Chelsea Ashbrook McCarthy
Partner
Overview
Chelsea Ashbrook McCarthy is an attorney in Holland & Knight's Chicago office and a member of the firm's Litigation and Dispute Resolution group. Ms. McCarthy focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation, class actions and litigation under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).
Ms. McCarthy represents clients in a wide array of complex business disputes, financial services litigation and class actions. She has significant experience handling claims across a variety of industries for breach of contract, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and other business torts. Ms. McCarthy also represents companies and individuals in the prosecution and defense of restrictive covenant and trade secret claims, frequently representing clients in expedited injunction proceedings.
Ms. McCarthy has experience representing clients in complex financial services matters, with a particular focus on distressed real estate and commercial foreclosures. She also represents commercial landlords and tenants in lease disputes. She serves as the client development leader for Holland & Knight's Real Estate and Hospitality Industry Sector Group.
In addition, Ms. McCarthy defends plan sponsors, company boards of directors, selling shareholders and fiduciaries in ERISA putative class actions involving employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) and 401(k) plans alleging claims of breach of fiduciary duty and engaging in prohibited transactions. She also represents clients in regulatory investigations by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) for alleged violations of ERISA. Ms. McCarthy is a member of the ESOP Association's legal and regulatory committee and a frequent speaker and publisher on ERISA issues. She is a chapter editor of the Bloomberg ABA Treatise: Employee Benefits Law.
Ms. McCarthy advocates for clients through all phases of litigation from pre-suit counseling through appeals. She has successfully prevailed on and defended claims for preliminary injunctive relief and has tried cases to verdict in state and federal court. She is a member of the trial bar of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and has argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
Ms. McCarthy is an active community volunteer and serves as a member of the board of directors of the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago.
Prior to joining Holland & Knight, Ms. McCarthy clerked for the Honorable Richard L. Young in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana.
Representative Experience
- Obtained complete dismissal on the pleadings of selling shareholders in a putative class action challenging an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) purchase transaction and alleging knowing participant liability
- Defense of a trucking company in a putative class action under federal Truth in Leasing Regulations (TIL Regulations) and Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act (IWPCA), successfully defeating a portion of the TIL Regulation claims and IWPCA claims on a motion to dismiss
- Defense of a property preservation company in putative class action against claims for trespass and violation of Chicago's Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance (RLTO), successfully defeating class certification and obtaining a complete defense verdict at trial
- Successfully defeated class certification and obtained complete summary judgment in favor of former board members in defense of ERISA putative class action against claims for engaging in a prohibited transaction relating to an ESOP's purchase of outstanding company stock
- Representation of a plan sponsor, board and trustee of 401(k) multiple-employer plan (MEP) in a putative class action challenging the reasonableness of plan recordkeeping and administrative fees
- Defense of an ESOP plan trustee in a putative class action challenging an ESOP termination transaction and alleging prohibited transactions and breaches of fiduciary duty under ERISA
- Defense of company and directors in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) putative class action against claims for breach of fiduciary duty and engaging in prohibited transactions arising out of a $200 million employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) transaction
- Defense of a client under the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) in putative class action, successfully defeating motion to dismiss a setoff counterclaim based on a prior class action settlement
- Obtained complete dismissal on the pleadings of selling shareholders in a putative class action challenging an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) purchase transaction and alleging knowing participant liability
- Successfully defeated class certification and obtained complete summary judgment in favor of former board members in defense of ERISA putative class action against claims for engaging in a prohibited transaction relating to an ESOP's purchase of outstanding company stock
- Representation of a plan sponsor, board and trustee of 401(k) multiple-employer plan (MEP) in a putative class action challenging the reasonableness of plan recordkeeping and administrative fees
- Defense of an ESOP plan trustee in a putative class action challenging an ESOP termination transaction and alleging prohibited transactions and breaches of fiduciary duty under ERISA
- Representation of plan administrators in challenge to account segregation and distribution under employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) prior to plan termination
