The Susman Godfrey Difference
Susman Godfrey is America’s premier litigation boutique. Our talented group of lawyers handle high-stakes litigation for plaintiffs and defendants nationwide. With over 170 trial lawyers in four offices from coast to coast, we handle the most challenging cases throughout the country. We offer a broad range of creative, flexible fee structures which align our and our clients’ interests. Traditional hourly billing accounts for a small percentage of our work. Because we often share risk with our clients, we are committed to their success.
At Susman Godfrey, we approach each case as if it is headed for trial. Everything that we do is designed to prepare our attorneys to persuade a jury. When you are represented by Susman Godfrey, the opposing party will know that you are willing to take the case all the way to a verdict if necessary—this fact alone can make a good settlement possible.
We’re Number 1
Susman Godfrey has a longstanding reputation as one of the premier firms of trial lawyers in the US. We have been named the nation’s best litigation boutique by Vault 13 years in a row (every year since they started ranking). Benchmark Litigation named us Trial Firm of the Year in 2022 and Commercial Litigation Firm of the Year in 2023. The American Lawyer named us Boutique Litigation Firm of the Year in 2019 and 2023. Our lawyers are regularly recognized by legal media and researchers as leaders in their field.
Unique Perspective
Susman Godfrey represents both plaintiffs and defendants. We thrive on variety, flexibility, and creativity. Clients appreciate the insights that our broad experience brings. Our dual perspective informs not just our trial tactics, but also our approach to settlement negotiations and mediation presentations. We are successful in court because we understand our opponent’s case as well as our own.
Unparalleled Talent
Susman Godfrey prides itself on a talent pool as deep as any firm in the country. Clerking for a judge in the federal court system is considered to be the best training for a young trial attorney. Over 96% of our lawyers served in these highly sought-after clerkships after law school. Ten of our trial lawyers have clerked at the highest level—for Justices of the United States Supreme Court.
A Record of Winning
No matter the practice area or side of the courtroom, our lawyers are adept at becoming experts on the relevant subject matter, committing to the client’s ultimate goal, and working tirelessly to exceed expectations. Major victories include:
· Secured historic $787.5 million deal with Fox News Network to resolve defamation claims brought by client, Dominion Voting Systems.
· Secured landmark win for Flutter Entertainment in multi-billion dollar arbitration against Fox Sports Group.
· Achieved a groundbreaking $418 million joint settlement on behalf of a nationwide class of home sellers with the National Association of Realtors that resolveD claims in four antitrust class actions against NAR.
· Secure a first-of-its-kind dismissal of the FTC’s federal and administrative antitrust challenges to client ICE’s proposed $11+ billion acquisition of Black Knight, Inc.
· Won a $341 million jury verdict on behalf of Dutch telecommunications company Koninklijke KPN N.V. (KPN) in a breach of contract dispute with Samsung Electronics.
· Secured a $600 million settlement for residents of Flint, Michigan in the nationally followed Flint Water Crisis litigation.
· Serve as National Trial Counsel for Walmart in many high stakes legal matters.
· Won a $25.25 million jury verdict for client, Steven Lamar, in a contract and IP dispute with Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine over the iconic Beats headphones ― this verdict was also included on The National Law Journal’s ‘Top 100 Verdicts of the Year’ list.
· Secured a favorable settlement for defendant, Uber, in its epic battle against Google’s Waymo over self-driving car technology.
· Won a jury verdict valued at $160 million for General Electric in its legal battle against the Nebraska Investment Finance Authority.
· Secured one of the largest settlement awards ever to a single whistleblower in a False Claims Act case ― over $450 million from Novartis Pharmaceuticals, who was accused of defrauding Medicare and Medicaid by illegally paying kickbacks to pharmacies so they would recommend Novartis’s medications to doctors and patients.
· Secured a settlement valued at $100 million for a certified class of plaintiffs in a copyright infringement class action against well-known music streaming service, Spotify.
· Won a defense-side jury verdict on behalf of The Rawlings Company in a certified class action challenging the company’s classification of its employees. After a three-week jury trial in Kentucky state court, the jury decided in favor of the defense.
· Won a $50.3 million federal jury verdict for Green Mountain Glass, in a patent infringement lawsuit against Ardagh Glass. The verdict was #34 on National Law Journal’s “Top 100 Verdicts of 2017” list.
