Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
Encyclopedia
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher is a global law firm
, founded in Los Angeles in 1890. The firm is one of the most prestigious and selective in the nation, and ranks among the most successful firms globally. Gibson Dunn has nearly 1,000 attorneys
and over 2,000 staff located in 17 offices around the world, including North and South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. In 2010, American Lawyer named Gibson Dunn the "Top Litigation Department" of the year. The firm's best-known attorneys and alumni include former United States Solicitors General
Theodore Olson
and Ken Starr, Eugene Scalia
, and Miguel Estrada
.
Law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to represent clients in civil or criminal cases, business transactions, and other...
, founded in Los Angeles in 1890. The firm is one of the most prestigious and selective in the nation, and ranks among the most successful firms globally. Gibson Dunn has nearly 1,000 attorneys
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and over 2,000 staff located in 17 offices around the world, including North and South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. In 2010, American Lawyer named Gibson Dunn the "Top Litigation Department" of the year. The firm's best-known attorneys and alumni include former United States Solicitors General
United States Solicitor General
The United States Solicitor General is the person appointed to represent the federal government of the United States before the Supreme Court of the United States. The current Solicitor General, Donald B. Verrilli, Jr. was confirmed by the United States Senate on June 6, 2011 and sworn in on June...
Theodore Olson
Theodore Olson
Theodore Bevry Olson is a former United States Solicitor General, serving from June 2001 to July 2004 under President George W. Bush.- Early life :...
and Ken Starr, Eugene Scalia
Eugene Scalia
Eugene Scalia is a partner in the Washington D.C. office of the law firm Gibson Dunn LLP and son of United States Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia...
, and Miguel Estrada
Miguel Estrada
Miguel Angel Estrada Castañeda is an attorney who became embroiled in controversy following his 2001 nomination by President George W. Bush to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit...
.
Awards and recognition
- American Lawyer recognized Gibson Dunn as the "Top Litigation Department of the Year" for 2010, explaining that "when other firms and conventional strategies come up short, clients in deep trouble turn to Gibson Dunn for fresh, aggressive thinking and innovative rescues."
- American Lawyer ranks Gibson Dunn 4th among national law firms on the prestigious "A-List," which measures firms' ability to balance financial success with associate satisfaction, pro bono commitment, and diversityDiversity (business)The "business case for diversity" stems from the progression of the models of diversity within the workplace since the 1960's. The original model for diversity was situated around affirmative action drawing strength from the law and a need to comply with equal employment opportunity objectives...
. . - Gibson Dunn ranks 7th nationally in the 2010 Corporate Board Member / FTI Consulting survey of 300 corporate legal directors asking which national law firm they would most want representing their companies on national matters.
- The Vault Guide to the Top 100 Law Firms ranks Gibson Dunn's appellate practice at #1 in the nation. The firm's appellate practice has also been recognized by The National Law JournalThe National Law JournalThe National Law Journal, a U.S. periodical founded in 1978, reports legal information of national importance to attorneys, including federal circuit court decisions, verdicts, practitioners' columns, coverage of legislative issues and legal news for the business and private sectors.The...
's "Appellate Hot List,", Chambers & Partners, and American Lawyer. - The Global Competition Review ranks Gibson Dunn's antitrust practice 8th in the world among the antitrust "Global Elite."
- The Chambers USA Guide ranks more than 120 Gibson Dunn lawyers among the leading lawyers in their respective practices. In 2011, the firm achieved a total of 35 first-tier rankings in the fields of antitrust, appellate litigation, general commercial litigation, securities regulation, real estate, labor & employment, sports & entertainment, corporate mergers & acquisitions, and private equity.
Notable cases
- The firm's attorneys have argued more than 100 cases before the United States Supreme Court.
- The firm is representing ChevronChevron CorporationChevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation headquartered in San Ramon, California, United States and active in more than 180 countries. It is engaged in every aspect of the oil, gas, and geothermal energy industries, including exploration and production; refining,...
in its long-running, $27 billion environmental dispute in Ecuador. - The firm is defending Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. in the landmark $11 billion employment discrimination class action Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., a sexual discrimination lawsuit, was the largest civil rights class action suit in United States history. It charged Wal-Mart with discriminating against women in promotions, pay, and job assignments in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.The case...
. Partner Theodore Boutros, Jr. argued the case before the U.S. Supreme Court in March 2011. In June 2011, the Supreme Court unanimously reversed the Ninth Circuit's order certifying the plaintiff class. - The firm is representing Mark ZuckerbergMark ZuckerbergMark Elliot Zuckerberg is an American computer programmer and Internet entrepreneur. He is best known for co-creating the social networking site Facebook, of which he is chief executive and president...
