Kirkland & Ellis LLP is an American multinational

law firm A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to r ...

headquartered in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Founded in 1909, Kirkland & Ellis is the largest law firm in the world by revenue and the seventh-largest by number of attorneys, and was the first law firm in the world to reach US$4 billion in revenue. As of 2021, Kirkland & Ellis ranks third on Am Law's list of profits per equity partner. While Kirkland & Ellis was historically considered a firm focused on litigation, during the 2010s, it expanded

private equity In the field of finance, the term private equity (PE) refers to investment funds, usually limited partnerships (LP), which buy and restructure financially weak companies that produce goods and provide services. A private-equity fund is both a ty ...

and restructuring practices which, together with large-scale commercial litigation, comprise the core legal service areas of the firm. Many attorneys from the firm have served as federal officials or judges, including United States Supreme Court Justice

Brett Kavanaugh Brett Michael Kavanaugh ( ; born February 12, 1965) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President Donald Trump on July 9, 2018, and has served since Oc ...

and former Attorney General

William Barr William Pelham Barr (born May 23, 1950) is an American attorney who served as the 77th and 85th United States attorney general in the administrations of Presidents George H. W. Bush and Donald Trump. Born and raised in New York City, Barr ...

History

In 1909, two attorneys, Stuart G. Shepard and Robert R. McCormick, formed the Chicago-based partnership that would eventually become Kirkland & Ellis. McCormick was the grandson of Joseph Medill, who had founded the '' Chicago Tribune''. McCormick became president of the Tribune Company in 1914 and, in 1925, sole publisher of the ''Tribune''.

Weymouth Kirkland Weymouth Kirkland (June 4, 1877 – February 3, 1965) was a Chicago lawyer and one of the name partners of the Chicago law firm of Kirkland & Ellis. Background, 1877–1901 Weymouth Kirkland was born in Fort Gratiot Township, Michigan on June ...

and his associate

Howard Ellis Howard Ellis (1892–1968) was a prominent Chicago lawyer and one of the name partners of Kirkland & Ellis. Biography Howard Ellis was born in Washington Court House, Ohio on January 15, 1892. He was educated at the University of Chicago, r ...

joined the firm in 1915. Kirkland served as chief counsel to the ''Tribune'' and other newspapers in various free speech and

defamation Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...

cases, including ''

Near v. Minnesota ''Near v. Minnesota'', 283 U.S. 697 (1931), was a List of landmark court decisions in the United States, landmark decision of the US Supreme Court under which prior restraint on publication was found to violate Freedom of the press in the United S ...

''. In 1938, Kirkland and Ellis hired young trial lawyer

Hammond Chaffetz Hammond E. Chaffetz (July 9, 1907 – January 12, 2001) was a federal prosecutor and partner at Kirkland & Ellis. He helped turn the law firm into one of America’s largest law firms. Early life Born in Massachusetts, Chaffetz graduated fr ...

from the U.S. Department of Justice. Chaffetz spent six decades with the firm, during which it grew to about 780 lawyers, making it one of the 30 largest in the country. Kirkland & Ellis has 15 offices in four countries. In 2020, "Kirkland, along with some other out-of-town firms like Sidley Austin and Latham & Watkins," have been reported in media as using "aggressive lateral recruiting to draw from New York's dealmaking talent pool." The firm earned just under $5 billion in revenue in 2020. The increase came from heightened demand, induced by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rankings

'' The American Lawyer'' ranked Kirkland & Ellis as the 2018 Law Firm of the Year. " Mergers & Acquisitions" ranked Kirkland & Ellis as the 2019 Law Firm of the Year for advising on 400 U.S. based-deals (more than twice that of the firm ranked second), and for advising on the largest number of global deals, in each case, in 2019. As of 2021, Am Law lists Kirkland & Ellis as the largest law firm in the United States by gross revenue and third greatest in profits per equity partner. Kirkland & Ellis was ranked second in the 2017 ATL Power 100 law firm rankings. '' Vault'' ranked Kirkland & Ellis as the most prestigious firm in Chicago and the number-one firm in the U.S. for private equity, restructuring and business outlook in 2018.

Notable clients and cases

* Brown & Williamson, a tobacco company. In 1995, Kirkland & Ellis made legal threats against CBS to prevent it from airing a ''

60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique styl ...

