Overview
Launched in March 2020, Willkie Chicago has grown to over 100 lawyers today. Fully integrated with Willkie’s more than 1,200 attorneys across the globe and 14 other Willkie offices, the Willkie Chicago office offers a broad range of top-tier practices including high-stakes commercial and other complex litigation, board governance counseling, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, capital markets, asset management, fund formation, technology transactions, finance, restructuring and private wealth. The essence of the Chicago practice is our focus on exceptional service to our clients in undertaking their most important and complex matters.
We are well-respected in the Chicago market as deal-makers, consensus builders, and honest brokers. Understanding the complex needs of our clients, Willkie Chicago works as an integrated and multi-disciplinary team, focused on custom tailoring creative, value-maximizing solutions to complex litigation, corporate, financing, and special situations and restructuring matters.
Litigation, Patent Disputes & Investigations: Willkie Chicago is home to experienced trial lawyers and “go-to” litigation and investigation counsel for private and publicly-held clients who trust us to handle their most significant economic and reputational matters. We have a successful track record litigating cases across a wide range of substantive areas, including antitrust, class actions, commercial contracts, ERISA, the False Claims Act, patents, privacy, securities, and investigations. The lawyers at Willkie Chicago have litigated over 100 trials, appeals, and arbitrations and have led dozens of investigations and committee representations across the country and abroad.
Transactional Practice: Willkie’s Chicago top-tier transactional practice extends the firm’s established and preeminent mergers and acquisitions, private equity, capital markets, asset management, fund formation, finance and restructuring practices, both nationally and worldwide. We represent U.S. and international clients in all aspects of their businesses, and assist our clients by working with them to deliver high quality, robust, and bespoke solutions to achieve their business objectives. In fact, Willkie continues to be ranked as one of the most innovative law firms globally. Examples for Willkie Chicago include representation of companies and private equity firms in acquisitions and divestitures, issuers and investment banks in securities offerings, asset managers and investment funds in connection with fund formation and fundraising, investments and complex in court and out of court restructurings, and banks and private credit providers in commercial lending and special situations transactions. We represent clients in each stage of their business: from early venture investments; to growth of value strategies, including strategic acquisitions and divestitures; to complex financing arrangements; and ultimately to IPOs or other value-maximizing exit strategies. We also harbor industry-recognized finance and restructuring attorneys trusted to advise on front-end direct lending and syndicated loan deployment and navigate challenged credit positions that may arise.
Private Wealth: Willkie Chicago is also home to one of the premier private wealth practices in the country, providing counsel to ultra-high-net worth individuals and their families. Our involvement with private wealth clients and family offices is extensive, and we counsel in three core areas which include ownership structures (trust and estates), business interests (operating companies, investments, and real estate holdings), and charitable endeavors. Willkie’s work is cutting edge but our approach is very traditional – discreet, private, and confidential.
Pro Bono Commitment: Willkie Chicago has achieved jury verdicts that have exceeded eight figures in individual civil rights cases, helped expand absentee voting rights in South Carolina in an effort to protect voting integrity, and has provided amicus support of the Chicago-based Obama Presidential Center. Our Chicago team has also undertaken a number of transactional pro bono engagements, including acquisitions, restructurings and technology sharing arrangements, all for not-for-profit organizations. Willkie Chicago is extremely proud that 100 percent of our full-time attorneys participated in meaningful pro bono activities last year.
Civic Engagement: In addition to pro bono engagement, Willkie Chicago attorneys are engaged with leading civic organizations to strengthen the Chicago community, including Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital, The Boys & Girls Club of Chicago, Metropolitan Family Services, Civic Consulting Alliance, Chicago Community Trust, Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Chicago Zoological Society, Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, Economic Club of Chicago, Legal Aid Society, Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, and World Business Chicago.
Highlights:
- Willkie Chicago attorneys are ranked in the most recent editions of Chambers Global, Chambers USA and Chambers High Net Worth in the categories of Banking & Finance (Illinois), Capital Markets: Debt & Equity; Litigation: Trial Lawyers, Litigation: General Commercial, ERISA Litigation, Intellectual Property, Private Equity: Fund Formation, Private Wealth Law, and Bankruptcy/Restructuring.
- Willkie Chicago was named a 2023 “Regional Powerhouse” in Illinois by Law360, highlighting its record of success in high-stakes cases, its commitment to diversity and pro bono representation, and its focus on civic engagement.
- Willkie Chicago is gaining traction as one of Chicago’s largest law firms and we have been steadily advancing in Chicago Lawyer’s annual Largest Law Firms survey. We are growing in a deliberate manner while ensuring we continue to provide the highest quality standards our clients deserve.