October 6, 2023
Willkie’s litigators have been recognized by The AmLaw Litigation Daily for securing high-profile wins in both a landmark pro bono case in Arizona for transgender rights and a multibillion-dollar securities class action that targeted Willkie client Third Point.
A Willkie team led by partners Wesley Powell and Jordan Wall were named the Litigator of the Week “runners-up” for securing a final settlement in a long-running class action, Toomey v. State of Arizona, that permanently prohibits the state of Arizona from excluding gender-affirming care from its employee health plan. Initially filed in 2019, Willkie and the ACLU pursued a pro bono class action lawsuit against the State of Arizona and the Arizona Board of Regents for denying medically necessary, gender-confirming healthcare to transgender people employed by the state.
The Willkie team recognized also included partners Matthew Freimuth and Nicholas Reddick and associates Justin Garbacz, Ciara Sisco, Natalia Benitez, Brandon Villa, Jacob Pargament and Kim Aquino. The ACLU’s Joshua Block, Christine Wee, Victoria Lopez and Gloria Torres were also recognized for their work on the case.
Another team of Willkie litigators won a Litigator of the Week “shout out” for defeating a putative securities class action lawsuit against Third Point LLC, Third Point Ventures LLC, and Daniel Loeb that sought upwards of $2.2 billion in damages. Willkie successfully obtained the dismissal of the lawsuit relating to Upstart Holdings, Inc., an AI lending platform where Third Point was an early-stage investor. Read more about the victory here.
The publication recognized a Willkie team that included partners Tariq Mundiya, Shaimaa Hussein and Charles Cording, associates Samantha Prince and Khara John, and law clerk Bhushan Satish.
Read The AmLaw Litigation Daily article here (subscription may be required).
