Renowned Consumer Class Action Litigator Claudia Vetesi Joins Pillsbury’s Top-Flight Litigation Group in San Francisco

The addition comes amid a surge in consumer class action filings. According to Lex Machina’s 2026 Class Action Litigation Report, plaintiffs lodged 7,650 consumer protection class actions in 2025, a nearly 50 percent year-over-year increase in such filings and the highest total in a decade. That trend has continued in 2026, with tech companies, retailers, manufacturers and large financial institutions among those experiencing the highest number of lawsuits.

“From false advertising and labeling claims to data privacy and product liability-related suits, our clients are facing a significant uptick in consumer class action exposure,” said Firm Chair David Dekker. “Claudia has established an impressive track record in handling these uniquely complex disputes, reinforcing our existing capabilities in this area and helping us to better serve the evolving needs of those we represent.”

Vetesi defends companies in consumer class actions and complex litigation involving false advertising, unfair competition, product liability, pricing and other claims, including those brought under California consumer protection laws. She represents established and emerging technology, food and beverage, consumer products brands, among others, to assess and mitigate the exposures and risks associated with bringing new and innovative products to market. Her work also includes competitive advertising disputes under the Lanham Act and matters before the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), National Advertising Division (NAD), and other government enforcement authorities.

Vetesi has previously been identified by Law360 as a “Legal Lion of the Week” for her appellate work and has been nationally recognized by Chambers USA and Legal 500: US, among many other honors and rankings.

Deborah Baum, head of the firm’s Global Litigation practice, added: “Claudia’s arrival materially strengthens our firm in a number of important ways. Beyond enhancing our consumer class action and products counseling expertise, her practice also adds new dimensions to our offer for technology and other consumer-facing clientele and reinforces our leading position in the San Francisco market. We are thrilled to welcome her to the firm.”

Pillsbury has hired 49 lateral partners since the beginning of 2025, with recruitment of tech-focused litigators among the highest firm priorities. In addition to Vetesi, the firm’s most recent lateral partners include technology litigator Katie Sluss, who co-leads the firm’s newly established Technology – Emerging Laws & Litigation group, and intellectual property trial lawyers Calvin Wingfield, Robert J. “Bob” Hollingshead, Mark Abate, Brian Paul Gearing and J. Rick Taché.

Other notable litigation practitioners to join the firm over that time include commercial litigators Douglas Curran and Jonathan Kortmansky in New York; insurance litigators Robert “Bob” Gilbert in Boston, Kirsten C. Jackson in Los Angeles and Gerald “Jay” Konkel in Washington, DC; former Asst. Attorney General of U.S. DOJ Environment and Natural Resources Division and DC Solicitor General Todd Kim; former Acting Chief of Staff in the Criminal Division of the DOJ Jeffrey Izant; and trial lawyer Amy Ruhland in Austin.

“Pillsbury is a leading global firm, but also a San Francisco institution with deep roots in the Bay Area legal and business communities,” said Vetesi. “It also has incredibly deep connections and long-standing relationships with the technology, food and beverage and consumer products industries that have been the focus of my practice. Having known many of the fine lawyers there for years, I am honored to help shape the next chapter of this storied firm’s growth and to work alongside such a thoughtful, collaborative and well-respected team.”

Pillsbury’s award-winning team of more than 300 litigators works with clients around the world to help them successfully resolve disputes, in trial and out of court, at home and in jurisdictions around the globe. The firm has garnered dozens of top-tier recognitions as a result of its litigation capabilities and is regularly identified as one of the most feared law firms CLOs and GCs come up against in litigation according to BTI Consulting Group.