Robert D. Weber

Robert D. Weber is a partner in the Business Trial Practice Group in the firm's Century City office.

Areas of Practice

Rob has extensive experience across a broad range of matters, including securities class actions, derivative actions, investigations and proceedings initiated by the Securities and Exchange Commission, state securities agencies and self-regulatory organizations, internal corporate investigations and other complex commercial litigation.

He also advises public companies regarding corporate governance and disclosure issues.

Rob has an international practice with a significant focus on Chinese and other Asian clients involved in US litigation and SEC enforcement actions. He has been engaged in over a dozen matters involving Asian clients, including securities class actions, derivative lawsuits, SEC investigations and internal investigations.

Experience

Representative Cases

• Won a federal court bench trial for a Taiwanese investor against a Nasdaq-listed LED chip manufacturer that had failed to honor the terms of a securities purchase agreement. The judgment included a 100% award of claimed damages, plus pre-judgment and post-judgment interest.
• Won dismissal of a federal court lawsuit in which a Russian real estate mogul attempted to collect an $84 million arbitral award against a Liechtenstein trust.
• Won a multi-million dollar arbitration award on behalf of a real estate investor in a dispute concerning the proper distribution of proceeds from the sale of two large developments in Orange County, California.
• Obtained the complete dismissal on summary judgment for the directors of the nation's largest Korean-American bank in a shareholder derivative action. Successfully defended the decision in an appeal to the California Court of Appeal
• Successfully defended a multinational manufacturer against claims of fraud and misrepresentation in connection with a loan agreement, which proceeded in a Hong Kong arbitration.
• Won a complete dismissal on summary judgment for a Hong Kong investment bank in a $100 million-plus securities fraud lawsuit filed in the Central District of California arising from an IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
• Successfully defended an AMEX-traded Chinese company and several of its officers and directors in a securities class action involving allegations that, among other things, the company's finances as reported in its SEC filings did not correspond with financial results the company reported to the SAIC, and that the company overpaid for several significant assets
• Won dismissal of a federal shareholder derivative action against the officers and directors of a Tennessee-based oil and gas producer, and successfully defended the decision on appeal.
• Represented an analyst in a federal defamation suit brought by a public company and its chairman seeking over $100 million in damages. Obtained complete dismissal of the case by winning an Anti-SLAPP Motion to Strike

Reported Decisions

• Takata v. Riot Blockchain, et al., 2022 WL 1058389 (D. N.J. 2022)

• Gaynor v. Miller, et al., 205 F.Supp.3d 935 (E.D. Tenn. 2016)
• In re: Resonant Inc. Securities Litigation, 2016 WL 1737959
• Tribank Capital Investments, Inc. v. Orient Paper, Inc., 2013 WL 4200898 (C.D. Cal. August 14, 2013)
• In re New Energy Systems Securities Litigation, 2014 WL 5002741 (S.D.N.Y. September 30, 2014)
• Campbell v. Weihe Yu, et al., 25 F.Supp.3d 472 (S.D.N.Y. 2014)
• Lukas v. McPeak, 730 F.3d 635 (6th Cir.  2013)
• Lukas v. McPeak, 2012 WL 4359437 (E.D. Tenn. 2012)
• Chung v. Nara Bancorp, Inc., et al., 2012 WL 290359 (Cal.App. 2 Dist. February 01, 2012)
• Medifast, Inc. v. Minkow, 2011 WL 1157625 (S.D. Cal. March 29, 2011)
• Latshaw v. Trainer Wortham & Co., Inc., 452 F.3d 1097 (9th Cir. 2006)
• Bryant v. Roblee, 153 S.W.3d 626 (Tex.App.-Amarillo 2004)

Honors

Best Lawyers in America, Best Lawyers, 2024-2025

Southern California Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers, 2016-2023

Pacific Palisades Citizen of the Year, in recognition of his outstanding service to his local community, 2013

Community Service Award, Pacific Palisades Community Council, 2011

Articles

• The Growing Menace of ‘Short and Distort’ Campaigns, Westlaw Journal Securities Litigation & Regulation, 2017 WL 3708069, August 30, 2017

• Class Actions Arising from IPOs, Traits and Trends, Practical Law The Journal, April/May 2017

• When U.S. Law Collides With Chinese Reality, New York Law Journal, March 14, 2016

• Shareholder Activism is Good, Financier Worldwide, August 2015

• Expert Advice May Insulate Directors From Liability, Bank News, March 2012

Corporate and Securities Law Blog

• "The Impact of the Government Shutdown on S.E.C. Enforcement," January 24, 2019

Media Mentions

Speaking Engagements

• Panelist, EB-5 Workouts: Saving a Project Before It Is Too Late and EB-5 Litigation: What are We Seeing Now and in the Future?, EB-5 Convention, Los Angeles, July 2018
• Panelist, Recent Developments in Securities Class Action Litigation, American Bar Association Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section Conference, Los Angeles, May 2018
• Panelist, Activist Investing Update, LD Micro Invitational, Bel Air, June 2015
• Panelist, Activist Investing: The Under The Radar Opportunities, Wealth Management Insights Summit, Ponte Vedra, Florida, April 2015
• Speaker, When a Crisis Strikes: Lessons for Management & Investors, China Best Ideas Investment Conference, Shanghai, September 2014
• Speaker, China's Best Ideas Investment Conference, Beijing, September 2013

Events

Memberships

Rob serves on the Potrero Canyon Citizens Advisory Committee and the Palisades Americanism Parade Committee (past President) and is the Legal Advisor and former Secretary of the Pacific Palisades Community Council.

Digital Media