Ryan C. Hudson

Biography
Over the past two decades, Ryan Hudson has worked with or against many of the nation’s most respected litigation law firms in state and federal trial and appellate courts across the country. He has deep experience in complex litigation and appeals involving a range of industries and claims for relief under state and federal laws—many times creating or expanding the law. Ryan has served as counsel in a variety of complex cases, class actions, mass actions, and multi-district litigation proceedings (MDLs), for both plaintiffs and defendants. Ryan’s approach to litigation is shaped by his experiences, which include:

  • Plaintiff’s Cases. Pursuing plaintiff’s cases at law firms in Dallas and Kansas City, Ryan has created and pursued innovative case strategies and recovered several hundreds of millions of dollars for clients in a handful of cases. These successes include architecting and leading the strategy and briefing in three civil RICO cases that each resulted in a nine-figure class recovery. Ryan has pursued nationwide class actions and individual cases asserting novel claims for relief under a variety of federal and state laws and statutes, including civil RICO, the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (the TVPRA), the Lanham Act, products liability, business torts, breach of contract, antitrust, fraud, consumer protection, unjust enrichment, and intellectual property (patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secrets).

At Sharp Law, Ryan has taken a primary role in several class actions and individual lawsuits. Among other successes, Ryan and his team have pursued and successfully recovered:

    • $345 million from Pfizer based on claims for civil RICO and state antitrust violations involving the sales and marketing of the EpiPen.
    • $264 million from Mylan based on claims for civil RICO and state antitrust violations involving the sales and marketing of the EpiPen.
    • $147 million from BP for civil RICO and state law claims for fraudulent royalty underpayments.
    • $35 million from Marathon Oil Company for a breach of lease claim for royalty underpayments.
    • $6 million from USA Taekwondo and its insurance companies for violations of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act and negligence claims involving several former Olympic athletes.
    • $5 million from Wells Fargo for a Servicemembers Civil Relief Act claim involving several veterans whose automobiles were illegally repossessed.
    • $4.5 million from Alta Mesa Holdings for civil RICO and state law claims for fraudulent royalty underpayments.
  • Defense Cases. Before joining Sharp Law, Ryan spent a decade working as an associate and a partner at preeminent defense litigation law firms in Dallas and Kansas City. Working alongside several of the most sophisticated litigation defense teams on both coasts, he defended dozens of complex cases, white collar criminal cases, and state and federal class actions in trial courts and on appeal throughout the United States.
  • Federal Law Clerk. Ryan began his career as a federal law clerk for then-Chief Judge John Lungstrum of the District of Kansas, gaining insights on how courts manage and resolve civil and criminal cases, along with multi-district litigation (MDL) proceedings.
  • Lecturer, Advisor, and Adjunct Professor. Ryan has been repeatedly invited as a law school lecturer, moot court advisor, and adjunct law professor on topics including class actions, mass torts, MDLs, civil RICO, products liability, complex litigation, and design thinking, at the University of Kansas School of Law and UMKC School of Law. He also writes articles and lectures to other lawyers on these same varied topics.
  • Law + Design. Ryan also has spent thousands of hours working with graphic designers, UX software designers, and trial graphics experts, in both litigation and in the course of building two litigation technology start-up companies he co-founded. Applying a Law + Design approach has led to victories in cases that others deemed “too complicated” to explain.

In addition, Ryan tries to help advance the law and ensure that other lawyers have the same level of training and mentoring he benefited from as a young lawyer. He has lectured repeatedly to the Second Chair Program (a program launched by the Federal Public Defender for the District of Kansas) and helped shape the training program for new federal criminal defense lawyers in Kansas. He also worked with law professors and students at UMKC Law School, along with the District of Kansas Federal Public Defender’s office, to use design thinking and graphic design to help make the procedural maze of federal criminal procedure more understandable and transparent for criminal defendants, their families, law students, law clerks, and the public. This multi-year project, which received significant funding, resulted in the “Map of the Federal Criminal Process.”

