Goodwin has steadily expanded from its Boston roots, arriving at its current status as a national player in several key markets and industries, most notably the finance and life sciences sectors. It now houses litigation stars in nearly every one of its offices on the East and West Coasts. The firm receives resounding applause from clients, as well as peers, some of whom have worked alongside the firm on matters. “I was co-counsel with Goodwin on
pro bono federal immigration litigation,” testifies one such peer. “The team of Goodwin attorneys who worked on the case were phenomenal. [They brought] great analytical, research, writing and oral advocacy skills.”
Boston’s Christopher Holding is the co-head of the firm’s antitrust practice and manages a practice largely devoted to the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry. In a case illustrative of the link between antitrust issues regarding patents, Holding represents Actavis in a challenge to the settlement of patent litigation between Shire and Actavis about the drug Intuniv. The plaintiffs assert that the agreement contained an implicit reverse payment that delayed generic entry. Holding also represents Teva in a pharmaceutical antitrust case raising reverse-payment allegations. The litigation was mostly settled after years of litigation, but a number of indirect purchasers who opted out of the settlement challenged the opt-out procedures set by the district court, and that challenged was briefed and argued in the Second Circuit in 2019.
Anthony Fiotto, the Boston-based co-chair of the firm’s securities and white-collar capacity, recently achieved significant New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division and Court of Appeals victories on behalf of The Pyramid Companies, a developer of shopping malls with 16 properties that are separately owned by partnerships, with Pyramid being the majority partner in each. The dispute began when a minority partner sought to dissolve and force the liquidation of one of the partnerships on numerous grounds.
The securities practice is also exemplified by Richard Strassberg in the New York office, whose practice also crosses over into more of a white-collar crime element, an area in which is revered by many other leaders in this practice. “Rich Strassberg is very smart and great with clients,” enthuses one peer. Another confirms, “We worked side-by-side with Richard on a large securities class action -- we represented the company and he represented an individual -- securing dismissal of all counts.” Other New York-based securities partners include Marshall Fishman, who represents Citibank and multiple affiliates in connection with a number of lawsuits that have been brought by the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management and Economic Board Special Claims Committee, and Brian Pastuszenski, who is called out as “fantastic,” with one peer testifying, “I see him in a ton of work. He should be on your national securities list for sure.”
In the firm’s DC office, Thomas Hefferon is nationwide litigation and trial counsel to Think Finance, a provider of technology, analytics, and marketing services to financial businesses in the consumer lending industry. Hefferon has coordinated the simultaneous defense of three major litigation matters: a lawsuit by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a lawsuit by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and a substantial number of coordinated consumer putative class actions—all in separate federal courts across the country. All three controversies concern the alleged improper issuance of consumer loans, allegedly in violation of state usury and licensing laws. Also in DC,
Willy Jay is a unanimously revered appellate practitioner. One peer, also one of DC’s leading appellate lawyers, raves, “I’m a HUGE fan of Willy. Clients love him, he’s like a walking encyclopedia of the law. He’s just awesome, very charming.” Jay is equally celebrated for his demeanor as well as his acumen; one peer testifies, “We co-wrote briefs with Goodwin, and we have a great relationship with them. Willy Jay in particular is just personally a very good guy and is a team player and not about trying to take all the credit for anything. He was very gracious in recognizing the contribution that we made to the briefs in a way that frankly you don’t always see.” In one recent matter, Jay represented the Town of Aquinnah, Massachusetts, in successfully reinstating its injunction against a Native American tribe seeking to build a casino in the Town without obtaining local permits. Jay was retained after the Town (and other parties) lost an appeal on the issue.
Goodwin has become a notably strong player in the intellectual property capacity as well, a status recognized by both peers and clients. One such client testifies, “Goodwin handled a patent infringement suit against Apple in the Eastern District of Texas on encryption/decryption technology. Their handling of the matter was outstanding and resulted in a $308 million verdict.” One celebrated practitioner in this area, New York’s
Elizabeth Holland represents plaintiff Novartis in a patent infringement action filed in June 2020 against Regeneron Pharmaceuticals in the District Court for the Northern District of New York. Novartis seeks damages and an injunction for Regeneron’s sales of its newly-launched EYLEA Pre-Filled Syringe (PFS) product. Holland also represents this client as co-counsel as a defendant in an antitrust-oriented action filed by Regeneron in the Southern District of New York. Regeneron’s suit is based on the allegation that Novartis sought to hamper Regeneron’s ability to bring its EYLEA PFS to market through assertion of a patent that Regeneron argues is unenforceable. In addition, Regeneron argues that Novartis worked together with another company to impair Regeneron’s ability to market this product. The IP capacity is also bookended on the West Coast by
Neel Chatterjee, a Silicon Valley-based star who not surprisingly attends to a largely tech-based practice. Chatterjee represented the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, a public higher education and research institution in India. After 11 years of litigation, the Northern District of California definitively rejected the plaintiff's claims that the client breached an oral joint venture agreement, breached a nondisclosure agreement, and misappropriated the plaintiff's trade secrets. Chatterjee also represents Facebook, recently obtaining dismissal of a multi-patent case brought against the social media behemoth.
