The Keller Rohrback complex litigation team was recently featured in a "Lawdragon limelight." Derek Loeser, Lynn Sarko, and Gretchen Freeman Cappio represented the department for the feature.
Below is an excerpt from the feature titled, "A TEAM TAKING CORPORATIONS TO TASK: COMPLEX LITIGATION AT KELLER ROHRBACK"
THE KEY: AN UNBEATABLE CREW
In order to take on cases of that magnitude [referring to KR's long history of high-stakes litigation and class actions], you need a strong team. The team at Keller Rohrback is the firm’s “special sauce,” says partner Gretchen Freeman Cappio.
“This is the kind of place where we all really value each person’s unique contribution, passion for the law, experience and skill set,” she says. “It’s a very respectful place where collaboration makes us all better lawyers. Rather than competing with each other, we compete with the other side.”
The kinds of cases the team litigates require working in large teams both internally and with other firms; it would be impossible to achieve national victories against such formidable adversaries alone. Being able to work well internally propels the attorneys into vital working relationships in the class and mass action space.
When asked about the key to maintaining that collaborative environment since the group’s founding, Sarko simply replies, “Ted Lasso.”
He’s referring to the hit Apple TV show, where a positive American football coach is tapped to lead a British soccer team. Much like that team, Sarko explains, the firm’s lawyers win together and lose together. When he says together, he means everyone – the firm places an emphasis on uplifting the roles of early-career attorneys.
"Collaboration makes us all better lawyers. Rather than competing with each other, we compete with the other side.”
Loeser and Cappio agree that Sarko’s lack of ego as head of the practice has allowed the team to succeed as much as they have by putting others forward.
“We strive to have a meritocracy that is not based on seniority and to let people, when they are capable, run as fast and as hard as they want. That’s a very special part of Keller Rohrback,” says Cappio. In one recent matter, an associate, Adele Daniel, successfully argued a dispositive motion in a case that had been ongoing for years. Instead of leaving the job to a senior attorney by default, Sarko explains that the partners instead asked, “What’s best for the case? What’s best for winning?”
Keller Rohrback prides itself on having a diverse, deep bench with stellar attorneys at all levels – from junior associates to seasoned partners with decades of experience. As Sarko puts it, "We have a great team and are excited about the future of the firm."
Read the full feature HERE.
Download the article HERE.