Ms Renee Smith > Kirkland & Ellis LLP > Chicago, United States > Lawyer Profile
Kirkland & Ellis LLP Offices
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333 West Wolf Point Plaza
Chicago, IL 60654
United States
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Ms Renee Smith
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Position
Renee Smith is a litigation partner who represents Fortune 500 companies in high-profile complex products liability, class action, and commercial litigation. Her successes include securing trial and dispositive pre-trial victories for General Motors LLC, General Motors Corporation, Abbott Labs, AbbVie Inc., Baxter Healthcare Corporation, Dow Chemical and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Renee has litigated and tried cases for multiple clients in state and federal courts across the country involving mass torts, high-stakes products liability and class action claims, complex commercial disputes, cross-border restructuring disputes and others.
Lawyer Rankings
United States > Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: automotive/transport
(Leading lawyers)With a ‘deep bench of tenacious litigators’ at its disposal, many of which display an ‘exceptional breadth of expertise’, Kirkland & Ellis LLP is well-equipped to handle a wide range of product liability matters in state and federal litigation throughout the country. While being adept at handling all stages of the litigation process, the firm is particularly praised for its trial readiness, ensuring that clients receive a robust defense in the event of a trial but also favorable settlements. Chicago-based Mike Brock and Renee Smith are both ‘impressive trial lawyers’, whose subject matter versatility includes handling high-stakes auto-related product liability matters. Notably, Smith regularly represents GM in class actions and MDLs alleging damage caused by a range of product defects, including recently securing summary judgment putting an end to a class action and thousands of individual cases asserting that the auto manufacturer had conspired to install Volkswagen-type ‘defeat device’ software in hundreds of thousands of trucks.
United States > Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: consumer products (including tobacco)
Recognized as being the ‘epitome of creative lawyering’, Kirkland & Ellis LLP‘s practice is centered around its Chicago and Washington DC offices, and is particularly noted for its trial skills, regularly acting in bellwether trials and dispositive motions. Renee Smith is ‘superb at trying cases across a range of products’, regularly prevailing in jury trials and multiple federal MDLs. Robert Ellis is a ‘top-notch litigator’ who regularly defends high-profile companies in complex consumer fraud and product liability class actions. Washington DC-based Mike Brock has vast experience in product liability cases and is a key member of the team, which also includes Mark Filip, who splits his time between Chicago and Washington DC and excels in handling matters involving governmental investigations or enforcement issues.
United States > Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: toxic tort
‘The best of the best for mass tort litigation’, Kirkland & Ellis LLP regularly has a fulcrum role in class actions and MDLs in major environmental and toxic tort disputes throughout the country. Recognized as the ‘epitome of creative lawyering’, the team, which is more generalist than many in the ranking, has an excellent perspective throughout the litigation continuum, using its feared trial lawyers as effective leveraging tools to achieve beneficial settlements for clients, as well as being dogged and effective advocates in federal and state courts throughout the country. Washington DC-based litigator Mike Brock is a distinguished advocate whose versatile practice has included some high-profile environmental and toxic tort mandates; he continues to act as lead trial lawyer for BP in ongoing cases emanating from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Other recommended lawyers include Chicago-based litigators Renee Smith, Leslie Smith, and Donna Welch, all of whom have experience advising manufacturers and life sciences clients in toxic tort matters.
Lawyer Rankings
- Leading lawyers United States > Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: automotive/transport
- Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: automotive/transport United States > Dispute resolution
- Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: consumer products (including tobacco) United States > Dispute resolution
- Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: toxic tort United States > Dispute resolution
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Media, technology and telecoms > Advertising and marketing: litigation
- Finance > Capital markets: high-yield debt offerings
- International trade > CFIUS
- Antitrust > Civil litigation/class actions: defense
- Government > Government relations
- Intellectual property > Copyright
- Dispute resolution > Corporate investigations and white-collar criminal defense
- Labor and employment > Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: transactional
- Energy > Energy litigation: oil and gas
- Energy > Energy transactions: electric power
- Energy > Energy transactions: oil and gas
- Environment > Environment: transactional
- Dispute resolution > General commercial disputes
- Tax > International tax
- Dispute resolution > M&A litigation: defense
- M&A/corporate and commercial > M&A: large deals ($1bn+)
- Intellectual property > Patents: litigation (full coverage)
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Private equity buyouts: large deals ($500m+)
- Investment fund formation and management > Private equity funds (including venture capital)
- Real estate > Real estate
- Finance > Restructuring (including bankruptcy): corporate
- Dispute resolution > Securities litigation: defense
- Media, technology and telecoms > Technology transactions
- Intellectual property > Trade secrets (litigation and non-contentious matters)
- Intellectual property > Trademarks: litigation
- Tax > US taxes: non-contentious
Firm Rankings
- Finance > Capital markets: debt offerings
- Finance > Capital markets: equity offerings
- Antitrust > Cartel
- Energy > Energy regulation: electric power
- Antitrust > Merger control
- Investment fund formation and management > Mutual/registered/exchange-traded funds
- Media, technology and telecoms > Outsourcing
- Intellectual property > Patents: licensing
- Intellectual property > Patents: litigation (International Trade Commission)
- Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: automotive/transport
- Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: consumer products (including tobacco)
- Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: pharmaceuticals and medical devices
- Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: toxic tort
- Real estate > Real estate investment trusts (REITs)
- Energy > Renewable/alternative power
- Government > State attorneys general
- Finance > Structured finance: securitization
- Tax > US taxes: contentious
- Dispute resolution > E-discovery
- Environment > Environment: litigation
- Dispute resolution > Financial services litigation
- Insurance > Insurance: non-contentious
- Media, technology and telecoms > Media and entertainment: litigation
- Media, technology and telecoms > Media and entertainment: transactional
- Finance > Project finance
- Intellectual property > Trademarks: non-contentious (including prosecution, portfolio management and licensing)
- International trade > Customs, export controls and economic sanctions
- Energy > Energy regulation: oil and gas
- Healthcare > Life sciences
- Dispute resolution > Leading trial lawyers
- Dispute resolution > Leading trial lawyers
- Dispute resolution > Leading trial lawyers
- Dispute resolution > Appellate: courts of appeals / Appellate: supreme courts (states and federal)
- Finance > Commercial lending
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Shareholder activism