Biography
JOHN SOUMILAS is a no-nonsense litigator and one of the firm’s shareholders. He concentrates his practice in consumer class actions and other complex litigation matters. John litigates primarily in federal court on behalf of victims of identity theft, persons defamed and otherwise harmed by credit and background screening errors, individuals harassed and deceived by collectors and other businesses, as well as consumers who are subjected to unwelcome invasions of their privacy, fraud, overcharging, and other deceptive or unfair trade practices. John has been repeatedly recognized by Philadelphia Magazine as a “SuperLawyer,” a recognition received by only 5% of attorneys in Pennsylvania. He has been nationally recognized for his work in protecting consumer rights under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). John was lead class counsel and lead trial counsel in a 2017 record-breaking $60M jury verdict, the largest such verdict in FCRA history. Throughout his career, he has obtained some of the highest consumer jury verdicts, including the highest known FCRA verdicts in Pennsylvania, California, and Michigan.
Education
John is a 1994 cum laude graduate of Rutgers University, where he was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He also holds a master’s degree in American history from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. John received his law degree cum laude from the Temple University Beasley School of Law in 1999, where he was a member of the Jessup Moot Court and Temple Law Review. He began his legal career by clerking for Justice Russell M. Nigro of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
Admissions
John is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, United States Courts of Appeals for the Third, Fourth, Sixth, Seventh, Ninth and Eleventh Circuits, the United States District Courts for the District of Colorado, Eastern District of Michigan, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the District of New Jersey, as well as the state courts of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He has also successfully litigated cases on a pro hac vice basis throughout the country.