Joanne Lichtman is the Co-Managing Partner of Howrey's Southern California offices. She also serves as Co-Chair of the firm's Environmental, Product and Tort practice, is a member of Howrey’s Board of Advisors, and the firm’s Partnership Committee.

Ms. Lichtman has been named one of California's "Top Women Litigators" for 2010 by the Los Angeles/San Francisco Daily Journal. In 2009, she was named to "L.A.'s Top 100 Lawyers" list by the Los Angeles Business Journal. She also has been repeatedly distinguished as one of Southern California's "Super Lawyers" in the area of Civil Litigation Defense. This annual list of top lawyers in Southern California is published in Law & Politics magazine and Los Angeles magazine. 
 
Ms. Lichtman represents clients in federal and state litigation throughout the United States. Her experience includes a broad array of substantive areas of complex commercial litigation, with particular expertise in consumer and antitrust class actions, product liability, false advertising, unfair business practices and a wide range of environmental litigation.
 
In 2009, upon the nomination by President Obama of Judge Sotomayor to the Supreme Court, Ms. Lichtman was nominated to serve on the National Association of Women Lawyers’ Committee for the Evaluation of Supreme Court Nominees, which provides input to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Supreme Court candidates. She recently served as a member of the Committee during the review process for Elena Kagan.
 
Ms. Lichtman is the co-editor of Howrey's Global Climate Law blog discussing the issues relating to global climate law-related litigation.

Representative Highlights

• Forlenza, et al. v Dynakor, et al. Successfully defended Dynakor, Inc. in the Central District of California relating to both nationwide and California putative class actions for alleged false advertising of diet supplements. The complaint alleged violations of state consumer protection laws, state unfair competition laws and common law fraud. Joanne and the Howrey team won three motions to dismiss, including the dismissal of certain claims with prejudice, and successfully defeated Plaintiffs’ preliminary injunction motion.
• Dysthe, et al. v. Basic Research, et al. Currently representing Basic Research in a putative nationwide class action alleging violations of state consumer protection laws in connection with the sale of Relacore, one of the most popular non- prescription diet supplement products.
• Bahn v. Nestle USA; Carrea v. Dreyer's. Currently representing Nestle USA and Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream in separate putative nationwide class actions in the Central District and Northern District of California, respectively, alleging false advertising, unfair business practices, and similar claims relating to the labeling and marketing of trans fats in various products, including Hot Pockets, Dibs, Drumsticks and Coffee Mate.

Admissions

• California, 1988

Courts & Adjudicative Bodies

• United States District Court for the Central District of California
• United States District Court for the Northern District of California
• United States District Court for the Eastern District of California
• United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Education

• Harvard Law School (JD, 1988), cum laude. Harvard Civil Rights Law Review, Executive Editor
  
• University of Vermont (BA, 1984), magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa