Lauren M. De Lilly

LAUREN DE LILLY works on a variety of commercial litigation and disputes cases, with her primary focus in trademark, advertising, and copyright law, where she assists clients to defend against class actions and to protect intellectual property rights. Lauren works with a broad range of clients, including those from the media and entertainment, consumer products and retail, real estate, private equity, and financial services industries. She has substantial experience in all stages of litigation and investigations, from initial fact investigation and drafting pleadings, through discovery and dispositive motion practice, to trial and post-trial work.

Lauren was ranked by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America (2026) for Commercial Litigation. In addition, she was recognized by Variety in its 2022 “Legal Impact Report,” which each year profiles lawyers who have made a significant impact on the entertainment industry through their work. Prior to joining Sidley, Lauren served as a law clerk at the USC Office of the General Counsel. Lauren earned her J.D. from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law, where she was Editor in Chief of the Southern California Interdisciplinary Law Journal. She graduated with a B.A., summa cum laude, in Political Science and American Studies and Ethnicity, also from the University of Southern California.

• Defending Capitol Records and UMG Recordings in a putative copyright class action filed by various artists that potentially has significant repercussions for the music industry. Sidley obtained an early order narrowing the case and effectively dismissing from the case the lead plaintiff – John Waite, the Grammy Award-nominated performer of the hit song “Missing You” – and related claims of a large portion of the putative class. In September 2022, the court granted Sidley’s summary judgment motions, and on January 27, 2023, the court denied plaintiffs’ motion for class certification, ruling that the case cannot proceed as a class action.
• Defending two leading music companies in a putative class action brought by recording artist David Marks, one of the original members of the Beach Boys, claiming that he and the putative class have systematically been underpaid royalties associated with streaming of recordings in other countries. The court granted Sidley’s motion to dismiss Marks’ First Amended Complaint; after he filed a Second Amended Complaint, the court dismissed it with prejudice. After Marks filed an appeal, the Ninth Circuit affirmed in part dismissal of Marks’ breach of contract and fraud claims.
• Representing electronics retailer Newegg.com in a class action alleging that millions of consumers made 40 million purchases of approximately 200,000 products based on “fictitious former price information” over a nearly four-year period. Sidley obtained summary judgment against the first named plaintiff. Following substitution of a new named plaintiff, the parties briefed summary judgment as to the second named plaintiff and class certification. Sidley then filed a motion to dismiss under California’s five-year rule to bring a case to trial, which is currently being briefed.
• Represented a cosmetics and skincare brand in a trademark infringement and unfair competition action in the Central District of California. Sidley obtained partial summary judgment on the plaintiff’s damages theories for corrective advertising and a reasonable royalty. 
• Obtained dismissal with prejudice on behalf of New York Life Insurance Company in a putative class action filed in the Central District of California alleging that our client deceptively marketed AARP-branded life insurance and health insurance policies to a class of elderly California consumers.
• Represented a global independent music company in a lawsuit brought by Peter Byrne and the heir of Rob Fisher, members of the band Naked Eyes. Plaintiffs seek termination of our client’s rights to various sound recordings featuring Naked Eyes, including their top 40 single “Always Something There to Remind Me.”

• Public Counsel Leadership Council (2022–present)

Lauren represented Detroit public school students in Gary B. v. Whitmer, a class action lawsuit against then Michigan Governor Richard Snyder and state education officials, alleging that the State of Michigan denies children their constitutional right to literacy under the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the U.S. Constitution. In April 2020, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that the Due Process Clause confers a fundamental right of access to literacy. This groundbreaking decision marks the first time any court has held that there is a fundamental federal right of access to literacy. The team was recognized by Public Counsel with the 2019 Pro Bono Award and was commended for “working tirelessly” to defend the students’ right to receive a basic education.

She was also a member of the team that obtained summary judgment on behalf of a class of approximately 900 Cambodian nationals living in the United States, many of whom fled the brutal Khmer Rouge regime. Class members are subject to removal orders but have lived peaceably in the United States for years because the government was unable to execute their removal. The summary judgment granted on March 4, 2020, by U.S. District Judge Cormac J. Carney of the Central District of California holds that procedural due process requires the government to provide written notice to class members before re-detaining them for purposes of removal, effectively making permanent the temporary restraining order in the case and minimizing the substantial risk that the government would erroneously deport class members with valid challenges to their removal orders.