, founder of FacebookFacebookFacebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
, in a $7 billion contract dispute with purported seed money financier Paul Ceglia. . - The firm is representing the Dole Food CompanyDole Food CompanyDole Food Company, Inc. is an American-based agricultural multinational corporation headquartered in Westlake Village, California. The company is the largest producer of fruits and vegetables in the world, operating with 74,300 full-time and seasonal employees who are responsible for over 300...
in a multi-billion dollar toxic tort suit in Nicaragua involving allegations of farmworker sterility stemming from Dole's use of certain pesticides. After the firm uncovered substantial evidence of fraud and a conspiracy between the plaintiffs and Nicaraguan judges to extort Dole out of billions with manufactured claims, courts in the United States dismissed multiple related suits against Dole and refused to enforce several Nicaraguan judgments. - The firm is defending Intel against several multi-billion dollar antitrust lawsuits filed by AMD and the European UnionEuropean UnionThe European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. - Gibson Dunn is currently defending Amazon.comAmazon.comAmazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
against patent infringement claims relating to the company's development of the KindleAmazon KindleThe Amazon Kindle is an e-book reader developed by Amazon.com subsidiary Lab126 which uses wireless connectivity to enable users to shop for, download, browse, and read e-books, newspapers, magazines, blogs, and other digital media...
. - The firm is representing ViacomViacomViacom Inc. , short for "Video & Audio Communications", is an American media conglomerate with interests primarily in, but not limited to, cinema and cable television...
in its billion-dollar copyright infringement lawsuit against GoogleGoogleGoogle Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
and YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
. - The firm's attorneys sued for the right of same-sex couples to marrySame-sex marriageSame-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
by arguing in the case of Perry v. SchwarzeneggerPerry v. SchwarzeneggerPerry v. Schwarzenegger is a federal lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California challenging the federal constitutionality of Proposition 8, a 2008 ballot initiative that amended the California Constitution to restrict marriage to opposite-sex couples,...
that California's Proposition 8California Proposition 8 (2008)Proposition 8 was a ballot proposition and constitutional amendment passed in the November 2008 state elections...
is unconstitutional. Theodore B. Olson acted for two gay couples against Proposition 8. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Vaughn Walker ordered the ban to be lifted, and that decision is now on appeal before the Ninth Circuit. The case will likely go to the US Supreme Court. Theodore Olson has been named Lawyer of the Week by The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
on this case. - In 2009, the firm represented NBC UniversalNBC UniversalNBCUniversal Media, LLC is a media and entertainment company engaged in the production and marketing of entertainment, news, and information products and services to a global customer base...
in its contract dispute with Conan O'Brien. - Also in 2009, the firm defended The Williams Companies, Inc., in a $3 billion securities class action in connection with the bankruptcy of Williams' former telecommunications subsidiary.
- The firm defended a conglomerate of domestic and international auto manufacturers—including HondaHondais a Japanese public multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles.Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume, producing more than...
, Toyota, General MotorsGeneral MotorsGeneral Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
, DaimlerChryslerDaimlerChryslerDaimler AG is a German car corporation. By unit sales, it is the thirteenth-largest car manufacturer and second-largest truck manufacturer in the world. In addition to automobiles, Daimler manufactures buses and provides financial services through its Daimler Financial Services arm...
, Ford, and Nissan—against a multi-billion dollar global warming lawsuit filed by the State of California. A federal court granted Gibson's motion to dismiss in 2007. - Gibson attorneys also represented a coalition of automakers, engine manufacturers, and dealers before the United States Supreme Court in Massachusetts v. EPA.
- On March 1, 2006, Gibson Dunn’s Theodore OlsonTheodore OlsonTheodore Bevry Olson is a former United States Solicitor General, serving from June 2001 to July 2004 under President George W. Bush.- Early life :...
and Miguel EstradaMiguel EstradaMiguel Angel Estrada Castañeda is an attorney who became embroiled in controversy following his 2001 nomination by President George W. Bush to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit...
argued consecutive cases before the United States Supreme Court, Olson on behalf of DaimlerChryslerDaimlerChryslerDaimler AG is a German car corporation. By unit sales, it is the thirteenth-largest car manufacturer and second-largest truck manufacturer in the world. In addition to automobiles, Daimler manufactures buses and provides financial services through its Daimler Financial Services arm...
in DaimlerChrysler Corp. v. Charlotte Cuno, et al., and Estrada on behalf of Northern Insurance in Northern Insurance Co. v. Chatham County, Georgia. The firm won both appeals unanimously. - Current Partner Theodore OlsonTheodore OlsonTheodore Bevry Olson is a former United States Solicitor General, serving from June 2001 to July 2004 under President George W. Bush.- Early life :...
served as lead counsel for George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
in Bush v. GoreBush v. GoreBush v. Gore, , is the landmark United States Supreme Court decision on December 12, 2000, that effectively resolved the 2000 presidential election in favor of George W. Bush. Only eight days earlier, the United States Supreme Court had unanimously decided the closely related case of Bush v...
