COVER STORY ANTHONY BARBOZA AMERICA’S TOP BLACK LAWYERS

FROM CORPORATE LAW TO CRIMINAL LITIGATION, HERE ARE THE LAWYERS TO CALL TO GET YOU THE BEST DEAL OR KEEP YOU OUT OF TROUBLE

NOTHING HAS MEANT MORE TO THE ASPIRATIONS OF BLACK AMERICA THAN THE law. For more than a century—from the “separate but equal” ruling of Plessy v. Ferguson to the recent Michigan case upholding affirmative action—it has been a determinant in our access to and ascent in education, politics, business, and all facets of American society. Over the years, a phalanx of black lawyers has relied on their brilliant legal minds to win the battle for justice and economic parity in the courtroom and the boardroom. Over the last three decades, the legal landscape The National Law Journal, National Association of has changed dramatically. At the height of the Criminal Defense Lawyers, Association of Trial Black Power Movement in the 1970s, you would Lawyers of America, Executive Office for United have been hard-pressed to find more than 3,000 States Attorneys, and the U.S. Department of Jus- African American lawyers. Today, their numbers tice. After reviewing all areas of practice, we iden- surpass 20,000. tified the best of the best in 15 categories, ranging Yesteryear’s black attorneys were champions of from criminal defense to patent law. Our list of civil rights and social justice. Today, their scope of top lawyers was based on the following criteria: expertise has broadened, from defending corporate ■ All had to be practicing attorneys. We did not executives to negotiating multimillion-dollar busi- include judges, business consultants, or individ- ness deals. Because of the ascension of top-rank- uals with law degrees who are not tied directly to ing black lawyers and the shifting legal and busi- the legal profession. ness environment, BLACK ENTERPRISE has ■ All had to have achieved partnership or share- developed our list of America’s Top Black Lawyers. holder status at major law firms, served as gen- Our editors spent months researching to produce eral counsels at major corporations, or held posi- this high-powered listing. Selections were made tions as top-ranking legal officers at nonprofit on the basis of research with leading law schools, organizations. legal scholars, prominent attorneys, and the fol- ■ All have gained reputations as leaders or have an lowing legal organizations: Minority Corporate average win rate as high as 95%. Counsel Association, National Bar Association, In the next 15 pages, find out why these are some American Bar Association, Minority Law Journal, of the most coveted attorneys on earth.

BY THE EDITORS Additional Reporting by Carolyn M. Brown, Chana Garcia, Alisa Gumbs, Seimond London & Christina Morgan COVER STORY

Truly ingenious companies rely on creative breakthroughs, hard work, and someone to protect and defend these innovations. That’s when intellectual property lawyers such as Sharon R. Barner become indispensable. With more than 21 years of experience in trial, client counseling, and intellectual property dispute resolution, Barner scored big by aggressively defending a half-billion-dollar suit against her client, Pioneer Hi-Bred Inter- national, in a genetically engineered corn seed infringement litigation. After a hung jury, Barner settled out of court for an amicable work agreement. The 46-year-old lawyer takes credit for convincing judges to allow jurors to raise their hands or pass notes with questions during court proceedings. “You won’t find that in your average criminal or civil trial,” she quips. Some of Barner’s other career benchmarks include securing a $154 million patent damage award for Hughes Aircraft Co. from the United States for infringement of satellite-stabilizing technology. The award was one of the largest judgments against the U.S. government. She was also recently named national chair of Foley & Lardner’s Intellectual Property Litigation Group and became the first African American to sit on the firm’s 14-member executive committee. Barner’s first love was science. She received a B.S. in psychology with a focus on biology from Syracuse University in 1979. But her career path took a turn when she decided to attend the University of Michigan Law School. As an intellectual property attorney, Barner has been able to marry the two disciplines she loves. It’s no wonder her face lights up when she speaks of the key strategy in trying technology cases: getting clients to break down the information “as if they were science teachers talking to a room of fifth graders.” Barner even SHARON R. BARNER goes the extra mile by using video and computer animation in the courtroom. Partner But it’s not just about schooling people, she says, it’s about winning cases. Foley & Lardner —Daniel Brown INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ANTHONY BARBOZA ANTITRUST Willie L. Hudgins Jr. the Litigation & Dispute Reso- has developed an outreach pro- Partner lution Group. gram encouraging law students Alicia J. Batts Collier Shannon Scott He served for 14 years at the to consider careers in the field. Partner Washington, DC offices of the attorneys general of Power Play: Thompson has rep- Foley & Lardner Contact: 202-342-8400 Virginia and Massachusetts and resented many clients in eviden- the Department of Justice, tiary hearings before the Califor- Washington, DC Career Highlights: Hudgins helps companies analyze the potential including a stint coordinating nia Public Utilities Commission, Contact: 202-672-5300 implications of acquisitions and antitrust efforts like the joint fed- including the proposed World- Career Highlights: Batts han- comply with government reg- eral and state investigation of Com/Sprint merger and the SBC dles antitrust issues and other ulations. A graduate of Howard Microsoft Corp. Communications/ Pacific Telesis matters surrounding unfair University Law School, Hudgins Power Play: Marquis was co-lead merger, evaluating the proposed trade practices in the automo- served as chief litigator for the counsel in the Clozapine anti- mergers for competitiveness from tive, aeronautics, pharmaceu- Antitrust Division of the Depart- trust litigation, an action brought an antitrust perspective. tical, financial, and energy ment of Justice, where he worked by 27 states against Sandoz, alleg- industries. on some of the largest merger ing that the pharmaceutical firm BANKING/ The Columbia University Law antitrust cases in U.S. history. violated antitrust laws by tying School graduate served as attor- Power Play: While at the Justice the sale of the drug to the pur- FINANCIAL SERVICES ney-advisor to former Federal Department, Hudgins led the chase of its blood testing services. Claudette M. Christian Trade Commissioner Mozelle investigations in U.S. v. General Partner Thompson, analyzing recom- Dynamics and Newport News Ship- Patrick S. Thompson Hogan & Hartson mendations for Commission building and U.S. v. Lockheed Martin Partner Washington, DC action. Corp. and Northrop Grumman Corp. Pillsbury Winthrop Contact: 202-637-5600 Power Play: Batts was part of As a result, the two proposed merg- San Francisco, CA Career Highlights: The Harvard the legal team representing the ers were dissolved or abandoned. Contact: 415-983-1000 Law School graduate spent years American Hospital Association Career Highlights: Thompson in private practice representing for In re: Resident Physicians Milton A. Marquis counsels clients in industries over 30 foreign companies and Antitrust Litigation, one of the Partner such as telecommunications, vit- governments in debt and equity largest antitrust class-action Dickstein Shapiro Morin amins, and brand name phar- financings. suits ever filed, involving alle- & Oshinsky maceuticals in price-fixing and As a partner at Hogan & Hart- gations by medical residents Washington, DC monopolization cases. son, she counts as venerable that teaching hospitals and Contact: 202-785-9700 A Harvard University Law clients The World Bank, the Inter- medical associations engaged Career Highlights: Marquis, who School graduate, Thompson is national Finance Corporation, and in price-fixing residents’ earned a J.D. from Case Western active with the American Bar the U.S. Agency for International salaries. Reserve University, is a partner in Association antitrust section and Development. COVER STORY

Power Play: Christian arranged the extensive experience in financ- Michigan, DaimlerChrysler, ren Buffett’s insurance and $2.5 billion bank financing for the ings ranging from multibillion- DuPont, and Prudential Life investment holding company, Bolivia-Brazil Gas Pipeline Project. dollar leveraged acquisitions to Insurance. in the FINOVA Group acquisi- multimillion dollar venture Lewis holds a law degree from tion. Vincent Dunn capital and PIPE financings. the University of Michigan. She is currently representing Partner His clients include J.P. Morgan Power Play: Lewis is a former Sotheby’s Inc. and Estee Lauder Chadbourne & Parke Chase Capital, HSBC, and Sum- director of the National Asso- Inc. in bank financings. New York, NY itomo Bank. Jackson earned ciation of Bond Lawyers and a Contact: 212-408-5100 law and graduate business former chairman of the Nation- Career Highlights: Vincent Dunn degrees from Columbia Uni- al Association of Securities Pro- Alphonso E. Tindall Jr. handles both lenders and bor- versity. fessionals. Partner rowers in connection with Power Play: Jackson handled Nixon Peabody secured and unsecured trans- Superior Telecom’s $1 billion Marsha E. Simms New York, NY actions, including acquisition bankruptcy restructuring and Partner Contact: 212-940-3000 financing, vendor financing, and the bank financing of Pepsi’s $1 Weil, Gotshal & Manges Career Highlights: Tindall has raising working capital. The billion acquisition of the largest New York, NY represented every major invest- New York native is a graduate of bottler in Mexico. Contact: 212-310-8000 ment bank in the U.S. as under- the State University of New Career Highlights: Simms over- writer’s counsel on more than $5 York at Buffalo, School of Law. David Baker Lewis sees debt financing and re- billion of financings. Power Play: Dunn represented Chairman, Founder structuring in industries such He also has participated in vir- lenders in a $1.8 billion con- & Shareholder as retail, telecommunications, tually every kind of finance trans- struction financing case for tur- Lewis and Munday energy, and manufacturing. action from Connecticut to Cal- bine generators and raised $500 Detroit, MI She also has represented ma- ifornia. He holds a law degree million to lease the construction Contact: 313-961-2550 jor lenders in debtor-in-posses- from the University of Con- of an electric generating facility. Career Highlights: Lewis has spe- sion financing and exit financ- necticut. cialized in municipal finance ing of newly reorganized Power Play: Tindall is past chair- Jack P. Jackson since 1974. companies. Simms is a gradu- man of the National Association Partner He has served as the firm’s ate of Stanford University Law of Securities Professionals, a non- Proskauer Rose lead attorney on many mu- School. profit organization whose pri- New York, NY nicipal bond offerings with Power Play: Simms was coun- mary focus is the representation Contact: 212-969-3000 a client roster that includes sel for Leucadia National Corp. of minorities and women in the Career Highlights: Jackson has the Automobile Club of and Berkshire Hathaway, War- financial industry.

