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Over the last three decades, the legal landscape

has changed dramatically. At the height of the

Black Power Movement in the 1970s, you would

have been hard-pressed to find more than 3,000

African American lawyers. Today, their numbers

surpass 20,000.

Yesteryear’s black attorneys were champions of

civil rights and social justice. Today, their scope of

expertise has broadened, from defending corporate

executives to negotiating multimillion-dollar busi-

ness deals. Because of the ascension of top-rank-

ing black lawyers and the shifting legal and busi-

ness environment, BLACK ENTERPRISE has

developed our list of America’s Top Black Lawyers.

Our editors spent months researching to produce

this high-powered listing. Selections were made

on the basis of research with leading law schools,

legal scholars, prominent attorneys, and the fol-

lowing legal organizations: Minority Corporate

Counsel Association, National Bar Association,

American Bar Association, Minority Law Journal,

The National Law Journal, National Association of

Criminal Defense Lawyers, Association of Trial

Lawyers of America, Executive Office for United

States Attorneys, and the U.S. Department of Jus-

tice. After reviewing all areas of practice, we iden-

tified the best of the best in 15 categories, ranging

from criminal defense to patent law. Our list of

top lawyers was based on the following criteria:

■ All had to be practicing attorneys. We did not

include judges, business consultants, or individ-

uals with law degrees who are not tied directly to

the legal profession.

■ All had to have achieved partnership or share-

holder status at major law firms, served as gen-

eral counsels at major corporations, or held posi-

tions as top-ranking legal officers at nonprofit

organizations.

■ All have gained reputations as leaders or have an

average win rate as high as 95%.

In the next 15 pages, find out why these are some

of the most coveted attorneys on earth.

NOTHING HAS MEANT MORE TO THE ASPIRATIONS OF BLACK AMERICA THAN THE

law. For more than a century—from the “separate but equal” ruling of Plessy v. Ferguson to the recent

Michigan case upholding affirmative action—it has been a determinant in our access to and ascent

in education, politics, business, and all facets of American society. Over the years, a phalanx of black

lawyers has relied on their brilliant legal minds to win the battle for justice and economic parity in the

courtroom and the boardroom.

FROM CORPORATE LAW TO CRIMINAL LITIGATION,

HERE ARE THE LAWYERS TO CALL TO GET YOU

THE BEST DEAL OR KEEP YOU OUT OF TROUBLE

AMERICA’SBLACKLAWYERS

TOP

BY THE EDITORSAdditional Reporting by Carolyn M. Brown, Chana Garcia, Alisa Gumbs, Seimond London & Christina Morgan

ANTITRUST Alicia J. Batts PartnerFoley & Lardner Washington, DCContact: 202-672-5300Career Highlights: Batts han-dles antitrust issues and othermatters surrounding unfairtrade practices in the automo-tive, aeronautics, pharmaceu-tical, financial, and energyindustries.

The Columbia University LawSchool graduate served as attor-ney-advisor to former FederalTrade Commissioner MozelleThompson, analyzing recom-mendations for Commissionaction.Power Play: Batts was part ofthe legal team representing theAmerican Hospital Associationfor In re: Resident PhysiciansAntitrust Litigation, one of thelargest antitrust class-actionsuits ever filed, involving alle-gations by medical residentsthat teaching hospitals andmedical associations engagedin price-fixing residents’salaries.

Willie L. Hudgins Jr. PartnerCollier Shannon ScottWashington, DCContact: 202-342-8400Career Highlights: Hudgins helpscompanies analyze the potentialimplications of acquisitions andcomply with government reg-ulations. A graduate of HowardUniversity Law School, Hudginsserved as chief litigator for theAntitrust Division of the Depart-ment of Justice, where he workedon some of the largest mergerantitrust cases in U.S. history. Power Play: While at the JusticeDepartment, Hudgins led theinvestigations in U.S. v. GeneralDynamics and Newport News Ship-building and U.S. v. Lockheed MartinCorp. and Northrop Grumman Corp.As a result, the two proposed merg-ers were dissolved or abandoned.

Milton A. Marquis Partner Dickstein Shapiro Morin & OshinskyWashington, DCContact: 202-785-9700Career Highlights: Marquis, whoearned a J.D. from Case WesternReserve University, is a partner in

the Litigation & Dispute Reso-lution Group.

