McGuireWoods was recognized as a leading law firm in 42 nationwide practice areas in the Legal 500 United States, the respected independent guide to the country’s top firms and lawyers.
The 2023 rankings showcase the firm’s litigation and transactional strength across industries and practice areas, including energy; banking and finance; M&A and private equity; healthcare; corporate investigations and white-collar criminal defense; product liability defense; labor and employment; data protection and privacy; technology; and transportation.
The firm earned Tier 1 nationwide rankings in three categories: Energy Litigation: Electric Power; Transport: Rail and Road – Litigation and Regulation; and M&A: Middle Market. The Legal 500 gave the firm high marks for the breadth of its capabilities, industry knowledge and responsiveness to clients’ needs.
“They offer deep industry strength and practice groups that collaborate extremely well and work together seamlessly,” a private equity client told The Legal 500.
One litigation client said the firm “excels at ‘outside the box’ thinking and developing creative legal solutions.” Another said the firm “takes the time to engage with company representatives to truly understand our company’s business.”
McGuireWoods lawyers were recognized throughout the guide, with 12 singled out as “Leading Lawyers” in their practice areas.
- Heather Welch Arbogast, energy transactions: electric power
- Eric Bilik, transport: rail and road – litigation
- Anthony Carna, energy transactions: oil and gas
- Taylor French, employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: design
- Joanne Katsantonis, energy transactions: conventional power
- Ava Lias-Booker, leading trial lawyers
- Brian Kelly, energy transactions: conventional power
- John Padgett, transport: shipping – litigation and regulation
- Deepak Reddy, aviation and air travel – finance
- Noel Symons, energy regulation: conventional power
- Samuel Tarry, product liability, mass tort and class action – defense: automotive/transport
- Michael Woodard, M&A: middle market
The Legal 500 also recognized associate Molleigh Thomas as a “Rising Star” for energy transactions: oil and gas.
McGuireWoods earned rankings in the following nationwide practice areas.
- Antitrust: cartel
- Antitrust – civil litigation and class actions: defense
- Capital markets: debt offerings
- Capital markets: equity offerings
- Commercial lending: advice to borrowers
- Commercial lending: advice to lenders
- Corporate investigations and white-collar criminal defense: advice to corporates
- Corporate investigations and white-collar criminal defense: advice to individuals
- Cyber law (including data protection and privacy)
- Education
- Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: design
- Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: transactional
- Energy litigation: electric power
- Energy litigation: oil and gas
- Energy regulation: electric power
- Energy: renewable/alternative power
- Energy transactions: electric power
- Energy transactions: oil and gas
- Environment: litigation
- Environment: regulatory
- Fintech
- General commercial disputes
- Healthcare: service providers
- Insurance: advice to policyholders
- Intellectual property – trade secrets
- Labor and employment – disputes (including collective action): defense
- Leading trial lawyers
- M&A/corporate commercial – private equity buyouts
- M&A: middle-market (sub-$500 million)
- Media, technology and telecoms: transactions
- Media, technology and telecoms: technology outsourcing
- Product liability, mass tort and class action – defense: automotive/transport
- Product liability, mass tort and class action – defense: consumer products
- Product liability, mass tort and class action – defense: pharmaceuticals and medical devices
- Product liability, mass tort and class action – defense: toxic tort
- Project finance: energy and power
- Real estate finance
- Tax: not-for-profit (nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations)
- Tax: U.S. taxes – noncontentious
- Transport: aviation and air travel – finance
- Transport: rail and road – litigation and regulation
- Transport: shipping – litigation and regulation
The Legal 500 recognized individual McGuireWoods lawyers in the following categories.
Antitrust – cartel
Mark Kinghorn of Charlotte; Amy Manning, Angelo Russo and Sarah Zielinski of Chicago; Brent Justus of Richmond
Antitrust – civil litigation/class actions: defense
Mark Kinghorn of Charlotte; Holden Brooks, Amy Manning, Angelo Russo and Sarah Zielinski of Chicago; Brent Justus of Richmond
Capital markets – debt offerings
Greg Kilpatrick and Barlow Mann of Charlotte; Hannah Thompson Frank of Pittsburgh
Capital markets: equity offerings
Stephen Older of New York
Commercial lending
Gerum Yilma of Atlanta; Kevin McGinnis of Charlotte; Peter Butcher and Penny Zacharias of Pittsburgh
Corporate investigations and white-collar criminal defense
Jason Cowley of Charlotte; Noreen Kelly of New York; Benjamin Hatch of Norfolk; John Adams of Richmond; Robert Bittman, John Moran, Michael Podberesky and George J. Terwilliger III of Washington, D.C.
Cyber law (including data protection and privacy)
Anne Peterson of New York; Janet Peyton of Richmond; Alicia Baiardo of San Francisco; Andrew Konia of Tysons
Education
Shelby Guilbert of Atlanta; Michele McKinnon of Richmond; Farnaz Thompson of D.C.
Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: design
Taylor French and Allison Tanner of Charlotte; Carolyn Trenda of Chicago; Robert Cipolla and Robert Wynne of Richmond
Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: transactional
Gerald V. Thomas II of Atlanta; Taylor French and Allison Tanner of Charlotte; Katie Rak and Carolyn Trenda of Chicago; Robert Cipolla and Robert Wynne of Richmond
Energy litigation: electric power
Bernard L. McNamee of Richmond; Julia English, Katlyn Davis Farrell; Todd Mullins and Noel Symons of D.C.