The name Johnnie Cochran generates fear in the hearts of corporate giants and opposing attorneys alike. With so many high-profile wins under his belt, it’s easy to understand why. Among Cochran’s successes are wrangling an alleged multimillion-dollar settlement that persuaded a boy’s parents to drop criminal charges against Michael Jackson and the “trial of the century” in which he suc- cessfully defended O.J. Simpson against murder charges. These days, Cochran is looking beyond famous names. To the dismay of major corporations, he has shifted his practice’s focus to personal injury. “I’d been schooled in criminal law and it had been exciting and fast-paced and all that, but all along I felt I could probably do more good in helping people who are injured, helping people who really needed me,” says Cochran. In virtually every state Cochran practices, he holds the record for most money paid out in a personal injury case. The Cochran Firm recently won the largest settlement in U.S. history in an environmental pollution case. Cochran and company coaxed $700 million from Monsanto, Solutia, Pharmacia, and Pfizer Inc., which was awarded to 18,000 Anniston, Alabama, residents who fell sick from chemical contamination. Equally skilled in the judicial courts and the court of public opinion, the Loy- ola University School of Law graduate was sworn in as a lawyer in 1963 and spent the following three years as a Los Angeles prosecutor. He developed a knack for reading juries and became the top trial lawyer in the city attorney’s office. These days, Cochran’s approach in court is to use novel and innovative ways to argue his points to a judge and jury—even if it takes a rhyme or two. “With JOHNNIE L. COCHRAN JR. each case, I try to reduce it down to the simplest common denominator to help The Cochran Firm people relate or understand,” Cochran explains. “I give them something that they PERSONAL INJURY can hold on to, something they can grasp. In the O.J. Simpson trial it was: ‘If the glove doesn’t fit, you must acquit.’”

ANTHONY BARBOZA —Cliff Hocker COVER STORY

Barron F. Wallace debtors in Chapter 11 reorgani- Michael H. Reed use bankruptcy as a way to cir- Partner zation proceedings and work- Partner cumvent environmental clean- Vinson & Elkins outs. He graduated from the Uni- Pepper Hamilton up liability. Houston, TX versity of Pennsylvania Law Philadelphia, PA Contact: 713-758-2222 School. Contact: 215-981-4000 Career Highlights: Wallace spe- Power Play: Jackson recently Career Highlights: Reed has spe- CIVIL RIGHTS cializes in the issuance of mun- served as lead Creditors’ Com- cialized in the field of bankrupt- Julius L. Chambers icipal bonds and sales for tradi- mittee counsel in the Primary cy and insolvency law since his Founding Partner tional tax-exempt financings for Health Systems Inc. Chapter 11 admission to the bar in 1972. He Ferguson, Stein, Chambers, cities, counties, and state agen- case that involved a multihospi- is a fellow of the American College Adkins, Gresham & Sumter cies. The Michigan Law alum- tal reorganization. He also served of Bankruptcy. A Yale University Charlotte, NC nus represents 12 urban rede- as Creditors’ Committee coun- Law School graduate, Reed is Contact: 704-375-8461 velopment authorities and tax sel in the Rax Restaurant Chap- president-elect of the Pennsylva- Career Highlights: Chambers reinvestment zones responsible ter 11 case. nia Bar Association, making him founded the state of North Car- for stimulating over a billion dol- lars of new investments in Hous- Clifton R. Jessup Jr. ton and Galveston. Partner Power Play: Wallace secured Patton Boggs $130.2 million bond financing for Dallas, TX Houston Area Water Corpora- Contact: 214-758-1500 tion, and $881 million bond Career Highlights: Jessup heads financing for Texas Public Fi- up the firm’s bankruptcy and in- nance Authority. solvency practice. Throughout his career, the Michigan Law School graduate has represented BANKRUPTCY secured creditors, unsecured Steven Cousins creditors, committees, equity Partner holders, debtors, and trustees in Armstrong Teasdale federal bankruptcy cases in more St. Louis, MO than 35 states. Contact: 314-621-5070 Power Play: In 1996, Jessup was Career Highlights: Cousins serves appointed the examiner in the as chair and founder of the firm’s Megafoods Stores and related Financial Restructuring, Reor- cases and was selected as the ganization, and Bankruptcy estate representative in 1998 Department. under the plan confirmed in A fellow of the American Col- those cases. lege of Bankruptcy, Cousins is also listed in The Best Lawyers in Deryck A. Palmer America. He earned his law Partner degree from the University of Weil, Gotshal & Manges Pennsylvania. New York, NY Power Play: Cousins was lead Contact: 212-310-8000 counsel for the Creditors’ Com- Career Highlights: Palmer con- mittee in the 54 Apex/Clark centrates his practice in the Oil/Copper Mountain cases, representation of debtors as WILLIE GARY which was one of the largest pri- well as creditors under Chapter Senior Partner vately held companies to have ever 11 bankruptcy and has handled Gary, Williams, Parenti, Finney, filed Chapter 11. He has been a wide variety of workout and Lewis, McManus, Watson, & Sperando P.L. involved in numerous corporate corporate restructuring mat- ANTHONY BARBOZA reorganizations, including Conti- ters. The Michigan Law School PERSONAL INJURY nental Airlines, Kmart, Enron, and graduate also chairs Health Alamo Rent A Car. Watch, the only organization in the country devoted exclu- the first African American to lead olina’s first integrated law firm. Reginald W. Jackson sively to minority health im- the 108-year-old organization. Formerly, Chambers served as Partner provement. Power Play: From 1987 through chancellor of North Carolina Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease Power Play: Palmer represented 1993, he served as special bank- Central University and the direc- Columbus, OH AK Steel in its bid to acquire Na- ruptcy counsel to the Pennsyl- tor-counsel of the NAACP Legal Contact: 614-464-6400 tional Steel Corp. He is current- vania Department of Environ- Defense and Educational Fund. Career Highlights: Jackson has ly serving as counsel to Doctors mental Resources in the Chambers earned law degrees practiced for more than 20 years Community Healthcare, a con- multibillion dollar bankruptcy from Columbia University in in the commercial, collection, and glomerate of five hospitals locat- of LTV Steel Co. New York City and the Univer- bankruptcy areas with an empha- ed in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Reed’s legal successes include sity of North Carolina at Chapel sis on representing secured cred- Washington, D.C., which is in a landmark 1991 case that limit- Hill. itors, creditors’ committees, and Chapter 11 restructuring. ed the ability of companies to Power Play: Chambers has been winning landmark Supreme Court suits in support of affirmative Theodore Shaw Brown & Pratt, where he was the rulings in employment discrimi- action, including an amicus brief Associate Director-Counsel first African American partner in nation and education since the in Grutter v. Bollinger, the Michi- NAACP Legal Defense and the firm’s 120-year history. ’70s, including the famous school gan Law School admissions case. Educational Fund Power Play: During his tenure as busing case resulting in the deseg- New York, NY executive vice president, general regation of Charlotte’s schools. Constance Rice Contact: 212-965-2250 counsel, and corporate secretary Partner Career Highlights: Shaw has liti- at Comerica Inc., Madison nego- Eva Paterson English, Munger & Rice gated civil rights cases throughout tiated the naming rights agree- Executive Director Los Angeles, CA the country at the trial and appel- ment with the Detroit Tigers that Equal Justice Society Contact: 213-989-1303 late levels, and in the Supreme resulted in the team’s new stadi- San Francisco, CA Career Highlights: Rice is acclaim- Court. The Columbia Law School um being named Comerica Park. Contact: 415-543-9444 ed for litigating civil rights cases graduate previously worked as a Career Highlights: Paterson is a involving police misconduct, trial attorney in the civil rights divi- Michele Coleman Mayes founder of the Equal Justice Soci- employment discrimination, and sion of the Department of Justice. General Counsel and Power Play: Shaw was lead coun- Senior Vice President sel representing African Ameri- Pitney Bowes Like the biblical tale of David and Goliath, Willie Gary has repre- can and Latino University of Stamford, CT sented little-known clients against major corporations, earning him Michigan undergraduate students Contact: 203-356-5000 the nickname, the “Giant Killer.” in the affirmative action case Gratz Career Highlights: Mayes over- Gary’s practice, which got its start 23 years ago in a humble storefront v. Bollinger, in which the Supreme sees the legal affairs of the world’s in Martin County, Florida, has won lawsuits against corporate giants such Court ruled in favor of the com- leading provider of integrated mail pelling state interest of diversity. and document management solu- as Disney and Anheuser-Busch for $240 million and $139 million, respec- tions. Previously, she served as tively. Gary, who is in his mid-50s, is heralded as one of the country’s lead- CORPORATE vice president and deputy gener- ing litigators, having won more than 150 cases valued in excess of $1 mil- al counsel for Colgate-Palmol- lion each. COUNSEL ive. Mayes had stints with the He’s a senior partner at Gary, Williams, Parenti, Finney, Lewis, Kenneth C. Frazier Department of Justice as assis- McManus, Watson, & Sperando P.L., which has offices in Stuart and Senior Vice President tant U.S. attorney and chief of the Fort Pierce, Florida. Gary also serves as chair and CEO of the Major and General Counsel civil division in Detroit. She is a Broadcasting Cable Network. Merck & Co. graduate of the University of The migrant farm boy who grew up to become a power attorney Whitehouse Station, NJ Michigan Law School. achieved one of the largest jury verdicts in U.S. history—$500 million Contact: 908-423-1000 Power Play: One of a handful of Career Highlights: In 1992, after a black women who head the legal for damages suffered by a Mississippi businessman who filed suit in 14-year career as a litigation part- departments of major corpora- 1995 against the funeral chain The Loewen Group. ner with Drinker Biddle & Reath tions, Mayes also serves as pres- “This was a breach of contract case—a concept that I had to simplify in Philadelphia, Frazier joined ident of the NOW Legal Defense to a jury. So, I used phrases like ‘your word is your bond,’” he explains. pharmaceuticals giant Merck. and Education Fund. Another key tactic was getting inside help. Gary’s trial team took The Harvard Law School graduate great pains to ferret out former employees of The Loewen Group who served as Astra Merck’s first gen- Stacey J. Mobley helped advance their case. eral counsel and now oversees all Senior Vice President, “We were able to find someone in accounting to verify The Loewen legal affairs of Merck, which had Chief Administrative Officer Group was buying up small funeral homes in order to double the 2002 sales of $51.8 billion. and General Counsel prices poor people were paying for services,” he says. Power Play: Frazier was part of DuPont Co. the corporate teams that spear- Wilmington, DE Gary is used to beating the odds. After graduating from North headed the spin-off of Medco Contact: 302-774-1000 Carolina Central University School of Law only to discover that no one Health Solutions Inc. and that Career Highlights: Mobley is a 31- would hire him because he was black, Gary returned to his hometown acquired Rosetta Inpharmatics of year career veteran at DuPont, a of Stuart, Florida. He decided to open the first black firm and says he Kirkland, Washington, and Sibia $24 billion global science com- has never “allowed others to dictate his life’s course.” Neurosciences of San Diego, pany, and was the company’s —Daniel Brown Merck’s two newest research sites. first African American attorney. He is responsible for staff ser- George W. Madison vices, including legal, public Executive Vice President, affairs, and government affairs. A ety, an organization dedicated fair public resource allocation. General Counsel and Secretary registered pharmacist, Mobley to changing the law through pro- The New York University Law TIAA-CREF holds a B.S. from Howard Uni- gressive legal theory, public pol- School graduate and co-director New York, NY versity’s School of Pharmacy and icy, and practices. She was a lead- of The Advancement Project has Contact: 212-490-9000 a J.D. from Howard Law School. ing spokesperson in campaigns strong family ties—she’s a cousin Career Highlights: Madison serves Power Play: Mobley, one of BE’s against Proposition 187 (anti- of National Security Advisor as chief legal officer of TIAA-CREF, Top 50 Blacks In Corporate immigrant) and Proposition 209 Condoleeza Rice. one of the nation’s 100 largest America, oversees a law depart- (anti-affirmative action). Pater- Power Play: Rice won a $750 mil- companies with $286 billion in ment of 180 lawyers worldwide son earned her J.D. from the Uni- lion coalition lawsuit for new assets under management. The with a budget of more than $200 versity of California, Berkeley. school construction and a $2 bil- Columbia Law School and Colum- million and a docket of over 2,000 Power Play: Paterson has co- lion lawsuit to improve bus ser- bia Business School graduate pre- cases, including complex com- authored briefs for landmark law- vice, both in Los Angeles. viously was a partner at Mayer, mercial, antitrust, intellectual COVER STORY

