Former California Deputy Attorney General Abiel Garcia Joins Kesselman Brantly Stockinger As Partner
February 1, 2022 (Los Angeles) – Kesselman Brantly Stockinger LLP is pleased to announce that Abiel Garcia has joined the firm as a partner. Mr. Garcia brings with him extensive antitrust experience in a variety of industries including healthcare, pharmaceutical, telecommunications, oil and gas, and tech. Beyond his breadth of antitrust experience, Mr. Garcia brings additional expertise in conducting government and internal investigations, with a particular focus on cross border matters in Mexico, Honduras, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, and the Caribbean.
Mr. Garcia was formerly a Deputy Attorney General for the State of California Attorney General’s Office. In that position, he handled the California-specific issues in the F.T.C. v. Sysco/US Foods merger investigation and preliminary injunction hearing. He also worked on a variety of health care conduct investigations that included a diverse array of issues such as hospital contracting practices, physician-hospital collaborations, FDA regulatory pathways, reverse payments, product hopping, REMS abuse, and many others.
Mr. Garcia joins the firm from Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP where his practice focused on a variety of antitrust matters as well as multiple white-collar investigations in South America. While at Gibson Dunn, Mr. Garcia handled multiple internal investigations that ended in self-reporting to various government entities while also managing various stages of litigation in price-fixing and other conduct cases, as well as complex breach of contract cases. Additionally, Mr. Garcia advised clients on multiple potential mergers and helped obtain government clearance for various deals.
“Having worked with Abiel during his time with the Attorney General’s office, we know the high caliber of his work and the exceptional level of service and knowledge he will provide our clients,” said David Kesselman, founding partner of Kesselman Brantly Stockinger. “We are thrilled to have him join the team and look forward to working with him again.”
Mr. Garcia is a contributor to and author of several chapters in the California Antitrust and Unfair Competition Law Treatise, writing on topics such as horizontal and vertical competition, the health care industry, and others. He is also a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association Antitrust Section Executive Committee, as well as on the Executive Committee of the California Lawyers Association’s (CLA) Antitrust and UCL Section. He is also a Co-Vice Chair of the Diversity Committee for the CLA Antitrust and UCL Section, where he helped establish the Section’s first Diversity and Inclusion Fellowship. He received his J.D. from Columbia Law School and his B.A. in Economics from Occidental College.
“I am excited to be joining Kesselman Brantly Stockinger. Having the opportunity to work with attorneys who are antitrust leaders while at a firm that is agile and innovative is rare,” said Abiel Garcia. “The firm will allow me to take a cutting-edge approach to my practice in order to better serve my clients.”
About Kesselman Brantly Stockinger
Kesselman Brantly Stockinger LLP provides a sophisticated and practical approach to litigation. We offer our clients full-service attention in disputes involving antitrust and unfair competition, tortious interference with contract and prospective economic advantage, fraud, defamation, copyright, trademark, trade secrets, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duties, trade libel, real estate litigation, partnership disputes, and complex employment claims. The firm also provides its clients with proactive and responsive antitrust counseling and handles corporate.