legally compliant marketing programs. 

Mr. Almeida’s practice is truly national in scope as he has participated in the defense of more than 100 class actions in courts across the country, involving all stages of the litigation and appellate processes.

In addition to his litigation practice, Mr. Almeida works closely with his clients to navigate the various laws and regulations governing direct, social media, mobile (location-based) marketing, as well as electronic and mobile commerce, promotions, daily deal offerings, gift cards and loyalty programs.  Mr. Almeida frequently counsels clients on all manner of consumer-facing disclosures (including privacy policies, terms of use and service, among others), and on global privacy compliance, with a particular emphasis on emerging technologies.  He counsels clients on compliance with FTC and state trade regulation issues, including the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), CAN-SPAM Act, Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), and “do not call” registries, as well as other regulatory agencies or bodies including, for example, the Payment Card Industry (PCI) data security standards. 

Mr. Almeida is a prominent authority on privacy, direct and mobile marketing, emerging payment systems, as well as social and digital media, issues.  He is a frequent author and speaker on such topics, and has been quoted in recent articles regarding the FCC’s recent pronouncements on “robo-calling” mobile phones, the Federal Trade Commission’s Final Privacy Report and similar publications. 

Mr. Almeida is also the Editor and primary contributor to Sedgwick’s Digital Media Law Blog, which provides topical information and analysis on various digital media and emerging technology issues.   

Affiliations, Activities & Accomplishments

Mr. Almeida is very active in both the legal and marketing industry communities.  He is a member of the American Bar Association’s Privacy and Information Security Committee, the Class Actions and Derivative Suits Committee and the Forum on Franchising.  Mr. Almeida is also a member of the Chicago Bar Association and its Cyber Law and Data Privacy and Class Litigation committees.  In addition, Mr. Almeida is a member of the Direct Marketing Association, the Chicago Association of Direct Marketing, the American Marketing Association (Chicago Chapter), and the Business Marketing Association (Chicago Chapter).

Mr. Almeida recently received the Award for Excellence in Pro Bono Service presented by the Judges of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and the Chicago Chapter of the Federal Bar Association for his representation of a Mexican citizen in a petition brought under The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction and the International Child Abduction Remedies Act obtaining the return of her abducted child. 

Publications & Presentations

Mr. Almeida is widely published in the areas of commercial litigation and consumer protection particularly with respect to various marketing, advertising and regulatory issues.  Some of his recent publications include:

• “Mobile Marketing Class Action Litigation 2.0: Enterprising Plaintiffs’ Lawyers Assert Novel Class Claims Under the TCPA,” Sedgwick Class Action Alert, July 2012
• “Users Pin on Pinterest, But Pinterest Pins Users,” Westlaw Journal – Computer & Internet, May 18, 2012
• “New Privacy Framework Poses Challenges for Digital Stakeholders,” American Bar Association Consumer Rights Newsletter, Spring 2012
• “Groupon Reaches Preliminary Settlement of Consolidated Lawsuits Alleging Deals Violated Federal & State Consumer Protection Laws,” Daily Deal Media, April 3, 2012
• “From the Experts: Fighting Back Against Statutory Penalty Class Actions, Parts I & II, Corporate Counsel, February 2012
• “Who’s Tweeting Whom?: Ownership of Digital Media Communities is Becoming an Increasingly Contentious (and Litigated) Issue, Law360, February 13, 2012
• “Legal Landscape Report,” 2012 Daily Deal Media Industry Report, Jan 13, 2012
• “Mobile Medical Applications Drawing Increased Regulatory Attention,” American Health Lawyers Association, Practice Group, Healthcare Liability & Litigation Health Briefs, October 2011
• “Sheriffs of the Digital World – FTC’s Commitment Further Bolstered, Settles with Twitter, Google (Among Others),” Bloomberg Law (Technology) Reports, June 13, 2011
• “FTC files suit to end abusive mobile marketing campaign,” Mobile Commerce Daily, May 6, 2011
• “Illinois Supreme Court Rules That Tender of Relief Before Class Certification Moots the Case,” ABA Section of Litigation Mass Torts, May 5, 2011
• “Congress Extends Implementation Date of Final Rule Governing Gift Cards,” Chain Store Age, August 27, 2010
• “Mobile Marketing for Healthcare Providers,” American Health Lawyers Association – Health Briefs e-Newsletter, May 2010
• “Mobile Marketing and the TCPA,” Law360, April 8, 2010

Some of Mr. Almeida's recent speaking engagements include:

• Presenter, “Mobile Marketing Class Actions 2.0: Strategies for Defending Against Novel TCPA Claims,” Media Law Resource Center Advertising & Commercial Speech Webinar, November 30, 2012
• Presenter, “Consumer Class Action Litigation: Regulatory and Case Developments Leveraging the Latest Decisions on Certification, Causation, Class Notice and More,” Strafford Webinar, November 28, 2012
• Panelist, “Monetizing Big Data to Create Consumer Value and Drive Revenue Growth,” Mobile Contactless Payment Innovations Summit, October 3, 2012         
• Presenter, “Avoiding the Legal Landmines of Social Media & Mobile Marketing,” CONVERGE Chicago Social Media Conference, October 2, 2012    
• Presenter, “Mobile Marketing Class Action Litigation 2.0: Making Sure that You Are Legally Compliant,” MobiU2012 Summit: Mobile Everything, September 24, 2012            
• Panelist, “Privacy and Data Security Implications of Mobile Commerce and Virtual Wallets,” Bricks and Mobile 2012, April 18, 2012
• Guest Lecturer, “Legal & Regulatory Issues for Marketing and Advertising Professionals,” Loyola University MBA Program, December 15, 2011
• Moderator & Panelist, “Legal and Regulatory Issues Affecting Marketing and Advertising Professionals” University of Chicago Booth School of Business Alumni Marketing Roundtable, Chicago, Illinois, November 30, 2011
• Speaker, “Legal Issues for Marketers and Advertisers,” Charlotte Business Innovation of Growth Council, Charlotte, North Carolina, October 20, 2011
• Speaker, “Critical Data Privacy Issues:  Best Practice for Navigating the Legal Landscape and Minimizing Risk,” San Francisco & Chicago Sedgwick Seminar Series, 2011
• Speaker, “Legal Landscape for Social Media and Mobile Marketing,” Institute for Social, Search & Mobile Marketing’s 2011 CONVERGE Symposium, San Francisco, California, September 27-28, 2011
• Speaker, “Legal Landmines in “Mocial” Marketing,” Heartland Mobile Council’s Mobile University, Chicago, Illinois, September 22, 2011
• Panelist, “Legal Landscape,” 2011 Daily Deal Media Conference, Chicago, Illinois, September 8-9, 2011
• Speaker, “HIPPA and the HITECH Act: Recent Developments in Privacy, Security and Enforcement Obligations,” Sedgwick Health Law Seminar Series, presented in Los Angeles and San Francisco, California, June 8-9, 2011
• Moderator & Speaker, “Implications of the First Investigations Under the FTC Guides for Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising,” Lorman Webinar, October 2010
• Speaker, “Direct Marketing: Following the Rules in a Global Economy,” Salesforce Advisory Summit, San Francisco, California, September 30, 2010