Litigation Department of the Year (General) Finalist: Kirkland & Ellis
Kirkland was named as a finalist for the “Litigation Department of the Year (General)” award as part of New York Law Journal’s New York Legal Awards. Sandra Goldstein participated in this Q&A.
What are some of the department’s most satisfying successes of the past year and why?
Several matters demonstrate our talent, grit, creative thinking, and tremendous cross-practice and multi-generational strength. For example, we secured a Second Circuit appellate victory for Constellation Brands just over a year after winning a unanimous jury verdict in a major trademark infringement and breach of contract case brought by Grupo Modelo relating to whether hard seltzer is considered beer under the contract. We also won a decisive jury verdict in favor of Take-Two Interactive Software, and its subsidiary 2K Games, in a closely watched copyright lawsuit brought by a tattoo artist who had inked tattoos on LeBron James and several other NBA players concerning whether it was copyright infringement for Take-Two to realistically depict the basketball players in its basketball simulation video game, NBA 2K. The team obtained a complete dismissal with prejudice of a securities class action against Target and certain of its executive officers relating to the COVID-19 Pandemic and involving a $25 billion stock drop. We also had a major trial victory for Teva Pharmaceuticals in litigation against the former stockholders of Ception Therapeutics, which Teva acquired through its subsidiary Cephalon, along with rights to Reslizumab, a then-promising monoclonal antibody therapy. That team then successfully defended the trial win in the Delaware Supreme Court. Another team won precedent-setting trial and appellate victories for pharmaceutical company AIM ImmunoTech in its proxy contest against activists. We also succeeded on behalf of Fortress Credit Corporation in defeating Cohen Realty Enterprises’ action to enjoin what has been reported as the largest UCC foreclosure sale in history. It has been particularly rewarding to see our younger partners taking lead roles at trial, successfully arguing key motions, whittling away at claims, defeating class certification and securing case dismissals.
A prospective client in crisis calls and asks why your team should be retained. What is your answer?
A: Lawyers at every firm can do legal research, and a lot of law firms are well respected and do interesting work for high-profile clients. What makes us different, however, and why clients keep coming back to Kirkland, is that we have ensured, through our national and global platform and training system, that clients have access to the very top legal talent in all practice areas and markets, with lawyers across generations who are intensely focused on quality and client service. This focus is ingrained in our culture and reflected in the way we train our attorneys and staff our cases. For example, because our matters are leanly staffed, our junior attorneys gain experience faster than those at other firms, and are involved earlier with clients, building connections and developing a more robust understanding of client needs and what ultimately matters to them. Undoubtedly, given the complexity of the litigation we handle, a variety of legal issues and practices come into play throughout the life cycle of a case, such as financing; corporate governance; executive compensation; government, regulatory, and internal investigations; and restructuring. We have incredible bench strength across all of these areas, and our clients benefit from this differentiated and seamless representation.
What traits do you respect most in opposing firms and lawyers?
Integrity and professionalism.
What is the firm doing to ensure that future generations of litigators are ready to take the helm?
A: At Kirkland, our top priority is training and providing our lawyers with significant responsibility early in their careers and with many opportunities to learn and grow. At some other firms, junior associates may be assigned to a large team with minimum responsibility and client interaction. But at Kirkland, our associates take ownership of the direction of their careers by being able to choose their assignments through our open assignment system. Through KITA, the firm’s litigation training program, we prepare our associates for real-world trials through comprehensive training, including an annual mock-trial experience in which actors play the roles of fact witnesses, genuine experts are retained, and firm partners serve as judges and provide ongoing critique and feedback. Through both the open assignment system and training curriculum, attorneys develop skills and assume various responsibilities early on, such as defending depositions, directly engaging with clients, and even presenting oral arguments.
