Wilkinson Stekloff Recognized at 2024 Global Competition Review Awards

At their 14th annual awards ceremony held in Washington, D.C. on April 9, Global Competition Review (GCR) recognized Wilkinson Stekloff for its work as lead trial counsel for Microsoft in the FTC’s challenge to Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc. — the second-largest merger trial in American history and the biggest involving a technology company.  The transaction was selected for “Matter of the Year,” which honors “creative, strategic, and innovative work by teams of in-house and external lawyers and economists” across all competition matters worldwide, as well as “Control Matter of the Year: Americas.” The go-to firm for clients who want to litigate cases with an eye toward trial rather than settlement, Wilkinson Stekloff has served as litigation counsel for Microsoft since the day after the acquisition was announced in January 2022. Led by Founding Partner Beth Wilkinson and Partner Rakesh Kilaru, the firm’s team positioned the case …

Wilkinson Stekloff Honored at 2024 Benchmark Litigation U.S. Awards

On March 13, 2024, Benchmark Litigation honored Wilkinson Stekloff at their 12th annual U.S. Awards in New York City in celebration of “the country’s most distinguished litigators and their firms for their exemplary work over the past twelve months.”  Wilkinson Stekloff was awarded “Trial Firm of the Year” for serving as lead trial counsel in several major litigations, which culminated in significant activity and favorable results within only a three-month span. During that period, the firm took on a litigation docket unlike any other, including representing Microsoft in the FTC’s challenge to its proposed $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Altria in a range of high-profile cases related to its $12.8 billion purchase of a minority interest in JUUL Labs, and a major chemical manufacturer in the first bellwether trial in the most significant PFAS products liability MDL in the country.    In addition, Wilkinson Stekloff received the “Impact Case …

Law360 Features Beth Wilkinson and Rakesh Kilaru on the Firm’s Competition Practice Group of the Year Award

Law360 recently featured Founding Partner Beth Wilkinson and Partner Rakesh Kilaru in an article chronicling the groundbreaking trial victories that led to the firm’s Competition Practice Group of the Year recognition. In 2023 alone, Wilkinson Stekloff solidified its standing as the go-to firm for clients who want to litigate cases with an eye toward trial rather than settlement, serving as lead counsel in numerous bet-the-company cases for major clients including Microsoft, Altria, NCAA, NFL, and Cargill. When asked about what has driven their success, Beth and Rakesh said the answer goes well beyond just having expertise in competition law. The firm has been, and continues to be, focused on trial work. “And one thing that I think has become clear over the last two years in particular is that antitrust is where a lot of the trials are,” Rakesh noted. “It has to do with trial work, getting down to …

Wilkinson Stekloff Lawyers Named to LCLD 2024 Class

Wilkinson Stekloff is pleased to announce its selection of two rising leaders to participate in the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD) Pathfinder Program. LCLD prepares future generations of diverse talent for the highest positions of leadership, and their programs are a premier professional development platform designed for diverse, high-potential attorneys. This year, Wilkinson Stekloff is sponsoring Associates Caroline Li and Tania Martinez. Lawyers selected for the LCLD Pathfinder Program demonstrate leadership skills, a positive impact on their organization, engagement within the community, and a commitment to diversity and inclusion. Participants will receive professional and personal development opportunities, leadership training, and relationship-building opportunities, including access to LCLD members and alumni throughout the year-long program.  Caroline has represented corporate clients in both antitrust and products liability matters, and has been a member of two trial teams for a major pharmaceutical and biotechnology company. Prior to becoming an associate at Wilkinson Stekloff, Caroline served …

Wilkinson Stekloff Shortlisted in Six 2024 Benchmark Litigation Awards Categories

Wilkinson Stekloff and Founding Partners Beth Wilkinson and Brian Stekloff have been shortlisted for the 2024 Benchmark Litigation U.S. Awards.  The firm is a finalist in three categories, including Boutique Firm of the Year, Trial Firm of the Year, and D.C. Firm of the Year. In 2023 alone, the firm served as lead trial counsel in four major litigations for clients including Microsoft, Altria, 3M, and Monsanto. The firm is currently recognized as a Top Boutique and Top 20 Trial Law Firm in Benchmark’s 2024 Litigation Guide, as well as Tier 1 for Commercial Litigation and Highly Recommended for Dispute Litigation. Following a year in which she and her teams delivered victories in several high-stakes, high-profile matters, including as lead trial counsel for Microsoft in the second-largest merger trial in American history, Beth Wilkinson has been shortlisted for Trial Lawyer of the Year and Antitrust Litigator of the Year. Beth …

