Molly A. Arranz

For Molly Arranz, being a lawyer is about being an advocate. Growing up, she witnessed legal challenges her father faced while he ran his own, small business—issues that resulted from his not finding necessary legal assistance for his company’s needs. Her decision to go to law school stemmed from her desire to address this gap and provide legal support for businesses like the one her father owned.

Molly is the chair of SmithAmundsen’s Cybersecurity & Data Privacy Service Group. She is a certified privacy professional (CIPP-US) and a recognized Privacy Law Specialist by the American Bar Association. Molly regularly advises companies about how to protect against, and respond to, cyber and privacy invasions, and has provided compliance counseling to a global provider of cloud services. Molly also counsels clients on compliance considerations involving consumer protection regulations, data privacy practices, notification and consent requirements, including the requirements of the Illinois Biometric Privacy Act (BIPA), and advertising regulations.

Molly is a partner in the firm’s Class Action Service Group. She has defended more than 80 class actions involving a range of legal theories, including privacy violations, consumer fraud, breach of contract, breach of warranty and misrepresentation. She defends clients in claims arising from BIPA, the Fair & Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), the Chicago Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance (RLTO), CERCLA, the Clean Water Act, and RCRA. She represents a wide variety of companies from small family-owned businesses to Fortune 500 companies.

In her career, Molly has also defended more than 75 mass tort cases involving claims arising from allegations of exposure to asbestos, silica and benzene.

Molly litigates in federal and state courts throughout the country. She briefed and then argued issues of statutory construction in front of the 11th Circuit, in a class action arising out of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and Federal Communication Commission regulations. In another class action arising from consumer claims, she first defeated class certification and then tried the case to a defense verdict. Thereafter, she briefed, argued and won the appeal before the D.C. Court of Appeals.

Outside of practicing law, Molly participates in community, school and church organizations. An avid sports fan, she has volunteered at her daughter’s school as an assistant basketball coach and is currently part of a women’s league north of the city.