Brendan Schneiderman, an associate in Cohen Milstein’s Securities Litigation & Investor Protection practice, represents institutional and individual shareholders in derivative lawsuits and securities class actions.
He was previously a Law Fellow at the firm where he worked across practices and was involved in litigating individual and class action cases at the district and appellate levels.
During law school, Brendan participated in several legal internships, including a summer internship at Cohen Milstein. He was also the executive technical editor and article selection editor for Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review, and a member of the People’s Parity Project.
Prior to pursuing a legal career, Brendan was a consultant at an energy regulatory, economics and advocacy consulting firm.
He is in the process of applying for admission to the New York Bar and is currently working under the close supervision of the partners of the firm who are admitted to practice in New York.
Brendan has an active pro bono practice. High-profile cases include:
- Lewis, et al v. Cain, et al. (M.D. La.): Cohen Milstein represents a certified class of more than 6,000 incarcerated individuals in a lawsuit filed against the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, LA, the largest maximum-security prison in the country, and the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections for deficient and discriminatory medical care in violation of the Eighth Amendment, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Rehabilitation Act.
- District of Columbia
- Harvard Law School, J.D., cum laude, 2021
- Pomona College, B.A., magna cum laude, 2014
Law Fellow, Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC, 2021-2022
Current Cases
In re Fox Corporation Derivative Litigation
In re Fox Corporation Derivative Litigation (Del. Ch.): Cohen Milstein is leading a shareholder derivative lawsuit representing New York City’s five pension funds and the State of Oregon, by and through the Oregon State Treasurer and the Oregon Department of Justice, on behalf of the Oregon Investment Council and the Oregon Public Employee Retirement Fund, against various directors and officers of Fox Corporation, the corporate parent of Fox News Network, LLC. Plaintiffs allege that Fox News’ leadership breached its fiduciary duties by adopting a business model that promoted or endorsed defamation by failing to establish systems or practices to minimize defamation risk despite the known risk of liability, including broadcasting false claims about election technology companies Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic USA.
Texas and Indiana Pension Funds v. InnovAge Holding Corp. et al.
Texas and Indiana Pension Funds v. InnovAge Holding Corp. et al. (D. CO.): Cohen Milstein is Lead Counsel in this securities class action that alleges InnovAge "substantially failed" to “provide to its participants medically necessary items and services" as required by government regulation. As a result, CMS and the State of Colorado suspended enrollment at InnovAge’s Colorado facilities. InnovAge's stock price declined 78% just nine months after its IPO, giving InnovAge the distinction of being one of 2021's five worst performing stocks.
Baxter, et. al. v. Church of Scientology International
Baxter, et. al. v. Church of Scientology International (M.D. Fla.): Cohen Milstein represents plaintiffs in a human trafficking and forced labor lawsuit against David Miscavige; Church of Scientology International; Religious Technology Center, Inc.; International Association of Scientologists Administrations, Inc.; Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, Inc.; and Church of Scientology Flag Ship Service Organization, Inc., for violations of the United States Code Chapter 77 of Title 18 and the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act.
Set Capital, et al. v. Credit Suisse Group AG, et al.
Set Capital, et al. v. Credit Suisse Grp. AG, et al. (S.D.N.Y.): Cohen Milstein is Co-Lead Counsel in this path-breaking securities class action alleging fraud and market manipulation of XIV Exchange Traded Notes. On March 17, 2023, the court certified one of three proposed investor classes.
In re Bristol-Meyers Squibb CVR Securities Litigation
In re Bristol-Myers Squibb Company CVR Securities Litigation (S.D.N.Y.): Cohen Milstein is sole Lead Counsel in this securities class action arising from Bristol Myers’ alleged subversion of the FDA approval process for the cancer therapy Liso-cel for the purpose of avoiding a $6.4 billion payment to holders of contingent value rights (CVRs).
In re Silvergate Capital Corporation Securities Litigation
In re Silvergate Capital Corporation Securities Litigation (S.D. Cal.): Cohen Milstein, as Co-Lead Counsel, represents shareholders in this securities class action, alleging that Silvergate, a holding company for Silvergate Bank, a federally regulated depository and lender for major cryptocurrency platforms, including Coinbase, Genesis, and FTX, made materially false and misleading statements about the bank’s compliance framework, as well as its anti-money laundering and customer identification programs. Plaintiffs also assert claims against the underwriters and Silvergate’s directors and executives in connection with the sale of $1.3 billion of securities.
Lewis, et al v. Cain, et al.
Lewis, et al v. Cain, et al. (M.D. La.): Cohen Milstein represents a certified class of more than 6,000 incarcerated individuals in a lawsuit filed against the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, LA, the largest maximum-security prison in the country, and the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections for deficient and discriminatory medical care in violation of the Eighth Amendment, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Rehabilitation Act.
November 13, 2024
Deloitte Stuck With Investor Class Over Nuke Plant Audit Reports
Deloitte & Touche LLP failed to convince a federal court to deny certification of a class of investors suing over its audit reports on the ultimately abandoned $9 billion Scana Corp. nuclear reactor project.
