Madeleine McDonough KC > Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP > Denver, United States > Lawyer Profile

Madeleine McDonough KC

Work Department

Product Liability Litigation and Mass Torts

Position

Chair of Firm

Career

Madeleine began a five-year term as Chair of Shook, Hardy & Bacon on January 1, 2017, and has been re-elected for another five-year term beginning January 1, 2022. A former clinical pharmacist, she represents multinational companies in a range of industries: pharmaceutical, animal health, medical device, food, cosmetics and beverage.

Shook’s pharmaceutical company clients have described Madeleine as “a true visionary and trusted counsel” and “one of the finest lawyers I have ever worked with—brilliant, innovative, with enormous integrity.” Chambers USA states that Madeleine is widely considered to be “a fine lawyer.”

During her tenure as Chair of Shook’s Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Practice, the firm represented dozens of major pharmaceutical clients, including each of the top-10 pharmaceutical companies worldwide.

Madeleine currently serves as Co-Chair of the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Practice. She has also served as Co-Chair of the Agribusiness and Food Safety Practice, and Co-Chair of the Life Sciences and Biotechnology Practice. Madeleine was elected to serve four three-year terms on the firm’s Executive Committee.

Madeleine advises organizations on preventative litigation approaches, policy and governance issues, emerging international legal developments, creative resolution strategies, risk management, corporate social responsibility and crisis management.

In 2019, Madeleine received the Women, Influence & Power in Law Award for Innovative Leadership from Corporate Counsel/In-House Counsel magazine. The National Law Journal named Madeleine one of the nation’s top-50 Litigation Trailblazers & Pioneers in its inaugural 2014 class. She has been named a leading product liability attorney by Who’s Who Legal: The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers and a Life Science Star by LMG Life Sciences. Madeleine is a member of the Legal Services Corporation’s Leaders Council. She has been listed in The Legal 500 United States, and she was honored by Missouri Lawyers Weekly as a Mentor of the Year for her long-standing dedication to advising younger colleagues, law students and high school students with an interest in the law. She is also an American Bar Foundation fellow.

Before her legal career, Madeleine worked as a clinical pharmacist in a large university teaching hospital and brings her pharmaceutical background to her representation of pharmaceutical, medical device, food, and cosmetics manufacturers in product liability, regulatory and related legal issues.

Madeleine served as editor-in-chief of the Kansas Law Review. She earned her LLM in Global Health Law from Georgetown University Law Center. She is the immediate Past Chair of the Community Advisory Board of KCUR-FM, a National Public Radio affiliate in Kansas City and a current Board member.

Memberships

American Bar Association, Section of Science and Technology; Food, Cosmetics and Nutraceuticals Committee, Immediate Past Chair

American Bar Foundation, Fellow

Food and Drug Law Institute (FDLI), Finance Committee

Personal Care Products Council

Defense Research Institute (DRI)

International Association of Defense Counsel

The Bar of the District of Columbia

The Missouri Bar

Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association; Public Service Committee, Former Chair; Kansas City Summer Law Internship Program for High School Students, Co-Founder

Education

• LL.M., Georgetown University Law Center, 2012 (Global Health Law)
• J.D., University of Kansas School of Law, 1990
• B.S., University of Missouri – Kansas City School of Pharmacy, 1985

Personal

• Power 100, The Kansas City Business Journal (2018-2019)
• Most Powerful 250 Business Leaders in Greater Kansas City, Ingram’s (2017-Present)
• National Association of Women Lawyers Leadership Award (2017)
• Top 50 Litigation Trailblazers & Pioneers, The National Law Journal (2014)