Overview
Gary Klubok is a Washington, D.C., and Miami lawyer and member of Holland & Knight's Litigation and Dispute Resolution Team. Mr. Klubok's practice focuses on data privacy and litigation.
As a U.S. and Europe Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US, CIPP/E), Mr. Klubok advises clients on U.S. federal and state privacy laws, providing guidance on incident response to data breaches, including breach notification obligations and related regulatory matters.
Mr. Klubok has significant experience in consumer protection enforcement and regulatory investigations, particularly involving alleged unfair or deceptive acts or practices under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act and compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). He regularly advises clients facing scrutiny from the FTC and state attorneys general in data breach contexts.
In addition, Mr. Klubok has extensive litigation experience representing domestic and foreign clients. He advises on a wide range of disputes, including unfair and deceptive acts and practices, tortious interference, contractual disputes, breaches of fiduciary duty, derivative actions, ultra vires actions, civil fraud, civil conspiracy, enforcement of foreign judgments, non-compete agreements, international child abduction cases and negligence.
While in law school, Mr. Klubok was selected to intern for the Honorable John D. Couriel of the Florida Supreme Court as part of the court's Internship Program for Distinguished Florida Law Students. He also interned for the Honorable Jose E. Martinez of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Community Involvement
Mr. Klubok is the founder and leader of the nonprofit organization Homeless Helpers, which gives supplies and food directly to the homeless in Virginia and Washington, D.C. He also maintains an active pro bono practice. Mr. Klubok was a pro bono attorney with Florida's guardian ad litem office, where he helped represent abused, abandoned or neglected children in Miami-Dade County courts. In addition, Mr. Klubok has provided pro bono assistance to asylum seekers, particularly Spanish-speaking clients, and parents in Hague Convention child abduction proceedings. One client in a Hague Convention matter thanked Mr. Klubok for Holland & Knight's "wonderful humanitarian gesture" for helping to return the client's child after 15 months. Since beginning his legal career, Mr. Klubok has contributed more than 100 hours of pro bono service annually.
In addition, Mr. Klubok volunteered as a big brother in Big Brothers Big Sisters of the National Capital Area from 2024 to 2025. An avid animal advocate, he donates monthly to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) and the Humane Society of the United States. He has served multiple times as a judge for the "Do the Write Thing" writing competition, part of the National Campaign to Stop Violence.
Media Coverage: Litigation
- Law360, "Competing Miami Christmas Event Can Go On, Court Says," November 28, 2023
- Law.com, "Holland & Knight Prevails in Round 1 of Holiday Lawsuit Brought by 'Santa'," November 13, 2023
Representative Experience
- Represented companies before the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and state attorneys general on whether large-scale data breaches resulted from alleged unfair practices
- Counseled companies before the FTC and state attorneys general in investigations assessing alleged deceptive or unfair cybersecurity practices
- Counseled companies on incident response after data breaches, including advising on cyber-forensic investigations
- Advised a company before the FTC regarding whether its business practices violated the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)
- Counseled companies before the FTC regarding whether their advertisements were deceptive or misleading
- Advised a company on how to join the Data Privacy Framework for personal data transfers from the European Union to the U.S.
- Reviewed privacy notices to assess whether they comply with applicable federal and state privacy laws
- Advised multiple companies on reporting requirements to states, individuals and regulators following data breaches
- Helped design a regulatory database for a major national bank to track and manage compliance obligations across its financial operations, including compliance with laws regarding data privacy and unfair and deceptive practices
- Successfully drafted and argued a novel motion in Florida establishing that personal jurisdiction must be established before post-judgment discovery may proceed against foreign defendants, even where a foreign judgment had been domesticated in Florida against those foreign defendants
- Successfully obtained a temporary restraining order blocking an organization from voting to remove board members in violation of the organization's bylaws
- Defeated an emergency preliminary injunction seeking to shut down a client's holiday festival in Miami weeks before opening
- Won a motion for judgment on the pleadings, receiving dismissal of a multimillion-dollar negligence lawsuit
- Successfully represented a Latin American company in a federal action involving trademark and copyright claims arising from the misuse of intellectual property to wrongly disrupt and block sales by a large global e-commerce retailer
- Successfully represented a sports agency, bringing breach of a non-compete agreement against a former agent
- Brought a lawsuit against members of an organization's board of directors for breaches of fiduciary duties
- Represented a Brazilian company in a lawsuit related to commercial fraud from an alleged bribery scheme
- Brought and defended against multiple lawsuits alleging civil fraud and conspiracy in business contexts
- Successfully represented a parent in a Hague Convention child-abduction case by obtaining a court order requiring the child's return to the parent in Brazil
Credentials
- University of Miami School of Law, J.D., magna cum laude
- John Jay College of Criminal Justice, M.S., Protection Management, emphasis in Emergency Management
- John Jay College of Criminal Justice, B.S., Security Management, with honors
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
- International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) Certified Information Privacy Professional/United States (CIPP/US)
- International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) Certified Information Privacy Professional/Europe (CIPP/E)
- International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP)
- American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA)
- Humane World for Animals (formerly the Humane Society of the United States)
- English