Derek T. Ho

 On Monday, August 5, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit delivered a significant victory for Kellogg Hansen client NTE in its antitrust monopolization case against Duke Energy.  The Fourth Circuit’s ruling creates an important precedent on multiple important principles of U.S. antitrust law. NTE’s mission has been to provide cleaner, lower-cost electricity to wholesale customers in the Carolinas, where Duke Energy has been the incumbent monopolist for years. Duke Energy admittedly could not compete with NTE on price or efficiency, so, as NTE’s lawsuit highlighted, Duke undertook multiple strategies to stifle competition from NTE.  Among other things, Duke Energy terminated NTE\'s interconnection agreement under false pretenses and in violation of FERC regulations; and it offered a renewal contract to an existing customer, Fayetteville, with a complex discounted pricing structure that was designed to prevent NTE from competing. The District Court had initially granted summary judgment to Duke Energy.  It analyzed each aspect of Duke’s multi-pronged strategy separately, and asserting that each separate component did not independently constitute an antitrust violation. The Court of Appeals also reaffirmed an important principle of judicial recusal:  once a judge is recused, that judge is recused from the case permanently.  The Fourth Circuit rejected this reasoning and sided with NTE Energy. NTE Energy is represented by Derek Ho, Caroline Schechinger, Matthew Wilkins, and Jonathan Liebman of Kellogg Hansen. Read the full article here: Law360\'s Legal Lions Of The Week - Law360 ..

June 12, 2024 – Kellogg Hansen partner John Thorne and associate Derek Reinbold recently authored the U.S. chapter for Global Competition Review’s inaugural Data & Antitrust Guide. The chapter details how U.S. antitrust enforcers and courts view uses and abuses of data. It begins by discussing data’s role in monopolization cases such as the high-profile actions against Google, Facebook, and Amazon. It next addresses how enforcers treat mergers in which the merging parties maintain competitively valuable – or competitively sensitive – data. It then turns to issues of collusion, particularly how enforcers view new technologies such as artificial intelligence in cases involving information exchanges or alleged price-fixing. The chapter concludes with a discussion of how data privacy has emerged as a new metric of market power, an element of competitive harm, and potential procompetitive justification for otherwise anticompetitive conduct. Read the full article here: United States: High-profile cases shed light on antitrust enforcement against data abuse - Global Competition Review ..

May 23,  2024— Kellogg Hansen partner Derek Ho will present at The 2024 Global Class Actions and Mass Torts Perfect Law Conference on Thursday, May 23, 2024. This two-day conference, held in London, is a prestigious international event that focuses on the concept of collective redress, which refers to legal mechanisms that allow a large group of individuals who have suffered similar harm or injury to pursue their claims together as a single entity. Derek will speak on a panel titled, “Models of Damages Assessment,” with other industry leaders from across the globe. See the full line up of speakers here and the full agenda here. ..

May 1, 2024— Twenty-three Kellogg Hansen attorneys qualified for recognition on the 2023 Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll for contributing fifty hours or more of pro bono work to those who cannot afford legal counsel.  Twelve Kellogg Hansen attorneys also qualified for the High Honor Roll for providing one hundred hours or more of pro bono service.  The District of Columbia Courts have recognized attorneys through the Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll since 2011.  The complete list of 2023 Honor Roll members hail from 166 firms, solo practices, federal and local government agencies, corporations, associations, and public interest organizations, accounting for least 392,750 hours of pro bono service across all types of practice. It can be found here. Chief Judge Anna Blackburne-Rigsby of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals and Chief Judge Anita Josey-Herring of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia stated: “Thank you for answering – and in many cases exceeding – the call to service embodied by Rule 6.1. We know that your actions stem not only from a commitment to your ethical obligations, but also from your principled belief in equal access to justice. We are pleased to recognize your dedication by including your name on this year’s Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll.”  Kellogg Hansen 2023 Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll Rachel T. Anderson* Scott K. Attaway* Justin B. Berg* Geoffrey Block* Mary Charlotte Y. Carroll* Tiberius T. Davis Abigail E. DeHart* Hannah D.C. DePalo D. Chanslor Gallenstein Nataliia Gillespie Jordan R. Gonzalez Minsuk Han* Mark P. Hirschboek Derek T. Ho* Geoffrey M. Klineberg* Ariela M. Migdal Matthew D. Reade* Catherine M. Redlingshafer Derek C. Reinbold* Caroline A. Schechinger Andrew Skaras Alex P. Treiger* Daren G. Zhang* * denotes High Honor Roll ..

May 1, 2023— Twenty-seven Kellogg Hansen attorneys qualified for recognition on the 2022 Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll for contributing fifty hours or more of pro bono work to those who cannot afford legal counsel.  Nineteen Kellogg Hansen attorneys also qualified for the High Honor Roll for providing one hundred hours or more of pro bono service.  The District of Columbia Courts have recognized attorneys through the Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll since 2011.  The complete list of 2022 honorees can be found here. Kellogg Hansen 2022 Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll Scott K. Attaway* Daniel G. Bird* L. Vivian Dong Daniel V. Dorris Matthew N. Drecun Ryan M. Folio David C. Frederick* D. Chanslor Gallenstein* Dustin G. Graber Kimberly V. Hamlett* Minsuk Han* Ashle Holman* Geoffrey M. Klineberg* Jonathan I. Liebman Eric J. Maier* Samuel A. Martin* Ariela M. Migdal Bradley E. Oppenheimer* Gregory G. Rapawy* Catherine M. Redlingshafer Derek C. Reinbold* Caroline A. Schechinger* Daniel S. Severson* Andrew C. Shen* Julius P. Taranto* Alex P. Treiger* Matthew J. Wilkins*  * denotes High Honor Roll ..

