Winston & Strawn LLP

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

Diversifying with the Times

The firm that eventually 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 President Grover Cleveland. Silas Strawn joined the firm in 1892 and practiced there for the next 53 years, 40 years as managing partner.

The late 20th century saw the firm increase the firm headcount from double to triple digits. Most recently, the firm formed YuandaWinston in a strategic alliance with the law firm Yuanda in China, and through strategic lateral hires, including litigators from Scheper Kim & Harris LLP in Los Angeles, it continued expanding. In May 2022, the firm opened a Miami office with six partners from South Miami firms.

Cornerstone Practices and Clients

Winston practices in a range of sectors, including the financial service, technology/media/telecom, health and life science, energy, and consumer product industries. Winston’s impressive client roster includes Abbott Labs, Cisco, VMware, Motorola, TreeHouse Foods, and several top private equity firms.

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

The NFL Players Association go-to litigator Jeffrey Kessler has earned notoriety for the firm for his representation of players Tom Brady, Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, and Ezekiel Elliott, among others, in high-profile arbitration hearings. Kessler is also 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 provision of education-related benefits in addition to tuition.

Prioritizing People

Winston isn’t focused solely on its current all-star attorneys; it is also committed to acquiring top talent to promote professional development and wellness. The Director of Coaching and Well-Being helps attorneys reach their highest level of performance through career and wellness coaching, the Director of Professional Development and two career development advisors—one for litigation and one for transactional associates—help junior associates become well-rounded attorneys, and the Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer moves the firm’s DEI goals forward. Additionally, the firm offers multiple outlets for attorneys to grow professionally and personally, including Winston University training programs; the Winston for Good Corporate Social Responsibility program; 10 Diversity & Inclusion affinity groups including Black Lawyers Network, DiverseAbility Network, Family Network, First-Gen Professionals Network, La Alianza at Winston, Middle Eastern/North African (MENA), Military Service Network, Winston Asian Leadership Initiative, Winston PRIDE, and Women’s Leadership Initiative; and Winston Wellness initiatives focused on attorney and staff mental health.

• Secured a historic $2.75B+ settlement for college athletes in antitrust litigation against the NCAA, addressing NIL compensation, academic achievement awards, and “pay-for-play” rules.

• Achieved a resounding trial victory for Alphatec by defeating NuVasive’s $49M damages claim for tortious interference with its fixed-term exclusive distributorship agreements.

• Represented GHOST, a fast-growing lifestyle sports nutrition brand, in its sale to Keurig Dr. Pepper.

• Represented Motorola Solutions, Inc. in a US$1.3B public offering of senior notes, underwritten by BofA Securities, J.P. Morgan, and TD Securities.

• A Best Company to Work for Among U.S. Law Firms, 2024-2025—U.S. News & World Report
• Scored 100 on Corporate Equality Index, 2009-2025—Human Rights Campaign
• Best Law Firms for Women and Diversity, 2017, 2022, 2023, 2024—Seramount
• 98 National Tier 1 rankings, 2025—Best Law Firms
• No. 6 for Best Summer Associate Experience in Associate Survey, 2023—Law360