Elaine Jones grew up in Norfolk, Virginia, when Jim Crow was law and order. As a little girl, she witnessed early on America’s exclusionist policy toward African Americans and was inspired to become a lawyer. She was convinced that by studying law, she could turn adversity into an advantage. In 1972, only two years out of the University of Virginia School of Law, Jones served as counsel of record in the landmark Supreme Court case Fur- man v. Georgia, which abolished the death penalty in 37 states. During that time, she also argued numerous employment discrimination cases, including the 1972 class-action suit Patterson v.American Tobacco Co. In 1989, Jones became the first African American elected to the American Bar Association’s Board of Governors and broke another barrier four years later when she became the first female president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF). Under her leadership, LDF has undertaken, among others, cases demonstrating that the high incar- ceration rates of African Americans impact the community at every social and economic stratum. A poignant example was LDF’s push for clemency for Kemba Smith, who, at 24 years old, was sentenced to 24-and-a-half years in prison after pleading guilty to distributing cocaine. At the time, Smith was a Hampton University student from a middle-class neighborhood whose boyfriend was the head of a drug ring. Over a four-year period, the LDF appealed the case repeatedly in an effort to demonstrate to the court what the prosecution had initially disclosed—Smith never used or sold drugs. With Jones’ extensive background and broad array of cases, she has earned ELAINE JONES a reputation as a skillful negotiator and an ardent voice for those who have President and Director-Counsel been shut out of the economic, political, and social mainstream. “Some of the most NAACP Legal Defense important cases you can have are those that affect people’s lives—whether peo- and Educational Fund ple live or die,” she says. “And those are the cases that affect the quality of life.” CIVIL RIGHTS —Marcia A. Wade property, and product liability the $19.9 billion soft drink giant’s the Boston law firm Bingham, numerous mergers and acquisi- JERRY JACK litigation. worldwide legal affairs and legal Dana & Gould. tions, including Allegiance Corp., staff, oversees shareowner affairs, Power Play: In 1993, Watson R. P. Scherer Corp., and Pyxis Corp. Roderick A. Palmore and ensures that the company oversaw the Times’ acquisition of Senior Vice President, satisfies government require- The Boston Globe, a transaction General Counsel and Secretary ments. A Harvard Law School valued at approximately $1.1 bil- CRIMINAL LAW Sara Lee Corp. graduate, Patrick was previous- lion. He is a recipient of the 2002 Kenneth L. Lawson Chicago, IL ly vice president and general National Equal Justice Award Managing Partner Contact: 312-726-2600 counsel at Texaco Inc. from the NAACP Legal Defense Lawson & Associates Career Highlights: A University of Power Play: As an assistant and Educational Fund and the Cincinnati, OH Chicago Law School graduate, Pal- attorney general during the 1998 Pioneer of the Profession Contact: 513-345-5000 more spent two years at a Pitts- Clinton administration, Patrick’s Award from the Minority Cor- Career Highlights: Lawson’s firm, burgh law firm before assuming efforts led to a precedent-setting porate Counsel Association. founded by the University of Cin- the post of assistant U.S. attorney judgment against Denny’s for vio- cinnati College of Law alumnus in for the northern district of Illinois. lating the civil rights of employees Paul S. Williams 1993, has racked up numerous In 1996, he joined Sara Lee, the and customers and helped bring Executive Vice President, wins in criminal law and civil $18.2 billion global consumer about ground-breaking enforce- Chief Legal Officer rights litigation, including a racial products company, where he is ment efforts under the Ameri- and Secretary profiling lawsuit resulting in a fed- responsible for a departmental cans with Disabilities Act. Cardinal Health erally enforceable collaborative budget in excess of $15 million. Dublin, OH agreement allowing for commu- Power Play: Palmore oversaw the Solomon B. Watson IV Contact: 614-757-5000 nity problem-oriented policing. $2.8 billion acquisition of The Senior Vice President Career Highlights: Williams man- Power Play: In a high-profile case, Earthgrains Co., the largest in Sara and General Counsel ages worldwide legal matters for he successfully represented pro- Lee’s history. He also launched a The New York Times Co. the $50 billion healthcare prod- fessional football player Deion diversity initiative with Sara Lee’s New York, NY ucts and services provider. The Sanders on five criminal charges outside law firms. Contact: 212-556-1234 Yale Law School graduate came against a police officer and then Career Highlights: In 1996, Wat- to Cardinal Health in 1995, after later in civil court when the same Deval L. Patrick son was named a senior vice pres- serving as group counsel with officer attempted to seek damages. Executive Vice President, ident of The New York Times Co., Borden Inc. and practicing cor- General Counsel and a leading media company with porate and securities law at William B. Moffitt Corporate Secretary 2002 revenues of $3 billion, having Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease Partner The Coca-Cola Co. served as vice president since 1990 in Columbus, Ohio. Asbill Moffitt & Boss Atlanta, GA and general counsel since 1989. Power Play: Williams played a key Washington, DC Contact: 404-676-2121 Watson is a Harvard Law School role in the growth of Cardinal Contact: 202-234-9000 Career Highlights: Patrick directs graduate and former associate of Health through his involvement in Career Highlights: The second of COVER STORY

