Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP is highly regarded in the market, with its attorneys noted as 'extremely knowledgeable about ERISA, and also able to implement creative legal strategies that achieve excellent results'. Its team has recently moved into the employee plan space and expanded its work in the energy sector. Its clients include Boeing, adidas and the New York City Department of Education, and it draws on the experience of several seasoned trial lawyers, granting first-hand experience of contentious processes. It has streamlined efficiency by developing the Virtual Whiteboard, which allows employees to track and review progress virtually, and ClientSite, which provides analytics about client needs. The practice is led by Jeremy Blumenfeld and Brian Ortelere in Philadelphia, and Christopher Boran and Deborah Davidson in Chicago, supported by Melissa Hill in New York.

O’Melveny & Myers LLP fields a sizeable team of litigators and represents clients in high-stakes ERISA litigation. The team is a regular counsel to corporations, financial institutions and plan sponsors on legal developments related to ERISA and other regulatory requirements involving the management of retirement plans. The firm developed its own set of software to optimize the efficiency of the litigation process, and its editorial team also works collectively to contribute to the writing of legal arguments. The litigation team is led by Washington DC-based partner Meaghan VerGow and Gregory Jacob, who brings public sector experience working in government departments, and is supported by Brian Boyle, who works with financial services providers, and Shannon Barrett, with a focus on fiduciary duties. The Los Angeles office includes Catalina Vergara, who works on fiduciary breach litigation.

Proskauer Rose LLP is nationally renowned for its employee benefits and executive compensation offering, spread across six offices in the US, of which its ERISA litigation team is a key component. This team has experience in litigating employee benefits issues that its clients face, and has prevailed in many landmark decisions. The team has been sought out to write amicus briefs on key issues before the Supreme Court and Appellate Courts. Acting as full-service ERISA counsel to an extensive client list, its lawyers are also sought out specifically to handle high-stakes ERISA litigation by new clients. The firm is led by New York-based partners Myron Rumeld and Russell Hirschhorn.

Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP represents employers across a broad range of industries, including insurance, financial services and education, in both individual and class action lawsuits relating to employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) disputes, Department of Labor investigations and plan fee issues, among others. The firm enjoyed notable success in its representation of Northwestern University in its high-profile case relating to workers' retirement savings. The practice benefits from integrated expertise in transactional benefits, broad labor law and securities litigation, allowing it to handle a broad range of cases. The Chicago-based team is led by Craig Martin, an experienced trial lawyer, alongside Amanda Amert, a specialist in ERISA litigation who represents employers and plan providers at the trial and appellate level. Matt Basil represents Fortune 500 companies in fiduciary duty and contracts disputes.

Goodwin continues to demonstrate its expertise through work with clients such as the New York Life Insurance Company and Natixis Investment Managers. The firm pursues a client partnership model, working in close collaboration with clients across contentious proceedings and broader strategy. The firm includes Boston-based practice head James Fleckner and Alison Douglass, as well as Boston-based partner Dave Rosenberg and Washington DC-based partners Matthew Riffee and DeMario Carswell.

Groom Law Group, Chartered's work ranges from claims disputes and federal agency investigations to complex class action and multi-district litigation involving plan sponsors. Its Washington DC-based team is led by Lars Golumbic, who has notable experience in class actions, defending clients in Department of Labor investigations and enforcement matters. Michael Prame focuses on benefit plan fiduciaries, as well as other service providers and plan sponsors, and Mark Nielsen defends plan trustees and sponsors in federal court against claims surrounding prohibited transactions; in particular, he has successfully defended employers against claims arising under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Sarah Adams acted as lead partner on a successful eight-year case, representing the Supplemental Benefit Committee of the Navistar International Transport Corp.

Mayer Brown is distinguished by its successful cases representing key clients across the film, aerospace and education sectors, among others. Its precedent-setting victory with the Shell Oil Company, in which a federal court dismissed the plaintiffs’ claim that the company had breached its fiduciary duties, demonstrates its expertise in high-profile proceedings. The team has been hired to defend seven universities in related cases. Its team is led by Chicago-based partner Nancy Ross, who has achieved many successes in high-stakes litigation, and Richard Nowak, who focuses on ERISA disputes. Samuel Myler has made a name for himself as a rising star in benefits claims class actions and stock-drop cases. Brian Netter departed the firm to join the US Department of Justice.

