Steven S. Rosenthal
Steven Rosenthal has extensive trial court, appellate and arbitration experience on matters involving commercial law, constitutional law and all aspects of administrative practice. He has argued noted cases before the United States Supreme Court and before the United States Courts of Appeals and state appellate courts throughout the United States. In April 2013, he argued before the United States Supreme Court a high-profile case on behalf of the Port of the City of Los Angeles, involving whether federal law restricts the ability of the Port to condition entry of trucks onto its property as part of its Clean Truck Program. Previously, he was victorious in a case heard by the United States Supreme Court in which the Court held that imposition of Social Security taxes on federal judges in office at the time of passage was an unconstitutional diminution of their compensation.
In addition to representing major private companies in litigation, Mr. Rosenthal has also represented major governmental entities such as the California State Controller, the Delaware Department of Finance, the City of Los Angeles, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in both trial and appellate matters. He has been representing major international airports for over twenty-five years on regulatory and litigation matters and was lead counsel in five landmark cases involving airport rates and charges.
Mr. Rosenthal currently represents as lead counsel the California State Controller and the Delaware Department of Finance in litigation and counselling with respect to their unclaimed property laws. The California representation includes litigation involving a number of life insurance companies that were unwilling to permit an audit of their records as required by California’s unclaimed property laws. The Delaware representation includes the defense of legal challenges to the use of estimation in connection with unclaimed property audits. Mr. Rosenthal has also been advising the California Controller on, and participated in the successful negotiation of, multistate global settlement agreements with 21 of the nation’s largest life insurance companies. Mr. Rosenthal (along with his partner) was chosen by California Lawyer as a winner of its California Lawyer Attorneys of the Year (CLAY) Award for 2014 for his representation of the California Controller in negotiating settlements with life insurance companies expected to yield over $ 250 million in unclaimed proceeds to California and California beneficiaries.
He was elected to the American Law Institute in 1991 and is listed in Who’s Who in America, Benchmark Litigation, The Best Lawyers in America and numerous similar publications. He is a trustee and former president of Family Matters of Greater Washington, the area’s largest comprehensive social services agency.
Washington, District of Columbia 20001