Illinois

Bartlit Beck is celebrated among peers for forging a template of what many aspire to; the firm’s name is one of the most frequently referenced by maverick litigators who calve off of larger “Big Law” institutions and forge their own shops. One peer declares, “They set the standard for litigation boutiques in the US. Most people setting up litigation shops owe at least some debt to Bartlit Beck, whether they know it or not.” Ironically, the runaway success that the firm has experienced with its business model has caused it to outgrow its “boutique” status; the firm now has more than 40 partners practicing in its offices in Chicago and Denver. “Bartlit Beck has its offices in two great epicenters, but they’re barely doing any work that’s confined to either of these locales,” declares a peer. “They’re just an elite litigation shop that’s gone national, and their lawyers are on the road constantly. Wherever there are big trials, they will be there.” The firm continues its staggering run as being recognized as one of Benchmark’s Top 20 Trial Firms every year since 2015 with yet another appearance in 20215.
     Bartlit Beck also logs another candidate to Benchmark’s Top 100 Trial Lawyers with the addition of Sean Gallagher this year. Gallagher’s addition is considered long overdue by some, and is enhanced by a raft of peer and client commendations. One client sums Gallagher up as “a highly skilled first-chair trial lawyer, a great listener, a very clear communicator.  The best trial lawyer at a firm of great trial lawyers.  [He is] Among the best in America.” Another raves, “[Sean is the] dictionary definition of the perfect lawyer: incredibly smart, [a] tremendous leader of his team, [with a] deep understanding of all aspects (legal and commercial) of a circumstance, [and with] creative solutions. And a gem of a human being.” Based in the Chicago office, Gallagher is lead trial counsel for Pratt & Whitney in environmental tort cases involving more than $1 billion in alleged property damage and personal-injury claims arising out of the declaration of a "cancer cluster" by the Florida Department of Health in a neighborhood near Pratt & Whitney's West Palm Beach facility. Claims involve complex allegations of water and soil contamination with radionuclides and other contaminants. Several hundred property owners sued individually and on behalf of a putative class of many thousands of plaintiffs. Andrew McNally, another Chicago partner, acts with Gallagher on this case. McNally is another favorite of clients, with one addressing him as “one of the smartest and hardest working lawyers I've worked with, and he really grasps complex scientific and medical issues quickly and thoroughly.” Another client testifies, “Andrew has an uncanny ability not only to find the ‘devil in the details’ of the evidentiary record, but also to communicate those details in a way that is easy for the client (or the court) to understand. He has done an exceptional job managing his team.” Rebecca Weinstein Bacon, also based in Chicago, has also been a steady mention on the Top 100 Trial Lawyers and on the Top 250 Women Litigators in the US. “Rebecca is a pleasure to work with,” confirms a client. “She's responsive, thoughtful, brilliant, warm, and very client focused.” Bacon, along with Adam Hoeflich, is representing Walmart in putative class-action lawsuits claiming that Walmart is violating consumer protection statutes in various jurisdictions due alleged discrepancies between the prices posted on Walmart's shelves and the prices actually charged at the register. Plaintiffs claim these discrepancies add up to hundreds of millions of dollars (or more) each year.
     The Denver office boasts its own stacked deck of stars. Glen Summers and Karma Giulianellirepresent a class of California residents who used mobile devices with the Android operating system who allege that Google has designed the Android operating system to constantly take information from plaintiffs’ phones without regard to whether they are on WiFi or cellular connections. Unbeknownst to people who use Android devices, this constant surveillance, and the transmission of information to Google consumes plaintiffs’ cellular data – data that they purchased, and that Google has consumed without permission.  Trial is scheduled for June 2025 in Superior Court of California. Giulianelli, an “antitrust rockstar,” also works with Sundeep “Rob” Addy as counsel for a group of large corporations, including American Airlines, who have brought state and federal price-fixing claims against over 50 generic drug manufacturers for engaging in a wide-ranging conspiracy to fix the price of hundreds of generic medications since at least May 2009. These agreements are claimed to have led to staggering price increases for critical medications and forced consumers and their health plans to shoulder the cost.  Kat Hacker serves as lead national coordinating counsel on the fraudulent transfer claims for three DuPont entities in over 6,000 cases pending across the country related to per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). In these cases, plaintiffs allege that DuPont engaged in a series of corporate transactions to try to fraudulently transfer assets to avoid paying potential judgments. “She is an excellent oral advocate and can distill complex issues in a very simple way to appeal to a jury,” declares a client on Hacker’s behalf. “She has expertise in trial graphics that and has quite the depth of knowledge and experience in studying the best graphics for jury trials.” Andrew Baak represents UnitedHealth Group in a dispute under the False Claims Act brought by the US DoJ and a purported whistleblower to recover treble damages and civil penalties. Plaintiffs are seeking damages for amounts they claim were unlawfully retained from the federal Medicare program by UnitedHealth Group and its affiliates involved in the Medicare Advantage Program. Plaintiffs allege that UnitedHealth submitted invalid diagnostic data related to the health status of patients enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans. Joseph Doman, a Denver partner making his debut as a future star in this edition, is championed by a client as “a wonderful litigator that understands how to weave a story and [provides] great client service.”