An Interview With Jeffrey Kaliel, Attorney and Litigator With KalielGold

Below is a brief interview with Jeff Kaliel, attorney and partner at KalielGold.

Q: Could you provide our readers with a brief introduction to Kaliel Gold?

KalielGold is a leading class action litigation firm based in Washington, D.C. The firm works exclusively on a contingency basis for plaintiffs in multimillion-dollar class action lawsuits. We represent plaintiffs in cases involving banking and securities fraud, consumer protection, false advertising, overdraft fees, false advertising, text spam, and military lending.

Q: Can you give us more insights into what makes your company unique?

My partner, Sophia Goren Gold, and I are committed to the plaintiff's rights and have considerable experience litigating high-stakes cases. I've won many highly contested motions and made compelling presentations for my plaintiff clients for more than a decade. I was also honored to be named to the Washington D.C. Rising Stars Super Lawyers List in 2015.

Before I became a plaintiff's attorney, I worked in the appellate litigation department of a federal agency. I also served as a special U.S. Attorney in California for the Department of Homeland Security, prosecuting border crimes. I received my law degree from Yale and was a staff sergeant in the Army.

Sophia is a third-generation plaintiff's lawyer who has participated in hundreds of individual and class-action lawsuits. Her specialty is taking on financial institutions and insurance companies that mistreat consumers. She also specializes in helping victims of deceptive advertising practices. Sophia received her law degree from the University of California at Berkeley and is a member of the bar in California and Washington, D.C.

We also have an excellent team of associates, paralegals, and legal assistants.

Q: Can you give us insights into your services?

Our primary service is bringing lawsuits that seek justice for victims of unfair corporate financial practices. One example of a lawsuit I filed was a class action against Bank of America, which was recently settled with the bank paying about $67 million to plaintiffs. The lawsuit challenged the bank's policy of charging a fee for having an overdrawn checking account in addition to a fee for the overdraft. The bank also closed some customers' accounts because of overdraft fees.

Another example is a lawsuit against Target for marketing its Red Card as a debit card when it wasn't. The suit also alleged that Target processed transactions on the card with a significant lag time that often resulted in overdraft fees. Target paid a cash settlement of $5 million to plaintiffs in that case.

Q: What are some of the main objectives for your company in the year ahead, and how do you plan to achieve them?

We aim to continue to seek justice for the marginalized. We will do that by continuing to bring lawsuits against corporations and financial institutions that engage in deceptive practices or charge exorbitant fees to make profits at the expense of those who are vulnerable and can least afford these fees. We will continue to seek large settlements for our clients so that we can make a difference in people's lives.

In addition to gaining large settlements for our clients after the fact, we hope to encourage legislation that ends some of these practices. For example, Sophie led a case instrumental in changing Delaware's Medicaid policy, assuring broader access to medicines.

Q: What is the best thing about your company that people might not know about?

We take cases only on a contingency basis, meaning our clients pay us nothing unless and until we win money for them. Many unjustly treated people do not seek legal help because they feel they can't afford it. Our contingency fee policy means that we can serve everyone. Everyone has equal access to justice.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes