Cohen Milstein is an American law firm politically notable for its pro bono work with left-of-center nonprofits and cases against former President Donald Trump.

Background

Founded in 1969, Cohen Milstein (formally Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC) is a law firm that specializes in class-action lawsuits against large businesses and business groups such as Chipotle Mexican Grill, the Dairy Farmers of America, Boeing, BlackRock, Citigroup, and Facebook. ^{1 2 3}

As of October 31, 2022, the firm claims to employ over 100 attorneys in offices in Washington, D.C.; New York; Philadelphia; Chicago; Raleigh; and Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. ⁴

Pro Bono Work

Cohen Milstein often provides pro bono representation for left-of-center nonprofits. Organizations with which the firm regularly partners include the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the NAACP, the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, and Human Rights Defense Center. ⁵

Anti-Trump Litigation

In 2018, Cohen Milstein, along with Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and Gupta Wessler PLLC, represented the state of Maryland and the District of Columbia in a case alleging that then-President Donald Trump violated the United States Constitution’s Emolument’s Clause when receiving payments from foreign and domestic governments in connection with the Trump International Hotel. ⁶

In 2021, Cohen Milstein, along with the NAACP and U.S. Representative Bennie Thompson (D-MS), filed a lawsuit against Trump, Rudy Giuliani, the Proud Boys, and the Oath Keepers in the Federal District Court for the District of Columbia. The suit alleges that the respondents conspired to incite a riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2020, to prevent the U.S. Congress from certifying the results of the 2020 Presidential Election in violation of the Ku Klux Klan Act. ⁷

People

Steven J. Toll

Steven J. Toll is the managing partner at Cohen Milstein, a member of firm’s executive committee, and co-chair of its Securities Litigation and Investor Protection practice group. Additionally, Toll philanthropically supports the Children’s Hospital National Medical Center, and has set up an endowment there in his daughter’s name for the purpose of treating leukemia patients. ⁸

Victoria S. Nugent

Victoria S. Nugent is a partner of Cohen Milstein, as well as a member of its executive committee. Additionally, Nugent is a co-chair of the firm’s Consumer Protection practice group and immediate past co-chair of its Public Client practice group. Before joining the firm in 2000, Nugent worked for Public Citizen, a left-of-center advocacy and lobbying organization, and worked with the Public Justice Foundation as part of a fellowship sponsored by the National Association for Public Interest Law. Additionally, since 2018, Nugent has been a member of the board of directors of the latter foundation; since 2019, a member of the Bar’s Legal Ethics Committee; and since 2022, has been a member of The American Law Institute. Previously, from 2012 to 2019, Nugent served on the District of Columbia Bar Committee on the Rules of Professional Conduct. ⁹

Benjamin D. Brown

Benjamin D. Brown is a partner of Cohen Milstein, a member of its executive committee, and co-chair of its Antitrust practice group. Additionally, Brown is an adjunct professor at Georgetown Law School and a member of the advisory board of the Institute for Consumer Antitrust Studies at Loyola University Chicago School of Law. Before joining the firm in 2005, Brown worked for four years as a trial attorney with the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice, and before that as a Special Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia. ¹⁰

1. “Cases.” CohenMilstein. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.cohenmilstein.com/cases/?status=Past%20Success
2. “Leopold Law Firm to Merge with Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC.” Business Wire. February 12, 2014. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20140212005445/en/Leopold-Law-Firm-to-Merge-with-Cohen-Milstein-Sellers-Toll-PLLC
3. “About Us.” CohenMilstein. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.cohenmilstein.com/about-us
4.  “About Us.” CohenMilstein. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.cohenmilstein.com/about-us
5. “About Us.” CohenMilstein. Accessed October 31, 2022.

   https://www.cohenmilstein.com/about-us

6. “Trump Loses Bid to Dismiss Hotel Emoluments Case, Law360.” CohenMilstein. July 25, 2018. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.cohenmilstein.com/update/%E2%80%9Ctrump-loses-bid-dismiss-hotel-emoluments-case%E2%80%9D-law360
7. King, Maya. “NAACP sues Trump and Giuliani after Jan. 6 riots.” Politico. February 16, 2021. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.politico.com/news/2021/02/16/naacp-trump-giuliani-capitol-riots-469077
8. “Steven J. Toll.” CohenMilstein. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.cohenmilstein.com/professional/steven-j-toll
9. ^[1] “Victoria S. Nugent.” CohenMilstein. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.cohenmilstein.com/professional/victoria-s-nugent
10. “Benjamin D. Brown.” CohenMilstein. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.cohenmilstein.com/professional/benjamin-d-brown