two black attorneys elected pres- at both his alma mater and Case Western Reserve Univer- tainment, Barnes inked “A-list” ident of the National Associa- the University of Washington sity in 1952. deals for Chris Rock’s latest tion of Criminal Defense and is a frequent guest lecturer Power Play: His two Supreme movies Bad Company and Head of Lawyers, Moffitt has been listed at trial advocacy seminars Court wins are Doyle and Wood v. State and is representing Aaron in Best Lawyers in America and nationwide. Ohio in 1976 and Beck v. Ohio in McGruder, creator of the Boon- Who’s Who in American Law. He Power Play: Robinson success- 1964, a precedent-setting case docks comic strip, in a televi- earned his J.D. from Washing- fully lobbied for the dismissal of dealing with a search by Cleve- sion deal. ton College of Law, American a hit-and-run charge against land police that was ruled a vio- University. Washington State Supreme lation of the Fourth and 14th Leroy Bobbitt & Power Play: Moffitt successfully Court Justice Bobbe Bridge in Amendments. Virgil Roberts got half the charges dismissed 2003. In 1988, he represented Partners against William Aramony, the Kari Tupper, a woman allegedly ENTERTAINMENT Bobbitt & Roberts former president of the United drugged and sexually abused Los Angeles, CA Way convicted for defrauding by U.S. Sen. Brock Adams. The & SPORTS Contact: 310-315-7150 the charity. Also, in Common- senator chose not to run for Stephen D. Barnes Career Highlights: After a decade wealth of Virginia v. Terry re-election. Partner as a civil rights attorney, Roberts Williams, he negotiated a life sen- Barnes Morris Klein Mark & Yorn entered the record industry rep- tence plea for Williams, who had James R. Willis Los Angeles, CA resenting The Whispers. In 1996, been on death row longer than Partner Contact: 310-319-3900 the Harvard Law School gradu- any other inmate in Virginia’s Willis Blackwell & Watson Career Highlights: The Harvard ate joined forces with Stanford history. Cleveland, OH Law alumnus began his career in Law-educated Bobbitt. The tag Contact: 216-523-1100 entertainment law when he team covers sports, television Jeffery Robinson Career Highlights: Willis, elect- formed a firm, Nelson, Barnes & and film such as Paramount Pic- Shareholder ed as the first African Ameri- Sheehan, with two other young tures, Interscope Communica- Schroeter Goldmark & Bender can president of the National lawyers. Barnes later went on to tions Inc., and Black Entertain- Seattle, WA Association of Criminal Defense join the prominent entertain- ment Television and is gracing Contact: 206-622-8000 Lawyers in 1974, has had over ment firm of Bloom, Hergott, their way into gospel music with Career Highlights: The 48-year- 350 reported opinions rendered Diemer L.L.P. in 1989. His roster such clients as Kirk Franklin. old Harvard Law School gradu- in courts and has won two of has included Babyface, Snoop Power Play: The firm inked a ate began his career in criminal the three cases he argued be- Dogg, and Chris Rock. television miniseries deal for defense in 1981. A former pub- fore the Supreme Court. He Power Play: One of BE’s Top 50 romance novelist Barbara Tay- lic defender, Robinson teaches received his law degree from Black Power Brokers in Enter- lor Bradford with NBC.

John Payton was a law student at Harvard when Regents of the University of California v. Bakke was being litigated. “We were all on edge waiting for the verdict in that case,” recalls Payton. In 1978, the Supreme Court handed down its decision, upholding the use of race in college admissions. Now 25 years later, Payton has litigated two landmark cases, successful- ly defending the University of Michigan’s use of race in the admissions process at its undergraduate college (Gratz v.Bollinger) and at its law school (Grutter v.Bollinger ). A partner at Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering in Washington, D.C., Payton was lead counsel for the two cases in the trial court and in the court of appeals. He argued Gratz v. Bollinger in the Supreme Court. During the compelling proceedings, it was a “battle of semantics,” says Payton, who challenged whether it was the court’s job to tell the university what to do or the university’s job to devise an admissions program that relied on individualized assessment. Throughout his career, Payton has played pivotal roles in some of the most significant civil rights cases in recent history. He was chief counsel in the Supreme Court case Richmond v. Croson, and he filed numerous amicus briefs including Patterson v. McLean Credit Union, an employment discrimination case, and Adarand Constructors v.Pena, a case involving the constitutionality of federal affirmative action programs. The former Washington, D.C. Bar pres- ident also served as corporation counsel for the District of Columbia. A native of Los Angeles, the 56-year-old Payton says he was extremely

JOHN PAYTON RON CEASAR active in the black student union movement during the 1970s. “I have always Partner been interested in racial issues, social justice, and civil rights in some context.” —Carolyn M. Brown Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering CIVIL RIGHTS

