Texas

Firm overview

Gibbs & Bruns LLP is a litigation boutique engaged exclusively in high-stakes business and commercial litigation.  The firm is acclaimed for its high-value and precedent-setting work across the banking, energy, technology, and financial services sectors, among others. Gibbs & Bruns is renowned for its signature lean trial teams and representation of both plaintiffs and defendants in complex matters. Representation of clients on both sides of the docket gives our trial lawyers unique insights into what motivates opponents in court and during settlement negotiations.

          As top-flight as it gets. A boutique staffed with outstanding lawyers.

          An excellent high-stakes litigation firm – top-notch across the board.

                                                                                                             Chambers USA

          Creative, resourceful, committed, responsive, talented across the board. 

          A pleasure to work with.

                                                                                                             Legal 500 US

Founded by Robin Gibbs, named “Father of the Litigation Boutique in Texas” by The Texas Lawbook, the firm sustains a forward-thinking culture of creativity and a personal approach to managing its client matters. Reciprocity is at the core of all of the firm’s client engagements. Risk sharing with clients and innovative fee arrangements are a hallmark of Gibbs & Bruns’ practice. The firm’s track record of successes for clients since 1983 attests to the talents, creativity, and dedication of the firm’s trial lawyers.
 

Recent results demonstrate the significance of our firm’s impact on the nationwide litigation scene: 

• $8.5 Billion Countrywide RMBS Precedent–Setting Settlement Obtained for 22 Institutional Investor Clients (2015)
• $7 Billion Allowed Claim - ResCap Bankruptcy Settlement with 17 Institutional Investors (2013)
• $4.5 Billion Settlement with JPMorgan on Behalf of 21 Institutional Investors (2013)
• $2.4 Billion Settlement with Lehman Brothers on Behalf of 14 Institutional Investors (2017)
• $1.7 Billion Net Settlement Package for Huntsman; including $1.1 billion in financing and $632 million in cash, the largest cash settlement payment ever recovered with respect to a busted LBO (2009)
• $1.13 Billion Settlement with Citigroup on Behalf of 18 Institutional Investors (2014)
• $1 Billion in Total Recoveries for Clients, Including $400 Million Settlement with Credit Suisse - National Century Enterprises (NCFE) Securities Litigation (2013)
• Major Defense Win in Multi-Billion Dollar Environmental Trial for Waste Management; settlement was less than one percent of the government’s demand (2014)
• $196 Million Judgment Win for Plaintiff Client D. Bobbitt Noel Jr. against Devon Energy (2011)
• $100 Million Value Arbitration Award for Venoco against Denbury Onshore (2014)
• $56 Million Take-Nothing Success for Natural Resource Partners (2019)
• Take Nothing Judgment for Private Client in $40 Million Trade Secrets Dispute (2021)
• $37.2 Million Recovery for Client Against the Port of Houston (Verdict 2010, Finalized 2017)
• $35 Million in Settlements for ERG re: Contract Dispute in the Republic of Columbia (2017)
• $12.4 Million Judgment for Private Client in Dispute with EnVen Energy Corp. (2021)
• $8.1 Million Trial Win for Private Client in Employment Agreement Dispute (2021)
• $5.65 Million in Damages Awarded in Trial Win for U.S. Pipeline (2018, Affirmed by Nebraska Supreme Court 2019)
• $4.58 Million Jury Verdict for Plaintiff Client SourceGas in Dispute against Noble Energy (2011)
• Successful resolution of seven-year dispute for Chevron re the transfer of its responsibility for massive future dismantling and restoration costs of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline; the firm succeeded on each aspect of the legal disputes involved in this matter (2019)
  
  

Updated Sep 2022

Firm overview

Kirkland & Ellis LLP is a global law firm with more than 3,000 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 18 offices around the world: Austin, Bay Area, Beijing, Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Dallas, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Munich, New York, Paris, 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 600 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:

• For the 11th time, Kirkland was selected as one of the “Fearsome Foursome” in BTI Consulting’s 2022 Litigation Outlook report.
• In 2021, Kirkland ranked #1 in The Lawyer’s “Global Litigation Top 50,” the fourth consecutive year the Firm earned that distinction.
• Kirkland was awarded “Illinois Firm of the Year” at the 2021 Benchmark Litigation US Awards, the eighth straight year the Firm has earned that distinction.
• Law360 named Kirkland among the 2021 “Practice Groups of the Year” for Appellate.
• Kirkland was named “Law Firm of the Year” for Commercial Litigation by U.S. News and World Report and Best Lawyers in their 2022 “Best Law Firms” rankings.
• National Law Journal named Kirkland as a “2020 General Litigation Department of the Year” in Washington, D.C.