Finally, Ryan also has worked with United States Senators on both sides of the aisle in Congress to help improve federal laws and to protect athletes and other victims of forced labor and services. And he has consulted with multiple federal prosecutors and federal law enforcement officers on innovative ways to use the RICO Act and the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) to curb the interstate activities of individual and corporate bad actors.

Select Recent Cases
  • In re EpiPen Mktg., Sales Practices & Antitrust MDL, No. 17-MD-2785-DDC-TJJ, 2020 WL 1180550 (D. Kan. July 11, 2022) (granting final approval of $264 million nationwide class settlement of civil RICO and state antitrust claims against Mylan).
  • In re EpiPen Mktg., Sales Practices & Antitrust MDL, No. 17-MD-2785-DDC-TJJ, 2021 WL 5369798 (D. Kan. Nov. 17, 2021) (granting final approval of $345 million nationwide class settlement of civil RICO and state antitrust claims against Pfizer).
  • Frank v. Crawley Petroleum, Inc., 992 F.3d 987 (10th Cir. 2021) (successful reversal of an order setting conditions and limiting unnamed, future plaintiffs from filing lawsuits).
  • Blasi v. Bruin E&P Partners, LLC, 959 N.W.2d 872 (N.D. 2021) (certified question before North Dakota Supreme Court re: valuation point for oil in pipelines).
  • Cooper Clark Foundation v. Oxy USA Inc., — P.3d —, 2020 WL 3481429 (Kan. App. June 26, 2020) (affirming class certification of royalty owner underpayment claims under Kansas law), petition denied, (Kan. Nov. 24, 2020).
  • In re EpiPen Mktg., Sales Practices & Antitrust MDL, No. 17-MD-2785-DDC-TJJ, 2020 WL 1180550, at *1 (D. Kan. Mar. 10, 2020) (granting class certification of nationwide civil RICO and numerous state law antitrust claims), Rule 23(f) review denied, No. 20-603 (10th Cir. May 26, 2020).
  • Gilbert, et al. v. United States Olympic Committee, et al., No. 18-cv-00981 (D. Colo. Sept. 27, 2019) (order granting in part and denying in part motion to dismiss; allowing to proceed the numerous TVPRA claims against USA Taekwondo on behalf of five former USA Taekwondo athletes).
  • Nakamura v. Wells Fargo Bank, No. 17-cv-4029-DDC-GEB, 2019 WL 2193785 (D. Kan. May 21, 2019) (approval of seven figure class settlement of United States veterans against Wells Fargo for unlawful repossession of vehicles under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act).
  • Stevens, et al. v. USA Diving, No. 18-cv-3015, 2019 WL 2210808 (S.D. Ind. May 21, 2019) (denial of motion to dismiss negligence-based claims against USA Diving and related entities on behalf of diving athletes).
  • Cecil v. BP America Production Co., No. 16-CV-00410-KEW, 2018 WL 8367958 (E.D. Okla. Nov. 19, 2018) (approval of class settlement of Oklahoma royalty owners against BP for nine figure RICO claim for intentional underpayment of natural gas royalties).
  • In re EpiPen Mktg., Sales Practices & Antitrust MDL, No. 17-MD-2785-DDC-TJJ, 2018 WL 3973153 (D. Kan. Aug. 20, 2018) (denial of most of the arguments raised in the two motions to dismiss filed by Mylan and Pfizer against the RICO, antitrust, and consumer protection claims raised by the Consumer Class Plaintiffs).
  • Cavlovic v. J.C. Penney Corp., Inc., No. 2:17-cv-2042-JAR-TJJ, 2018 WL 2926433 (D. Kan. June 7, 2018) (denial of motion to dismiss consumer protection claims).
  • Cavlovic v. J.C. Penney Corp., 884 F.3d 1051, 2018 WL 1181237 (10th Cir. Mar. 8, 2018) (affirming the denial of a motion to compel arbitration against consumer protection claims).