He served for 14 years at theoffices of the attorneys general ofVirginia and Massachusetts andthe Department of Justice,including a stint coordinatingantitrust efforts like the joint fed-eral and state investigation ofMicrosoft Corp.Power Play: Marquis was co-leadcounsel in the Clozapine anti-trust litigation, an action broughtby 27 states against Sandoz, alleg-ing that the pharmaceutical firmviolated antitrust laws by tyingthe sale of the drug to the pur-chase of its blood testing services.

Patrick S. Thompson PartnerPillsbury WinthropSan Francisco, CAContact: 415-983-1000Career Highlights: Thompsoncounsels clients in industriessuch as telecommunications, vit-amins, and brand name phar-maceuticals in price-fixing andmonopolization cases.

A Harvard University LawSchool graduate, Thompson isactive with the American BarAssociation antitrust section and

has developed an outreach pro-gram encouraging law studentsto consider careers in the field. Power Play: Thompson has rep-resented many clients in eviden-tiary hearings before the Califor-nia Public Utilities Commission,including the proposed World-Com/Sprint merger and the SBCCommunications/ Pacific Telesismerger, evaluating the proposedmergers for competitiveness froman antitrust perspective.

BANKING/FINANCIAL SERVICESClaudette M. ChristianPartnerHogan & HartsonWashington, DCContact: 202-637-5600Career Highlights: The HarvardLaw School graduate spent yearsin private practice representingover 30 foreign companies andgovernments in debt and equityfinancings.

As a partner at Hogan & Hart-son, she counts as venerableclients The World Bank, the Inter-national Finance Corporation, andthe U.S. Agency for InternationalDevelopment.

COVER STORY

SHARON R. BARNERPartner

Foley & LardnerINTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Truly ingenious companies rely on creative breakthroughs, hard work, andsomeone to protect and defend these innovations. That’s when intellectualproperty lawyers such as Sharon R. Barner become indispensable.

With more than 21 years of experience in trial, client counseling, andintellectual property dispute resolution, Barner scored big by aggressivelydefending a half-billion-dollar suit against her client, Pioneer Hi-Bred Inter-national, in a genetically engineered corn seed infringement litigation. Aftera hung jury, Barner settled out of court for an amicable work agreement. The46-year-old lawyer takes credit for convincing judges to allow jurors to raisetheir hands or pass notes with questions during court proceedings. “You won’tfind that in your average criminal or civil trial,” she quips.

Some of Barner’s other career benchmarks include securing a $154million patent damage award for Hughes Aircraft Co. from the UnitedStates for infringement of satellite-stabilizing technology. The award wasone of the largest judgments against the U.S. government.

She was also recently named national chair of Foley & Lardner’s IntellectualProperty Litigation Group and became the first African American to sit on thefirm’s 14-member executive committee.

Barner’s first love was science. She received a B.S. in psychology witha focus on biology from Syracuse University in 1979. But her career path tooka turn when she decided to attend the University of Michigan Law School.As an intellectual property attorney, Barner has been able to marry thetwo disciplines she loves.

It’s no wonder her face lights up when she speaks of the key strategy intrying technology cases: getting clients to break down the information “asif they were science teachers talking to a room of fifth graders.” Barner evengoes the extra mile by using video and computer animation in the courtroom.But it’s not just about schooling people, she says, it’s about winning cases.

—Daniel Brown

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Power Play: Christian arranged the$2.5 billion bank financing for theBolivia-Brazil Gas Pipeline Project.

Vincent Dunn PartnerChadbourne & Parke New York, NYContact: 212-408-5100Career Highlights: Vincent Dunnhandles both lenders and bor-rowers in connection withsecured and unsecured trans-actions, including acquisitionfinancing, vendor financing, andraising working capital. TheNew York native is a graduate ofthe State University of NewYork at Buffalo, School of Law.Power Play: Dunn representedlenders in a $1.8 billion con-struction financing case for tur-bine generators and raised $500million to lease the constructionof an electric generating facility.

Jack P. Jackson PartnerProskauer RoseNew York, NYContact: 212-969-3000Career Highlights: Jackson has

extensive experience in financ-ings ranging from multibillion-dollar leveraged acquisitions tomultimillion dollar venturecapital and PIPE financings.His clients include J.P. MorganChase Capital, HSBC, and Sum-itomo Bank. Jackson earnedlaw and graduate businessdegrees from Columbia Uni-versity. Power Play: Jackson handledSuperior Telecom’s $1 billionbankruptcy restructuring andthe bank financing of Pepsi’s $1billion acquisition of the largestbottler in Mexico.