May 1, 2021— Nineteen Kellogg Hansen attorneys qualified for recognition on the 2021 Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll for contributing fifty hours or more of pro bono work to those who cannot afford legal counsel.  Twelve Kellogg Hansen attorneys also qualified for the High Honor Roll for providing one hundred hours or more of pro bono service.  The District of Columbia Courts have recognized attorneys through the Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll since 2011.  The complete list of 2022 honorees can be found here. Kellogg Hansen 2021 Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll Scott K. Attaway Alejandra Ávila* Daniel G. Bird* Katherine C. Cooper* Matthew N. Drecun* Linda A. Elliott* Kimberly V. Hamlett* Minsuk Han* Vetan Kapoor Geoffrey M. Klineberg* Ariela M. Migdal Aaseesh P. Polavarapu* Catherine M. Redlingshafer Derek C. Reinbold Christopher M. Sarma Thomas G. Schultz* Julius P. Taranto* Jayme L. Weber Matthew J. Wilkins* ..

June 25, 2020— The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a jury verdict that a management company and skilled nursing facilities owned by Consulate Health Care engaged in a multi-year scheme to defraud Medicare by misrepresenting the level of services they provided.  The court rejected the defendants’ argument that their billing practices were immaterial to the government.  The decision reinstates the jury’s verdict of $85,137,095, resulting in a judgment of more than $255 million after trebling and statutory penalties.  This represents one of the largest False Claims Act (FCA) jury verdict upheld on appeal. “We are gratified that the jury’s Medicare verdict has been affirmed and we are thankful for our client’s personal sacrifice to ensure one of the nation’s largest providers of senior healthcare services is held accountable for committing fraud against American taxpayers,” stated Derek Ho, lead appellate counsel for the whistleblower, Angela Ruckh. Ms. Ruckh is a career nurse with more than 20 years\' experience working in skilled nursing facilities.  When she worked at Consulate’s facilities, she observed them routinely submitting upcoded claims and falsifying reports summarizing patients’ medical conditions and treatment.  Ms. Ruckh filed a False Claims Act complaint in 2011 on behalf of the United States and the State of Florida.  The U.S. Department of Justice and the State of Florida declined to intervene in the case, but Ms. Ruckh and her attorneys persisted and fought the defendants on the government’s behalf.  The case went before a federal jury in Tampa, Florida, in January 2017.  The evidence at trial included not only the financial loss suffered by taxpayers, but also the human cost associated with defendants’ practices.  As lead trial counsel, James Webster, explained to the jury: “[T]he mission … was not care, it was making money.  They placed profits ahead of care.  They pressured the therapists and the nurses to do whatever it took to maximize … profits.”  After a 20-day trial, the jury returned one of the largest qui tam verdicts in history.  However, the district judge granted the defendants’ motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict.  Ms. Ruckh and her attorneys appealed.  “The affirmance of the jury’s verdict is the culmination of nearly eight years of work on the part of our client and our legal team,” stated the whistleblower’s lead counsel, Silvija Strikis.  “We are thankful for the trust our client placed in us to take on this case with her.” Case citation:  Judgments, United States ex rel. Ruckh v. CMC II LLC, No. 11-1303 (M.D. Fla. Mar. 1, 2017), judgments vacated, 304 F. Supp. 3d 1258 (M.D. Fla. Jan. 11, 2018), aff’d in part, vacated in part, rev’d in part sub nom. United States ex rel. Ruckh v. Salus Rehabilitation, LLC, No. 18-10500, 2020 WL 3467393 (11th Cir. June 25, 2020). ..

April 15, 2020— The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled in favor of Kellogg Hansen\'s client, Global Tel*Link, in class action alleging claims under the FederalCommunications Act (FCA), 47 U.S.C. § 201, et seq. and state laws.  The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision to decertify the class and grant summary judgment for Global*Tel Link. Kellogg Hansen partner Derek Ho argued the case for Global Tel*Link.  He was joined on brief by Kellogg Hansen associates Matthew Huppert, Benjamin Softness, and Dietrich Hill.  Mr. Ho also represented Global Tel*Link before the district court.  The Eight Circuit\'s opinion builds on Kellogg Hansen’s successful appeal in the D.C. Circuit in Global Tel*Link v. FCC, 866 F.3d 397, 402, 413 (D.C. Cir. 2017), in which the court concluded that the Federal Communications Commission\'s (FCC) determination that site commissions were unrelated to the costs of providing services “defies reasoned decisionmaking” and held that the FCC had authority to impose ancillary fee caps such as deposit fee caps on interstate calls, but not on intrastate calls.  The Eighth Circuit found that after the D.C. Circuit’s decision in Global Tel*Link the plaintiff’s theory of class certification became “untenable” and the plaintiffs’ theory that Global violated the FCA if it recovered site commissions through call rates became “unsupportable as a matter of law.” The case is Kaylan Stuart v. Global Tel*Link Corporation (No: 18-2640 and No: 18-2763). ..