Gretchen Freeman Cappio
Seattle
1201 Third Avenue, Suite 3200
Seattle, WA 98101
Gretchen Freeman Cappio is a partner at Keller Rohrback L.L.P., a nationally renowned law firm known for its skillful, effective advocacy. Gretchen's law practice emphasizes complex, cutting-edge litigation. She has played key roles in many well-known cases, including in the multibillion-dollar Volkswagen “Clean Diesel” litigation and in groundbreaking litigation holding Wells Fargo accountable for its unauthorized account scheme. Gretchen’s advocacy also extends to high-profile public health cases, and she serves as the primary client contact for major governmental clients, including in the massive Opioid multidistrict litigation. In that case, she has helped negotiate numerous agreements between states and local governments to allocate settlement funds that are dedicated to addressing the devastating impacts of the opioid epidemic. She has also successfully advocated for the fairer pricing of drugs and devices, including in the EpiPens Marketing litigation, for which she and her team have been honored by the American Antitrust Institute, winning an Outstanding Antitrust Litigation Achievement in Private Practice Award in 2022.
In addition, judges have appointed Gretchen to leadership positions in a number of high-profile cases that are currently pending. She helps lead litigation about the safety and reliability of vehicles in the ZF-TRW Airbag, GM Transmission, and Chevy Bolt litigations, and she advocates for the security of data in the Blackbaud Data Breach litigation.
Gretchen’s leadership and devotion to justice drive her legal work and personal time. Her colleagues at Keller Rohrback L.L.P. recognized these skills by electing her to the firm’s Executive Committee. Gretchen is a founding board member of the Mother Attorneys Mentoring Association (MAMA), an organization supporting mothers in the legal profession, now with nine chapters across the United States. She is also the proud mother of two daughters, both of whom inspire her to seek justice everyday.
Articles & Presentations
Quoted, "Buyers Gaining Ground In 'Right To Repair' Fight," Law360, April 8, 2022.
Quoted, “Products Liability Group of the Year: Keller Rohrback,” Law360, February 16, 2022.
Emory Institute for Complex Litigation Conference on MDL Rules and Innovation Miami, (March 9-10, 2022).
Guest Lecturer at Seattle University School of Law, "MDL Mass Tort and Class Action Cases" (March 8, 2022).
Gretchen Freeman Cappio, "Mental Health on College Campuses Amid Covid," Letter to the Editor in New York Times, January 4, 2022.
Guest Lecturer at Seattle University School of Law, “Complex Litigation, MDL Experience, and Bellwether Trials” (September 23, 2021).
Presenter at Colorado County Attorneys Association Virtual Summer Conference, Statewide Opioid Litigation Update (June 11, 2021).
Guest Lecturer at Seattle University School of Law, "MDL Mechanics Q&A" (March 8, 2021).
Guest Lecturer at Stanford Law School, "From Takeoff to Landing: Litigating MDLs" (February 23, 2021).
Law Seminars International Presents: The 16th Annual Conference on Litigating Class Actions (November 12-13, 2020).
Presenter, Trials in Class Actions and Post-Trial Motions
Panelist, Settlement Strategies
Guest Lecturer at Stanford Law School, "From Takeoff to Landing: Litigating the MDL" (February 14, 2020).
Colorado Municipal League: Annual Seminar on Municipal Law (September 27-28, 2019).
Presenter, Opioid Class Action Litigation
Law Seminars International Presents: The 15th Annual Conference on Litigating Class Actions (May 9-10, 2019).
Presenter, Settlement Strategies
Guest Lecturer at Stanford Law School, Multidistrict Litigation (February 22, 2019).
Presenter at ABA Section of Litigation, Discovery and Ethical "Rules of the Road" for Working with Expert Witnesses (July 19, 2018).
Presenter at Bristol Myers Squibb Panel, UC-Irvine, UC-Berkeley, & Emory University Schools of Law First Joint Coordination Conference at Berkeley (June 5, 2018).
Law Seminars International Presents: The 14th Annual Conference On Litigating Class Actions (May 10-11, 2018).
Presenter, Consumer Protection and the Opioid Crisis
Presenter, Corporate Fraud Against Consumers
Presenter, Settlement Strategies for Class Actions and Multidistrict Litigation
Presenter at HarrisMartin’s Plaintiff Opioid MDL Conference, “Causation and Science” (January 8, 2018).
Presenter at HarrisMartin MDL Conference, “Opioid, Equifax & Talcum Powder, Equifax Data Breach: What Happened? Who Was Impacted? What Are the Damages?” (November 29, 2017).
Presenter at National Consumer Law Center, “Effectively Persuading Your Judge,” NCLC Consumer Class Action Symposium (November 18, 2017).
