Ryan J. Vanderford

• Represented a manufacturer in an insurance recovery litigation resulting in settlement days before trial with total recoveries exceeding $50 million.
• Defended a private investment firm in an arbitration concerning breach of contract, defamation, and employment-based claims, including obtaining a seven-figure attorneys’ fee award for the client.
• Defended a trade association, the Independent Film & Television Alliance, against wage and hour class action claims.
• Defended a family-owned plumbing part manufacturer, Fluidmaster, Inc., against several product liability consumer class actions by defeating a class certification bid in a coordinated proceeding in the Northern District of Illinois.
• Assisted The Broad museum in federal litigation seeking insurance coverage for claims arising from the construction of the modern art museum.
• Obtained the dismissal of nationwide class action labeling claims against a well-known cookie maker, Lenny & Larry’s.
• Represented several corporate executives in criminal DOJ, SEC, and EPA investigations.

Before joining Bush Seyferth PLLC, Ryan was a senior litigation associate at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP in Los Angeles, California. At Pillsbury, Ryan represented clients in large-scale product liability litigation, class action defense, government white collar investigations, insurance recovery, and mass tort litigation.

Ryan received his J.D. from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law, where he was the Notes Editor for the Southern California Interdisciplinary Law Journal. He received his undergraduate degree in History, with a minor in Political Science from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Honors & Leadership

Michigan Lawyers Weekly, Up & Coming Lawyer (Class of 2024)

Inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© Ones to Watch: Commercial Litigation (2024 – present)

Professional Activities

Oakland County Bar Association, DE&I Committee, Member

American Board of Trial Advocates, National Trial College Fellow

Detroit Bar Association, Member

Eastern District of Michigan Bar Association, Member

Association of Business Trial Lawyers – Young Lawyers Division, Los Angeles, Committee Member (2019-2021)

Los Angeles County Bar Association, Member (2016-2021)

Product Liability Advisory Council, Future Leader

Presentations

“Not Your Average Accident Reconstruction – The Evolving Aspects of Automotive Litigation Involving ADAS,” presented to PLAC Webinar Series (December 2024)

“Update: CA SB 1149,” presented to PLAC Fall Conference (October 2022)

Publications

“California Set to Ban Most Confidentiality in Product Liability and Environmental Litigation,” Washington Legal Foundation WLF Legal Pulse (July 25, 2022)

“Evaluating Insurance Options in Light of Suez Canal Blockage,” Law360, co-author (May 11, 2021)

“Does ‘Krab’ Really Mean Crab? Ninth Circuit Decision on Deceptive Labeling Claim a Temporary Setback for Consumer Class Defendants,” Washington Legal Foundation WLF Legal Pulse (April 7, 2021)

“Pay-for-Play: An Age-Old Struggle for Appropriate Reform in a Changing Landscape Between Employer and Employee,” Southern California Interdisciplinary Law Journal, Volume 24, Issue 3 (Summer 2015)

“Cybertorts Present New Frontier for Insurance Coverage,” Los Angeles Daily Journal, co-author (June 27, 2014)

Pro Bono Involvement

• Obtained a defense verdict for a 503(c)-non-profit school in a trial that threatened the school’s viability.

For Fun

Favorite Hobbies: Skiing, Golf, Travel, Live Music, History

Favorite Sport: All of them

Favorite Vacation: Anywhere in the mountains (preferably steep ones with lots of snow)