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Winston & Strawn LLP

At a Glance

Uppers

“The culture. Our leadership genuinely cares about our well being and success at the firm. The quality of work is outstanding. The client relationships are almost all decades-long and make the job easier.”

“The emphasis on work-life balance has been very refreshing. The people who work at Winston are just so nice and supportive and down to earth. The focus on pro-bono is not just a sales tactic, it is present every day.”

Downers

“Formal training could be better. In general, it feels like there are a ton of resources available to associates, but they could do a better job drawing attention to them.”

“The time requirement for work is the worst part, which has made it difficult to manage the work-life balance. But there is nothing specific to Winston that differs from BigLaw more generally.”

About Winston & Strawn LLP

From its 19th century Chicago roots, Winston & Strawn has grown to a global law firm of nearly 1,000 attorneys across the United States, South America, Europe, and Asia. Winston is particularly known for its work in middle-market private equity, IP, labor and employment, renewable energy, sports law, and white collar.

Diversifying with the Times

The firm that became Winston & Strawn opened its doors in the Windy City in 1853 under the leadership of Harvard grad Frederick Hampden Winston, who played a vital role in Chicago’s emergence as a powerful business and financial center. Winston left the practice in the hands of his son Frederick Seymour Winston in 1885 to become the American Minister to Persia under Grover Cleveland. Silas Strawn joined the firm in 1892 and practiced there for the next 53 years, including 40 as managing partner.

The late 20th century saw the firm grow its ranks from double to triple digits. And in recent years, the firm has continued its growth by forming YuandaWinston, a strategic alliance with China law firm Yuanda, and through strategic lateral hires including a group of litigators from Scheper Kim & Harris LLP in Los Angeles. Additionally, in May 2022, the firm opened a Miami office with six partners from South Miami firms.

Cornerstone Practices and Clients

Winston practices across a range of sectors, including financial services, technology/media/telecom, health and life sciences, energy, and consumer products. Winston’s robust client roster includes Abbott Labs, Cisco, VMware, Motorola, TreeHouse Foods, and several top private equity firms.

Winston has long been identified with several prominent corporate brands, and the firm represents a range of Fortune 100 companies in diverse transactions and litigation. Its work for Panasonic includes numerous antitrust cartel investigations and litigations around the world, including defeat of a major price-fixing consumer class action. JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Discover, Wells Fargo, and other big financial institutions regularly tap Winston to handle a host of matters ranging from large corporate financings to litigation and class actions to investigations and regulatory matters. 

NFL Players Association go-to litigator Jeffrey Kessler has earned notoriety for the firm (and ire from the NFL) for his representation of players such as Tom Brady, Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, and Ezekiel Elliott in high-profile arbitration hearings. Kessler is also well-known for his representation of the U.S. Women’s National Team in its successful fight for equal pay against the U.S. Soccer Federation and his stunning win—at trial and on appeal—for a group of college athletes in their historic fight against the NCAA’s limitations on colleges and universities providing education-related benefits beyond tuition.

Prioritizing People

Winston isn’t focused only on bringing in all-star attorneys; it also is committed to bringing in top talent to promote professional development and wellness. With a chief talent officer at the helm, the firm has rounded out a talent team that also includes a career coach, diversity and inclusion professional, and professional trainer. The firm offers multiple outlets for attorneys to develop professionally and personally, including Winston University training programs; the Winston for Good Corporate Social Responsibility program; Diversity & Inclusion affinity groups for parents as well as Black, Latinx, Asian, LGBTQ, and women attorneys; and Winston Wellness initiatives focused on attorney and staff mental health.

 

News & Awards

NOTABLE CASES
  • Winston & Strawn secured a complete acquittal on all charges for the former CEO of DaVita in one of the DOJ’s first criminal antitrust prosecutions alleging an illegal conspiracy involving a labor-related “no-poach” agreement, a win that won American Lawyer’s “Litigator of the Week” accolade.
  • Winston & Strawn scored “groundbreaking and disruptive” victory for classes of college athletes before the Supreme Court, which issued a rare unanimous decision affirming our earlier trial win, where the court issued a permanent injunction against the NCAA’s compensation restrictions and an American Lawyer “Litigator of the Week” award.  
  • Winston & Strawn represented Skillz Inc., a leading mobile games platform, in its business combination with Flying Eagle Acquisition Corp. (NYSE: FEAC), a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The transaction implies an equity valuation for Skillz of $3.5 billion, or 6.3x projected 2022 revenue. 
  • Winston & Strawn represented Enel Américas S.A., a New York Stock Exchange-listed company and one of the largest companies in Chile, in the largest all-cash capital increase in Chilean history. The deal value was $3.0 billion. 
AWARDS & ACCOLADES
  • No. 1 Law Firm in Houston, 2021—The American Lawyer Midlevel Associate Survey
  • Best Place to Work for LGBTQ Equality, 2009-2022—Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index
  • Mansfield Rule Certified Plus, 2018-2021—Diversity Lab
  • Top 20 Trial Law Firm, 2022—Benchmark Litigation US
  • Eight Partners Named Leading Dealmakers in America, 2021--Lawdragon
Winston & Strawn LLP

35 West Wacker Drive
Chicago, IL 60601
Phone: (312) 558-5600

Firm Stats

Firm Chairman: Thomas P. Fitzgerald
Hiring Committee Chair: William O’Neil
Total No. Attorneys (2022):
750 - 1K
No. of Partners Named 2022:
21
Billable-Hour Requirement:
2,000

Base Salary

1st year: $215,000
2nd year: $225,000
3rd year: $250,000
4th year: $295,000
5th year: $345,000
6th year: $370,000
7th year: $400,000
8th year: $415,000
9th year: $415,000
Summer Associate: $4,134/week

Employment Contact

Lisa McLafferty
Director of Attorney Recruiting & Development
(312) 558-6151
lmclafferty@winston.com

No. of U.S. Offices: 10

No. of International Offices: 6

Major Office Locations

Charlotte, NC
Chicago, IL
Dallas, TX
Houston, TX
Los Angeles, CA
New York, NY
San Francisco, CA
Silicon Valley, CA
Washington, DC | Brussels
Hong Kong
London
Miami
Paris
São Paulo
Shanghai

Major Departments

Antitrust/Competition
Appellate & Critical Motions
Capital Markets
Complex Commercial Litigation
Employee Benefits (ERISA) & Executive Compensation
Energy & Infrastructure
Environmental
Finance
Funds
Intellectual Property & Patent Litigation
International Arbitration
Labor & Employment
M&A
Privacy & Data Security
Private Equity
Real Estate
Restructuring
Securities Litigation
Tax
White Collar, Regulatory Defense & Investigations
*See firm website for complete list of practice areas and industries.