David Baker Lewis Chairman, Founder & ShareholderLewis and MundayDetroit, MIContact: 313-961-2550Career Highlights: Lewis has spe-cialized in municipal financesince 1974.

He has served as the firm’slead attorney on many mu-nicipal bond offerings witha client roster that includest h e A u t o m o b i l e C l u b o f

Michigan, DaimlerChrysler,DuPont, and Prudential LifeInsurance.

Lewis holds a law degree fromthe University of Michigan.Power Play: Lewis is a formerdirector of the National Asso-ciation of Bond Lawyers and aformer chairman of the Nation-al Association of Securities Pro-fessionals.

Marsha E. Simms PartnerWeil, Gotshal & MangesNew York, NYContact: 212-310-8000Career Highlights: Simms over-sees debt financing and re-structuring in industries suchas retail, telecommunications,energy, and manufacturing.

She also has represented ma-jor lenders in debtor-in-posses-sion financing and exit financ-ing of newly reorganizedcompanies. Simms is a gradu-ate of Stanford University LawSchool.Power Play: Simms was coun-sel for Leucadia National Corp.and Berkshire Hathaway, War-

ren Buffett’s insurance andinvestment holding company,in the FINOVA Group acquisi-tion.

She is currently representingSotheby’s Inc. and Estee LauderInc. in bank financings.

Alphonso E. Tindall Jr. PartnerNixon PeabodyNew York, NYContact: 212-940-3000Career Highlights: Tindall hasrepresented every major invest-ment bank in the U.S. as under-writer’s counsel on more than $5billion of financings.

He also has participated in vir-tually every kind of finance trans-action from Connecticut to Cal-ifornia. He holds a law degreefrom the University of Con-necticut. Power Play: Tindall is past chair-man of the National Associationof Securities Professionals, a non-profit organization whose pri-mary focus is the representationof minorities and women in thefinancial industry.

The name Johnnie Cochran generates fear in the hearts of corporate giantsand opposing attorneys alike. With so many high-profile wins under his belt, it’seasy to understand why. Among Cochran’s successes are wrangling an allegedmultimillion-dollar settlement that persuaded a boy’s parents to drop criminalcharges against Michael Jackson and the “trial of the century” in which he suc-cessfully defended O.J. Simpson against murder charges.

These days, Cochran is looking beyond famous names. To the dismay of majorcorporations, he has shifted his practice’s focus to personal injury. “I’d beenschooled in criminal law and it had been exciting and fast-paced and all that,but all along I felt I could probably do more good in helping people who areinjured, helping people who really needed me,” says Cochran.

In virtually every state Cochran practices, he holds the record for mostmoney paid out in a personal injury case. The Cochran Firm recently won thelargest settlement in U.S. history in an environmental pollution case. Cochranand company coaxed $700 million from Monsanto, Solutia, Pharmacia, andPfizer Inc., which was awarded to 18,000 Anniston, Alabama, residents who fellsick from chemical contamination.

Equally skilled in the judicial courts and the court of public opinion, the Loy-ola University School of Law graduate was sworn in as a lawyer in 1963 and spentthe following three years as a Los Angeles prosecutor. He developed a knackfor reading juries and became the top trial lawyer in the city attorney’s office.

These days, Cochran’s approach in court is to use novel and innovative waysto argue his points to a judge and jury—even if it takes a rhyme or two. “Witheach case, I try to reduce it down to the simplest common denominator to helppeople relate or understand,” Cochran explains. “I give them something that theycan hold on to, something they can grasp. In the O.J. Simpson trial it was: ‘If theglove doesn’t fit, you must acquit.’”

—Cliff Hocker

JOHNNIE L. COCHRAN JR.The Cochran Firm

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Barron F. Wallace PartnerVinson & ElkinsHouston, TXContact: 713-758-2222Career Highlights: Wallace spe-cializes in the issuance of mun-icipal bonds and sales for tradi-tional tax-exempt financings forcities, counties, and state agen-cies. The Michigan Law alum-nus represents 12 urban rede-velopment authorities and taxreinvestment zones responsiblefor stimulating over a billion dol-lars of new investments in Hous-ton and Galveston. Power Play: Wallace secured$130.2 million bond financing forHouston Area Water Corpora-tion, and $881 million bondfinancing for Texas Public Fi-nance Authority.