- Defense of company and directors in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) putative class action against claims for breach of fiduciary duty and engaging in prohibited transactions arising out of a $200 million employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) transaction
- Obtained complete dismissal on pleadings of valuation firm in defense of ERISA action brought by ESOP retirement plan on behalf of plan participants against fiduciaries, company directors and service providers alleging claims for breach of fiduciary duty under ERISA and state law claims for fraud and negligent misrepresentation arising out of bankrupt company's ESOP claiming losses in excess of $50 million to the plan
- Defense of companies, plan service providers, board members and selling shareholders in investigations by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) for alleged violations of ERISA
- Defense of a company in challenge to an ESOP purchase transaction brought by an objecting minority shareholder
- Defense of a company and plan sponsor against multiple claims for benefits by former executives under supplemental compensation plan
- Representation of various types of lenders, including investment managers and special servicers, in complex multimillion-dollar distressed real estate litigation involving commercial and mixed-use properties
- Prosecution of complex foreclosures of commercial properties on behalf of lenders, successfully reaching resolutions maximizing recovery to lenders
- Defense of commercial lenders in broad range of lender liability disputes, including claims of fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, violation of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing, breach of contract and violation of usury laws
- Representation of commercial lenders in disputes regarding breach of loan documents and preparation of workout strategies
- Defense of a subsidiary of a Fortune 500 company in a putative class action involving claims of consumer fraud and violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), successfully defeating class certification and obtaining a complete defense verdict at trial
- Defense of a Fortune 500 company in claims asserting violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and state consumer fraud statute
- Defense of a company and its principal in the high frequency trading industry against allegations of trade secret misappropriation and violation of restrictive covenants in an employment agreement, successfully defeating a request for a temporary restraining order and winning appeal of the order
- Defense of a trucking company in a putative class action under federal Truth in Leasing Regulations (TIL Regulations) and Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act (IWPCA)
- Representation of a building products distributor in multistate litigation against former company executives, employees and new employer for claims of breach of noncompetition and nondisclosure agreements and theft of trade secrets
- Defense of a logistics company and employees against a request for preliminary and emergency injunctive relief by a competitor for claimed violations of noncompetition agreements and theft of confidential information
- Prosecution of a request for an emergency injunctive relief on behalf of a financial advisory company against a former employee for violation of noncompetition agreement
- Representation of a financial services firm in a successful pre-litigation resolution of a restrictive covenant dispute
- Representation of various types of lenders, including investment managers and special servicers, in complex multimillion-dollar distressed real estate litigation involving commercial and mixed-use properties
- Representation of commercial landlords and tenants in lease disputes, including evictions and breach of lease claims involving force majeure and COVID-19
- Defense of a property preservation company in putative class action against claims for trespass and violation of Chicago's Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance (RLTO), successfully defeating class certification and obtaining a complete defense verdict at trial
- Defense of a real estate data analytics company in claims under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) over collection and use of county property records
- Defense of property owners in quiet title matters arising from disputes relating to property title
- Prosecution of breach of fiduciary duty and oppression claims on behalf of a non-controlling shareholder of a multimillion-dollar, closely held company
- Representation of a Fortune 500 company and subsidiary in a minority shareholder dispute relating to a spinoff of the subsidiary
- Defense of minority shareholders in buyout dispute with a former employer
- Defense of a company in challenge to an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) purchase transaction brought by an objecting minority shareholder
Credentials
- Saint Louis University School of Law, J.D.
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, B.S., Finance, with high honors
- Illinois
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin
- U.S. Tax Court
- American Bar Association, Employee Benefits Committee
- ESOP Association, Legal and Regulatory Committee Member
- Law360 Rising Stars, Benefits, 2021
- Excellence in Pro Bono Service, Federal Bar Association, Chicago Chapter, 2018
- Emerging Lawyer, Leading Lawyers, 2015-2017
- Domestic Violence Legal Clinic Honoree, 2015
- Holland & Knight National Brightest Star Award, 2014
- Holland & Knight Pro Bono All-Star, 2010-2013, 2016, 2020