Darren S. Teshima

Darren Teshima, Co-Leader of Orrick's Complex Litigation and Dispute Resolution practice, helps clients intelligently manage risk and assert their rights through litigation. To safeguard clients from both anticipated and unforeseen dangers, Darren ensures each client’s litigation strategy and insurance coverage align with its business objectives.

• Engagements

  Darren's recent representations include:

  • Darren is part of our team that has been defending Credit Suisse in a dozen lawsuits brought by monoline insurers and trustees alleging claims related to residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) transactions following the global financial crisis, including a lawsuit brought by monoline insurer MBIA that recently went to trial. The MBIA case, in which MBIA seeks nine-figure recoveries, is just one of a small handful of post-crisis RMBS cases to go to trial, and one of the financial sector’s largest and most complex litigations. Following dismissal of MBIA’s fraud claim on summary judgment, the team recently completed a two-week trial in New York State Court, where Darren examined and defended a number of key witnesses. The parties are currently engaged in post-trial briefing.
  • Premera Blue Cross in a lawsuit related to defense coverage under a commercial general liability (CGL) policy following a data breach affecting 11 million customers, an issue of first impression under Washington law. We defeated the insurer’s summary judgment motion that it did not owe a duty to defend.
  • EFG Bank in three lawsuits against life insurers alleging that cost of insurance increases on universal life insurance policies violated the terms of the policies and the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing.
  • IEC, a for-profit education company, in a coverage lawsuit against its professional liability insurer, in which we alleged that the insurer wrongfully settled an underlying class action, exposing the insurer to bad faith and punitive damages liability.
  • Pacific Pulmonary Services in a bad faith action against its D&O insurer in the Northern District of California, where the district court granted summary judgment establishing the insurer's duty to advance defense costs for a False Claims Act (FCA) investigation.
  • Getaround, an on-demand carsharing company, in a coverage dispute with its auto rideshare insurance company.
  • Scopely, a leading mobile gaming company, in a coverage dispute with its cyber insurer regarding coverage for a trade secrets misappropriation claim. Sony Pictures, advising on insurance claims related to the November 2014 cyber-attack on its network and IT infrastructure.