  • Bollenbach Enterprises v. Alta Mesa, No. 17-cv-134 (W.D. Okla. Mar. 12, 2018) (granting final approval of seven-figure RICO settlement class based on the intentional underpayment of royalties owed to natural gas royalty owners).
  • Kunneman Properties LLC v. Marathon Oil Co., No. 17-cv-456-JED-FHM, 2018 WL 337752 (N.D. Okla. Jan. 9, 2018) (denial of motion to transfer venue in royalty owner class action).
  • Rasnic v. FCA US LLC, No. 17-cv-2064-KHV, 2017 WL 6406880 (D. Kan. Dec. 15, 2017) (denial of motion to dismiss in automotive Infotainment defect case).
  • Cavlovic v. J.C. Penney Corp., 275 F. Supp. 3d 1267 (D. Kan. 2017) (rejection of arbitration clause asserted by JC Penney in consumer protection class action involving “fake sales” campaign by JC Penney).
  • Cecil v. BP America Production Company, No. 16-cv-410-RAW (E.D. Okla. Mar. 20, 2017) (royalty underpayment class action on behalf of Oklahoma royalty owners against BP).
  • In re: Mylan EpiPen Auto-Injector Litigation, No. 2:16-cv-02711-JWL (D. Kan.) (nationwide class action against Mylan and Pfizer for violations of RICO, state consumer protection laws, and state antitrust laws).
  • Whisenant v. Sheridan Production Co., No. 16-606 (10th Cir. Dec. 16, 2016) (appeal of denial of remand of oil and gas royalty underpayment CAFA class action).
  • United States v. Webster, 809 F.3d 1158 (10th Cir. 2016), cert. denied, 136 S. Ct. 2420 (2016) (criminal appeal involving habeas and Fourth Amendment issues).
  • Coleman v. Crawford, et al., 2:13-cv-04205-BCW (W.D. Mo. 2016) (first-chair trial counsel for plaintiff in three-day jury trial for Section 1983 claims).
  • In re Syngenta AG MIR 162 Corn Litigation, 131 F. Supp. 3d 1177 (D. Kan. 2015) (nationwide MDL involving China’s rejection of U.S. corn and the collapse of the corn market).
  • Hawkins v. Mercy Kansas Communities, No. 14-2405-EFM-KGG, 2015 WL 1978088 (D. Kan. May 1, 2015) (medical malpractice and EMTALA claims against doctors).
  • McKellips v. Kumho Tire Co., 305 F.R.D. 655 (D. Kan. 2015) (products liability case involving tires).
  • F.T.C. v. AMG Servs., Inc., 29 F. Supp. 3d 1338 (D. Nev. 2014), order clarified sub nom., No. 212CV00536GMNVCF, 2014 WL 12788195 (D. Nev. July 16, 2014), and aff’d sub nom., 910 F.3d 417 (9th Cir. 2018), rev’d and remanded, 141 S. Ct. 1341 (2021) (defense counsel at trial court on a Section 13 damages lawsuit brought by the FTC).
  • Eaves v. Pirelli Tire, LLC, No. 13-1271-SAC, 2014 WL 1883791 (D. Kan. May 12, 2014) (products liability case involving tires).
  • Hernandez v. Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., No. 12-1399-JWL, 2013 WL 141648 (D. Kan. Jan. 11, 2013) (products liability case involving tires).
  • F.T.C. v. AMG Services, Inc., 291 F.R.D. 544 (D. Nev. 2013) (Section 5 FTC case alleging consumer deception).
  • Lustgraaf v. Sunset Financial Services, Inc., No. 8:08CV335, 2012 WL 5996968 (D. Neb. Nov. 28, 2012) (federal securities fraud case).
  • Robinson v. Tucker, No. 12-2200-JTM, 2012 WL 5499439 (D. Kan. Nov. 13, 2012) (civil RICO case).
