Admitted in NY
James C. Kelly is a dedicated consumer advocate with over 20 years of experience litigating high-stakes class actions and complex commercial disputes. Throughout his career in state and federal courts across the United States, Mr. Kelly has remained steadfast in his commitment to protecting the public from deceptive corporate practices. He focuses his practice on holding major corporations accountable, ensuring that consumers are treated fairly and that businesses operate with transparency and integrity.
Since joining The Russo Firm in 2023, Mr. Kelly has continued to expand his practice in consumer protection, earning a reputation for securing "change of practice" relief—forcing major corporations to alter deceptive business models and marketing campaigns to benefit consumers.
Pioneering "Expectations vs. Reality" litigation, Mr. Kelly has spearheaded a nationwide legal movement challenging discrepancies between food advertising and the actual products served to consumers. His recent work has set critical legal precedents regarding truth in advertising.
Most notably, Mr. Kelly secured a landmark victory in Coleman v. Burger King Corporation in the Southern District of Florida (Case No. 1:22-cv-20925). In this case, he successfully defeated Burger King’s motion to dismiss on two separate occasions, establishing the legal viability of claims regarding visual misrepresentation in food advertising. He is actively litigating similar actions against other industry giants, including The Hershey Company regarding its Reese’s Pumpkins product line (Vidal et al. v. The Hershey Co., Case No. 24-60831, S.D. Fla.), focusing on securing truthful advertising standards for consumers nationwide.
Prior to joining The Russo Firm, Mr. Kelly ran an independent practice where he focused on complex litigation that resulted in significant industry-wide changes and recoveries.
- Citibank Litigation: Serving as co-counsel alongside Samuel P. Sporn, Mr. Kelly prosecuted a grueling class action regarding the valuation of promotional airline miles in the Southern District of New York. The case spanned years of litigation, a federal bench trial, and two appeals before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Kelly successfully negotiated a settlement that provided significant cash recovery for taxpayers to compensate them for the tax liabilities incurred due to the inflated valuation of the miles. The total value of the relief was estimated at $10 million. (Hirsch v. Citibank, N.A., Case No. 1:12-cv-01124, S.D.N.Y.).
- Blue Diamond Growers: Working as co-counsel with Wolf Popper LLP, Mr. Kelly prosecuted false labeling claims regarding "Almond Breeze" products in the Southern District of New York. His litigation was the catalyst for significant relief: Blue Diamond removed the misleading "cup of almonds" imagery and changed its labeling standards. The matter was successfully resolved in coordination with related class actions in the Circuit Court of Washington County, Arkansas, for a combined $9 million nationwide settlement. (Albert v. Blue Diamond Growers, Case No. 1:15-cv-04087, S.D.N.Y.).
- Google Stadia: Mr. Kelly challenged marketing claims concerning the Stadia gaming platform in the Eastern District of New York. Through aggressive pre-trial advocacy, he was instrumental in obtaining direct refunds for consumers regarding the platform's performance prior to the filing of a lawsuit. (Shepherd v. Google LLC, Case No. 1:21-cv-00799, E.D.N.Y.).
Notable Recoveries:
Mr. Kelly began his career spending seven years at the law firm Wolf Popper LLP, where he helped litigate major financial and consumer disputes. Some of the cases he worked on while at Wolf Popper LLP were:
- Playboy Inc.: He helped secure a $5 million recovery for shareholders of Playboy Inc. in the Delaware Chancery Court (In re Playboy Enterprises, Inc. Shareholders Litigation, Consol. C.A. No. 5632-VCN, Del. Ch.) and successfully moved the Delaware Bankruptcy Court to set aside insurance proceeds for consumers in Jackson Hewitt (In re Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc., Case No. 11-11587, Bankr. D. Del.).
- Google, Inc. AdWords: Litigated claims on behalf of advertisers alleging billing irregularities. Following extensive motion practice in the Northern District of California, the matter resulted in a $20 million settlement.
- AIG ERISA Litigation: Litigated a major class action regarding the 2005 accounting scandal in the Southern District of New York. The case resulted in a $24.2 million settlement for employees.
- Campbell Soup Company: Successfully litigated product mislabeling claims in the District of New Jersey, resulting in a recovery of over $1 million. (Smajlaj v. Campbell Soup Co.).
- Corporate Governance & M&A: Mr. Kelly represented shareholders in complex "freeze-out" mergers and management buyouts involving major public entities. Notable matters include The Topps Company, Inc. (In re Topps Co. Shareholders Litigation, Consol. C.A. No. 2786-VCS, Del. Ch.) and William Lyon Homes (In re William Lyon Homes Shareholder Litigation, C.A. No. 2015-N, Del. Ch.), as well as mergers involving Nassda Corp., Mossimo, Inc., and Bioenvision, Inc.
Education
- J.D. – Brooklyn Law School, 2004, summa cum laude
- B.S. – State University of New York at Binghamton, 1999
- CPA – Concentrating on corporate financial statements audits
Bar Admissions
- New York, 2005
- United States District Court, Eastern District of New York
- United States District Court, Southern District of New York
Honors and Awards
- Super Lawyers, 2014 to present
- CALI Award for Excellence in Securities Regulation, Secured Transactions, and Federal Tax Practices and Procedures
- Carswell Scholar at Brooklyn Law School
- Received the Samuel P. Sporn and Ellen L. Sporn Scholarship
- Received the Attorney-CPA Foundation Scholarship
- Received the Edith C. Blum Foundation Prize for Taxation
- Received the Professor Philip K. Yonge Memorial Prize for Commercial Law and Bankruptcy
- Member of Beta Alpha Psi, National Honor Society