In the News | Bloomberg Law
March 12, 2024
Murdochs Seek Toss of Epic Election Defamation Suit
Fox Corp. media mogul Rupert Murdoch and other Fox empire figures have urged Delaware’s Court of Chancery to toss as unwinnable a stockholder suit seeking to make them liable for billions in potential damages for defamatory statements alleging 2020 election conspiracies on network and affiliate broadcasts. The motion to dismiss made public Monday argued that […]
In the News | Law360
September 13, 2023
NYC Pensions Say Fox ‘Chose To Invite’ Defamation Suits
New York City’s pension funds and Oregon’s state retirement fund sued Fox Corp. and its board of directors on Tuesday, alleging they ignored the risk of Fox News’ persistent false reporting and “chose to invite robust defamation claims” at the expense of the company’s shareholders. Unlike other media companies that try to minimize their exposure […]
In the News | Law360
March 17, 2023
Credit Suisse Must Face One Investor Class In XIV Crash Suit
A New York federal judge certified one of three proposed investor classes in a suit alleging Credit Suisse tricked investors into buying a series of short-term notes inversely tied to stock market volatility in 2018, finding two of the proposed classes can’t be certified because they conflict with one another. U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres […]
In the News | Law360
March 1, 2023
2 Firms Tapped To Rep Investors In Silvergate Laundering Suit
Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP and Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC were appointed class counsel in a proposed class action against Silvergate Capital Corp. that accuses the cryptocurrency-focused firm of failing to alert investors it lacked the necessary protections to detect ongoing money laundering on the platform. U.S. District Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo […]
In the News | Law360
January 20, 2023
Attorneys Ask Federal Judge to End Scientology Leader’s ‘Cat and Mouse Game’
In a lawsuit against the church, Judge Julie S. Sneed will consider arguments on whether David Miscavige can be served with papers. For months, Church of Scientology leader David Miscavige has played “a cat and mouse game” by evading formal notices in a human trafficking lawsuit, according to Manuel Dominguez, an attorney representing three former […]
In the News | Tampa Bay Times
November 17, 2022
Scientology Workers Signed Contracts Under Duress, Their Lawyers Say
The church disputes that, and now a federal judge will decide if allegations of abuse will be heard by a panel of loyal Scientologists, not the courts. Before Gawain and Laura Baxter could leave their posts as workers aboard the Church of Scientology’s religious ship in the Caribbean in 2012, the couple said they had […]
In the News | Tampa Bay Times
April 29, 2022
Scientology Faces Abuse Claims
A trio of Australian residents have launched legal action against organizations connected to the Church of Scientology over allegations of child trafficking, covering up multiple sexual assaults, and forced labor. Read the complete article at The Saturday Paper. Cohen Milstein’s Theodore J. Leopold, Manuel J. Dominguez, and Brendan Schneiderman are representing three individuals in a human trafficking and forced labor […]
In the News | The Saturday Paper
April 29, 2022
Inside ‘Freewinds’, the Church of Scientology’s Ship of Fear
When Laura Baxter was accused of monopolising the attention of actor Tom Cruise aboard Scientology’s Caribbean cruise ship in 2004, she says her punishment was to be locked in an “extremely hot” engine room of the Freewinds ship. She was shouted at by church officials and then for three days she says she was only […]
In the News | The Sydney Morning Herald
April 28, 2022
Scientology Accused of Child Trafficking, Forced Labor of Australians
Three Australian residents have accused Scientology of child trafficking, covering up multiple sexual assaults, forced labor and other abuses in a significant legal claim lodged in a Florida court overnight. The plaintiffs, Australian Gawain Baxter and residents Laura Baxter and Valeska Paris, are seeking significant “compensatory and punitive damages” against Scientology leader David Miscavige and […]
In the News | The Sydney Morning Herald
April 28, 2022
3 Former Scientology Workers Sue, Saying They Were Trafficked as Children”
A federal lawsuit in Tampa accuses Scientology leader David Miscavige and the church of forcing child staffers to work in Clearwater. Gawain Baxter was 6 years old when he signed a contract agreeing to work for the Church of Scientology for 1 billion years. He said he spent his childhood doing manual labor at Scientology’s […]
In the News | Tampa Bay Times
April 28, 2022
Church of Scientology Accused of Human Trafficking, Forced Labor
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Children as Young as 10 Years Old Forced to do Labor in Service of Scientology Instead of Receiving Basic Schooling; Isolated from Parents and Endured Verbal Abuse for Minor or Fabricated Transgressions Plaintiffs Were Compelled to Join the Crew on Scientology’s “Freewinds” Ship, Forced to Work Under Extreme Conditions With No Way […]
Press Releases | Cohen Milstein
April 28, 2022
Ex-Scientologists’ Lawsuit Details Slave-Like Life on Shady Cruise Ship
Three former workers for the Church of Scientology have accused the organization of indoctrinating them as kids, making it physically and psychologically impossible for them to leave what they described as a human trafficking situation. In a lawsuit filed in Florida, the plaintiffs say they were raised within the organization and worked on its Freewinds […]
In the News | The Daily Beast
March 31, 2021
Federal Judge Rules Medical Care at Angola Amounts to Cruel and Unusual Punishment and Violates the Americans With Disabilities Act
NEW ORLEANS – Patients at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola (“Angola”) needlessly suffer from serious injuries—including severe pain, preventable sickness, and untimely death—as a result of prison officials’ failure to provide constitutionally adequate medical care. They also failed to accommodate disabilities, a federal judge ruled today. Civil rights lawyers filed the class action lawsuit, […]
In the News