Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP

Securities Fraud Litigation, Global Securities Litigation, Direct and Opt-Out Actions, Fiduciary Litigation, Antitrust & Unfair Business Practices, Whistleblower Representation, Corporate Governance

Partner

Melissa L. Yeates is a Partner in the Firm’s Fiduciary, Consumer Protection, and Antitrust Group. Ms. Yeates’ practice is focused on class action litigation with an emphasis on litigating consumer fraud and deceptive trade practices, data breach and privacy, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), and antitrust matters. She also focuses her time on case evaluation and development and is an active member of the Firm’s Human Resources Committee. Ms. Yeates received her law degree, Order of the Coif, cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and her Bachelor of Arts, Phi Beta Kappa, magna cum laude, from Syracuse University. Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Yeates worked for several large defense firms and clerked for the Honorable Stanley S. Brotman in the District of New Jersey. She is licensed to practice in Pennsylvania, New York, and Delaware.

Ms. Yeates is a mother of four and a seasoned litigator with over two decades of experience litigating in federal courts nationwide. She has played a leading role in Kessler Topaz’s successful litigation of claims against numerous corporations accused of defrauding consumers and engaging in anticompetitive conduct, recovering hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of injured parties. Ms. Yeates has been named a Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyer for the past five years.

Ms. Yeates serves as Co-Chair of the Local Government and School District Committee in the multidistrict litigation, In re Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Liability Litigation, No. 4:22-md-03047 (N.D. Cal.). In this role, she represents local governments and school districts from across the nation seeking to hold the largest social media companies accountable for designing and marketing addictive social media platforms to minors and causing the youth mental health crisis in schools and communities. She also serves as Co-Lead Counsel for the TPP PBM track in the multidistrict litigation, In re Insulin Pricing Litigation, No. 2:23-md-03080 (D.N.J.), representing a putative class of third-party payors asserting RICO and Robinson-Patman Act claims against insulin manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers for engaging in an unlawful kickback scheme to artificially increase the price for insulin and derive secret profits from rebates and fees.

In addition, Ms. Yeates is class counsel for a class of health and welfare funds that recently won a $185 million judgment against the U.S. government based on the government’s wrongful seizure of funds in Electrical Welfare Trust Fund v. United States, No. 1:19- cv-00353 (Fed. Cl.). Other recent litigations in which Ms. Yeates served as class and/or settlement counsel have resulted in substantial settlements, including In re Volkswagen Timing Chain Product Liability Litigation, No. 2:16-cv-2765 (D.N.J.) ($50 million value); Seeligson v. Devon Energy Production Company, L.P., No. 3:16-cv-00082 (N.D. Tex.) ($28 million); and In re Zinc Antitrust Litigation, No. 2:14-cv-3728 (S.D.N.Y.) ($9.8 million). She currently serves on the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee in Speerly v. General Motors, LLC, No. 2:19-cv-11044 (E.D. Mich.) and Battle v. General Motors, LLC, No. 2:22- cv-10783 (E.D. Mich.). Ms. Yeates also served as class trial counsel in Cardenas v. Toyota Motor Corporation, No. 1:18-cv-22798-FAM (S.D. Fla.), one of the rare class actions litigated through jury verdict.

Ms. Troutner is licensed to practice in Pennsylvania, New York, and Delaware; United States Court of Federal Claims; USCA, Fourth Circuit; USCA, Fifth Circuit; USDC, Eastern District of Michigan; USDC, District of Delaware.

Syracus University, B.A. magna cum laude; University of Pennsylvania Law School, J.D. cum laude, Order of the Coif