Jeffrey S. Jacobson

Jeff Jacobson defends consumer, privacy and securities class actions, and represents media, technology and other companies in general commercial litigation. With nearly two decades in private practice and several years of experience at the highest levels of the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, Mr. Jacobson assists his clients to resolve and minimize the reputational damage and business interruptions that can arise from litigation, particularly costly class actions. In addition, Mr. Jacobson has considerable and proven skills in managing the electronic discovery challenges presented by complex litigation and investigative matters.

During his tenure as director of the New Jersey Division of Law and chief counsel to the New Jersey Attorney General (2014-16), Mr. Jacobson oversaw law enforcement investigations involving consumer protection and data privacy, chaired the Attorney General’s Cyber Working Group, and oversaw more than 500 lawyers who represented all agencies of state government in defensive and affirmative litigation. Throughout his tenure, Jeff personally handled some of the state’s highest profile cases in state and federal court.

Because Mr. Jacobson has chaired both the prosecution and defense of major consumer fraud and privacy litigation, he is able to provide his clients with the benefit of a truly multifaceted and strategic perspective regarding even the highest-stakes claims. Mr. Jacobson has successfully defended consumer fraud and privacy-related class actions for media, electronics and consumer products companies, as well as securities class actions for U.S.-based and foreign private issuers in federal and state trial and appellate courts.

Class actions can be both costly and disruptive, so Mr. Jacobson strives to resolve such matters in his client’s favor as quickly and inexpensively as possible. This may mean moving the court to deny class certification at the earliest stage of a case, seeking quick summary judgment on key issues underlying the class motion, or devising a settlement that costs less than litigating the case. In matters requiring extensive discovery, Mr. Jacobson focuses on avoiding unnecessary tasks and minimizing vendor costs.

Mr. Jacobson has been selected to the Data Protection and Privacy and Securities Litigation lists by US Legal 500, a Legalease Publication. A description of the selection methodology can be found at www.legal500.com/assets/pages/about-us/how-it-works.html#rank. He has also been recognized as a Securities Litigation “Star” in the IFLR Benchmark Litigation Guide. A description of the selection methodology can be found at www.benchmarklitigation.com/general/research. (No aspect of these advertisements have been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.)

Mr. Jacobson has written extensively on class action defense and e-discovery strategies for the New York Law Journal, Class Action Litigation Report, Product Liability Law 360, and other publications. He is also a member of the advisory board of the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists, and served on a New Jersey Supreme Court task force to assess attorney ethics issues arising from metadata in electronic documents.

• University of Pennsylvania, 1992, B.A.
• University of Pennsylvania, 1993, M.A.
• Columbia Law School, 1996, J.D.