Benjamin Softness

• Representing a large technology company in investigations and litigation to combat phishing and other cyber threats
• Representing a large technology company in putative class action alleging privacy violations in connection with AI functions in its consumer product
• Represented a large technology client in federal and state consumer products investigations arising under Section 5 of the FTC Act and state consumer protection laws
• Represented a large technology client in shareholder class action under federal securities laws
• Represented AT&T in a Section 5 consumer-protection case through district court litigation and appeals
• Defended AT&T’s merger with Time Warner against DOJ antitrust challenge pre-trial, at trial, and on appeal, United States v. AT&T, 916 F.3d 1029 (D.C. Cir. 2019), aff’g 310 F. Supp. 3d 161 (D.D.C. 2018).
• Assisted Fortune 50 client with third-party subpoena defense and anticipated appellate work in a copyright case
• Founding member of the litigation team representing Petersen Energia Inversora, S.A.U., Petersen Energia, S.A.U., and Eton Park Capital Management in litigation in the Southern District of New York against the Argentine Republic and YPF, S.A., alleging claims for breach of contract and promissory estoppel arising from defendants’ failure to comply with their tender offer requirements in connection with Argentina's expropriation of YPF plaintiffs against Republic of Argentina in Petersen Energía Inversora S.A.U. v. Argentine Republic.
• Co-authored respondent’s winning merits brief in a major antitrust case, Apple v. Pepper, 139 S. Ct. 1514 (2019), and was named a Global Competition Review “Litigator of the Week” for the win.
• Co-authored winning brief in Stuart v. Global Tel*Link Corp., 956 F.3d 555 (8th Cir. 2020), affirming summary judgment on consumer protection issues and class decertification (named Law360 “Legal Lion” for victory).
• Co-authored petitioners’ winning briefs challenging agency rulemaking in Global Tel*Link v. FCC, 866 F.3d 397 (D.C. Cir. 2017).
• Briefed and argued Sanders v. United States, 937 F.3d 316 (4th Cir. 2019), representing pro bono client the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence as amicus curiae. The Fourth Circuit, citing Brady’s brief, reinstated dismissed claims brought by victims of the 2015 shooting at Mother Emanuel Church in Charleston, S.C.

Ben is a versatile litigator and former Silicon Valley in-house counsel focused on complex litigation, appellate and critical-issue advocacy, and artificial intelligence. Before coming to K&S, Ben helped design and execute Google's AI regulatory strategy and defended the company in complex litigations and regulatory inquiries. Ben draws on his in-house background to provide three-dimensional litigation advice that account for legal risk, reputational concerns, and business priorities.

Ben regularly defends technology clients in California state and federal courts. but his litigation experience is genuinely wide-ranging. At K&S, Ben has assisted client with issues including administrative law, antitrust, privacy, securities, and Delaware corporate law.

As an AI advisor, Ben possesses hard-to-find AI technical chops alongside his legal acumen. Ben was one of Google’s first AI regulatory lawyers. There, he led cross-functional teams responding to AI inquiries from regulators around the world, and, working closely with senior executives and business leaders, he helped develop and manage the company’s overarching AI regulatory strategy. He leverages that mixed background to advise companies and their boards on cutting-edge legal questions, regulatory preparedness, and compliance and governance when it comes to AI.

Before Google, Ben was a partner at a litigation boutique in Washington, D.C. There, in addition to trial court work, Ben argued numerous times in the federal courts of appeals, and was regularly tapped to draft appellate briefs, case-dispositive motions, and federal agency comments. He authored or co-authored winning briefs in the Supreme Court of the United States and in trial and appellate courts across the country.

Ben served as a law clerk for the Honorable A. Raymond Randolph of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He has been named “Litigator of the Week” by Global Competition Review and “Legal Lion” by Law360 for his work.