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Daniel Rios

Daniel Rios focuses on complex commercial litigation and has handled matters involving a range of issues, including breach of contract, consumer protection, data privacy, tort, and statutory claims.

Daniel represents clients in the technology, financial services, and consumer products industries, among others, using his substantial experience in all stages of litigation, including:

dispositive motions;
fact and expert discovery;
class certification;
summary judgment;
trial; and
appeals.

Daniel has first-chaired fact and expert witness depositions, second-chaired witnesses at trial and arbitration, and has drafted and argued dispositive motions in both federal and state court.  He has a strong track record of success on early dispositive motions.  In addition, Daniel maintains an active pro bono practice, which includes the successful representation of racial minorities in civil rights lawsuits and formerly incarcerated individuals seeking expungement of their criminal records.

A California federal judge has largely granted summary judgment in a data privacy lawsuit against Yodlee, Inc., finding that two of the five plaintiffs lacked Article III standing for all remaining claims and that the three other plaintiffs lacked Article III standing for—and failed to create genuine disputes of fact on the merits about—two of their three remaining claims.  Covington represents Yodlee in this action.  Clark v. Yodlee, No. 20-cv-05991-SK (N.D. Cal.).Continue Reading California Federal Court Grants Summary Judgment on Most Claims in Data Privacy Case

Last month, a defendant won dismissal of a putative VPPA class action when the court concluded that the defendant’s use of online videos was not central to the defendant’s business, and the VPPA therefore did not apply.  Another court has now reached the same result.  See Cantu v. Tapestry, Inc., 3:22-cv-01974 (S.D. Cal. July 10, 2023).  This trend highlights the limits of the VPPA’s reach and provides forceful grounds for future motions to dismiss and demand letter responses.Continue Reading Another Court Dismisses VPPA Class Action Because Defendant’s Online Videos Were Only a Peripheral Part of Its Business

In the past year, plaintiffs have filed a wave of lawsuits asserting claims under the Video Privacy Protection Act (“VPPA”) in connection with the alleged use of third-party pixels on websites that offer video content.  A recent decision establishes the limits of the VPPA’s reach and provides a well-reasoned ground for future motions to dismiss.Continue Reading Recent Decision Dismissing VPPA Class Action Claim Shows Limits of VPPA’s Reach