BANKRUPTCYSteven Cousins PartnerArmstrong TeasdaleSt. Louis, MOContact: 314-621-5070Career Highlights: Cousins servesas chair and founder of the firm’sFinancial Restructuring, Reor-ganization, and BankruptcyDepartment.

A fellow of the American Col-lege of Bankruptcy, Cousins isalso listed in The Best Lawyers inAmerica . He earned his lawdegree from the University ofPennsylvania.Power Play: Cousins was leadcounsel for the Creditors’ Com-mittee in the 54 Apex/ClarkOil/Copper Mountain cases,which was one of the largest pri-vately held companies to have everfiled Chapter 11. He has beeninvolved in numerous corporatereorganizations, including Conti-nental Airlines, Kmart, Enron, andAlamo Rent A Car.

Reginald W. Jackson PartnerVorys, Sater, Seymour and PeaseColumbus, OHContact: 614-464-6400Career Highlights: Jackson haspracticed for more than 20 yearsin the commercial, collection, andbankruptcy areas with an empha-sis on representing secured cred-itors, creditors’ committees, and

debtors in Chapter 11 reorgani-zation proceedings and work-outs. He graduated from the Uni-versity of Pennsylvania LawSchool. Power Play: Jackson recentlyserved as lead Creditors’ Com-mittee counsel in the PrimaryHealth Systems Inc. Chapter 11case that involved a multihospi-tal reorganization. He also servedas Creditors’ Committee coun-sel in the Rax Restaurant Chap-ter 11 case.

Clifton R. Jessup Jr. PartnerPatton BoggsDallas, TXContact: 214-758-1500Career Highlights: Jessup headsup the firm’s bankruptcy and in-solvency practice. Throughouthis career, the Michigan LawSchool graduate has representedsecured creditors, unsecuredcreditors, committees, equityholders, debtors, and trustees infederal bankruptcy cases in morethan 35 states. Power Play: In 1996, Jessup wasappointed the examiner in theMegafoods Stores and relatedcases and was selected as theestate representative in 1998under the plan confirmed inthose cases.

Deryck A. Palmer PartnerWeil, Gotshal & Manges New York, NYContact: 212-310-8000Career Highlights: Palmer con-centrates his practice in therepresentation of debtors aswell as creditors under Chapter11 bankruptcy and has handleda wide variety of workout andcorporate restructuring mat-ters. The Michigan Law Schoolgraduate also chairs HealthWatch, the only organizationin the country devoted exclu-sively to minority health im-provement. Power Play: Palmer representedAK Steel in its bid to acquire Na-tional Steel Corp. He is current-ly serving as counsel to DoctorsCommunity Healthcare, a con-glomerate of five hospitals locat-ed in Chicago, Los Angeles, andWashington, D.C., which is inChapter 11 restructuring.

Michael H. Reed PartnerPepper HamiltonPhiladelphia, PAContact: 215-981-4000Career Highlights: Reed has spe-cialized in the field of bankrupt-cy and insolvency law since hisadmission to the bar in 1972. Heis a fellow of the American Collegeof Bankruptcy. A Yale UniversityLaw School graduate, Reed ispresident-elect of the Pennsylva-nia Bar Association, making him

the first African American to leadthe 108-year-old organization.Power Play: From 1987 through1993, he served as special bank-ruptcy counsel to the Pennsyl-vania Department of Environ-mental Resources in themultibillion dollar bankruptcyof LTV Steel Co.

Reed’s legal successes includea landmark 1991 case that limit-ed the ability of companies to

use bankruptcy as a way to cir-cumvent environmental clean-up liability.

CIVIL RIGHTSJulius L. ChambersFounding PartnerFerguson, Stein, Chambers,Adkins, Gresham & SumterCharlotte, NCContact: 704-375-8461Career Highlights: Chambersfounded the state of North Car-

olina’s first integrated law firm.Formerly, Chambers served aschancellor of North CarolinaCentral University and the direc-tor-counsel of the NAACP LegalDefense and Educational Fund.

