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Kenton Knop focuses his practice on matters concerning the sale of goods and related commercial litigation, data privacy laws and data breach response, intellectual property and antitrust matters. As part of his commercial practice he drafts and reviews distribution agreements, sales terms and conditions, confidentiality agreements, and license agreements. In addition, Kenton’s practice includes non-profit organization law, including counseling clients on establishing non-profit organizations and obtaining 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status for such organizations. Kenton supports a number of the firm’s Japanese-owned clients and his fluency in Japanese enables him to effectively communicate.

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Prior to joining Masuda Funai, Kenton served as Associate Special Counsel to the three co-lead counsel for the Auto Dealership Plaintiffs in the Automotive Parts Antitrust Litigation, in scores of antitrust cases that are an outgrowth of one of the largest international antitrust investigations in history. In 2015, he was a summer associate with Masuda Funai.

Kenton currently serves as the Director of the Chicago Chapter of The Japanese American Citizen League (JACL) and he is a member of the firm’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee. Before law school, Kenton participated in the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program as a Coordinator for International Relations for the City of Asahikawa, Hokkaido, Japan. Kenton currently holds Level One certification for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test and Level Two certification for the Test of Proficiency in Korean.

Practice Areas

Education

  • University of Wisconsin Law School, J.D., cum laude, 2016: Order of the Coif; Editor in Chief - Wisconsin International Law Journal
  • University of Wisconsin, B.A., Japanese, 2007
  • Nanzan University, Study Abroad (2006-2007)

Admissions

  • Illinois
  • California
  • Wisconsin
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of Illinois
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Wisconsin
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan

Languages

  • Japanese
  • Korean
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Experience

Experience

Advised a multinational technology and materials company in its steps to achieve compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

Advised an international electronic entertainment company on U.S. laws and regulations applicable to its bringing a number of its entertainment properties to the North American market, with an emphasis on online gaming and E-Sports competition sectors.

Represented a machine tools manufacturer in its successful resolution of an unpaid item collections matter through commercial arbitration.

Advised a machinery manufacturer on its response to a business email compromise (BEC) incident and recovery of amounts owed for sale of products.

Memberships

Memberships

American Bar Association
Chicago Bar Association
Illinois State Bar Association
Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), Chicago Chapter - Director
State Bar of Wisconsin
Professional Activities
Legal Updates/Client Advisories
U.S. State Data Privacy Law Updates for 2024
Since the passage of the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) in 2018 and its amendment in 2020 by the California Privacy Rights Act…
Preparing for the California Privacy Rights Act
New changes are coming to California’s data privacy laws in 2023, and companies doing business in California need to start preparing now to…
Beware of Business E-mail Compromise ("BEC") Schemes
Executive Summary Business e-mail compromise (“BEC”) schemes have become cybercriminals’ method of choice in defrauding businesses by…
EPA Issues Extension for PIP (3:1) Compliance to March 8, 2022
As an update to our March 26, 2021 and September 3, 2021 Client Advisories, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) on September…
EPA PIP (3:1) No Action Assurance Period Set to Expire September 4, 2021
Executive Summary As was previously reported in our March 26, 2021 client advisory, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”)…
"51% of U.S. Based Businesses Targeted by Cyber Attacks - A Checklist to Protect Your Company from Risk"
Executive Summary Cybersecurity risks are not a brand-new phenomenon. However, the number of reported cybersecurity incidents has…
EPA Issues No Action Assurance Reprieve for PIP (3:1) Products
Executive Summary EPA Final Rule: On January 21, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) promulgated five final rules…
Equal Opportunity Requirements for Government Contracts
Executive Summary With the Biden Administration’s stated goal of advancing equity in government contracting operations, businesses…
Risks and Compliance Under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act: No Actual Harm Required for Private Cause of Action
Executive Summary Recent rulings from the Illinois Supreme Court and the Seventh and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals that actual harm…
An Overview of U.S. Data Breach Notification Laws
Executive Summary In recent years, news of large-scale breaches of customer data held by retailers such as Target and The Home Depot…
Boilerplate Bulletin: The Dangers of Unilateral Change-in-Terms Clauses
Executive Summary Parties to commercial contracts are increasingly using unilateral modification or change-in-terms clauses to…
EU Court of Justice Invalidates US-EU Privacy Shield and Spares SCCs in Landmark Schrems II Data Privacy Decision
Executive Summary The Court of Justice of the European Union invalidated the US-EU Privacy Shield mechanism for compliance with the…
COVID-19 Sent Many Employees Home to Work Remotely - Remember to Reimburse their Expenses
Executive Summary Illinois law requires employers to reimburse employees for work-related expenses, subject to certain restrictions…
A Brief Overview of The California Consumer Privacy Act
The California Consumer Privacy Act, or “CCPA” for short, is a comprehensive data privacy law which was enacted in June 2018 and will go…
7th Circuit Rules on Sufficiency of UCC Financing Statement
Secured creditors filing a UCC financing statement under Article 9 must include a description of the collateral. (UCC 9-502) UCC Article 9…
Department of Justice, Antitrust Division Issues New Guidance Promoting Effective Corporate Antitrust Compliance Programs
On July 11, 2019, the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (the “Division”) announced sweeping changes to its approach to…
Illinois Supreme Court Issues Ruling in Landmark Biometric Information Privacy Case
Executive Summary The Illinois Supreme Court's recent ruling that actual harm is not required to establish a cause of action for a…
Events
Complimentary Commercial, Competition & Trade Webinar: Protecting Trade Secrets in the Digital Age
6.27.24
Kenton Knop Joshua Wilson Trade secrets are one of the most valuable assets for a business, but they can also be one of the…
Complimentary Webinar: Be A-OK for CCPA: Preparing for the California Consumer Privacy Act
12.12.19
The California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) will go into effect on January 1, 2020 and will change the way businesses both inside and…
News
Masuda Funai Hosted the 2022 Intellectual Property Seminar
Masuda, Funai, Eifert & Mitchell, Ltd. hosted the 2022 Intellectual Property seminar on October 20, 2022 in Novi, MI. An English session…
Kenton Knop Admitted to Practice Law in California
Masuda, Funai, Eifert & Mitchell, Ltd. is pleased to announce that Kenton P. Knop has been admitted to practice law in the State of…
Kenton Knop and Koichiro Sato Co-Authored an Article in Kokusai – Shoji – Homu
The article "An Overview of Data Breach Notification Laws in the U.S. and Japan" is featured in Kokusai - Shoji - Homu (International…
Publications
Distinctions