Presenter at Practising Law Institute 22nd Annual Consumer Financial Services Institute (2017).
Panelist, Law Seminars International - 13th Annual Conference on Litigating: Settlement Strategies for Class Actions and Multidistrict Litigation, April 28, 2017.
Panelist at EmoryLaw NextGen Conference and EmoryLaw Fed. Judicial Ctr. and JPML Program (December 14-16, 2016).
Panelist at HarrisMartin’s MDL Conference, Settlements in Mass Tort and Class Action Litigation (July 27, 2016).
Panelist at American Association for Justice webinar, Dissecting the U.S. Supreme Court Decision in Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins (May 26, 2016).
Panelist at Law Seminars International - VW Diesel Emissions Litigation: A Case Study of the Interplay Between Government Regulatory Activity and Consumer Fraud Class Actions (May 6, 2016).
Presenter at Practising Law Institute Consumer Financial Services Institute 2016: Data Security & Privacy Issues (May 12, 2016).
Panelist at HarrisMartin Pharmaceutical and Environmental Mass Tort Litigation, Class Action and Data Breach Litigation (March 30, 2016).
Panelist at Bridgeport Consumer Class Action Litigation Conference, “Current State of the Law on Ascertainability and Standing" (January 2016).
Panelist at HarrisMartin MDL Conference Volkswagen and Pharmaceutical Update: RICO and Additional Defendants (December 2, 2015).
Panelist at Bridgeport Volkswagen Class Action & MDL Seminar - Diesel Emissions Scandal (November 23, 2015).
Panelist at HarrisMartin Volkswagen Diesel Emissions Litigation Conference: RICO and Additional Defendants (October 27, 2015).
Panelist at Law Seminars International, The Eleventh Annual Comprehensive Conference on Class Actions: "Data Breaches: Cases at the Intersection of Class Actions and Internet Technology" (June 4, 2015).
Panelist at ABA Section of Dispute Resolution Meeting 17th Annual Spring Conference - Solutions in Seattle: A View From the Trenches: What's Working and What's Not Working with Mediators (April 16, 2015).
Presenter at HarrisMartin Data Breach Litigation Conference: Coming of Age: The Differences between Employee and Consumer Cases (March 25, 2015).
Presenter at Practising Law Institute, Managing Complex Litigation 2014: Class Actions; Mass Torts & MDL., (October 21, 2014).
Presenter at Class Action Conference: Recent Settlement Trends in Class Actions and Multidistrict Litigation: A Detailed Look at the Process for Settling and Administering Settlements: How case law in the past several years is playing out in the courts and in ADR; best practices for designing a settlement that the courts will approve; how to administer the settlement once it is approved (June 13, 2014).
Presenter at Harris Martin's MDL Conference: Target Data Security Breach Litigation: Recent Development, Issues in Data Breach Litigation (March 26, 2014.
Presenter, Law Seminars International, Class Actions and Other Aggregate Litigation Seminar: Post-Certification Motion Issues in Class Actions, May 14, 2013).
Panelist at Chartis Security & Privacy Seminar (October 20, 2011).
Presenter at 20th Annual American Bar Association Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section Spring CLE Meeting: Toxic Torts: Toxins In Everyday Products (April 1, 2011).
Gretchen Freeman Cappio, Erosion of Indigenous Right to Negotiate in Australia, 7 Pac. Rim L. & Pol'y J. 405 (1998).
Honors & Awards
American Antitrust Institute - Antitrust Enforcement Award Honoree, in the category of "Outstanding Antitrust Litigation Achievement in Private Law Practice" - for work in In re EpiPen Marketing, Sales Practices, and Antitrust Litigation, 2022
Lawdragon, 500 Leading Lawyers in America, 2022, 2023
AV®, Peer Review Top-Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
Selected to Rising Stars and Super Lawyers lists in Super Lawyers - Washington, 2002, 2009-2012, 2020-2022
Professional & Civic Involvement
Institute for Complex Litigation and Mass Claims at Emory University School of Law
Emerging Leaders Board of Advisors, Inaugural Member
Class Action Roundtable, Reporter
Global Justice Center, Board Member
The Global Justice Center works worldwide and domestically with women’s rights advocates, grassroots groups, and policymakers to prevent and respond to gender-based violence.
The William L. Dwyer American Inn of Court, Member
King County Bar Association, Member
Washington State Bar Association, Member
American Bar Association, Member
Washington Women Lawyers, Member
Washington State Trial Lawyer’s Association, Member
American Association for Justice, Member
The National Trial Lawyers, Member
Mother Attorney Mentoring Association (MAMAS), Member; Founding Board Member, 2006-2008
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