Chambers earned law degreesfrom Columbia University inNew York City and the Univer-sity of North Carolina at ChapelHill.Power Play: Chambers has been

COVER STORY

WILLIE GARYSenior Partner

Gary, Williams, Parenti, Finney,Lewis, McManus, Watson, & Sperando P.L.

PERSONAL INJURY

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winning landmark Supreme Courtrulings in employment discrimi-nation and education since the’70s, including the famous schoolbusing case resulting in the deseg-regation of Charlotte’s schools.

Eva PatersonExecutive DirectorEqual Justice SocietySan Francisco, CAContact: 415-543-9444Career Highlights: Paterson is afounder of the Equal Justice Soci-

ety, an organization dedicatedto changing the law through pro-gressive legal theory, public pol-icy, and practices. She was a lead-ing spokesperson in campaignsagainst Proposition 187 (anti-immigrant) and Proposition 209(anti-affirmative action). Pater-son earned her J.D. from the Uni-versity of California, Berkeley.Power Play: Paterson has co-authored briefs for landmark law-

suits in support of affirmativeaction, including an amicus briefin Grutter v. Bollinger, the Michi-gan Law School admissions case.

Constance RicePartnerEnglish, Munger & RiceLos Angeles, CAContact: 213-989-1303Career Highlights: Rice is acclaim-ed for litigating civil rights casesinvolving police misconduct,employment discrimination, and

fair public resource allocation.The New York University LawSchool graduate and co-directorof The Advancement Project hasstrong family ties—she’s a cousinof National Security AdvisorCondoleeza Rice.Power Play: Rice won a $750 mil-lion coalition lawsuit for newschool construction and a $2 bil-lion lawsuit to improve bus ser-vice, both in Los Angeles.

Theodore ShawAssociate Director-CounselNAACP Legal Defense andEducational FundNew York, NYContact: 212-965-2250Career Highlights: Shaw has liti-gated civil rights cases throughoutthe country at the trial and appel-late levels, and in the SupremeCourt. The Columbia Law Schoolgraduate previously worked as atrial attorney in the civil rights divi-sion of the Department of Justice.Power Play: Shaw was lead coun-sel representing African Ameri-can and Latino University ofMichigan undergraduate studentsin the affirmative action case Gratzv. Bollinger, in which the SupremeCourt ruled in favor of the com-pelling state interest of diversity.

CORPORATE COUNSEL

Kenneth C. Frazier Senior Vice President and General Counsel Merck & Co.Whitehouse Station, NJContact: 908-423-1000Career Highlights: In 1992, after a14-year career as a litigation part-ner with Drinker Biddle & Reathin Philadelphia, Frazier joinedpharmaceuticals giant Merck.The Harvard Law School graduateserved as Astra Merck’s first gen-eral counsel and now oversees alllegal affairs of Merck, which had2002 sales of $51.8 billion.Power Play: Frazier was part ofthe corporate teams that spear-headed the spin-off of MedcoHealth Solutions Inc. and thatacquired Rosetta Inpharmatics ofKirkland, Washington, and SibiaNeurosciences of San Diego,Merck’s two newest research sites.

George W. Madison Executive Vice President, General Counsel and SecretaryTIAA-CREF New York, NYContact: 212-490-9000Career Highlights: Madison servesas chief legal officer of TIAA-CREF,one of the nation’s 100 largestcompanies with $286 billion inassets under management. TheColumbia Law School and Colum-bia Business School graduate pre-viously was a partner at Mayer,

Brown & Pratt, where he was thefirst African American partner inthe firm’s 120-year history. Power Play: During his tenure asexecutive vice president, generalcounsel, and corporate secretaryat Comerica Inc., Madison nego-tiated the naming rights agree-ment with the Detroit Tigers thatresulted in the team’s new stadi-um being named Comerica Park.

Michele Coleman MayesGeneral Counsel and Senior Vice President Pitney BowesStamford, CTContact: 203-356-5000Career Highlights: Mayes over-sees the legal affairs of the world’sleading provider of integrated mailand document management solu-tions. Previously, she served asvice president and deputy gener-al counsel for Colgate-Palmol-ive. Mayes had stints with theDepartment of Justice as assis-tant U.S. attorney and chief of thecivil division in Detroit. She is agraduate of the University ofMichigan Law School. Power Play: One of a handful ofblack women who head the legaldepartments of major corpora-tions, Mayes also serves as pres-ident of the NOW Legal Defenseand Education Fund.

