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Ben is a versatile litigator and former Silicon Valley in-house counsel focused on complex litigation, appellate and critical-issue advocacy, and regulatory investigations. Ben joins King & Spalding from Google, where he helped design and execute the company’s AI regulatory strategy. He has extensive experience helping clients inside and outside the technology sector navigate issues of administrative law, antitrust, consumer protection, privacy, and securities. Ben draws on his in-house experience to drive comprehensive client solutions that address legal, business, and reputational risk.
Ben was one of Google’s first AI regulatory lawyers. There, he led cross-functional teams responding to AI inquiries from regulators around the world, and, working closely with senior executives and business leaders, he helped develop and manage the company’s overarching AI regulatory strategy. Beyond AI, Ben directed defense strategy on litigation and regulatory matters arising under Section 5 of the FTC Act 5, state unfair and deceptive acts statutes, the federal securities laws, and global privacy laws. He also managed strategic regulatory compliance enhancements, working closely with business units like marketing, human resources, and finance to deliver compliance readiness on-time and on-budget.
Before Google, Ben was a partner at a litigation boutique in Washington, D.C. There, in addition to trial court work, Ben argued numerous times in the federal courts of appeals, and was regularly tapped to draft appellate briefs, case-dispositive motions, and federal agency comments. He authored or co-authored winning briefs in the Supreme Court of the United States and in trial and appellate courts across the country.
Ben served as a law clerk for the Honorable A. Raymond Randolph of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He has been named “Litigator of the Week” by Global Competition Review and “Legal Lion” by Law360 for his work.
J.D., University of Pennsylvania Law School, summa cum laude
B.A., Amherst College
District of Columbia
New York
Supreme Court of the United States
U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
Law Clerk, Hon. A Raymond Randolph, U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
Intern, Hon. Richard J. Leon, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
Bar Association of San Francisco
March 11, 2025
Former Google Regulatory and Litigation Counsel Benjamin Softness Joins King & Spalding in San Francisco
March 11, 2025
Former Google Regulatory and Litigation Counsel Benjamin Softness joins the firm’s Business Litigation practice group in San Francisco
Represented a large technology client in federal and state consumer products investigations arising under Section 5 of the FTC Act and state consumer protection laws
Represented a large technology client in shareholder class action under federal securities laws
Represented AT&T in a Section 5 consumer-protection case through district court litigation and appeals
See moreMarch 11, 2025
Former Google Regulatory and Litigation Counsel Benjamin Softness Joins King & Spalding in San Francisco
March 11, 2025
Former Google Regulatory and Litigation Counsel Benjamin Softness joins the firm’s Business Litigation practice group in San Francisco
Represented a large technology client in federal and state consumer products investigations arising under Section 5 of the FTC Act and state consumer protection laws
Represented a large technology client in shareholder class action under federal securities laws
Represented AT&T in a Section 5 consumer-protection case through district court litigation and appeals
See moreMarch 11, 2025
Former Google Regulatory and Litigation Counsel Benjamin Softness Joins King & Spalding in San Francisco
March 11, 2025
Former Google Regulatory and Litigation Counsel Benjamin Softness joins the firm’s Business Litigation practice group in San Francisco
J.D., University of Pennsylvania Law School, summa cum laude
B.A., Amherst College
District of Columbia
New York
Supreme Court of the United States
U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
Law Clerk, Hon. A Raymond Randolph, U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
Intern, Hon. Richard J. Leon, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
Bar Association of San Francisco