Rankings: Top Female Trial Attorneys

Law360’s Top Female Trial Attorneys recognizes 15 female trial lawyers who are scoring landmark victories while blazing trails in a once male-dominated field. The winning litigators are distinguished by the number and significance of their cases and their record of wins in high-stakes trials.
  • May 29, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Latham's Peggy Zwisler

    Since entering the legal world as a secretary, Latham & Watkins LLP's Peggy Zwisler has excelled for more than 35 years as an antitrust trial lawyer known for dismantling opponents' expert witness testimony and bringing a firm grasp of economic complexities to her courtroom narratives. Those strengths have landed her a slew of legal victories, as well as a spot on Law360's list of top female trial attorneys.

  • May 25, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Paul Weiss' Beth Wilkinson

    Beth A. Wilkinson does not consider it an honor or a privilege to represent major corporations like tobacco giant Altria Group Inc., drug manufacturer Pfizer Inc. or even the National Football League — at least, you'll never hear her tell a jury that.

  • May 24, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Simpson's Mary Kay Vyskocil

    In her years taking on highly complex insurance and reinsurance cases for Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, Mary Kay Vyskocil's winning ability to distill incredibly complicated issues into simple themes for judges and juries alike has earned her a spot on Law360's list of Top Female Trial Attorneys.

  • May 23, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: WilmerHale's Cynthia Vreeland

    WilmerHale partner Cynthia D. Vreeland has garnered an impressive track record in her 22 years of practice — of the 16 cases she's worked on, she's won 14 and settled another during trial, according to the firm. With just one loss in more than two decades and a growing reputation as a stellar litigator who keeps her head when things get hot in the courtroom, she's earned a place among Law360's Top 15 Female Trial Attorneys.

  • May 22, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: King & Spalding's Chilton Varner

    Chilton Varner, a litigator with King & Spalding LLP, has won 30 of 45 trial cases over her 30-year career, with dozens more settling out of court. Her soft jury touch and command of the issues have won her the trust of some of the world's biggest pharmaceutical and auto companies — and a spot among Law360's top 15 female trial lawyers.

  • May 21, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Weil's Diane Sullivan

    With her client facing a $455 million lawsuit related to smoker deaths, Diane Sullivan could have just spotlighted surgeon general warnings or delved into the minutiae of product liability law. Instead, as the longtime litigator jabbed away at her opponent's case, she pepped up her arguments with the help of an animated jukebox, a light bulb graphic and slot machine sound effects.

  • May 17, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Jones Day's Stephanie Parker

    Jones Day partner Stephanie Parker doesn't fit the image of the barracuda you might expect to find in charge of courtroom defense for a major tobacco company, but those who have worked with her say her genuine character and ability to relate to people are the keys to her success.

  • May 16, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Jenner & Block's Terri Mascherin

    In 1988, when litigator Terri L. Mascherin — then a fourth-year associate at Jenner & Block LLP — agreed to help the firm in its pro bono representation of a client in a capital murder trial, she never expected to end up making the closing argument that could determine whether Dickey Gaines was put to death.

  • May 15, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Dorsey's Lisa Marchese

    For Dorsey & Whitney LLP partner Lisa Marchese, trying a case is about boiling it down to a theme and story that will resonate with the jury, regardless of their backgrounds and the legal complexities at hand.

  • May 14, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Crowell & Moring's Janet Levine

    Crowell & Moring LLP's white collar expert Janet I. Levine rocketed to national prominence in 2005 when she won a dismissal of charges for her client, an alleged double agent in a front-page scandal that sullied U.S. intelligence operations. In protecting others' reputations over the past three decades, Levine has earned one for herself, landing her a spot on the list of Law360's Top Female Trial Attorneys.

  • May 11, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorneys: Quinn Emanuel's Faith Gay

    A good litigator can explain a client's case, but a great litigator can tell a client's story, connecting with an audience by weaving the complexities through a narrative that makes listeners understand and, most importantly, agree. Few attorneys can tell a story quite like Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP's Faith Gay, making her one of Law360's Top Female Trial Attorneys.

  • May 10, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorneys: Quinn Emanuel's Diane Doolittle

    The quickest way to sum up why Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP partner Diane Doolittle has a place on Law360's list of Top Female Trial Attorneys is with six words: 22 years, 66 trials, four losses.

  • May 09, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Greenberg Traurig's Lori Cohen

    When Greenberg Traurig LLP's Lori Cohen walks into a courtroom, she owns it. Her ability to befriend everyone, from the bailiff to the opposition's witnesses, coupled with her focus on out-preparing the competition, have led to 55 straight trial victories and landed her a spot among Law360's Top Female Trial Attorneys.

  • May 08, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Fish & Richardson's Juanita Brooks

    There are successful cross-examinations, and then there are cross-examinations that lead a judge to marvel at the trail of the witness' blood splattered across the courtroom. Fish & Richardson PC intellectual property counsel Juanita Brooks' penchant for the latter makes her one of Law360's Top Female Trial Attorneys.

  • May 07, 2012

    Top Female Trial Attorney: Reed Smith's Barbara Binis

    Over two decades as a pharmaceutical product liability attorney for Reed Smith LLP, Barbara Binis has earned impromptu cheers from jurors, flummoxed expert witnesses and caused plaintiffs' attorneys to squirm in their seats, making her one of Law360's Top Female Trial Attorneys.

  • May 04, 2012

    Law360 Names Top Female Trial Attorneys

    Law360 is proud to announce a new series honoring top female trial attorneys, which highlights the achievements of 15 litigators who have scored landmark victories for their clients while blazing trails in a once male-dominated field and showing that the best man for bet-the-company cases can also be a woman.

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