Nicholas R. Miller

Nicholas R. Miller

Senior Counsel

Nick Miller is senior counsel in the Washington, D.C., office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, where he is a member of the firm's litigation department. He primarily represents companies and individuals facing government investigations (particularly by the SEC), companies requiring internal investigations, and companies and individuals in shareholder litigation.

Prior to joining the firm in 2011, Nick clerked for the Honorable F. Bradford Stillman of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Experience

Prior to joining the firm in 2011, Nick clerked for the Honorable F. Bradford Stillman of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Education

J.D., William & Mary Law School, 2010Lead Articles Editor, William and Mary Law Review; Executive Articles Editor, William & Mary Business Law Review
B.A., Political Economics, University of the Pacific, 2006

Admissions

Bar of the District of Columbia
State Bar of California
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Credentials

Education

J.D., William & Mary Law School, 2010Lead Articles Editor, William and Mary Law Review; Executive Articles Editor, William & Mary Business Law Review
B.A., Political Economics, University of the Pacific, 2006

Admissions

Bar of the District of Columbia
State Bar of California
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Recent Insights

Client Highlights

On May 22, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a securities class action filed against Sterling Financial Corporation, a bank holding company of commercial bank Sterling Savings Bank. The complaint alleged that the defendants made false or misleading statements about the bank's exposure to the 2008-2009 credit crisis, the sufficiency of the bank's loan loss reserves for non-performing construction loans, and the quality of the bank's underwriting practices. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati represented Sterling Financial and its former CEO and CFO in the matter. The decision caps a very successful month for the firm, during which Wilson Sonsini securities litigators obtained three Ninth Circuit affirmances of securities class action dismissals.

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Alerts

On May 5, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an important decision in City of Dearborn Heights Act 345 Police & Fire Retirement System v. Align Technology, Inc., et al., affirming the dismissal of a complaint for alleged false statements related to goodwill accounting under Section 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati represented Align Technology and its former CEO and CFO in the matter. The decision is noteworthy because it concluded, in a matter of first impression for the Ninth Circuit, that the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Omnicare, Inc. v. Laborers Dist. Council Constr. Ind. Pension Fund,¹which set the standard for pleading an opinion claim under Section 11 of the Securities Act of 1933, also applies to cases alleging false statements of opinion brought under Section 10(b). The panel also overruled part of a prior Ninth Circuit opinion in Reese v. Malone,²to the extent Reese permitted plaintiffs to plead falsity by alleging that "there is no reasonable basis" for a statement of belief or opinion, as that holding is "clearly irreconcilable" with Omnicare, which held this type of pleading is only permissible under an omissions theory.

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