'' interview with tobacco industry whistleblower Jeffrey Wigand. * Bristol-Myers Squibb in its US$90 billion acquisition of Celgene, the largest biopharmaceutical deal in history by terms of transaction value * AbbVie in its US$63 billion acquisition of Allergan, which received the New York 2020 Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech Deal of the Year award by ''The Deal'' (magazine). *

GLP (company) GLP (formerly Global Logistic Properties) is a global real estate logistics provider and investment manager based in Singapore. The company’s warehouses serve logistics service providers, manufacturers, retailers and e-commerce companies such ...

in its sale of U.S. Logistics Business to Blackstone for US$18.7 billion, the largest ever private real estate transaction globally in terms of trade value * BP in relation to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill; secured a summary judgment ruling in favor of BP that it had no duty to report the Deepwater Horizon oil spill under the U.S. Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act * Volkswagen in relation to the

Volkswagen emissions scandal The Volkswagen emissions scandal, sometimes known as Dieselgate or Emissionsgate, began in September 2015, when the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a notice of violation of the Clean Air Act to German automaker V ...

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in relation to the General Motors ignition switch scandal * Defended Nike, Inc. against trademark infringement claims regarding the Jumpman logo * AbbVie Inc., pharmaceutical company spun-off from

Abbott Laboratories Abbott Laboratories is an American multinational medical devices and health care company with headquarters in Abbott Park, Illinois, United States. The company was founded by Chicago physician Wallace Calvin Abbott in 1888 to formulate known dr ...

in 2013, in a royalty dispute with MedImmune; won a $93.8 million jury award *

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in a patent suit won against Atlas IP, LLC * Miller UK Ltd., acquired a $73.6 million trade secrets misappropriation jury award against Caterpillar Inc. * Jeffrey Epstein in a case of sex-trafficking with minors, resulting in a reduced charge plea bargain with limited penalties, which later garnered "accusations that the lenient sentence enabled Epstein to continue his abuse." Evaded legal obligation to notify victims of the plea bargain, thereby violating victims rights under the CVRA, by holding secret meetings with

Alex Acosta Rene Alexander Acosta (born January 16, 1969) is an American attorney and politician, who served as the 27th United States Secretary of Labor from 2017 to 2019. President Donald Trump nominated Acosta to be Labor Secretary on , and he was confir ...

's staff in the Marriott hotel * Toys R Us restructuring * A group of major investors in the international

fish meal Fish meal is a commercial product made from whole wild-caught fish, bycatch and fish by-products to feed farm animals, e.g., pigs, poultry, and farmed fish.R. D. Miles and F. A. Chapman.FA122: The Benefits of Fish Meal in Aquaculture DietsFisheri ...

industry, in connection with their claims against China Fishery *

Cariol Horne Cariol Holloman-Horne (previously known as Cariol Horne) is an American former police officer who was fired from the Buffalo Police Department and lost her pension after she physically stopped a fellow officer from chokeholding a handcuffed susp ...

2020 action for reinstatement to the

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, having been fired in 2008 for intervening in an arrest that she perceived as being potentially lethal *Represented separated families, asylum seekers and other migrants, and nationwide class of immigrant teens held in ICE detention centers, in opposition to Trump administration family separation policy. *Represented four Maryland historically Black colleges and universities in civil rights case alleging discrimination and underfunding by Maryland. *Kirkland & Ellis represented Boeing in relation to the Boeing 737 MAX disaster. Controversially, the U.S. Attorney in the case,

Erin Nealy Cox Erin Nealy Cox (born 1970) is an American attorney who served as the United States Attorney for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas from 2017 to 2021. She was nominated to the position by President Donald Trump a ...

, let Boeing executives off the hook for their role in the disaster in the prosecution agreement signed by her and Kirkland & Ellis. She was subsequently made a partner at Kirkland & Ellis.

Notable attorneys and alumni

Notable alumni of the firm include, among others, more than two dozen attorneys who resigned when appointed to roles in government. Alumni include: * Alexander Acosta – former

Secretary of Labor The United States Secretary of Labor is a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and as the head of the United States Department of Labor, controls the department, and enforces and suggests laws involving unions, the workplace, and all ot ...

under President Donald Trump * Alex Azar – Secretary of Health and Human Services *

– 85th United States Attorney General under President Donald Trump and former 77th United States Attorney General under President George H. W. Bush * John Bolton – former

National Security Advisor A national security advisor serves as the chief advisor to a national government on matters of security. The advisor is not usually a member of the government's cabinet but is usually a member of various military or security councils. National sec ...

under President Donald Trump * Robert Bork – former Judge of the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and former Solicitor General under President Richard Nixon *

Daniel Bress Daniel Aaron Bress (born 1979) is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Early life and education Bress was raised in Gilroy, California. He studi ...

– Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit * Rubén Castillo – former United States District Judge for United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois * Pat Cipollone – White House Counsel under President Donald Trump * Jeffrey Clark – United States Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division under President Donald Trump; acting head of the Civil Division under President Donald Trump. Clark aided Trump in his unsuccessful efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. * Paul Clement – former Solicitor General under President George W. Bush In June 2022, following his clients' Supreme Court victory in '' New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen'', Clement separated from Kirkland & Ellis, after the firm announced it would "no longer handle Second Amendment litigation". Subsequently, Clement opened a boutique law firm, Clement & Murphy PLLC, with Erin Murphy, another former partner at Kirkland & Ellis. *

Viet D. Dinh Viet D. Dinh ( vi, Đinh Đồng Phụng Việt; born February 22, 1968) is a lawyer and a legal scholar who is Chief Legal and Policy Officer of Fox Corporation and who served as an Assistant Attorney General of the United States from 2001 to 20 ...