  • Green v. Sunset Financial Services, Inc., No. 8:09CV13, 2012 WL 931976 (D. Neb. Mar. 20, 2012) (federal securities fraud case with bankruptcy issues).
  • West v. A & S Helicopters, 751 F. Supp. 2d 1104 (W.D. Mo. 2010) (helicopter accident case alleging product defect).
  • Knights Armament Co. v. OSTI, Inc., 647 F. Supp. 2d 1321 (M.D. Fla. 2009), aff’d, 654 F.3d 1179 (11th Cir. 2011) (trademark trial and appeal involving sniper rifle scopes).
  • Hicks v. Assistant Atty. Gen. of Colorado, No. 08-0362-CV-W-FJG, 2010 WL 5067611 (W.D. Mo. Dec. 6, 2010) (Section 1983 case against state official).
  • Porter v. Valdez, 424 F. App’x 382 (5th Cir. 2011) (appeal of Section 1983 claims).
  • Texas Advanced Optoelectronic Sols., Inc. v. Intersil Corp., No. 4:08-CV-451, 2009 WL 3157473 (E.D. Tex. Sept. 25, 2009) (patent and trade secrets case and jury trial resulting in $77 million judgment for maker of ambient light sensor used in the iPhone).
  • AMS, Inc. v. Crane Co., 357 F. App’x 297 (Fed. Cir. 2009) (patent case and appeal involving vending machines).
  • Galderma Labs., L.P. v. Actavis Mid-Atl., L.L.C., No. CIV.A.4:06CV471-Y, 2008 WL 3930027, at *1 (N.D. Tex. Aug. 27, 2008) (patent case involving generic drug launch).
  • Minka Lighting, Inc. v. Reliance Lighting, Inc., et al., 5:05-cv-01015-FMC (C.D. Cal. April 23, 2008) (international trademark, copyright, and patent case involving ceiling fans).
Selected Recent Publications and Presentations
  • Lecturer, Federal Multi-district Litigation, Mass Torts, and Class Actions, University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School, KC, Missouri (April 10, 2023).
  • Co-Author, Criminal Cartography: Map of the Federal Criminal Process (2023).
  • Co-Author, “Kansas,” The Law of Class Action: Fifty-State Survey 2022 (ABA Publishing).
  • Lecturer, Civil RICO, University of Kansas Law School, Lawrence, KS (November 28, 2022).
  • Adjunct Professor, Civil RICO, University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School (Summer 2022).
  • Lecturer, Federal Multi-district Litigation, Mass Torts, and Class Actions, University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School, KC, Missouri (April 21, 2022).
  • Co-Author, “Kansas,” The Law of Class Action: Fifty-State Survey 2021 (ABA Publishing).
  • Lecturer, Civil RICO, University of Kansas Law School, Lawrence, KS (April 20, 2021).
  • Lecturer, Federal Multi-district Litigation, Mass Torts, and Class Actions, University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School, KC, Missouri (March 17, 2021).
  • Lecturer, Design Thinking and Mapping Federal Criminal Procedure, Law, Technology, and Public Policy, University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School, KC, Missouri (2020-21).
  • MDL Cartography: Mapping the Five Stages of a Federal MDL,89 UMKC Law Rev. 801 (2021).
  • Co-Author, “Kansas,” The Law of Class Action: Fifty-State Survey 2020 (ABA Publishing).
  • Lecturer, “Class Actions and Federal Multi-District Litigation (MDL) Proceedings,” University of Kansas School of Law, Lawrence, KS (April 15, 2019).
  • Lecturer, “Consumer Protection & RICO Claims,” University of Kansas School of Law, Lawrence, KS (March 18, 2019).
  • Lecturer, “Intro to Kansas Federal Court Practice,” United States District Court for the District of Kansas, Second Chair Program, Kansas City, MO (January 11, 2019).
  • Panelist, “A Conversation with the Local Rules Committees,” United States District Court for the District of Kansas, Kansas City, KS (November 14, 2018).