130 AMERICA’S TOP BLACK LAWYERS BLACK ENTERPRISE / www.blackenterprise.com / NOVEMBER 2003 COVER STORY

Lisa E. Davis C. Lamont Smith Thurbert Baker’s office suc- ed to Al Qaeda. All pleaded Partner President & Founder cessfully prevented Georgia’s guilty and were offered sen- Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz All Pro Sports & Entertainment Governor Sonny Perdue from tences of between seven and 10 New York, NY Denver, CO forcing the attorney general’s years. Contact: 212-980-0120 Contact: 303-320-4004 office to drop litigation over Career Highlights: A media mav- Career Highlights: Smith is a high redistricting. Jeffrey G. Collins erick, Davis specializes in film, roller in the game of NFL player U.S. Attorney for the Eastern music, television, and intellectu- contract negotiations, repre- Michael A. Battle District of Michigan al property, among every other senting more than 50 clients. He U.S. Attorney for the Western Detroit, MI aspect the rainmaker can con- recently launched ELETE, an District of New York Contact: 313-226-9500 jure. The NYU Law graduate athletic apparel and shoe com- Buffalo, NY Career Highlights: Collins earned spent the late 1980s as a litigator pany. Lamont graduated from Contact: 716-843-5700 his J.D. from Howard University. at a powerful New York City firm Clark Atlanta University, magna Career Highlights: Battle began This past summer, his office before hitting the entertainment cum laude, and received his law industry head on with a little help degree from Howard University. from her neighbor, filmmaker Power Play: Smith negotiated Spike Lee. record-breaking contracts for Power Play: Davis, a member of NFL players Eddie George, the BE’s Top 50 Black Power Brokers highest paid running back with a in Entertainment, is a frequent lec- $42 million contract, and Trevor turer on topics such as the ethics Pryce, the highest paid defensive of entertainment law and copy- player with a $60 million contract. right infringement and protection issues on the Internet. William Strickland President & CEO Peter L. Haviland Strickland & Ashe Management Partner Washington, DC Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld Contact: 202-789-1411 Los Angeles, CA Career Highlights: The sports Contact: 310-229-1000 agent and attorney, along with Career Highlights: The Stanford partner Mason Ashe, has locked Law alumnus cut his teeth in in more than 40 baseball, football, the labor movement before and basketball clients. In 1985, becoming a media and enter- Strickland became the first tainment lawyer. Haviland rep- African American to represent resents clients on contractual dis- No. 1 NBA Draft pick Patrick putes involving music, film, and Ewing. The Georgetown Univer- television. He also represents sity Law School alumnus also manufacturing and defense was the first African American industry clients on product lia- lawyer hired by ProServ Inc.’s bility matters. team sports division in Wash- Power Play: Haviland won a $132 ington, D.C., where he negotiat- million infringement case on ed Nike’s Air Jordan contract. behalf of TVT Records against Power Play: Strickland negotiated Island Def Jam. a $100-million-plus deal for the New York Knicks’ Allan Houston. TERESA WYNN ROSEBOROUGH L. Londell McMillan Partner President & CEO L. Londell McMillan, PC GOVERNMENT Sutherland Asbill & Brennan L.L.P. & NorthStar Business Enterprises Thurbert E. Baker LITIGATION New York, NY Georgia Attorney General Contact: 212-399-8900 Atlanta, GA ANTHONY BARBOZA Career Highlights: McMillan Contact: 404-656-3300 worked his way through NYU Career Highlights: Since his his legal career with the Legal obtained the first jury conviction Law School as a sports agent. He appointment in 1997, the Emory Aid Society after graduating of a terrorism case in the nation, was a leading entertainment University School of Law gradu- from SUNY Buffalo Law School. while concurrently building lawyer with Gold, Farrell & ate has taken great strides to He is currently working to pros- bridges of trust through month- Mark, but by 1997, he was hang- build tougher anti-crime mea- ecute James Kopp, already con- ly meetings with leaders in the ing up his own shingle with mar- sures and accelerated the state’s victed of killing an abortion Arab American community and quis clients, including Prince, death penalty appeals process doctor, on federal charges. aggressively enforcing hate DMX, Wesley Snipes, and Roy while toughening penalties for Power Play: In 2002, Battle pros- crimes. Jones Jr. domestic abusers. Baker won ecuted the “Lackawanna Six,” Power Play: One of his civil Power Play: McMillan has nego- elections to retain the post in alleged members of a terrorist rights cases resulted in an agree- tiated over $500 million worth of 1998 and again in 2002. sleeper cell who were trained in ment with the Detroit Police deals in the hip-hop marketplace. Power Play: In Perdue v. Baker, an Afghanistan camp connect- Department called the Consent Decree, which changes the pol- “no-show” high-paying jobs to Donald W. Washington engineering from NYU and a J.D. icy on how detained witnesses family and friends. U.S. Attorney for the Western Dis- from Brooklyn Law School, is the are handled. trict of Louisiana New York Intellectual Property Roscoe C. Howard Jr. Shreveport, LA Law Association’s first African Peter C. Harvey U.S. Attorney for the District Contact: 318-676-3600 American vice president. In 2005, New Jersey Acting Attorney of Columbia Career Highlights: Washington, he’ll become the organization’s General Washington, DC an attorney general since 2001, first African American president. Trenton, NJ Contact: 202-514-7566 has previous experience in pri- Power Play: Garner represented Contact: 609-292-4925 Career Highlights: Howard, a grad- vate practice at the Louisiana O.P. Solutions in O.P. Solutions Inc. Career Highlights: Appointed as uate of the University of Virginia law firm Jeansonne & Remondet v. Intellectual Property Network Ltd., acting attorney general in 2003, School of Law, was chosen to and in corporate counsel at which upheld copyright pro- Harvey previously served as first become the U.S. attorney for the Conoco Inc. A former commis- tection for computer software. assistant attorney general and District of Columbia in May 2001. sioned officer in the Army, he received a J.D. from South Texas Philip G. Hampton II College of Law. Partner Power Play: Washington’s office Gardner Carton & Douglas Washington, DC Teresa Wynn Roseborough has honed the necessary hallmarks of a recently settled a $49 million suit against Shell Oil Co. alleging that Contact: 202-230-5000 first-rate litigation lawyer—assertiveness, cleverness, intelligence, the oil giant failed to report large Career Highlights: A member of quick thinking, and precision. This Memphis, Tennessee, native also adds amounts of natural gas that it the firm’s technology department, a bit of Southern charm when arguing complex commercial litigation, vented and flared from seven of its Hampton specializes in patent lit- constitutional law, and discrimination cases. facilities in the Gulf of Mexico igation, trademark prosecution, Impressive describes Roseborough’s win record—roughly 98%. without authorization from fed- and intellectual property licens- Appeals represent about 60% of her caseload, and jury trials represent eral regulators. ing. A graduate of MIT and Uni- the other 40%. Knowing the facts of the case—cold—is her creed. versity of Chicago Law School, Unlike a jury trial, where lawyers have hours to present closing remarks INTELLECTUAL Hampton served as assistant com- in hopes of swaying jurors’ opinions, appellate trial attorneys have a missioner for trademarks at the PROPERTY/ U.S. Patent and Trademark Office miniscule 10 to 15 minutes to make their case before three judges. PATENT under the Clinton administration. The “Steel Magnolia,” as Roseborough is called, has mastered James W. Cannon Jr. Power Play: Hampton re-engi- taking hits and fiery questions from judges. She is always prepared, Partner neered the trademark registration staging several moot court rehearsals prior to each case. Baker Botts process and changed the rules and A graduate of the University of North Carolina School of Law, Rose- Austin, TX policies of the Trademark Office borough once clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens. Contact: 512-322-2500 with respect to the Lanham Act She also served as deputy assistant attorney general at the U.S. Depart- Career Highlights: A former air through a series of cases, helping ment of Justice during the Clinton administration. It’s not surprising that defense artillery officer in the U.S. to relieve trademark applicants of she was enlisted to litigate for former Vice President Al Gore after the Army, Cannon handles patent an unnecessary burden. 2000 election. The 44-year-old attorney represented the Democratic and copyright infringement and presidential candidate before the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals and the trade secret theft. The Universi- LABOR & ty of Texas Law School gradu- Florida Supreme Court during the Florida election recount litigation. ate has represented and taken EMPLOYMENT Other high-stakes cases include a MCI/WorldCom class-action action against high-tech giants Marilyn J. Holifield suit that sought punitive damages for inflated pricing structures. The such as Motorola and Microsoft, Partner case was dismissed before it made it to a jury trial. Roseborough has respectively. Holland & Knight also advocated for entitlement and social security benefits for foster Power Play: Cannon was in- Miami, FL care children in the Supreme Court caseKeffler v.State of Washington. volved in several landmark Contact: 305-374-8500 But long before she sets foot in the courtroom, Roseborough says patent infringement suits: Ram- Career Highlights: Holifield’s area she is “already thinking in terms of the appeal process—maintaining bus v. Infineon and Micron v. Ram- of litigation encompasses class a victory or reversing a defeat.” bus, a $300 million patent in- action lawsuits, employment, and covenants-not-to-compete. —Jennifer L. Smith fringement action and a $50 million trade secret theft case on For five years, Holifield was an behalf of semiconductors and assistant counsel at the NAACP integrated electronic systems Legal Defense and Educational director of the Division of Crim- He is in charge of 350 lawyers with manufacturers. Fund. She earned her J.D. from inal Justice. The Columbia Law jurisdiction over both local and Harvard in 1972 and was recent- graduate is currently charged federal crimes, including one of Melvin C. Garner ly elected to the Alumni Associ- with reforming state police, the D.C.-area sniper cases. Partner ation’s Board of Directors. controlling gang violence, and Power Play: Howard’s office suc- Darby & Darby Power Play: Holifield has repre- prosecuting domestic violence cessfully prosecuted Cuban spy New York, NY sented major companies such as cases. Anna Montes, who pleaded Contact: 212-527-7700 Clorox, MetLife, Home Depot, Power Play: Harvey successfully guilty and received a 25-year sen- Career Highlights: Garner over- and Federated Department prosecuted two executive direc- tence. Current cases include sees the procurement and litiga- Stores. When she was with the tors of Windsor Schools who anthrax investigations and the tion of patent, trademark, trade NAACP, she litigated Guthrie v. embezzled $3.6 million from Washington Teachers Union secret, and copyright matters. Alt, which resulted in the deseg- school districts by awarding pension fund scandal. Garner, who holds a master’s in regation of Georgia state prisons. COVER STORY

As a founder of the law firm Del, Shaw, Moonves, Tanaka & Finkelstein, Nina L. Shaw negotiates deals and contracts for A-list Hollywood celebri- ties, including actors Laurence Fishburne, James Earl Jones, Cedric The Entertainer, and Jamie Foxx. Shaw’s fast-paced schedule also includes hammering out deals for actors in the upcoming Barbershop sequel. “Sequel deals are always difficult to make because when the movie is first being produced, no one is sure that there will be a second or that the character will come back, “ explains the Columbia Law School graduate. But once a box office hit turns into a franchise, everyone is looking for a cut. That’s when Shaw, a 49-year-old native New Yorker, is ready to do battle for her clients. Case in point:The Matrix andThe Matrix Reloaded grossed $450 mil- lion in the U.S. alone, and while lawyer-client privilege prevents us from knowing Fishburne’s salary (published reports estimate it’s more than $10 million), his contract may not have been quite so lucrative if not for Shaw’s negotiating skills. With that kind of money getting doled out, it’s paramount that “every representative on the team—the client, attorney, manager, accountant, and any other advisers—work together,” to finalize the contract, says Shaw. Her tactic: “Never wing it” and “start from a place of incredible knowl- edge.” For starters, she researches the current salaries of talent comparable to her clients to ensure they’re not lowballed. She also memorizes box office grosses when negotiating with studio executives. Rumor has it her poker face is superb. In a discipline where pitching is everything, Shaw is NINA L. SHAW a rainmaker, studio-shark beater, and vigilant attorney. Founding Partner “Historically, entertainment [personalities] were not well represented, Del, Shaw, Moonves, Tanaka & Finkelstein especially minority clients,” she says. “There’s good representation out ENTERTAINMENT there if they want it.” —Marie Evan ANTHONY BARBOZA