– Chief Legal Officer at

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, former Assistant Attorney General under President George W. Bush and chief architect of the USA PATRIOT Act *

John C. Eastman John Charles Eastman (born 1960) is an American lawyer who is the founding director of the Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence, a public interest law firm affiliated with the conservative think tank, conservative think tank Claremont Instit ...

– former professor at

Chapman University School of Law Chapman University's Dale E. Fowler School of Law, commonly referred to as Chapman University School of Law or Chapman Law School, is a private, non-profit law school located in Orange, California. The school offers the Juris Doctor degree (JD), ...

who advised President Donald Trump on the legal strategy to overturn the 2020 presidential election. *

Neil Eggleston Warren Neil Eggleston (born July 5, 1953) is an American lawyer who served as the White House Counsel under President Barack Obama. Eggleston was the fourth person to hold this post during the Obama administration. Early life and education A n ...

– former White House Counsel under President Barack Obama *

Mark Filip Mark Robert Filip (born June 1, 1966) is an American lawyer specializing in class action and white collar criminal and regulatory defense. Formerly a partner at Skadden, Arps, he currently practices in the Washington, D.C. office of Kirkland and ...

– former Judge of the District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and former Deputy Attorney General under President George W. Bush * Josh Hammer – '' Newsweek'' opinion editor, syndicated columnist, and host of ''The Josh Hammer Show'' *

–

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States An associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States is any member of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the chief justice of the United States. The number of associate justices is eight, as set by the Judiciary Act of 18 ...

accused of multiple sexual assault allegations. *

Robert Khuzami Robert S. Khuzami (; born August 2, 1956) was the Deputy U.S. Attorney for the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York until March 22, 2019. He previously was a United States federal prosecutor and Assistant United ...

– Deputy

United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York is the chief federal law enforcement officer in eight New York counties: New York (Manhattan), Bronx, Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess and Sullivan. Establishe ...

, former Director of the Division of Enforcement of the

Securities and Exchange Commission The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against market ...

and former General Counsel of Deutsche Bank * Raja Krishnamoorthi – U.S. Representative from Illinois's 8th congressional district * Christopher Landau – former US Ambassador to Mexico under President Donald Trump * Jay Lefkowitz – former Special Envoy for Human Rights in North Korea and Director of Cabinet Affairs under President George W. Bush * Lisa Madigan – former Illinois Attorney General from 2003 to 2019 * Sean Patrick Maloney – U.S. Representative from

New York's 18th congressional district The 18th congressional district of New York is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives that contains the northern suburbs and exurbs of New York City. It is currently represented by Democrat Sean Patrick Maloney. ...

* Dallin H. Oaks – First Counselor of the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints *

Jeffrey A. Rosen Jeffrey Adam Rosen (born April 2, 1958) is an American lawyer who served as the acting United States attorney general from December 2020 to January 2021 and as the United States deputy attorney general from 2019 to 2020. Before joining the Depar ...

– Deputy Secretary of Transportation and Deputy Attorney General and acting United States Attorney General under President Donald Trump *

Nathan Sales Nathan Alexander Sales is an American lawyer, academic, and government official who served as the coordinator for counterterrorism and special envoy to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS within the U.S. Department of State from 2017 to 2021. Pri ...

– Coordinator for Counterterrorism and Acting Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights * Mikie Sherrill – U.S. Representative for *

Ken Starr Kenneth Winston Starr (July 21, 1946 – September 13, 2022) was an American lawyer and judge who authored the Starr Report, which led to the impeachment of Bill Clinton. He headed an investigation of members of the Clinton administration, kno ...

– Whitewater special prosecutor and former Solicitor General under President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

Jeff Wall Jeffrey Wall, Order of Canada, OC, Royal Society of Canada, RSA (born September 29, 1946) is a Canadian artist best known for his large-scale back-lit Cibachrome photographs and art history writing. Early in his career, he helped define the Van ...

– Principal Deputy Solicitor General under President Donald Trump and former acting Solicitor General * Ali Zaidi – first deputy White House National Climate Advisor in U.S. history (under President Joe Biden)

Endowed professorships

The firm has endowed professorships in its name at four law schools:

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

, Northwestern University School of Law, University of Michigan Law School, and the University of Chicago Law School.

References

External links

Firm website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirkland and Ellis Law firms based in Chicago Law firms established in 1909 Insolvency and corporate recovery firms 1909 establishments in Illinois Foreign law firms with offices in Hong Kong