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 2021 IP Stars, Kirkland was named as a leading firm for Copyright, ITC, Life Sciences, Patent Contentious and Trademark Contentious.
• Kirkland was named to World Trademark Review magazine’s 2022 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 2021, Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) magazine recognized Kirkland in Tier 1 for Litigation: 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.
• The New York Law Journal named Kirkland as its 2021 “Intellectual Property Litigation Department of the Year.”
• Law360 named Kirkland among the 2020 “Practice Groups of the Year” for Intellectual Property.  
• Managing Intellectual Property named Kirkland “U.S. National Patent Contentious Firm of the Year” and “U.S. Northeast – Trademark Contentious Firm of the Year” at its 2021 Americas Awards.

Please visit our website at www.kirkland.com for additional information about Kirkland and office contact information.

Updated June 2022

Firm overview

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, a leading international law firm, consistently ranks among the world’s top law firms in industry surveys and major publications. The firm is distinctively positioned in today’s global marketplace with more than 1,800 lawyers and 20 offices.

Litigation Practice: Acclaimed as a litigation powerhouse, Gibson Dunn and the members of the Litigation practice have a long record of outstanding successes. The American Lawyer named Gibson Dunn a Finalist in its 2022 Litigation Department of the Year competition, noting that “when news breaks and the pressure rises, clients call Gibson Dunn’s litigators to regain control.” This award follows the firm’s unprecedented four wins in this biennial competition.

The members of our litigation practice group are not just litigators, they are first-rate trial lawyers. Each year, we try numerous cases to verdicts before juries, judges and arbitrators. Our clients have trusted us to try their most significant disputes to verdict.

We have tried cases and argued appeals before the U.S. Supreme Court and state supreme courts in addition to federal and state courts across the United States involving almost every foreseeable area of controversy. We also handle disputes before a wide variety of nonjudicial forums, from federal and state agencies to international arbitrations.

Antitrust & Trade Regulation: Gibson Dunn serves clients in virtually every significant area of antitrust and trade regulation law, including cartel and government civil investigations, class action treble damage litigation, private antitrust litigation, government review of mergers and acquisitions, and trade regulation matters.

Appellate: Gibson Dunn has one of the nation’s leading appellate practices with broad experience in complex appellate litigation at all levels of the state and federal court systems. The practice has been involved in matters covering an array of constitutional, statutory, regulatory and common-law issues. Our lawyers have presented arguments in front of the Supreme Court of the United States nearly 160 times.

Business Restructuring & Reorganization: The firm has extensive experience in both US and multinational insolvencies. Its lawyers regularly represent and counsel official creditors’ committees, ad hoc creditor groups, secured lenders, investors and companies (including DIP and exit financing) in out-of-court work-outs and Chapter 11 cases.

Commercial Litigation & Arbitration: Gibson Dunn’s approach emphasizes the full spectrum of services for our clients. Our litigators are trained to evaluate actual and potential cases at the earliest stages, to first determine if litigation can be avoided, or, if it is filed, whether the matter can be resolved quickly and economically. We pride ourselves on handling our litigation matters as efficiently as possible. Gibson Dunn lawyers are fully familiar with a wide array of alternative dispute resolution techniques, including arbitration, mediation, “mini-trials” and the like. 

Intellectual Property: Gibson Dunn’s deep bench of trial lawyers with technical backgrounds, advanced degrees and industry experience provides the necessary insight to develop and defend against sophisticated claims in a wide range of industries and complex technologies. Our litigators are recognized throughout the industry as leaders in prosecuting, defending and trying IP claims in federal and state courts, before administrative bodies including the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), as well as before arbitration panels.

Labor & Employment: Gibson Dunn is known for our unsurpassed ability to help the world’s preeminent companies tackle their most challenging labor and employment matters. We have prevailed in what are believed to be the largest class actions under several different U.S. employment laws, including Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the wage and hour laws. Gibson Dunn has also worked on high-profile ERISA cases, nationally recognized Sarbanes-Oxley ‘whistleblower’ cases and aggressive advocacy on OSHA issues. 

Securities Litigation, Regulation & Corporate Governance: A recognized leader in the defense of securities class actions, derivative litigation and SEC enforcement actions, the firm advises companies on disclosure, accounting and regulatory issues for domestic and foreign regulatory bodies. The partners include nationally recognized securities class action defense counsel and a number of former senior officials with the SEC, NASD and DOJ.

Transnational Litigation: Gibson Dunn’s Transnational Litigation practice specializes in protecting clients against claims in U.S. and other courts stemming from overseas activities, as well as reducing and eliminating the risks posed by foreign litigation that, if unchecked, threaten company-wide implications. Our uniquely skilled, creative and experienced transnational team is equipped to manage all aspects of cross-border litigation, including devising, coordinating and implementing offensive and defensive global strategies and has represented clients in some of the highest-profile cases around the world. Gibson Dunn’s international team consists of US, English, French, Spanish and German-qualified lawyers, many of whom are dual qualified.

White Collar Defense & Investigations: The firm defends prominent companies and executives against federal and state prosecutions and has conducted numerous sensitive internal investigations in areas including anti-money laundering; computer and IP crimes; environmental violations and compliance; FCPA matters; forfeiture (civil and criminal); health care fraud; privacy; procurement fraud; securities, financial institution and accounting fraud; and tax offenses. The practice group includes numerous former federal and state prosecutors and officials, many of whom served at high levels within the DOJ, SEC and other key investigative arms of the government. 