Curtis L. Mack ment and labor issues, includ- defended Hooters of America LITIGATION Partner ing class actions and multiple against an Equal Employment McGuire Woods plaintiff lawsuits. In addition, Opportunity Commission charge Dennis W. Archer Atlanta, GA Wickliff assists company man- that the “Hooters girl” concept Chairman Contact: 404-443-5500 agement with collective bar- was discriminatory because it Dickinson Wright Career Highlights: Mack has rep- gaining and union elections and prevented men from waiting Detroit, MI resented 30 of the nation’s For- litigates all types of disputes tables there. Contact: 313-223-3500 tune 100 companies over the before the NLRB. He received Career Highlights: After earning course of his career. He has a vast his J.D. from Texas Southern Naomi Young his degree from the Detroit Col- amount of experience in the University. Partner lege of Law, Archer worked as a counsel and representation of Power Play: Wickliff defended Baker & Hostetler trial lawyer for several Detroit management in general labor, Amoco Oil Co. against a racial Los Angeles, CA firms. He ascended to the post of employment, and personnel discrimination claim by a minor- Contact: 213-975-1600 Detroit mayor, serving an eight- matters. A graduate of the Uni- ity contractor. The jury returned Career Highlights: Young rep- year term and garnering respect versity of Akron School of Law, a defense verdict on all major resents private and public sec- for changing the city’s image and Mack is also a former law pro- issues, and the one jury verdict tor employers in a broad range lowering the crime rate. fessor. for the plaintiff was later over- of labor and employment mat- Power Play: Archer was the first Power Play: In ITT Industries v. turned on appeal. ters. She began her legal career African American elected pres- NLRB, Mack convinced the Dis- with the NLRB and was a ident of the 400,000-member trict of Columbia Court of Brent L. Wilson founding principal of Gartner American Bar Association. Appeals to reject a finding by the Partner & Young, a labor and employ- National Labor Relations Board Elarbee, Thompson, Sapp & ment boutique firm. She is a Prince C. Chambliss Jr. that employees working at one of Wilson graduate of Santa Clara Uni- Partner an employer’s multiple sites were Atlanta, GA versity School of Law. Stokes, Bartholomew, Evans deemed to be employees of all of Contact: 404-659-6700 Power Play: Young defended a & Petree the employer’s other sites. Career Highlights: Wilson confines major oil company in a case that Memphis, TN his practice to the representation raised the issue of whether the Contact: 901-521-6781 A. Martin Wickliff Jr. of management clients in labor California Fair Employment and Career Highlights: The Harvard Shareholder relations and employment law Housing Act applies to alleged Law School graduate has over 30 Epstein Becker & Green matters. He is also an arbiter with sexual harassment occurring out- years of litigation and mediation Houston, TX the National Association of Secu- side the state. The California experience. He has been lead Contact: 713-750-3100 rities Dealers. Wilson received his Court of Appeal affirmed the counsel in jury trial verdicts in Career Highlights: Wickliff liti- J.D. from SUNY Buffalo. granting of a summary judgment areas ranging from contractual gates a wide range of employ- Power Play: Wilson successfully in favor of the defendant. disputes to class action person- COVER STORY

al injury suits to insurance and Michele A. Roberts publishing companies, and Buffalo Law School graduate is securities fraud. Partner national retailers. The Colum- schooled in a range of deals Power Play: Chambliss was the Shea & Gardner bia Law School graduate has from securities offerings to first African American partner Washington, DC also represented private em- financings of power plants, of a majority law firm in his state Contact: 202-828-2000 ployers in labor and employ- pipelines, refineries, and other and the first African American Career Highlights: Roberts, chair ment matters, including un- projects in the U.S., Asia, and president of the Memphis Bar of the trial division, was an in- lawful termination, alleged Latin America. Association. dependent operator for years discriminatory hiring, and sex- Power Play: Banks represented although big firms used her to ual harassment. underwriters in a $536 million Vincent H. Cohen Sr. argue their jury cases. The Berke- Power Play: Williams served as a leveraged lease financing by the Managing Partner ley Law alumna has served as gubernatorial appointee to the subsidiaries of Ahold USA Inc. Hogan & Hartson counsel for defendants with Governor’s Task Force on Diver- and represented purchasers in a Washington, DC charges ranging from racketeer- sity in the Judiciary and former- $290 million securitization Contact: 202-637-5600 ing to bank fraud. ly served as counsel to the New backed by the sale of oil generat- Career Highlights: Cohen has lit- Power Play: Roberts rescued York State Assembly Banking ed by Ecopetrol. igated civil and criminal cases Charles Bakaly, an associate of Committee. He was a founding and argued appeals in all of the Special Prosecutor Kenneth Starr partner of one of the oldest and Sharon Y. Bowen District of Columbia’s local and who was charged with leaking largest African American-owned Partner federal courts. A graduate of Syra- confidential materials. She was corporate law firms, Wood, Latham & Watkins cuse University Law School, also named No. 1 in Washingtonian Williams, Rafalsky & Harris. New York, NY Cohen served as trial attorney magazine’s “Top 75” attorneys. Contact: 212-906-1200 with the Department of Justice MERGERS & Career Highlights: Bowen repre- and director of compliance of the Paul T. Williams Jr. ACQUISITIONS/ sents corporations and financial Equal Employment and Oppor- Partner institutions on a broad range of tunity Commission. Bryan Cave SECURITIES transactions, including mergers Power Play: Cohen is a fellow of New York, NY Michael C. Banks and acquisitions, securities offer- the American College of Trial Contact: 212-541-2000 Partner ings, corporate restructurings, Lawyers and formerly served as Career Highlights: Williams has Milbank, Tweed, Hadley, venture capital, and private equi- vice chairman of Disabilities and represented government agen- & McCloy ty financings. Tenure and two terms as a mem- cies and corporate clients, in- New York, NY Bowen earned an M.B.A .from ber of the Board of Governors of cluding automobile manufac- Contact: 212-530-5000 Kellogg University and a J.D. the District of Columbia Bar. turers, financial institutions, Career Highlights: The SUNY from Northwestern University.

With a 95% win record in trying personal injury and product liability cases, and punitive damages in the millions, it’s no wonder people are talking about “how sweet it is” when it comes to civil litigator Dennis Sweet. The 48-year-old Jack- son, Mississippi, native is a partner at Langston, Sweet & Freese. Civil cases represent 80% of Sweet’s workload. But you won’t always find him in a courtroom. Many of his suits are settled and never make it to trial. When Sweet does walk through the doors of a courtroom, all eyes are on him. The statuesque 6-foot-5-inch attorney always appears to have the world in his hands. There’s no sugary approach to the way he persuades jurors or confronts witnesses. “I go in and try to hammer away,” says Sweet, adding that he doesn’t “apologize for asking for large sums of money.” It’s no wonder he has grabbed the national spotlight with victories such as a $144 million verdict against Ford Motor Co. (the largest wrongful death ver- dict in Mississippi’s history) and a $400 million dollar verdict against American Home Products, makers of the Fen-Phen diet pill. “The general public often views mass tort litigation as jackpot justice because that’s how companies on trial sell it. A lot of times, victims’ families can’t get any justice in the criminal courts, so their only recourse is to file a civil suit,” says Sweet, who is a member of the slave reparations coordinating committee’s legal dream team. Although he earned his stellar reputation as a civil litigator, Sweet cut his teeth in criminal law, trying civil rights and anti-death penalty cases. The George Washington University grad’s first job out of law school in 1980 was DENNIS C. SWEET III as a staff attorney in the District of Columbia Public Defender’s Office and later Partner at the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery Alabama. Langston, Sweet & Freese The million-dollar-verdict man, however, remains humble. As he sees it: “There are no small cases—only small lawyers.” —Carolyn M. Brown PRODUCT LIABILITY COVER STORY

Power Play: Bowen was counsel Willie E. Dennis legal expert for hundreds of cor- He specializes in venture capi- on the finance team for Coach Partner porate, emerging business, and tal, mergers and acquisitions, Inc.’s bank financing after the Thelen Reid & Priest nonprofit organizations. The forming private investment company’s spin-off from Sarah New York, NY Ohio State Law alumnus repre- clubs, and recapitalizing finan- Lee Corp. Contact: 212-603-2000 sents multi-million dollar ven- cially distressed companies. Career Highlights: Dennis’ illus- ture investors; numerous issuers Power Play: Isom represented a of privately placed securities, firm in the creation of a $1 billion John W. Carr trious 15-year career encom- passes broad experience in cor- both equity and debt; and private equity fund focused on Partner porate finance, initial public numerous closely held busi- the Asian markets. Simpson, Thacher & Bartlett offerings, and mergers and acqui- nesses. New York, NY sitions. The Columbia Law Power Play: Flowers represent- Channing Johnson Contact: 212-455-2000 School graduate also works with ed a privately held healthcare Partner Career Highlights: Carr has had companies committed to fund- firm in a $30 million merger Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld the Midas touch since gradu- ing minority businesses. with a Fortune 500 corporation. Los Angeles, CA ating from Harvard Law Power Play: Dennis represented He is the first African Ameri- Contact: 310-229-1000 School. He represents mer- Goldman Sachs’ Urban Invest- can elected to the post of chair- Career Highlights: Johnson repre- chant banks as well as corpo- ment Group when the power- man of the business law section sents public and private compa- rate clients on mergers and house investment firm bought of the American Bar Associa- nies in a variety of industries, acquisitions, joint ventures, Border Media Partners, which tion. ranging from film and television and private equity funds. His owns Hispanic radio stations in production and distribution to client roster boasts the Apollo Mexico and Texas. Phillip Isom investment banking. The Harvard Theater Foundation, Sony Partner Law graduate counsels clients on Music Entertainment, and Michael Flowers O’Melveny & Myers various deals, including joint ven- Upper Manhattan Empower- Partner New York, NY tures, publishing agreements, and ment Zone. Bricker & Eckler Contact: 212-408-2400 artists’ recording contracts. Power Play: Carr negotiated Columbus, OH Career Highlights: This Colum- Power Play: Johnson’s client ros- NBC’s $415 million acquisition Contact: 614-227-2300 bia Law scholar has 13 years of ter incudes TLC, Stevie Wonder, of PAX cable network. Career Highlights: Flowers is a legal wrangling under his belt. and SFX Entertainment. John-

