With a diverse practice that includes both litigation and transactional elements, Jonathan Cohen's focus at Gilbert LLP is on the resolution of complex, multiparty disputes involving insurance and bankruptcy issues.

Jonathan has represented corporate and other policyholders with respect to a wide range of coverage matters, including bodily injury and property damage coverage, food-contamination coverage, directors' and officers' coverage, product recall coverage, technology-related property damage coverage, advertising injury coverage and pharmaceutical-related coverage issues.  Jonathan has worked at the forefront of insurance issues relating to mass-tort bankruptcies, representing corporate debtors, claimant committees and bankruptcy trusts in numerous proceedings and negotiations.  Additionally, Jonathan has advised corporate and other clients regarding global resolutions to mass tort problems, including settlement class actions, super-excess insurance products and bankruptcy.

Some examples of Jonathan’s recent representations include:

• Representing a Fortune 500 food company in insurance negotiations and litigation in connection with food liability claims
• Representing an international food company in connection with insurance claims and losses arising out of alleged contamination of its products
• Advising a Fortune 100 pharmaceutical company with respect to insurance claims for various pharmaceutical and asbestos-containing products
• Negotiating insurance settlements for claimant committees and a future claimant representative in numerous asbestos-related bankruptcies, securing substantial insurance recoveries for the benefit of the creditors
• Arguing insurance-related issues in a U.S. District Court in an appeal in a bankruptcy case involving more than a billion dollars in insurance assets
• Counseling a claimant committee in a significant hospital bankruptcy with respect to insurance coverage for directors' and officers' claims and medical malpractice liabilities
• Negotiating an insurance settlement agreement for an insulation contractor regarding asbestos-related liabilities, securing hundreds of millions of dollars for the client
• Representing bankruptcy trusts in litigation and negotiations to successfully obtain insurance coverage for predecessor companies’ liabilities 
• Arguing appeal in U.S. District Court in a case involving confidentiality issues under an insurance settlement agreement

Jonathan also has an active pro bono practice and is co-chair of the Firm’s Pro-Bono Committee.  Together with other Gilbert LLP lawyers, Jonathan wrote amicus briefs in five U.S. Supreme Court cases involving race-based civil rights issues, including affirmative action cases, a case involving Native Hawaiians' land rights, and a case involving a voter identification requirement.  He assisted a client in preparing testimony before Congress supporting the reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act.  He authored a brief filed in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals successfully challenging the constitutionality of INS regulations on behalf of a Kosovar Albanian applying for political asylum.  Jonathan served as pro bono counsel in three immigration-related appeals in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.  He negotiated a change in the policy of the Washington, D.C. police department regarding the unconstitutional use of a collateral requirement as applied to homeless individuals.  Jonathan also provided insurance-related advice with respect to the federal September 11 Victims' Compensation Fund.

Prior to entering private practice, Jonathan served as a law clerk for Judge Ferdinand Fernandez of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.  Additionally, he assisted both Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg of the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge William Fletcher of the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in preparing for their respective confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Recent Publications

Food Recall Insurance Payout: How Not to Get Tied Up in Knots, GMA Forum Centennial Issue, September 2008

Managing the Risks of Chinese Manufacturing and Imports, The Corporate Counselor, June 2008

Protecting Against Product Liability and Recalls, Risk and Insurance, April 15, 2008

Insurance Coverage for Contractors’ Asbestos Liabilities: Key Settlement Issues, NIA News, December/January 2008

Non-Products Coverage for Contractors' Asbestos Liabilities, NIA News, August 2007 

Plan Response to Food Crisis, California Farmer, April 9, 2007

Protecting Your Company from Consumer Protection Claims, The Corporate Counselor, April 2007

On Backdating Battles, Legal Times, August 21, 2006

A New Front in the Backdating Stock Options Battle, San Jose Business Journal, August 4, 2006

Inside Appellate Courts: The Impact of Court Organization on Judicial Decision Making in the United States Courts of Appeals (University of Michigan Press, 2002)

Noteworthy

• Member, National Advisory Counsel for the Asian American Justice Center, 2008 - present
• Member, Board of Editors, The Corporate Counselor, 2007 - present
• Editor-in-Chief, International Tax and Business Lawyer, 1994 - 1995
• Black belt in Tae Kwon Do

• Five Tips for Recovering Insurance Coverage For HVP Recalls And Claims, March 10, 2010
• Bankruptcy Court Sets Bar Date for Peanut Corporation of America Claims, May 27, 2009
• Managing the Risks of Chinese Manufacturing and Imports, The Corporate Counselor, June 1, 2008
• Protecting Against Product Liability and Recalls, Risk & Insurance, April 15, 2008
• Insurance Coverage for Contractors' Asbestos Liabilities: Key Settlement Issues, NIA News, January 2008
• Non-Products Coverage for Contractors' Asbestos Liabilities, NIA News, August 2007
• Plan Response to Food Crisis, California Farmer, April 9, 2007
• Protecting Your Company From Consumer Protection Claims, The Corporate Counselor, March 30, 2007
• On Backdating Battles, Legal Times, August 21, 2006
• A New Front in the Backdating Stock Options Battle, San Jose Business Journal, August 4, 2006

• Grocery Manufacturers Associaton Food Claims and Litigation Conference, What Every Food Industry Defense Lawyer Needs to Know about Bankruptcy, February 24, 2010
• Chinese Manufacturing and Imports: Effective Approaches for Anticipating Challenges and Managing Risks, American Conference Institute, November 11, 2009
• URMIA 40th Annual Conference, Tuning Your Risk Management Skills, September 12, 2009
• RIMS 2009 Annual Conference and Exhibition, Food for Thought: Managing the Risks of Product Liability and Recalls, April 21, 2009
• 13th Annual Drug and Medical Device Litigation, Expert Strategies for Leading Litigators and In-House Counsel, December 10, 2008
• Food Borne Illness Litigation, Advanced Strategies for Assessing, Managing and Defending Claims of Food Contamination, December 3, 2008
• Food and Product Recall Strategies: Insurance Coverage Issues-A Comprehensive Overview, Mealey's Conference, April 14, 2008
• Managing the Risks of Manufacturing in China: Determining the Appropriate Levels of Insurance for Your Risk Exposure and Evaluating Which Insurance Products Will Prove Most Effective, American Conference Institute, February 28, 2008
• American Conference Institute: Defending Fraud Claims in Consumer Class Actions, October 15, 2007
• Defending Consumer Protection Class Actions: Consumer Products Crisis Management -- Dealing with the Media Frenzy and Preserving Your Corporate Integrity, May 21, 2007

• Risk Prevention, Mitigation Key with Product Recalls, Business Insurance, May 4, 2009
• Back to Backdating, Risk and Insurance, April 2007
• GHR Receives Pro Bono Award, October 7, 2004
• On the Move, Legal Times, January 19, 2004