Wilkinson Stekloff Leads Law360’s Legal Lions of the Week and American Lawyer’s Litigators of the Week for Securing Post-Trial NFL Victory

On August 2, Law360 recognized Wilkinson Stekloff’s major victory on behalf of the NFL and its 32 member teams as the lead achievement in its Legal Lions of the Week feature, highlighting several members of the Wilkinson Stekloff team, including Beth Wilkinson, Brian Stekloff, Rakesh Kilaru, Jeremy Barber, and Max Warren. In addition, the American Lawyer named Beth, Brian, and Rakesh its Litigators of the Week on August 14. Wilkinson Stekloff secured this win when a California federal judge granted the NFL’s post-trial motion for judgment as a matter of law, overturning a jury’s earlier verdict in the class action lawsuit that had challenged the League’s collective licensing of broadcast rights to NFL games, including the exclusive distributorship arrangement with DIRECTV for its Sunday Ticket subscription. U.S. District Judge Philip S. Gutierrez’s definitive ruling, which set aside the jury’s original $4.7 billion award to the plaintiffs, comes after nine years …

2021 Year In Review

WASHINGTON — In 2021, despite ongoing pandemic-related delays and challenges, the Wilkinson Stekloff team continued to litigate with the intensity and success that has cemented our reputation as the leading trial boutique in the country. In a year where trials remained scarce, WS tried two high-profile cases in 2021:  WS served as lead trial counsel for Altria Group, Inc. in an adversarial administrative proceeding before the FTC. The FTC alleged that Altria and JLI violated antitrust laws through Altria’s purchase of a minority interest in JLI. At trial, Founding Partner Beth Wilkinson handled opening statements and examined multiple high-profile witnesses, including Altria’s current and former CEO, Altria’s general counsel, and both sides’ economic experts. WS Partner Moira Penza examined Altria’s scientists, and WS Partner James Rosenthal played a central role in strategy and legal briefing. After a single day of deliberation in October 2021, a jury delivered the first-ever verdict for Monsanto in litigation over whether the herbicide Roundup causes …

Wilkinson Stekloff Announces Promotions

Wilkinson Stekloff is pleased to announce that Cali Cope-Kasten has been promoted to partner, and Max Warren and Hayter Whitman have been promoted to counsel, effective January 1, 2022. All three attorneys have been with the firm since its founding in 2016. “Cases are won by tight-knit teams of smart, innovative, and highly skilled litigators united by a common commitment to excellence,” said WS Founding Partner Brian Stekloff. “These three lawyers have demonstrated those qualities in numerous, high-stakes trials and other cases throughout their careers. We are proud of the many successes they have achieved on behalf of our clients, and look forward to their continued contributions.” Cali Cope-Kasten has served as a key member of several trial teams, including most recently securing the groundbreaking verdict for Monsanto in Clark v. Monsanto, at which she was trial counsel. She represents corporate clients across a diverse set of industries, from pharmaceuticals …

Pro Bono Asylum Victory for Wilkinson Stekloff

Wilkinson Stekloff celebrates an asylum victory today for a sixteen-year old client fleeing persecution in Honduras. Our client suffered persecution in Honduras after his father, a member of a local taxi driver’s cooperative, defied a powerful international gang by refusing to make extortion payments. The gang stalked, threatened, and attempted to kidnap our client from school. Associate Max Warren led the case under the supervision of partner Brian Stekloff. Associates Norman Pentelovitch, Cali Cope-Kasten, and Meg Loftus, paralegal Youlan Xiu, and assistant Kat Phillips assisted with the case. The team worked in collaboration Human Rights First, a non-profit international human rights organization. We are proud of our client for the enormous bravery he has demonstrated in the face of adversity, and know he will be a model citizen in the United States.