· Secured a $91.25 million settlement for insurance policy owners in 37 Besen Parkway, LLC v. John Hancock Life Insurance Company.
· Secured over $1.2 billion with several international automobile parts suppliers in the In Re Automotive Parts price-fixing class action.
· Recovered $40 million for a class of derivatives investors in a securities class action against Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. The deal is believed to be the largest recovery ever obtained on behalf of derivative investors in history.
Updated Oct 2024
Kirkland & Ellis LLP is a global law firm with more than 3,500 attorneys representing clients in private equity, M&A and other complex corporate transactions, litigation and dispute resolution/arbitration, restructuring, and intellectual property matters. The Firm has offices in 20 cities around the world: Austin, Bay Area, Beijing, Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Dallas, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Munich, New York, Paris, Riyadh, Salt Lake City, Shanghai and Washington, D.C.
Litigation:
Kirkland & Ellis is renowned for its experience in complex litigation and arbitration. The Firm believes that the best litigation results occur when the lawyers are fully prepared to try the case through verdict. Because of Kirkland’s trial-ready philosophy and training, the Firm is able to offer clients a deep bench of lawyers who have been taking cases to verdict since the early stages of their careers. Whether in the courtroom, at the bargaining table or helping clients avoid risks without litigation, Kirkland has a long and proven track record of generating successful results for clients in their most high-stakes cases matters.
The Litigation Practice Group comprises approximately 625 attorneys throughout the firm’s worldwide offices. Kirkland represents clients in trial and appellate courts at the federal and state level, before administrative tribunals, and in arbitrations and other dispute resolution proceedings. The Firm also represents clients in connection with proceedings involving government agencies, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, US Attorneys General Offices, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the New York Stock Exchange, the US Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission, the US Patent and Trademark Office, the US Department of Labor and the Internal Revenue Service.
Kirkland litigators have successfully litigated cases in virtually every substantive area and business segment including accountant liability, antitrust and competition, appellate, class action, mass tort and toxic tort, insurance, data privacy, labor and employment, breach of contract and securities litigation.
Kirkland has been recognized by clients and the media for its achievements in litigation:
Intellectual Property Litigation:
Kirkland & Ellis’ Intellectual Property Practice Group is one of the oldest such practices in a full-service firm in the country, having been an integral part of Kirkland since 1925. Kirkland has approximately 200 intellectual property lawyers who are experienced in a variety of technical disciplines and registered to practice before the US Patent and Trademark Office. More than 70 percent of the lawyers are engineers and scientists trained with degrees and professional backgrounds in technical areas. Kirkland has one of the most respected intellectual property litigation practices in the country, with particular experience in large-scale patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret misappropriation and advertising matters. The work of the group frequently extends to antitrust, securities/compliance, products liability and appellate matters. Kirkland’s experience in venues where IP cases are most often litigated is extensive. The Firm tries cases before juries, judges and arbitrators in venues across the country including state courts, district courts, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, the International Trade Commission and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Kirkland has one of the most active trial practices in the country. Our success rate at trial is among the best, with only a few of losses over the last 10 years despite handling some of the most challenging litigation cases in history.
The Intellectual Property Practice Group has been recognized by numerous publications for its achievements:
• In Managing Intellectual Property’s 2024 IP Stars, Kirkland was named as a Tier 1 firm for Copyright, ITC, Life Sciences, Patent Contentious and Trademark Contentious and was recognized in the U.S. for IP transactions and PTAB litigation.
• Kirkland was named to World Trademark Review magazine’s 2024 WTR 1000
list of the world’s top trademark law firms and was recognized as a Tier 1 firm for enforcement and litigation nationally and in New York.
• In 2024, Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) magazine recognized Kirkland in Tier 1 for Litigation, International Trade Commission and Trade Secrets for United States -National in its IAM Patent 1000 guide. The firm was also Tier 1 for Litigation in Illinois, New York and Washington, D.C., as well as Transactions in Illinois.
• World Intellectual Property Review (WIPR) recognized Kirkland & Ellis as a Tier 1 firm in its 2022 “Global Trade Secrets Rankings.”
Please visit our website at www.kirkland.com for additional information about Kirkland and office contact information.
Updated July 2024
King & Spalding helps leading companies advance complex business interests in more than 160 countries. Working across a highly integrated platform of more than 1,300 lawyers in 24 offices globally, we deliver tailored commercial solutions through world-class offerings and an uncompromising approach to quality and service.
