Benchmark Litigation honored Wilkinson Stekloff as the “Trial Firm of the Year” at their 2025 U.S. Awards on March 7, the second year in a row that the firm has received that recognition.
Benchmark’s recognition stems from another outstanding year of high-profile trials for Wilkinson Stekloff. Led by founding partners Beth Wilkinson and Brian Stekloff, and partner Rakesh Kilaru, the firm led the NFL’s defense of their “Sunday Ticket” subscription package, scoring a total victory for the NFL. Devastating cross-examinations of Plaintiffs’ experts by Beth and Brian led to the Judge granting post-trial Daubert motions and judgment as a matter of law, wiping out a $4.7 billion verdict prior to trebling.
The firm also was shortlisted for “Boutique Firm of the Year” and “D.C. Firm of the Year,” while Beth and Brian were named for the second year in a row as finalists for “Trial Lawyer of the Year” and “Product Liability Litigator of the Year,” respectively, after Brian took home both awards in 2023.
With a well-earned reputation as the go-to trial firm of the day, and an undeniable record of success in bet-the-company cases, Wilkinson Stekloff is looking forward to yet another banner year in 2025. The firm has been retained in multiple high-profile matters that are set for trial. Beth Wilkinson and Kosta Stojilkovic have been tapped to lead Hewlett Packard Enterprises’ defense against the DOJ’s challenge to its $14 billion merger with Juniper Networks. Brian Stekloff and recently promoted partner Sarah Neuman are serving as lead trial counsel for medical device manufacturer Medtronic in defense of an antitrust action brought by Applied Medical Resources. And Rakesh Kilaru has been engaged along with partners Keri Arnold and Ralia Polechronis by Valve Corp., a videogame developer and publisher, to serve as lead litigation and trial counsel defending against class claims of anticompetitive practices surrounding the popular gaming platform Steam.