Murielle Steven Walsh
Partner
OFFICE
New York
PRACTICE AREAS
Securities Litigation
LAW SCHOOL
New York Law School
ADMITTED
New York; United States District Court for the Southern District of New York; United States Courts of Appeals for the Second and Sixth Circuits
CONTACT
Murielle Steven Walsh joined the Firm in 1998 and was elevated to Partner in 2007. In 2022, Murielle was selected to participate on Law360’s Securities Editorial Board. She was named a 2020 Plaintiffs’ Lawyer Trailblazer by the National Law Journal, an award created to “honor a handful of individuals from each practice area that are truly agents of change” and was also honored as a 2020 Plaintiffs’ Trailblazer by the New York Law Journal. Murielle was honored in 2019, 2020 and 2021 as a Super Lawyers® “Top-Rated Securities Litigation Attorney,” a recognition bestowed on 5% of eligible attorneys in the New York Metro area. Lawdragon named her a Top Plaintiffs’ Financial Lawyer in 2019 and 2020.
During her career at Pomerantz, Murielle has prosecuted highly successful securities class action and corporate governance cases. She was one of the lead attorneys litigating In re Livent Noteholders’ Securities Litigation, a securities class action in which she obtained a $36 million judgment against the company’s top officers, a ruling which was upheld by the Second Circuit on appeal. Murielle was also part of the team litigating EBC I v. Goldman Sachs, where the Firm obtained a landmark ruling from the New York Court of Appeals, that underwriters may owe fiduciary duties to their issuer clients in the context of a firm-commitment underwriting of an initial public offering.
Murielle currently leads the high-profile securities class action against Wynn Resorts Ltd., in which Pomerantz is lead counsel. The litigation arises from the company’s concealment of a long-running pattern of sexual misconduct against Wynn employees by billionaire casino mogul Stephen Wynn, the company’s founder and former Chief Executive Officer. In March 2023, Murielle achieved class certification on behalf of defrauded investors. Ferris v. Wynn Resorts Ltd., No. 18-cv-479 (D. Nev.)
In a securities class action against Ormat Technologies, Inc., Murielle achieved a $3,750,000 settlement on behalf of defrauded investors in January 2021. Ormat’s securities are dual-listed on the NYSE and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Murielle persuaded the district court in exercise supplemental jurisdiction in order to apply U.S. securities law to the claims in the case, regardless of where investors purchased their securities.
Murielle led the Firm’s ground-breaking litigation that arose from the popular Pokémon Go game, in which Pomerantz was lead counsel. Pokémon Go is an “augmented reality” game in which players use their smart phones to “catch” Pokémon in real-world surroundings. GPS coordinates provided by defendants to gamers included directing the public to private property without the owners’ permission, amounting to an alleged mass nuisance. In re Pokémon Go Nuisance, No. 3:16-cv-04300 (N.D. Cal.)
Murielle was co-lead counsel in Thorpe v. Walter Investment Management Corp., No. 14-cv-20880 (S.D. Fla.), a securities fraud class action challenging the defendants’ representations that their lending activities were regulatory-compliant, when in fact the company’s key subsidiary engaged in rampant violations of federal consumer financial protection laws, subjecting it to various government investigations and enforcement action by the CFPB and FTC. In 2016, the Firm obtained a $24 million settlement on behalf of the class. She was also co-lead counsel in Robb v. Fitbit Inc., No. 16-cv-00151 (N.D. Cal.), a securities class action alleging that the defendants misrepresented that their key product delivered “highly accurate” heart rate readings when in fact their technology did not consistently deliver accurate readings during exercise and its inaccuracy posed serious health risks to users of Fitbit’s products. The Firm obtained a $33 million settlement on behalf of the investor class in this action.
In 2018 Murielle, along with then-Senior Partner Jeremy Lieberman, achieved a $3,300,000 settlement for the Class in the Firm’s case against Corinthian Colleges, one of the largest for-profit college systems in the country, for alleged misrepresentations about its job placement rates, compliance with applicable regulations, and enrollment statistics. Pomerantz prevailed in the motion to dismiss the proceedings, a particularly noteworthy victory because Chief Judge George King of the Central District of California had dismissed two prior lawsuits against Corinthian with similar allegations. Erickson v. Corinthian Colleges, Inc., No. 2:13-cv-07466 (C.D. Cal.).
Murielle serves as a member and on the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees of the non-profit organization Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children (“CASA”) of Monmouth County. She also served on the Honorary Steering Committee of Equal Rights Advocates (“ERA”), which focuses on and discusses specific issues that women face in the legal profession. ERA is an organization that protects and expands economic and educational access and opportunities for women and girls. In the past, Murielle served as a member of the editorial board for Class Action Reports, a Solicitor for the Legal Aid Associates Campaign, and has been involved in political asylum work with the Association of the Bar of the City of New York.
Murielle serves on the Firm's Anti-Harassment and Discrimination Committee.
Murielle graduated cum laude from New York Law School in 1996, where she was the recipient of the Irving Mariash Scholarship. During law school, Murielle interned with the Kings County District Attorney and worked within the mergers and acquisitions group of Sullivan & Cromwell.
Murielle is admitted to practice in New York; the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York; and the United States Courts of Appeals for the Second and Sixth Circuits.