Stacey J. Mobley Senior Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel DuPont Co.Wilmington, DEContact: 302-774-1000Career Highlights: Mobley is a 31-year career veteran at DuPont, a$24 billion global science com-pany, and was the company’sfirst African American attorney.He is responsible for staff ser-vices, including legal, publicaffairs, and government affairs. Aregistered pharmacist, Mobleyholds a B.S. from Howard Uni-versity’s School of Pharmacy anda J.D. from Howard Law School. Power Play: Mobley, one of BE’sTop 50 Blacks In CorporateAmerica, oversees a law depart-ment of 180 lawyers worldwidewith a budget of more than $200million and a docket of over 2,000cases, including complex com-mercial, antitrust, intellectual

Like the biblical tale of David and Goliath, Willie Gary has repre-sented little-known clients against major corporations, earning himthe nickname, the “Giant Killer.”

Gary’s practice, which got its start 23 years ago in a humble storefrontin Martin County, Florida, has won lawsuits against corporate giants suchas Disney and Anheuser-Busch for $240 million and $139 million, respec-tively. Gary, who is in his mid-50s, is heralded as one of the country’s lead-ing litigators, having won more than 150 cases valued in excess of $1 mil-lion each.

He’s a senior partner at Gary, Williams, Parenti, Finney, Lewis,McManus, Watson, & Sperando P.L., which has offices in Stuart andFort Pierce, Florida. Gary also serves as chair and CEO of the MajorBroadcasting Cable Network.

The migrant farm boy who grew up to become a power attorneyachieved one of the largest jury verdicts in U.S. history—$500 millionfor damages suffered by a Mississippi businessman who filed suit in1995 against the funeral chain The Loewen Group.

“This was a breach of contract case—a concept that I had to simplifyto a jury. So, I used phrases like ‘your word is your bond,’” he explains.

Another key tactic was getting inside help. Gary’s trial team tookgreat pains to ferret out former employees of The Loewen Group whohelped advance their case.

“We were able to find someone in accounting to verify The LoewenGroup was buying up small funeral homes in order to double theprices poor people were paying for services,” he says.

Gary is used to beating the odds. After graduating from NorthCarolina Central University School of Law only to discover that no onewould hire him because he was black, Gary returned to his hometownof Stuart, Florida. He decided to open the first black firm and says hehas never “allowed others to dictate his life’s course.”

—Daniel Brown

property, and product liabilitylitigation.

Roderick A. Palmore Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary Sara Lee Corp.Chicago, ILContact: 312-726-2600Career Highlights: A University ofChicago Law School graduate, Pal-more spent two years at a Pitts-burgh law firm before assumingthe post of assistant U.S. attorneyfor the northern district of Illinois.In 1996, he joined Sara Lee, the$18.2 billion global consumerproducts company, where he isresponsible for a departmentalbudget in excess of $15 million. Power Play: Palmore oversaw the$2.8 billion acquisition of TheEarthgrains Co., the largest in SaraLee’s history. He also launched adiversity initiative with Sara Lee’soutside law firms.

Deval L. Patrick Executive Vice President,General Counsel and Corporate Secretary The Coca-Cola Co.Atlanta, GAContact: 404-676-2121Career Highlights: Patrick directs

the $19.9 billion soft drink giant’sworldwide legal affairs and legalstaff, oversees shareowner affairs,and ensures that the companysatisfies government require-ments. A Harvard Law Schoolgraduate, Patrick was previous-ly vice president and generalcounsel at Texaco Inc.Power Play: As an assistantattorney general during theClinton administration, Patrick’sefforts led to a precedent-settingjudgment against Denny’s for vio-lating the civil rights of employeesand customers and helped bringabout ground-breaking enforce-ment efforts under the Ameri-cans with Disabilities Act.

Solomon B. Watson IV Senior Vice President and General Counsel The New York Times Co.New York, NYContact: 212-556-1234Career Highlights: In 1996, Wat-son was named a senior vice pres-ident of The New York Times Co.,a leading media company with2002 revenues of $3 billion, havingserved as vice president since 1990and general counsel since 1989.Watson is a Harvard Law Schoolgraduate and former associate of

the Boston law firm Bingham,Dana & Gould.Power Play: In 1993, Watsonoversaw the Times’ acquisition ofThe Boston Globe, a transactionvalued at approximately $1.1 bil-lion. He is a recipient of the 2002National Equal Justice Awardfrom the NAACP Legal Defenseand Educational Fund and the1998 Pioneer of the ProfessionAward from the Minority Cor-porate Counsel Association.