, which secured Bush's election as President of the United StatesPresident of the United StatesThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. Olson subsequently served as United States Solicitor GeneralUnited States Solicitor GeneralThe United States Solicitor General is the person appointed to represent the federal government of the United States before the Supreme Court of the United States. The current Solicitor General, Donald B. Verrilli, Jr. was confirmed by the United States Senate on June 6, 2011 and sworn in on June...
during Bush's first term, 2001-2004. - Awaiting the decision from the Supreme Court on Conrad BlackConrad BlackConrad Moffat Black, Baron Black of Crossharbour, OC, KCSG, PC is a Canadian-born member of the British House of Lords, and a historian, columnist and publisher, who was for a time the third largest newspaper magnate in the world. Lord Black controlled Hollinger International, Inc...
's appeal conducted by Miguel EstradaMiguel EstradaMiguel Angel Estrada Castañeda is an attorney who became embroiled in controversy following his 2001 nomination by President George W. Bush to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit...
Notable transactions
- The firm is currently advising KraftKraft FoodsKraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...
in its $19.7 billion bid for Cadbury. - Gibson attorneys are also advising HeinekenHeinekenHeineken is a Dutch beer which has been brewed by Heineken International since 1873. It is available in a 4.6% alcohol variety in countries such as Ireland. It is the flagship product of the Heineken company and is made of purified water, malted barley, hops, and yeast. In 1886 H...
in its $7.6 billion buyout of Mexican brewing conglomerate FEMSAFEMSAFEMSA is the largest beverage company in Mexico and in Latin America and as of September 2011 also the largest independent Coca-Cola bottler in the world. FEMSA originated as the Cuauhtémoc Brewery in 1890, which, through debt management, was restructured as FEMSA in 1988...
. - The firm represented a conglomerate of investment companies in the formation of a joint venture to acquire property in the largest UK acquisition deal of 2009.
- Advised long-standing client VivendiVivendiVivendi SA is a French international media conglomerate with activities in music, television and film, publishing, telecommunications, the Internet, and video games. It is headquartered in Paris.- History :...
parent company of subsidiary Vivendi GamesVivendi GamesVivendi Games, formerly known as Vivendi Universal Games, was the holdings company for Sierra Entertainment and Blizzard Entertainment. Vivendi Games was founded as Vivendi Universal Games after Vivendi bought Universal Studios in the early 2000s...
in its $19 billion merger with ActivisionActivisionActivision is an American publisher, majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA. Its current CEO is Robert Kotick. It was founded on October 1, 1979 and was the world's first independent developer and distributor of video games for gaming consoles...
to form Activision BlizzardActivision BlizzardActivision Blizzard, Inc., formerly Activision, Inc. is the American holding company for Activision and Blizzard Entertainment. The company is majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA and was created through the merger of Activision and Vivendi Games, announced on December 2, 2007, in a...
. - Provided legal counsel to PeopleSoftPeopleSoftPeopleSoft, Inc. was a company that provided Human Resource Management Systems , Financial Management Solutions , Supply Chain and customer relationship management software, as well as software solutions for manufacturing, enterprise performance management, and student administration to large...
after OracleOracle CorporationOracle Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation that specializes in developing and marketing hardware systems and enterprise software products – particularly database management systems...
launched an unsolicited $6.3 billion tender offerTender offerTender offer is a corporate finance term denoting a type of takeover bid. The tender offer is a public, open offer or invitation by a prospective acquirer to all stockholders of a publicly traded corporation to tender their stock for sale at a specified price during a specified time, subject to...
(hostile takeover). - Advised Lehman BrothersLehman BrothersLehman Brothers Holdings Inc. was a global financial services firm. Before declaring bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth largest investment bank in the USA , doing business in investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales and trading Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (former NYSE ticker...
and Ratos A.B. (a Swedish private equity firm) on their bid for Fastighets A.B. Tornet for €2 billion. - Advised General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
in its €2 billion acquisition of Instrumentarium Corporation.
Notable attorneys
- Miguel EstradaMiguel EstradaMiguel Angel Estrada Castañeda is an attorney who became embroiled in controversy following his 2001 nomination by President George W. Bush to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit...
- Theodore OlsonTheodore OlsonTheodore Bevry Olson is a former United States Solicitor General, serving from June 2001 to July 2004 under President George W. Bush.- Early life :...
- Eugene ScaliaEugene ScaliaEugene Scalia is a partner in the Washington D.C. office of the law firm Gibson Dunn LLP and son of United States Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia...
- Debra Wong YangDebra Wong YangDebra Wong Yang was the United States Attorney for the Central District of California. She was appointed in May 2002 by President George W. Bush, who made her the first Asian American woman to serve as a United States Attorney...
- Theodore Boutrous
- Orin Snyder
- Randy Mastro
Offices
BrusselsBrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
Century City- Dallas
- Denver
DubaiDubaiDubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...- Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
MunichMunichMunich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...- New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
- IrvineIrvine, CaliforniaIrvine is a suburban incorporated city in Orange County, California, United States. It is a planned city, mainly developed by the Irvine Company since the 1960s. Formally incorporated on December 28, 1971, the city has a population of 212,375 as of the 2010 census. However, the California...
- Palo Alto
ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...- San Francisco
São PauloSão PauloSão Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
SingaporeSingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...- Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....