Mr. tum Suden is an associate in the Atlanta office of Johnson Fistel. He is part of the firm’s commercial, shareholder derivative, and securities class action practices and has experience with all aspects of trial practice and discovery, including drafting factual investigation, litigation demands, shareholder inspection demands, drafting and responding to pleadings and discovery, motion practice, and alternative dispute resolution.
Representative Matters
Mr. tum Suden has played key roles in several high-stakes actions and achieved favorable results for clients. For example, in Benson v. D-Market Elektronik Hizmetler Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi et. al., Index No. 655701/2021 (N.Y. Sup. Ct, New York Cnty.), Mr. tum Suden played a key role in successfully resolving IPO litigation alleging violations of §§ 11 and 15 of the Securities Act of 1933 when a Turkish e-commerce platform company negligently failed to disclose negative growth trends that were affecting the company before the IPO. The resulting class action settlement totaled $13.9 million.
Mr. tum Suden has also materially contributed to the successful resolution of several derivative class action cases, including Hines v. Gowen, et al., No. 2:20-cv-04673-CMR (E.D. Penn.) (Trevena Inc. Derivative Litig.), In re CoreCivic, Inc. Shareholder Derivative Litigation, No. 3:16-CV-03040 (M.D. Tenn.), Zhang v. Sarig et al., No. 1:21-cv-08657 (S.D.N.Y.) (Aterian, Inc. Derivative Litig.), Guzzo v. Gunderman et al., No. 1:22-CV-00366-GLR (D. Md.) (Uniti Grp., Inc. Derivative Litig.), and other actions. These cases involved allegations of false and misleading statements about business models, financial and operational prospects, mergers and acquisitions, and compliance policies and resulted in material changes to corporate governance and compliance.
Areas of Practice
Mr. tum Suden focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation, including securities class actions and shareholder derivative actions, representing investors wronged through fraud and other violations of law. Mr. tum Suden has a wide base of knowledge and experience, litigating numerous issues in banking and finance, technology, pharmaceutical and healthcare, automotive, and e-commerce.
Mr. tum Suden has also served as a panelist on the Atlanta Bar Association’s Securities and Corporate Litigation sub-section’s presentation on cryptocurrency and is a member of State Bar of Georgia’s Business Law subsection.
Prior to joining Johnson Fistel, Mr. tum Suden served as Assistant Attorney General in the Commercial Transactions and Litigation Division of the Georgia Office of the Attorney General, where he represented state government clients by prosecuting and defending breach of contract actions, tax issues, administrative law issues, and mandamus actions through providing counsel, motion practice, oral argument, and settlement. Notably, Mr. tum Suden wrote an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the Georgia Department of Revenue in Heron Lake II Apartments, LP et al. v. Lowndes County Board of Tax Assessors, 306 Ga. 816 (2019) which was influential in overturning the trial court’s decision.
During law school, Mr. tum Suden served an Honors Clerk at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the Enforcement Division’s Complex Financial Instruments Unit, focusing on fraud in connection with sophisticated financial instruments. While at the SEC, Mr. tum Suden investigated an insider trading ring and built a successful case against a hedge fund manager for misrepresenting the fund’s assets under management and financial operation.
Professional Qualifications
Mr. tum Suden was admitted to the State Bar of Georgia in 2018 and is currently admitted in good standing with the following courts:
- All courts in the State of Georgia
- The United Stated District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
Awards and Peer Recognition
Mr. tum Suden was selected to the 2024 Georgia Rising Stars by Super Lawyers. Mr. tum Suden has also provided his expertise as a panelist at the Atlanta Bar Association Securities Law Section’s discussion on cryptocurrency. During law school, Mr. tum Suden received an individual award recognizing his outstanding contributions to the Journal of Intellectual Property.
Education
Mr. tum Suden graduated in 2018 from the University of Georgia School of Law in the top half of his class, served as Notes Editor on the Journal of Intellectual Property, President of the Asian Law Students Association, member of Phi Alpha Delta A.H. Stephens Chapter, and Hearing Officer for the Honor Court. Mr. tum Suden graduated cum laude from West Virginia University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration where he was a member of Alpha Kappa Psi.
Community and Volunteer Activities
Mr. tum Suden is a member of the Japan-America Society of Georgia and has supported several community-based programs, including Helping Hands of Paulding County and Second Harvest Food Bank in Atlanta, Georgia. Mr. tum Suden continues his involvement with Georgia Law’s networking events for law students, the Federalist Society, and is a member of the Tellus Science Museum and Southern Museum.