Energy litigation: oil and gas
Brian Jackson of Charlottesville; Anthony Carna and Greg Krock of Pittsburgh; Andrew Gann of Richmond
Energy regulation: electric power
Bernard L. McNamee of Richmond; Julia English, Katlyn Davis Farrell; Todd Mullins and Noel Symons of D.C.
Energy: renewable/alternative power
Timothy Callahan of Chicago; Durham McCormick of Houston; D. Brennen Keene and Michael Woodard of Richmond
Energy transactions: conventional power
Heather Welch Arbogast and Brian Kelly of Baltimore; Edmund Daniels of Houston; Joanne Katsantonis and Emilie McNally of Richmond
Energy transactions: oil and gas
Anthony Carna and Molleigh Thomas of Pittsburgh
Environment: litigation
David Franchina of Charlotte; Diane Flannery and Vishwa Link of Richmond; Aaron Flynn, Makram Jaber and Allison Wood of D.C.
Environment: regulatory
David Franchina of Charlotte; Diane Flannery, Vishwa Link and Heather Stevenson of Richmond; Amanda Waters of Tysons; Aaron Flynn, Makram Jaber and Allison Wood of D.C.
Fintech
Molly White of Century City, California; Rakesh Gopalan of Charlotte; Sarah Zielinski of Chicago;
General commercial disputes
Cheryl Haas of Atlanta; Robert Muckenfuss of Charlotte; Jonathan Blank of Charlottesville; Amy Manning of Chicago; Yasser Madriz of Houston; Mark Anderson of Raleigh; Diane Flannery of Richmond; Samuel Tarry of Tysons; Wolfgang McGavran of D.C.
Healthcare: service providers
Kate Hardey, Kayla McCann Marty, Chris Scheurer and Bart Walker of Charlotte; Scott Becker, Holly Buckley and Amanda Roenius of Chicago
Insurance: advice to policyholders
Joseph Englert, Shelby S. Guilbert, Nicholas Hill and Anthony Tatum of Atlanta; Stephen Foresta of New York; Candace Ali Blydenburgh and Scott Oostdyk of Richmond
Intellectual property: trade secrets (litigation and noncontentious matters)
Meghaan Madriz and Yasser Madriz of Houston; David Finkelson of Richmond
Labor and employment disputes
Sabrina A. Beldner of Century City; Christopher Michalik of Richmond
Leading trial lawyers
Ava Lias-Booker of Baltimore
M&A/corporate commercial – private equity buyouts
Geoffrey Cockrell and Gregory Hawver of Chicago; Jon Finger of Dallas; Tom Zahn of Pittsburgh
M&A: middle-market (sub-$500 million)
Tom Zahn of Pittsburgh; Brian Hager, Joanne Katsantonis, Patrick De Ridder and Michael Woodard of Richmond
Media, technology and telecoms: outsourcing
Rakesh Gopalan of Charlotte; Casey Kuretich of Pittsburgh
Media, technology and telecoms: technology transactions
Rakesh Gopalan of Charlotte; James Anderson of Richmond
Product liability, mass tort and class actions – automotive/transport – defense
Diane Flannery, Perry Miles and Virginia Bondurant Price of Richmond; Samuel Tarry of Tysons
Product liability, mass tort and class actions – consumer products – defense
Patrick Clyder of Chicago; Mark Anderson of Raleigh; Terrence Bagley, Candace Ali Blydenburgh, Stephen Busch, Diane Flannery, Perry Miles and Trent Taylor of Richmond; Samuel Tarry of Tysons
Product liability, mass tort and class action – defense: pharmaceuticals and medical devices
Joan Anderson of Charlotte; Mark Anderson of Raleigh; Candace Ali Blydenburgh, Diane Flannery and Davis Walsh of Richmond; Samuel Tarry of Tysons
Product liability, mass tort and class actions – toxic tort – defense
Mark Anderson of Raleigh; Terrence Bagley, Candace Ali Blydenburgh, Stephen Busch, Diane Flannery, Perry Miles and Trent Taylor of Richmond; Samuel Tarry of Tysons
Project finance
Brian Kelly of Baltimore; Timothy Callahan of Chicago; Durham McCormick of Houston; D. Brennen Keene of Richmond; Evelyn Kim of San Francisco
Real estate finance
Dennis Mensi and Craig Harmon of New York
Tax: Not-for-profit (nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations)
Gerald V. Thomas II of Atlanta; Sabrina Conyers of Charlotte; Jean Gordon Carter of Raleigh; Michele McKinnon, Bradley Ridlehoover and Alec Sauble of Richmond
Tax: U.S. taxes – non-contentious
Gerald V. Thomas II of Atlanta
Transport: aviation and air travel – finance
Patricia Hosmer and David Whelpley Jr. of Charlotte; Deepak Reddy of New York; Peter Szurley of San Francisco
Transport: rail and road – litigation and regulation
Eric Bilik, Christopher Thanner and Sean Walsh of Jacksonville; Bryan Brantley and Natalie Zagari of Pittsburgh; Davis Walsh of Richmond
Transport: shipping – litigation and regulation
John Padgett and Jeanne Noonan of Norfolk; Bryan Brantley of Pittsburgh