Beth Wilkinson Named a 2024 “Leading Commercial Litigator” by the Daily Journal

Wilkinson Stekloff Founding Partner Beth Wilkinson has been recognized among the Daily Journal’s “Leading Commercial Litigators” for 2024. This honor spotlights the best attorneys working within the broad scope of high-stakes commercial litigation across the country. Beth has served as lead counsel in over 50 jury trials, including numerous bet-the-company, multibillion-dollar cases, earning an unrivaled record of victories in federal and state courts throughout the country. Most recently, Beth was lead trial counsel for Microsoft in the FTC’s challenge to Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision — the second-largest merger trial in American history and the biggest involving a technology company.  Beth’s team directed all aspects of litigation strategy from the time the acquisition was announced in January 2022. She and her team positioned the case for a federal court victory on an unprecedented timetable, defeating the FTC’s request for a preliminary injunction to stop the transaction after a five-day trial …

Law360 Recognizes Wilkinson Stekloff as Antitrust Practice Group of the Year

In recognition of the size, complexity, and significance of the litigation handled by the firm in 2023, Law360 has selected Wilkinson Stekloff among its Antitrust Practice Groups of the Year. Wilkinson Stekloff — dubbed “the legal equivalent of an elite special ops unit” by the American Lawyer — is redefining how businesses respond to antitrust matters. In 2023, the firm’s nimble team of renowned trial lawyers served as lead counsel in numerous complex, bet-the-company cases including:

Beth Wilkinson Inducted Into Lawdragon’s Hall of Fame

In recognition of her impactful career of service to the legal profession, Wilkinson Stekloff Founding Partner Beth Wilkinson has been inducted into Lawdragon’s Hall of Fame. Revered by clients, colleagues, and competitors alike, Hall of Fame inductees are leaders at their firms whose contributions have shaped the law and legal profession in significant ways. Beth has served as lead counsel in over 50 jury trials, including numerous bet-the-company, multibillion-dollar cases, earning an unrivaled record of victories in federal and state courts throughout the country. In the last three years, she has brought a fresh and pragmatic approach to high-stakes antitrust matters brought by the government. Most recently, Beth was lead trial counsel for Microsoft in the FTC’s challenge to Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision — the second-largest merger in American history and the biggest involving a technology company. She defeated the FTC’s request for a preliminary injunction to stop the transaction after a …

Wilkinson Stekloff Celebrates 2023 Achievements

Over the past year, Wilkinson Stekloff reinforced its standing as the leading trial litigation boutique in the country — “the legal equivalent of an elite special ops unit,” according to The American Lawyer. In 2023 alone, the firm served as lead trial counsel in four major litigations, with significant activity and favorable results in each occurring within a three-month span: In each of these and other bet-the-company cases, clients turn to Wilkinson Stekloff for its strategic guidance, courtroom expertise, and unparalleled track record. The firm also continued its commitment to pro bono work — building on the more than 100 pro bono matters it has handled since 2016 — and took on matters across areas including family law, immigration, post-conviction representation, appeals, and drafting amicus briefs.  In October, the firm’s team — led by Ralia Polechronis and Anastasia Pastan — and together with the Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR), ACLU, and ACLU …

Roxana Guidero Rejoins Wilkinson Stekloff

Wilkinson Stekloff is pleased to welcome back Roxana (Roxy) Guidero to the firm as Counsel.  Roxy has represented corporate clients and individuals in an array of industries and specialties, including entertainment and media, sports, antitrust and competition, product liability, and white-collar crime. With a wide breadth of experience across the spectrum of trial strategy and preparation, Roxy has helped her clients navigate some of their most challenging and complex legal issues in courts from coast to coast, and provided strategic counsel to international clients. Committed to equal justice and legal access for all, Roxy maintains an active pro bono practice. She has partnered with the Los Angeles Center for Law & Justice (LACLJ) to represent domestic violence survivors; the Animal Legal Defense Fund to protect the lives and advance the interests of animals through the legal system; and the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence on gun safety research …