Trial and Global Disputes: Our experienced disputes lawyers try and arbitrate high-stakes cases every year across the globe in the most challenging jurisdictions for corporate clients. Recognized for creativity, meticulous preparation, and top-rate advocacy, our lawyers help clients navigate the litigation lifecycle, working together from day one to identify business objectives, develop a strategy to meet those objectives, and then execute that strategy. With more than 450 lawyers in 17 offices worldwide, we are uniquely able to staff and manage large and cross-border disputes from filing, to trial, and through appeal. Our lawyers have a variety of expertise across substantive areas, including Appellate Law, Class Action Defense, Commercial Litigation, Construction & Engineering Disputes, Corporate & Securities Litigation, E-Discovery, Insolvency Litigation, Insurance Coverage & Recovery, Intellectual Property, International Arbitration, Labor & Employment, Product Liability, Professional Liability, and Toxic & Environmental Torts. Working together—one area of expertise informing another—our disputes lawyers provide clients with seamless and efficient representation in the most complex and sensitive matters.
Capabilities:
Government Matters: Clients ranging from Fortune Global 50 corporations to high-profile individuals in every region of the world entrust King & Spalding’s Government Matters practice to guide them through rapidly changing regulatory landscapes, complex investigations by U.S. and foreign enforcement authorities, highly sensitive internal investigations and related, often parallel civil proceedings.
Hundreds of lawyers across the United States, Europe and Asia bring decades of prior government service and industry experience to our regulatory and investigative practices, which serve the financial services, pharmaceutical and medical device, healthcare, energy, automotive and technology sectors in particular. The team includes six U.S. Attorneys, 24 Assistant U.S. Attorneys, and former senior officials from the highest ranks in regulatory and enforcement organizations that are most significant to our clients.
Our experienced team includes former leaders at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Commerce, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the Bank of England, the U.K’s Financial Reporting Council and the World Trade Organization.
Capabilities:
Corporate, Finance and Investments: Our Corporate, Finance and Investments team brings a collaborative approach to help clients execute complex, high-value transactions. We have a fully integrated platform with more than 330 lawyers in 17 offices, offering clients the benefit of global specialists with local knowledge and industry expertise. We work side by side with our clients to execute transactions efficiently and effectively—we understand what matters to both our clients and opposite parties and we explain the actual, practical risks to our clients.
Capabilities:
Updated Sep 2024
For Stanton LLP, results begin with relationships. The firm’s relationships are forged based on deep understanding, earned trust, and unwavering authenticity. They focus on creating bonds that span from the boardroom to the courtroom and beyond.
The firm boasts attorneys who have practiced law in Europe, Asia, and Australia; former state district court judges; a former Dallas County District Attorney; a former Dallas City Council member; and ten attorneys who have served as law clerks, including for the United States Court of Appeals, United States District Courts, and Texas Courts.
While the lawyers at Stanton LLP can support you in any dispute, they are best utilized on the toughest, most complex cases. They view themselves as legal special forces. They are a “go to” when clients or their current counsel need a fresh new approach, building a reputation for rescuing difficult cases and delivering results.
Business Disputes and Commercial Litigation: Litigation introduces uncertainty, risk, and distraction. Stanton LLP works to craft a legal strategy aligned with their client’s corporate values and objectives. Stanton LLP lawyers are adept at translating complex facts into clear trial strategies, persuasive arguments, and captivating stories so clients can concentrate on running their business, not their lawsuit.
Employment: Information is power, and employment litigation often centers on claims that departing executives have misappropriated trade secrets, intellectual property and confidential information. Clients rely on Stanton LLP for creative and strategic solutions because of their lawyers’ experience litigating conflicts over fiduciary duties, non-competition agreements, and business defamation. The goal of Stanton LLP is to help prevent litigation before it happens by taking the time to understand their clients’ business, reviewing current practices for potential liabilities, and crafting customized workforce policies and procedures.
Professional Reputation and Liability: Reputation is everything. For clients in public life, their standing in the community is priceless. Whether it is a company, C-suite executive, doctor, lawyer, or elected official, Stanton LLP’s lawyers are experienced at defending the character and integrity of clients at the courthouse, before government agencies and, more importantly, in the court of public opinion.