Philip L. Fraietta is a Partner with Bursor & Fisher, P.A. Phil focuses his practice on data privacy, complex business litigation, and consumer class actions. Phil has been named a “Rising Star” in the New York Metro Area by Super Lawyers® every year since 2019.

Phil has significant experience in litigating consumer class actions, particularly those involving privacy claims under statutes such as the Michigan Preservation of Personal Privacy Act, the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act, and Right of publicity statutes. Since 2016, Phil has recovered over $100 million for class members in privacy class action settlements. In addition to privacy claims, Phil has significant experience in litigating and settling class action claims involving false and misleading advertising.

Phil is admitted to the State Bars of New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Michigan, and California, the bars of the United States District Courts for the Southern District of New York, the Eastern District of New York, the Western District of New York, the Northern District of New York, the District of New Jersey, the Eastern District of Michigan, the Western District of Michigan, the Northern District of Illinois, the Central District of Illinois, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second, Third, Sixth, and Ninth Circuits. Phil was a Summer Associate with Bursor & Fisher prior to joining the firm.

Phil received his Juris Doctor from Fordham University School of Law in 2014, graduating cum laude. During law school, Phil served as an Articles & Notes Editor for the Fordham Law Review, and published two articles. In 2011, Phil graduated cum laude from Fordham University with a B.A. in Economics.

Selected Published Decisions

  • Fischer v. Instant Checkmate LLC, 2022 WL 971479 (N.D. Ill. Mar. 31, 2022), certifying class of Illinois residents for alleged violations of Illinois’ Right of Publicity Act by background reporting website.
  • Kolebuck-Utz v. Whitepages, Inc., 2021 WL 157219 (W.D. Wash. Apr. 22, 2021), denying defendant’s motion to dismiss for alleged violations of Ohio’s Right to Publicity Law.
  • Bergeron v. Rochester Institute of Technology, 2020 WL 7486682 (W.D.N.Y. Dec. 18, 2020), denying university’s motion to dismiss for failure to refund tuition and fees for the Spring 2020 semester in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Porter v. NBTY, Inc., 2019 WL 5694312 (N.D. Ill. Nov. 4, 2019), denying supplement manufacturer’s motion for summary judgment on consumers’ allegations of false advertising relating to whey protein content.
  • Boelter v. Hearst Communications, Inc., 269 F. Supp. 3d 172 (S.D.N.Y. 2017), granting plaintiff’s motion for partial summary judgment on state privacy law violations in putative class action.

Selected Class Settlements

  • Edwards v. Hearst Communications, Inc., Case No. 15-cv-09279-AT (S.D.N.Y. 2019) – final approval granted for $50 million class settlement to resolve claims of magazine subscribers for alleged statutory privacy violations.
  • Ruppel v. Consumers Union of United States, Inc., Case No. 16-cv-02444-KMK (S.D.N.Y. 2018) – final approval granted for $16.375 million class settlement to resolve claims of magazine subscribers for alleged statutory privacy violations.
  • Moeller v. Advance Magazine Publishers, Inc. d/b/a Condé Nast, Case No. 15-cv-05671-NRB (S.D.N.Y. 2019) – final approval granted for $13.75 million class settlement to resolve claims of magazine subscribers for alleged statutory privacy violations.
  • Benbow v. SmileDirectClub, LLC, Case No. 2020-CH-07269 (Cir. Ct. Cook Cnty. 2021) – final approval granted for $11.5 million class settlement to resolve claims for alleged TCPA violations.
  • Gregorio v. Premier Nutrition Corp., Case No. 17-cv-05987-AT (S.D.N.Y. 2019) – final approval granted for $9 million class settlement to resolve claims of protein shake purchasers for alleged false advertising.
  • Taylor v. Trusted Media Brands, Inc., Case No. 16-cv-01812-KMK (S.D.N.Y. 2018) – final approval granted for $8.225 million class settlement to resolve claims of magazine subscribers for alleged statutory privacy violations.
  • Moeller v. American Media, Inc., Case No. 16-cv-11367-JEL (E.D. Mich. 2017) – final approval granted for $7.6 million class settlement to resolve claims of magazine subscribers for alleged statutory privacy violations.
  • Rocchio v. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Case No. MID-L-003039-20 (Sup. Ct. Middlesex Cnty. 2022) – final approval granted for $5 million class settlement to resolve claims for failure to refund mandatory fees for the Spring 2020 semester in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Heigl v. Waste Management of New York, LLC, Case No. 19-cv-05487-WFK-ST (E.D.N.Y. 2021) – final approval granted for $2.7 million class settlement to resolve claims for charging allegedly unlawful fees pertaining to paper billing.
  • Frederick v. Examsoft Worldwide, Inc., Case No. 2021L001116 (Cir. Ct. DuPage Cnty. 2022) – final approval granted for $2.25 million class settlement to resolve claims for alleged BIPA violations.