“Mr. Personality” best describes Ted Wells when he is trying a case. A winning formula for one of the nation’s leading litigators involves using the “power of trans- ference” on jurors. “Get the jury to like you, and they will like your client,” says the partner at New York’s Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. Wells, who has defended high-profile CEOs and political figures in white-collar criminal defense trials, is credited with getting acquittals for former Secretary of Agriculture under the Clinton administration Michael Espy and former Secretary of Labor under the Reagan administration Raymond Donovan. He also successfully defended Tennessee financier Franklin Haney in the first trial conducted by the Jus- tice Department Task Force on Campaign Finance Violations. Another significant notch on Wells’ belt was persuading the U.S. Department of Justice to drop a three-year criminal investigation of New Jersey Senator Robert Torricelli. Wells, who serves as co-chair of his firm’s 150-lawyer litigation department, prides himself on knowing how to read jurors and making them feel at ease. Given the recent media hype and public awareness of corporate scandals, “It’s becoming increasingly tougher to win cases against a big corporation or a corporate execu- tive,” says Wells, who appeared on our “30 for the Next 30“ list (see August 2000). The son of a mail clerk and a cab driver, Wells, 52, grew up in Washington, D.C. He holds a master’s in business and a law degree from Harvard. One of his earli- er gigs was at a New Jersey law firm, where he was on the trial team in a high pro- file espionage case. Today, Wells’ practice has evolved. Half of his cases are white-collar criminal TED WELLS defenses and the other half is complex civil/corporate litigation. His biggest active Partner cases are representing Exxon Mobil in the largest Foreign Corrupt Practices Act grand Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, jury investigation and the National Music Publishers Association in a $17 billion

ANTHONY BARBOZA Wharton & Garrison lawsuit against Bertelsmann for its Napster alliance. COMPLEX LITIGATION/ Says Wells, “I am making inroads in places where black attorneys were once not WHITE-COLLAR CRIME able to go.” —Carolyn M. Brown

AMERICA’S TOP BLACK LAWYERS COVER STORY

AMERICA’S The contributions of black lawyers have been etched into the history books of American law since the 1800s. There TOP BLACK were men and women such as John Rock, the first African American attorney to practice before the Supreme Court, LAWYERS and Charlotte E. Ray, the first African American female lawyer to pass the bar in the U.S. This page pays homage to a LEGAL LEGENDS select few contemporary African American legal history makers.

THURGOOD MARSHALL

As the first black solicitor general and Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Mar- shall is one of the most celebrated figures in the history of civil rights in America. Along with his mentor Charles Hamilton Houston (the first black lawyer to win a case before the Supreme Court), Mar- shall, who served as a justice for 24 years, developed a strategy for eradicating seg- regation in schools that culminated in the landmark 1954 case Brown v.The Board of Education.

J.L. Chestnut Jr.: Chest- ing the Carter administra- honor. Higginbotham was of Appeals for the Sixth Cir- deputy director of the Dis- nut founded Chestnut, tion. He assumed the post known for his championship cuit and the second African trict of Columbia’s Public Sanders, Sanders, Pettaway, of solicitor general—the sec- of broad constitutional pro- American solicitor general Defender Service. In 1991, he & Campbell, the largest ond leading position in the tections of individual rights in the history of the U.S. In served as legal counsel to black law firm in Alabama. Justice Department—under and personal liberties. 1961, President John F. Professor Anita Hill during The Howard University President Clinton. Kennedy appointed him to the Clarence Thomas Sen- graduate is acclaimed in Charles Hamilton the U.S. District Court for ate confirmation hearings. legal circles for his lifelong William Henry Hastie: Houston: A graduate of the Eastern District of He is currently co-chairman battles against segregation A 1925 graduate of Amherst Amherst College and Har- Michigan—another first for of the Slavery Reparations in Selma, Alabama, in- College, Hastie was ap- vard Law School, where he an African American. Coordinating Committee. cluding his contribution to pointed judge of the Federal was the first African Amer- the infamous Bloody Sun- District Court in the Virgin ican editor of the Harvard Constance Baker Aulana L. Peters: Cur- day civil rights march led by Islands by President Frank- Law Review, Houston Motley: A graduate of rently a member of the New Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. lin Delano Roosevelt. Con- would become the chief Columbia University, Baker York Stock Exchange Mar- He represented King and firmed in 1937, he became architect of desegregation. Motley’s courtroom skills ket Regulatory Advisory other demonstrators in the the nation’s first black fed- In 1940, he became general influenced some of the key Committee and a retired South. Chestnut also won a eral magistrate. In 1949, counsel of the Internation- cases that preceded the partner in the law firm of $2 billion settlement against President Harry S. Truman al Association of Railway civil rights movement of Gibson, Dunn & Crotcher, the Department of Agricul- nominated him judge of the Employees and the Associ- the 1960s, including Brown Peters was the first black ture on behalf of black farm- Third U.S. Circuit Court of ation of Colored Railway v. Board of Education. As woman appointed Securities ers in Alabama. Appeals. It was the highest Trainmen and Locomotive chief counsel, she won a and Exchange Commis- judicial position attained by Fireman, successfully argu- favorable decision in 1962 sioner. A graduate of the Col- Drew S. Days III: Days an African American. ing two cases involving in the case for James H. lege of New Rochelle, New was one of the first African racial discrimination before Meredith against the Uni- York, and the University of American faculty members A. Leon Higginbotham the U.S. Supreme Court. versity of Mississippi, se- Southern California, she was at Yale University Law Jr.: After serving 16 years as curing Meredith’s right to a member of the Steering School, his alma mater. A chief justice of the U.S. Third Wade McCree Jr.: After be admitted to the school. Committee for the Financial former assistant counsel Circuit Court of Appeals, he a four-year Army stint Accounting Standards with the NAACP, Days became a professor at Har- during World War II, the Charles Ogletree: A Har- Board’s Financial Reporting became the first African vard University. He was a graduate of Harvard Law vard Law School professor Project and a member of the American to head the civil recipient of the Presidential School became the first and prominent legal theo- Board’s Blue Ribbon Panel rights division of the U.S. Medal of Freedom, the African American judge rist, Ogletree has held a num- on Audit Effectiveness. Department of Justice dur- nation’s highest civilian appointed to the U.S. Court ber of positions, including —Carolyn M. Brown COVER STORY

With the string of recent corporate scandals, and the CEOs who have taken the fall, Bart Williams may have hit a gold mine by tailoring his practice to accommo- date white-collar criminal defense. As a partner in the Los Angeles office of Munger, Tolles & Olsen L.L.P., Williams has established his reputation as a successful litigator. His brother, Paul Williams, chief legal officer at Cardinal Health, also made our list. He was the lead trial counsel for a senior executive at Hyundai Motor Ameri- ca who was acquitted in 1996 of charges of illegal federal campaign donations. Williams was able to convince a jury that the executive was a company scape- goat who knew it was wrong for companies and foreign nationals to give money but had no prior knowledge it was wrong to get reimbursed for personal donations. Williams says the key strategy in white-collar criminal defense is witness prepa- ration. “You can’t control what a witness says, but you can make it your business to know what he or she is likely to say through investigation. A trial is like a play. Trial lawyers are both directors and actors,” says Williams, who was one of American Lawyer’s “45 Under 45.” More recently, Williams led the defense of a major Los Angeles law firm accused of professional negligence. The three-week trial, which Williams calls one of his “most rewarding,” ended in an acquittal. Not bad for a self-proclaimed jock who decided to study law after landing a spot on the debate team. Williams grew up in Los Angeles but left sunny California for provincial New England to attend Yale University, where he was a starting guard on the Yale var- sity basketball team. A former assistant U.S. attorney in the Central District of California, Williams BART WILLIAMS doesn’t take his practice or what he considers his duty to the community lightly. He’s Partner proud of his work with the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, where Munger, Tolles & Olson L.L.P. he serves on the board of trustees. “My father was one of the doctors who helped WHITE-COLLAR CRIME found this medical school in the ’60s. I want to carry on that tradition of involvement.” —Courtney Charity ANTHONY BARBOZA

