Johanna Rae Hudgens

Johanna focuses her practice on government antitrust and white-collar investigations, complex commercial litigation, and compliance program counseling. She has experience representing plaintiffs and defendants in complex and multidistrict litigation involving issues of monopolization, conspiracy, contract and warranty disputes, products liability, FCPA, corporate and executive liability, and the intersection of antitrust and intellectual property. In addition to representing businesses across the financial services, food and beverage, and technologies industries, Johanna represents individual clients across the United States in investigations and criminal matters involving white-collar and antitrust issues.

Johanna also counsels multinational clients on a range of legal issues and advises clients in developing comprehensive compliance programs attuned to the risks represented in their industries and jurisdictions. She combines her cross-practice experience in matters with government touchpoints with an intimate understanding of client industries to achieve practical, business-forward outcomes in both civil and criminal matters.

Representative matters include the following:

• Represented a leading provider of transportation services in a breach of contract action regarding the provision of telecommunication services, managing the case team, drafting key briefings, and conducting depositions in the matter.
• Defended client that operated online cashback portal in claims that included breach of contract, drafting a successful motion to compel arbitration, counseling the client as to revisions to its arbitration provisions, and favorably settling the matter after the plaintiff was ordered to arbitrate.
• Represents lead plaintiff in a multidistrict litigation alleging numerous state and federal antitrust claims and pending in the Southern District of New York, and as a third party in a Massachusetts state court proceeding alleging breach of contract. Her experience in this pending matter ranges across motion practice, witness preparations and depositions, expert preparation, arguments, and negotiations.
• Represents client in pro bono action in parallel New York state proceedings for claims arising out breach of a licensing agreement, managing the litigation team, drafting motion briefings, and arguing on behalf of the client in court.
• Represents a financial services institution in matters across multiple jurisdictions including the Southern District of New York and the District of New Mexico.
• Represents a financial services institution in a class action lawsuit pending in the Eastern District of New York, alleging numerous state and federal antitrust and commercial claims, including handling motions practice, argument preparation, witness preparations and depositions, and negotiations for the ongoing matter.
• Represents eight defendants in a multidistrict litigation alleging numerous state and federal antitrust claims and pending in the Northern District of Illinois. Her experience in the case ranges across motion practice, significant discovery practice, client preparation, and negotiations.
• Represents individual clients in numerous criminal investigations and litigations in multiple jurisdictions, including the Eastern District of New York, Southern District of New York, District of Massachusetts, and District of Connecticut.

Johanna is committed to both pro bono representation and public service, making it an integral part of her practice. Her pro bono representations include representing individuals at Riker’s Island who are alleging religious discrimination; a victim of human trafficking in connection with a criminal investigation and restitution proceedings; disabled recipients of Medicaid-funded home care services in a class action alleging violation of state and federal law; and student plaintiffs in a civil lawsuit against their university, leading to a landmark settlement on the eve of trial. In addition to her active pro bono practice, Johanna also serves as a mentor and coach for high school domestic and international moot court competitions in conjunction with the Justice Resource Center.

Prior to joining Winston, Johanna was a judicial clerk in the Eastern District of New York and was an associate in a leading international law firm as part of the firm’s dispute resolution group.