Firm overview

What a Law Firm Should Be: Polsinelli is a full-service, Am Law 100 firm with over 950 attorneys in 23 offices nationwide. The firm’s litigation practice encompasses business disputes, white collar investigations and enforcement, health care, intellectual property, bankruptcy, data privacy, real estate, financial services, products liability and toxic tort and labor and employment matters. Our reputation for dedicated client service and innovative business solutions is a benchmark for excellence in the legal profession.

Polsinelli approaches litigation The Polsinelli Way – with our clients and their business goals as our primary focus. The Polsinelli Way sees each dispute as unique and our lawyers work hand in hand with our clients to devise a litigation strategy from the outset of the matter that is laser focused on achieving the most efficient and effective resolution. The Polsinelli Way isn’t just a slogan. It’s the way we work on each and every matter entrusted to us by our clients.

Commercial Litigation: Polsinelli’s Commercial Litigation practice is composed of attorneys committed to providing practical, industry-specific business litigation strategies informed by substantive and procedural knowledge, real courtroom experience, and a keen awareness of how legal outcomes impact our clients’ bottom lines.

We focus on real estate litigation, disputes arising out of business relationships and contracts, mergers and acquisitions litigation, and class actions. However, we have a deep bench of litigation expertise with experience handling a broad spectrum of disputes including aviation and transportation, insurance matters, professional liability, retail and hospitality litigation, telecommunications, and manufacturing and distribution. We also have several lawyers who regularly handle statutory claims including the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and the Fair Credit and Reporting Act.

Government Investigations: Polsinelli’s Government Investigations team is highly qualified to quickly and effectively help companies and individuals respond to and defend against civil, criminal and regulatory government actions. Many of our attorneys are former federal prosecutors with specific experience.

Our team takes the guesswork out of navigating investigations involving the government. Clients seek out our team’s counsel at all stages of their interactions with government agencies, whether a client needs help responding to a subpoena or civil investigative demand, a comprehensive internal investigation, preemptive counsel on a compliance program, or a trial lawyer to defend against allegations of white-collar crimes. Our team has experience with governmental entities, including the Department of Justice, SEC, Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, EPA and States’ Attorney General Offices.

Health Care Litigation: Polsinelli Health Care Litigation attorneys combine their in-depth knowledge of the evolving health care industry with clients’ business needs to devise practical litigation strategies. We advise clients in managing risk and resolving complex disputes. When litigation is necessary, we collaborate with clients to effectively and efficiently protect their interests. Our attorneys are experienced in litigating government investigations and health care disputes in different forums, including lawsuits, arbitrations, administrative hearings, audits and investigations.

Our team is well known and respected by judges, regulators, arbitrators, health care industry leaders and the legal community. Members include former Department of Justice attorneys, including Assistant United States Attorneys, former experienced state Medicaid fraud unit attorneys, a former realtor attorney and former in-house counsel to private and publicly traded health care companies.

Intellectual Property Litigation: Polsinelli’s Intellectual Property Litigation practice take creative and strategic approaches to resolving intellectual property disputes for local, regional, national and global companies and individuals. With more than 1,300 intellectual property litigation filings over the past six years, we frequently try high-technology intellectual property cases tied to diverse subject matter including patent litigation, trademark, copyright & branding, anti-counterfeiting and grey markets, restrictive covenants and trade secrets litigation, ITC Section 337, IP litigation funding and design patent litigation.

Labor & Employment Litigation: Our attorneys defend clients before administrative agencies and in trials, mediations, arbitrations, and appeals of lawsuits arising over virtually every conceivable employment-related action including age, religion, gender, pregnancy, race, national origin, disability, harassment, wrongful termination, discrimination, retaliation, FMLA and OSHA violations.

Our Employment Litigation practice group has substantial experience representing management in the administrative charge and litigation phase of cases involving issues such as but not limited to The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), The Equal Pay Act (EPA), Whistleblower claims, work-related torts and wrongful termination.

Products Liability and Toxic and Mass Tort: Polsinelli’s litigators have deep experience defending and protecting our clients against defective design, defective manufacturing, premises liability, catastrophic injury, and toxic exposure claims that oftentimes go to the heart of our clients’ businesses. Our litigators approach each case the Polsinelli Way -- with a laser focus on our clients’ business goals and an eye towards case resolution that prioritizes those business goals.

Our experienced Products Liability and Toxic Tort team assesses cases early, identifying potential risks and working with our client’s legal, business, technical and regulatory teams to craft effective litigation strategies. Our electronic discovery (e-discovery) lawyers and other professionals are adept at coordinating and managing the often-burdensome discovery process that comes with defending these high-stakes cases. Our trial lawyers have the skills and experience to take cases to trial in any courtroom in the country. These trial teams work hand in hand with our certified appellate specialists, who identify appellate issues and represent clients at the appellate level in state and federal courts throughout the United States.

Updated Sep 2022