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP's growing practice focuses on high-profile and precedent-setting cases, and the firm can regularly be found acting for major companies operating in the banking, insurance and food sectors, among others. The practice is led by four partners: Theodore Wells, who works with spin-off transactions; Jessica Carey, who defended DST Systems, Inc. in a novel matter concerning alleged breaches of fiduciary duty; Kenneth Gallo and Brad Karp. Seasoned litigator Lewis Clayton is another name to note.

Seyfarth Shaw LLP leverages the expertise of its benefits and compensation team, with extensive employee benefit plan design and compliance experience. Sam Schwartz-Fenwick regularly advises clients in emerging employment/employee benefit best practices related to the rapidly changing legal and cultural landscape surrounding the LGBT community, including transgender insurance benefit coverage, and, on the contentious side, also has experience in claims involving transgender and LGBTQ employee-benefits discrimination. The team is led by San Francisco–based partner Kathleen Cahill Slaught, who counsels clients on the ERISA litigation risks associated with offering benefits to their evolving employee work force, and Chicago-based partner Ian Morrison.

Baker Botts L.L.P. acts for well-known clients in the entertainment, oil and natural resources, and healthcare industries. It is notable for having a team of seasoned trial lawyers with experience in ERISA litigation as well as employee benefits and executive compensation matters. Highlights for the team include its representation of the Investment Committee of the Phillips 66 Savings Plan and its Plan Financial Administrator in ERISA litigation which has advanced to the Supreme Court. Houston-based partner Travis Sales leads the team of trial lawyers, which includes Earl Austin in New York, who particularly focuses on life sciences and healthcare-sector companies, and Christopher Rillo in San Francisco, who takes on matters in the entertainment and financial services industries.

Jackson Lewis P.C. focuses on the defense of ERISA class action litigation nationwide, with a growing focus on defending single-plaintiff ERISA matters. The firm handles 401(k) litigation, COBRA class actions, and mental health and healthcare-related cases, among others. The firm is led by New Orleans-based partners Howard Shapiro and René E. Thorne, with key support from Charles F. Seemann and Stacey C.S. Cerrone.

King & Spalding LLP represents companies in ERISA class actions, director and executive compensation litigation and other complex employee benefits disputes. The practice is led by Atlanta-based partner David Tetrick, who sits on AIG’s national fiduciary liability panel. His work includes defending Home Depot against accusations that its FutureBuilder plan breached fiduciary duties, charging excessive fees and returning poor performance. Other key practitioners include the Atlanta-based Jim Boswell and Bobby Burchfield in Washington DC. Also in Atlanta is Darren Shuler; he is noted for his role as lead counsel in certified class action disputes.

McDermott Will & Emery LLP has offices across the US, covering a wide range of bases and allowing it to access state-level and federal expertise. The firm offers an integrated platform, with experts across a range of subject matters, including executive benefits, employee issues and broader labor law matters. The ERISA litigation team is led by Chicago-based partner Ted Becker and Miami-based partner Christian Nemeth.

Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP represents a wide range of clients, including single and multi-employer pension and benefit plans, plan sponsors, employers, fiduciaries, trustees, third-party administrators, and insurers and investment advisers on ERISA matters in both individual and class action lawsuits and withdrawal liability arbitration and litigation under ERISA. The practice is led by New York-based partner Ronald Richman, who concentrates on the litigation of employee benefits and restrictive covenant cases in federal and state courts throughout the United States involving trade secrets, non-competition, and breach of confidentiality and breach of loyalty issues. Richman also defends employee benefit plans, fiduciaries and employers in class actions and in cases brought by individual plaintiffs.

Holland & Knight LLP‘s team covers a wide range of work and acts for clients across the US. It has a particular focus on ERISA and ESOP disputes for clients in the energy and research sectors, and can be found regularly assisting clients in these and other industries in class actions and Department of Labor enforcement actions. The department is led by Atlanta-based partner Todd Wozniak, who also works as a trial attorney defending companies, fiduciaries and public institutions. Eliot Burriss left the firm.

Jones Day's employee benefits and executive compensation team acts for clients primarily in the food and healthcare industries. In Washington DC, practice co-head Evan Miller litigates employee benefits issues on behalf of corporate plan sponsors, multi-employer plan contributors, and institutional and individual ERISA fiduciaries. He also is actively engaged in special projects relating to the restructuring of pension and retiree health liabilities. Also in Washington DC is Miguel Eaton, who likewise deals with complex employee benefits issues, and co-chairs the practice.