Commercial Litigation
Adept at combining business practicality with creative litigation strategies, Arnold & Porter has an established track record for resolving high-stakes disputes across the commercial landscape. As seasoned trial lawyers, we bring the analytical and strategic firepower to achieve your objectives — however you define success — whether it be through early motions, summary judgment, favorable settlement, trial, or arbitration. Our litigation teams are diverse and combine subject-matter expertise with sophisticated advocacy skills to deliver effective solutions to complex or seemingly intractable disputes. Our record of success spans the full range of business issues, including breach of contract and fiduciary duties, licensing, M&A (including earn-out and CBE clauses) and indemnification disputes, RICO, fraud, state consumer protection laws and consumer fraud, and alter ego and veil piercing claims.
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Trusted Advisors Who Can Try Cases: We work closely with our clients to define and achieve their litigation objectives. Our deep bench of first-chair trial lawyers prepares each case for trial at the outset, enabling clients to pursue their desired result aggressively.
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Renowned Regulatory and Industry Experience: Integrating the distinctive expertise of our firm's leading regulatory practices gives us an edge in devising creative, effective solutions.
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Premier Class and Mass Action Defense: We are known for developing innovative ways to defeat class actions and we are frequently called on to serve as national counsel in multidistrict or multiforum mass actions.
Most Feared in Litigation (2024)
Experience Highlights
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Novartis Pharma AG in a suit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Amgen relating to the parties’ collaboration in connection with the development and sale of a new migraine therapy, Aimovig®, in the U.S. and over 25 other countries.
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7-Eleven in successful defense against purported class action claiming that 7-Eleven franchisees are employees of 7-Eleven and entitled to overtime and expense reimbursement.
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New York Community Bancorp in a victory in a Department of Labor, Office of Administrative Law Judges administrative proceeding involving Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower claims that was upheld by the Administrative Review Board and Second Circuit.
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Gilead Sciences, HBO, Honeywell, and Tandem Diabetes in obtaining dismissal of putative data breach class actions.
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Jefferies in a successful appeal to the Texas Second Court of Appeals. The appellate court found the awarded attorney's fees inadequate and required a reassessment, resulting in the largest Rule 91a attorney’s fees award issued in Texas. The case was favorably settled in a non-confidential settlement with the client receiving the full amount of the court-awarded attorney’s fees.
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Carnival Corporation and its subsidiaries as co-lead counsel in defense of multiple class actions and 200+ individual wrongful-death and personal injury claims arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Obtained dismissal with prejudice or favorable resolution of all actions and established ground-breaking precedents in COVID claims.
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European multinational aerospace corporation in numerous wrongful death and personal injury actions in which we obtained dismissal for lack of personal jurisdiction or based on application of foreign law, and briefed and argued multiple successful dispositive motions and appeals.
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Samsung in successfully resolving all claims relating to a nationwide class action MDL involving a voluntary recall of 34 top-load washing machines, including a victory in the Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.
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Leading international shipbuilder in obtaining summary judgment for dismissing civil RICO and fraud litigation brought by a state-owned multinational energy company that claimed over $2 billion in damages.
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Planned Parenthood, as lead trial counsel, in securing multimillion-dollar jury verdict, which was affirmed on appeal at the Ninth Circuit, on all claims against anti-abortion activists for RICO, trespass, fraud, illegal recording, and contract violations.
Focus Areas
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Related Services
Recognition
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Benchmark LitigationRecommended – Dispute Resolution — California; New York (2024)
Highly Recommended – Dispute Resolution — District of Columbia (2024) -
U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers“Best Law Firms” for Commercial Litigation—Boston, Colorado, Washington, D.C., Houston, National, San Francisco (2025)
"Best Law Firms" for Bet-the-Company Litigation – San Francisco (2025) -
BTI Consulting GroupIntimidating Opponent in Litigation (2025)
Class Action Leaders (2024)
Complex Commercial Litigation Powerhouses (2024)
Most Feared in Litigation (2024) -
Chambers UKCommercial and Corporate Litigation (London) (2024)
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Chambers Asia-PacificDispute Resolution: International Firms—South Korea (2025)
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Chambers EuropeCommercial and Corporate Litigation (UK) (2024)
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Chambers GlobalCommercial and Corporate Litigation—UK (2024)
Disputes (International & Cross-Border) – USA (2025)
Dispute Resolution: International Firms – South Korea (2025) -
Chambers USALitigation: General Commercial: (Colorado) (2024)
Litigation: General Commercial: (Illinois) (2024)
Litigation: General Commercial: (Texas: Houston & Surrounds) (2024)
Litigation: General Commercial: Highly Regarded (New York) (2024)
Litigation: General Commercial: The Elite (Washington, D.C.) (2024) -
FT Innovative Lawyers“Standout”—North America (2023)
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The Legal 500 UKDispute Resolution: Commercial Litigation (Premium) (2024)
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The Legal 500 USGeneral Commercial Disputes (2024)
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Legal Times KoreaTop 10 International Law Firm (2021)
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The American LawyerLitigation Department of the Year—Honorable Mention
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Law360"Firms That Dominated the Federal Circuit"
Litigation Powerhouse