Paul S. Williams Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary Cardinal Health Dublin, OHContact: 614-757-5000Career Highlights: Williams man-ages worldwide legal matters forthe $50 billion healthcare prod-ucts and services provider. TheYale Law School graduate cameto Cardinal Health in 1995, afterserving as group counsel withBorden Inc. and practicing cor-porate and securities law atVorys, Sater, Seymour and Peasein Columbus, Ohio. Power Play: Williams played a keyrole in the growth of CardinalHealth through his involvement in

numerous mergers and acquisi-tions, including Allegiance Corp.,R. P. Scherer Corp., and Pyxis Corp.

CRIMINAL LAWKenneth L. Lawson Managing PartnerLawson & AssociatesCincinnati, OHContact: 513-345-5000Career Highlights: Lawson’s firm,founded by the University of Cin-cinnati College of Law alumnus in1993, has racked up numerouswins in criminal law and civilrights litigation, including a racialprofiling lawsuit resulting in a fed-erally enforceable collaborativeagreement allowing for commu-nity problem-oriented policing.Power Play: In a high-profile case,he successfully represented pro-fessional football player DeionSanders on five criminal chargesagainst a police officer and thenlater in civil court when the sameofficer attempted to seek damages.

William B. Moffitt PartnerAsbill Moffitt & BossWashington, DCContact: 202-234-9000Career Highlights: The second of

COVER STORY

Elaine Jones grew up in Norfolk, Virginia, when Jim Crow was law andorder. As a little girl, she witnessed early on America’s exclusionist policytoward African Americans and was inspired to become a lawyer. She wasconvinced that by studying law, she could turn adversity into an advantage.

In 1972, only two years out of the University of Virginia School of Law,Jones served as counsel of record in the landmark Supreme Court case Fur-man v. Georgia, which abolished the death penalty in 37 states. During thattime, she also argued numerous employment discrimination cases, includingthe 1972 class-action suit Patterson v.American Tobacco Co.

In 1989, Jones became the first African American elected to the AmericanBar Association’s Board of Governors and broke another barrier four years laterwhen she became the first female president and director-counsel of theNAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF). Under her leadership,LDF has undertaken, among others, cases demonstrating that the high incar-ceration rates of African Americans impact the community at every social andeconomic stratum.

A poignant example was LDF’s push for clemency for Kemba Smith, who, at24 years old, was sentenced to 24-and-a-half years in prison after pleading guiltyto distributing cocaine. At the time, Smith was a Hampton University student froma middle-class neighborhood whose boyfriend was the head of a drug ring.

Over a four-year period, the LDF appealed the case repeatedly in an effort todemonstrate to the court what the prosecution had initially disclosed—Smith neverused or sold drugs.

With Jones’ extensive background and broad array of cases, she has earneda reputation as a skillful negotiator and an ardent voice for those who havebeen shut out of the economic, political, and social mainstream. “Some of the mostimportant cases you can have are those that affect people’s lives—whether peo-ple live or die,” she says. “And those are the cases that affect the quality of life.”

—Marcia A. Wade

JER

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ELAINE JONESPresident and Director-Counsel

NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund

CIVIL RIGHTS

two black attorneys elected pres-ident of the National Associa-tion of Criminal DefenseLawyers, Moffitt has been listedin Best Lawyers in America andWho’s Who in American Law. Heearned his J.D. from Washing-ton College of Law, AmericanUniversity.Power Play: Moffitt successfullygot half the charges dismissedagainst William Aramony, theformer president of the UnitedWay convicted for defraudingthe charity. Also, in Common-wealth of Virginia v. TerryWilliams, he negotiated a life sen-tence plea for Williams, who hadbeen on death row longer thanany other inmate in Virginia’shistory.

Jeffery Robinson ShareholderSchroeter Goldmark & BenderSeattle, WAContact: 206-622-8000Career Highlights: The 48-year-old Harvard Law School gradu-ate began his career in criminaldefense in 1981. A former pub-lic defender, Robinson teaches

at both his alma mater and the University of Washingtonand is a frequent guest lecturerat trial advocacy seminarsnationwide.Power Play: Robinson success-fully lobbied for the dismissal ofa hit-and-run charge againstWashington State SupremeCourt Justice Bobbe Bridge in2003. In 1988, he representedKari Tupper, a woman allegedlydrugged and sexually abused by U.S. Sen. Brock Adams. Thesenator chose not to run for re-election.