son was counsel in the $30 mil- Vaughn Williams Law Journal named Byrd & Asso- implant cases filed in Maryland lion acquisition of the Great Partner ciates one of the “winningest” 50 and the District of Columbia. Western Forum for Foreign Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher law firms with a verdict totaling Enterprises. & Flom $150 million in 2001. A top mass Michael D. Jones New York, NY tort litigator, Byrd earned his law Partner Issac J. Vaughn Contact: 212-735-3000 degree from Northwestern Uni- Kirkland & Ellis Partner Career Highlights: Williams is the versity School of Law. Washington, DC Wilson Sonsini Goodrich “go-to” man for major corpora- Power Play: Byrd won a recent Contact: 202-879-5000 & Rosati tions under securities investiga- landmark $513 million settle- Career Highlights: The National Palo Alto, CA tion or faced with class action ment in Ayers v. State of Missis- Law Journal recognized Jones as Contact: 650-493-9300 suits. The Stanford Law School sippi, a 27-year class action bat- one of the nation’s top 10 trial Career Highlights: Vaughn, a graduate also has represented tle over Mississippi’s unequal attorneys. partner at the leading law firm such companies as Rite Aid, Pull- funding of the state’s historical- The Georgetown University representing technology com- man Inc., and Revlon in merger ly black universities. Law Center alumnus is eminent panies, specializes in working and acquisition-related litigation. for his winning record and is with startup and emerging Power Play: Williams is repre- Harry S. Johnson avidly sought by major corpora- growth technology, Internet, life senting Massachusetts Mutual Partner tions hoping to avoid big puni- sciences, and education com- Life Insurance in a series of Whiteford, Taylor & Preston tive damages. panies, including introductions national class actions and rep- Baltimore, MD Power Play: Michael Jones de- to angel investors and corpo- resented American Express in Contact: 410-347-8700 fended NL Industries in the first rate partners. The Michigan its acquisition of Lifeco Services Career Highlights: Johnson rep- lead paint case to go to trial— Law School graduate has rep- Corporation. resents insurers and manufac- the $35 million lawsuit was resented such clients as Mor- tures in product liability, medical rejected. gan Stanley and Goldman Sachs PERSONAL INJURY/ malpractice, and lead paint law- & Co. suits. The University of Mary- William H. Lightfoot Power Play: Vaughn represented PRODUCT LIABILITY land law scholar is president of Managing Partner issuers and underwriters in IPOs Isaac K. Byrd Jr. the Maryland Bar Association. Koonz, McKenney, Johnson, for E-Loan, Bamboo.com, Liquid Managing Partner Power Play: Johnson was counsel DePaolis & Lightfoot Audio and Blaze Software. He Byrd & Associates for a major manufacturer in a Washington, DC was named one of the top 20 Jackson, MS class action involving over 8,500 Contact: 202-659-5500 lawyers under the age of 40 by Contact: 601-714-4226 plaintiffs and counsel to a major Career Highlights: Lightfoot has California Law Business. Career Highlights: The National manufacturer in over 350 breast had notable success in product COVER STORY

and premises liability, winning Charles J. Hamilton Jr. served as deputy attorney general panies and other organizations. over $400 million in settlements Partner for the state of New Jersey and Power Play: Johnson represented for his clients. The Washington Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker legal counsel to former Wash- former Enron and Tyco em- University School of Law gradu- New York, NY ington, D.C., Mayor Sharon Pratt ployees in investigations by the ate earned the title of Trial Contact: 212-318-6000 Kelly. Caldwell is an adjunct pro- Department of Justice, the Secu- Lawyer of the Year 2003 by the Career Highlights: Hamilton rep- fessor at Georgetown University rities and Exchange Commission, Trial Lawyers Association of resents private real estate own- and earned his J.D. at Rutgers and the New York District Attor- Metropolitan Washington, D.C. ers, developers, builders, invest- University. ney’s Office. Power Play: Lightfoot was coun- ment banks, government Power Play: Caldwell served as sel in the Gomez & Maddox agencies, and nonprofit organi- independent counsel on the Ken- Loretta Lynch cases, recovering millions for zations. The Harvard Law School neth Starr’s investigation of Pres- Partner children scalded by inadequate alumnus also serves as general ident Clinton and represented a Hogan & Hartson water heaters and spurring in- counsel for Essence Communi- Tyson Chicken executive accused New York, NY dustry reform. cations Partners and the Nation- of providing illegal gratuities to Contact: 212-918-3000 al Urban League Inc. former Secretary of Agriculture Career Highlights: The Harvard Power Play: Hamilton is repre- Mike Espy. Law School graduate and for- REAL ESTATE senting the city of Mount Ver- mer U.S. attorney for the East- Peter C.B. Bynoe non in a $400 million revitaliza- Eric H. Holder Jr. ern District of New York spe- Partner tion project and represented Partner cializes in white-collar criminal Piper Rudnick Essence Communications Inc. Covington & Burling defense and corporate compli- Chicago, IL in a $125 million deal with AOL Washington, DC ance issues. During her tenure Contact: 312-368-4000 Time Warner to form joint ven- Contact: 202-662-6000 as U.S. attorney, she was a Career Highlights: Over his 25- ture ECP. Career Highlights: The first member of the Attorney Gen- year career, Bynoe has negoti- African American to serve as eral’s Advisory Committee, ated stadium arena deals for John B. Sherrell deputy attorney general in the serving as co-chair of the White professional sports teams such Partner Department of Justice (the No. Collar Crime Subcommittee. as the Milwaukee Brewers, Latham & Watkins 2 spot in that department) Lynch has been a frequent Washington Redskins, Miami Los Angeles, CA under President Clinton. The instructor at the Justice Depart- Heat, and San Francisco 49ers. Contact: 213-485-1234 Columbia Law school graduate ment. Lynch is currently a Before joining Piper Rudnick, he Career Highlights: A 25-year vet- also served under President director of the Federal Reserve founded Telemat Ltd., a project eran in the practice of real Bush as acting attorney gener- Bank of New York. management and financial ser- estate law, Sherrell handles al. Holder began Lawyers for Power Play: Lynch served on the vices firm. Bynoe, who earned every type of property from res- One America, designed to in- trial team in United States v. his J.D. and M.B.A. from Har- idential housing and shopping crease pro bono work done by Volpe, involving the sexual vard, served as executive direc- centers to hotels and oil refiner- the nation’s attorneys. He cur- assault of Haitian immigrant tor of the Illinois Sports Facili- ies. His clients include General rently handles complex civil and Abner Louima by New York City ties Authority. Electric, Wells Fargo, and criminal cases and counsels on police officers. Power Play: Bynoe negotiated Mutual Life. Sherrell earned his domestic and international the $250 million project devel- J.D. from the University of matters. William (Billy) Martin opment of Comiskey Park for the Michigan. Power Play: While he was with Partner Chicago White Sox. Power Play: Sherrell served as the attorney general’s office, Blank Rome lead counsel to Southern Cali- Holder drafted guidelines for Washington, DC Gordon J. Davis fornia Edison Company during indicting corporations which are Contact: 202-944-3000 Partner the sale of its Edison Pipeline still being used by the Bush ad- Career Highlights: Martin’s civil LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae and Terminal Company to Pacif- ministration. and criminal practice is broad in New York, NY ic Terminals L.L.C. for $158.2 mil- scope, from internal corporate Contact: 212-424-8000 lion and represented the Cana- James E. Johnson investigations to police brutality Career Highlights: Davis’ practice dian Imperial Bank of Commerce Partner allegations. Previously, the includes land use development, in its $15 million construction Morrison & Foerster Howard Law graduate held municipal authorities and fi- loan to RTC Mountain Waste New York, NY senior managerial and supervi- nancings, and cultural and non- Medical Office Building. Contact: 212-468-8000 sory positions at the Department profit organizations. The Har- Career Highlights: The Harvard of Justice, overseeing major polit- vard Law School alumnus spent COMPLEX College and Harvard Law ical and organized crime grand decades in state and city gov- LITIGATION/ School graduate previously ser- jury investigations. His client list ved as under secretary of en- has boasted Monica Lewinsky ernment, including a stint as WHITE-COLLAR New York’s commissioner of forcement at the Treasury and the Chandra Levy family. parks and recreation. CRIME Department. Aside from his Before entering private practice, Power Play: Davis was lead coun- Joe R. Caldwell white-collar defense practice, Martin had an extensive public sel on the $250 million develop- Partner he is co-counsel on efforts to service career. ment of the American Museum Baker Botts overturn a Florida law that pre- Power Play: Martin was paid over of Natural History Rose Center Washington, DC vents felons from voting after $1 million for negotiating two and on the $7-billion-plus revi- Contact: 202-639-7700 they’re released from prison. landmark settlements to help im- talization of the World Trade Career Highlights: Before ascend- Johnson conducts internal prove community-police relations Center site. ing to private practice, Caldwell investigations for private com- in Cincinnati. BE