Los Angeles boutique Willenken prides itself on being 100% minority owned as well as its nimble structure that affords it the opportunity to flex its trial capabilities on a frequent basis. While the firm’s primary client base is largely composed of entities domiciled in the same South California environs, the small team is logging big accomplishments of late, with its name and reputation extending well beyond the Golden State borders. A peer quips, “You go to other, bigger, firms, and you say, ‘OK, I’ve got a case that’s going to trial – who’s going to do it?’ and the answer is ‘Uhhh, I don’t know!’ Are you kidding me? That’s not the case with Willenken. Obviously not all of their cases go trial, but they are
ready!” It is also noted that the firm is getting more involved in entertainment litigation of late. Willenken makes the leap to “Highly Recommended” in this edition, an impressive jump for the compact shop.
The most emblematic example of the firm’s increased reach is its victory, as co-counsel, for a Chicago-based entity in Delaware Chancery Court: a Willenken team led by prolific trial lawyer
Paul Loh and also composed of Jason Wilson,
Amelia Sargent, and Kenneth Trujillo-Jamison scored big for AbbVie in a long-running and hard-fought commercial case concerning the drug Lupron. This drug was manufactured by Takeda, whose factory got shut down due to regulatory issues, causing a major shortage of Lupron. AbbVie sued for all the lost business, triumphing in March 2024 with a $500 million verdict. The firm’s Delaware co-counsel in the matter testifies on the team’s behalf: “They did a great job, those people are very smart, so it was really cool to work with them and get such a good result. The lead lawyer was Paul Loh – he is great.” The same team members, plus
Eileen Ahern, serve as trial counsel for toy company MGA Entertainment in an upcoming re-trial of a trademark dispute versus rapper and producer T. I. Harris et al. The re-trial centers around the question whether MGA’s L.O.L. Surprise! OMG Dolls infringed on the former pop group OMG Girlz intellectual property rights.