  • Lecturer, “Class Actions,” University of Kansas School of Law, Lawrence, KS (April 9, 2018).
  • Lecturer, “RICO & Consumer Protection Claims,” University of Kansas School of Law, Lawrence, KS (April 2, 2018).
  • Lecturer, “Modern Federal Court Briefing & Argument,” United States District Court for the District of Kansas, Federal Public Defender Intern Seminar, Kansas City, KS (June 16, 2017).
  • Lecturer, “Breach of Warranty & Consumer Protection Claims,” University of Kansas School of Law, Lawrence, KS (April 17, 2017).
  • Panelist, “How to Keep Up with the Law,” Kansas Public Defender Criminal Defense CLE, Lawrence, KS (October 21, 2016).
  • “Why FRE 407 Applies in Criminal Cases and Proceedings,” Co-author, Trial Evidence (American Bar Association Section of Litigation) (September 2014).
  • “The Twombly Trilogy: Exploring the New ‘Plausibility’ Standard for Motions to Dismiss in Kansas Federal Courts,” Co-author, Kansas Bar Journal (May 2010).
  • “Debating Third-Party Policy Deadlines: Why Texas Should Equitably Toll an Insured’s Claim for Breach of the Duty to Defend,” Co-author, 61 Baylor Law Review 610 (2009).
  • “Employers Should Brace for New Workplace Rules,” Co-author, Dallas Business Journal, June 5, 2009.
  • “The Problems With PAWA,” Co-author, Law360, May 27, 2009.
  • “The Express Negligence Rule in Texas,” Co-author, 60 Baylor Law Review 942 (2008).
  • “State Law IP Litigation Issues,” Co-author, The Advocate (Litigation Section Journal of the Texas Bar Association) (Winter 2008).
  • “Everything You Need to Know Outside the Fifth Circuit,” Co-author, 17th Annual Advanced Employment Law Course, Texas Bar, 2008.
  • “Uncertainty in the Federal Civil Pleading Requirement: Is ‘Plausibility’ the New Rule 12(b)(6) Standard?” DAYL Dicta (January 2008).
  • Dallas Federal Bar Association Bulletin, Monthly Columnist, 2007-08.
  • Encyclopedia of Privacy, Legal Contributor, 2007.
Admissions and Qualifications
  • Kansas
  • Texas
  • Oklahoma
  • Missouri (inactive)
  • Supreme Court of the United States
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court, District of Colorado
  • U.S. District Court, District of Kansas
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Oklahoma
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Oklahoma
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Oklahoma
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Missouri
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas
Professional Memberships
  • Kansas Bar Association
  • Oklahoma Bar Association
  • Texas Bar Association
  • Ross T. Roberts Inn of Court, Barrister
  • Johnson County Bar Association
Distinctions
  • Best Lawyers in America® – Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions – Plaintiffs (2023 & 2024)
  • Team member for the AAI Antitrust Enforcement Awards 2022. Outstanding Antitrust Litigation Achievement in Private Law Practice for work In re EpiPen Marketing, Sales Practices and Antitrust Litigation.
  • Bench Bar Committee, U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas
  • Recognized as “Best of the Bar” by the Kansas City Business Journal
  • Recognized as a Kansas & Missouri “Rising Star” in Business Litigation by Kansas City Magazine
  • Recognized as a Texas “Rising Star” in Litigation by Texas Monthly
  • Adjust Professor, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law
  • Lecturer, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law
  • Lecturer, University of Kansas School of Law
  • Lecturer, Second Chair Program, Kansas Federal Public Defender’s Office
  • Advisor, University of Kansas School of Law Moot Court
  • Advisor, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law Moot Court
  • University of Kansas Law School, Moot Court Alumni Council
  • Criminal Justice Act Panel, United States District Court for the District of Kansas
Clerkship Experience
  • The Honorable John W. Lungstrum, then-Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Kansas