James R. Willis PartnerWillis Blackwell & WatsonCleveland, OHContact: 216-523-1100Career Highlights: Willis, elect-ed as the first African Ameri-can president of the NationalAssociation of Criminal DefenseLawyers in 1974, has had over350 reported opinions renderedin courts and has won two ofthe three cases he argued be-fore the Supreme Court. Hereceived his law degree from

Case Western Reserve Univer-sity in 1952.Power Play: His two SupremeCourt wins are Doyle and Wood v.Ohio in 1976 and Beck v. Ohio in1964, a precedent-setting casedealing with a search by Cleve-land police that was ruled a vio-lation of the Fourth and 14thAmendments.

ENTERTAINMENT& SPORTS

Stephen D. Barnes PartnerBarnes Morris Klein Mark & YornLos Angeles, CAContact: 310-319-3900Career Highlights: The HarvardLaw alumnus began his career inentertainment law when heformed a firm, Nelson, Barnes &Sheehan, with two other younglawyers. Barnes later went on tojoin the prominent entertain-ment firm of Bloom, Hergott,Diemer L.L.P. in 1989. His rosterhas included Babyface, SnoopDogg, and Chris Rock. Power Play: One of BE’s Top 50Black Power Brokers in Enter-

tainment, Barnes inked “A-list”deals for Chris Rock’s latestmovies Bad Company and Head ofState and is representing AaronMcGruder, creator of the Boon-docks comic strip, in a televi-sion deal.

Leroy Bobbitt & Virgil Roberts PartnersBobbitt & RobertsLos Angeles, CA Contact: 310-315-7150Career Highlights: After a decadeas a civil rights attorney, Robertsentered the record industry rep-resenting The Whispers. In 1996,the Harvard Law School gradu-ate joined forces with StanfordLaw-educated Bobbitt. The tagteam covers sports, televisionand film such as Paramount Pic-tures, Interscope Communica-tions Inc., and Black Entertain-ment Television and is gracingtheir way into gospel music withsuch clients as Kirk Franklin.Power Play: The firm inked atelevision miniseries deal forromance novelist Barbara Tay-lor Bradford with NBC.

COVER STORY

John Payton was a law student at Harvard when Regents of the Universityof California v. Bakke was being litigated. “We were all on edge waiting forthe verdict in that case,” recalls Payton. In 1978, the Supreme Court handed downits decision, upholding the use of race in college admissions.

Now 25 years later, Payton has litigated two landmark cases, successful-ly defending the University of Michigan’s use of race in the admissionsprocess at its undergraduate college (Gratz v.Bollinger) and at its law school(Grutter v.Bollinger ). A partner at Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering in Washington,D.C., Payton was lead counsel for the two cases in the trial court and in thecourt of appeals. He argued Gratz v. Bollinger in the Supreme Court.

During the compelling proceedings, it was a “battle of semantics,” saysPayton, who challenged whether it was the court’s job to tell the universitywhat to do or the university’s job to devise an admissions program that reliedon individualized assessment.

Throughout his career, Payton has played pivotal roles in some of the mostsignificant civil rights cases in recent history. He was chief counsel in theSupreme Court case Richmond v. Croson, and he filed numerous amicus briefsincluding Patterson v. McLean Credit Union, an employment discriminationcase, and Adarand Constructors v.Pena, a case involving the constitutionalityof federal affirmative action programs. The former Washington, D.C. Bar pres-ident also served as corporation counsel for the District of Columbia.

A native of Los Angeles, the 56-year-old Payton says he was extremelyactive in the black student union movement during the 1970s. “I have alwaysbeen interested in racial issues, social justice, and civil rights in some context.”

—Carolyn M. Brown

JOHN PAYTONPartner

Wilmer, Cutler & PickeringCIVIL RIGHTS

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Lisa E. Davis PartnerFrankfurt Kurnit Klein & SelzNew York, NY Contact: 212-980-0120Career Highlights: A media mav-erick, Davis specializes in film,music, television, and intellectu-al property, among every otheraspect the rainmaker can con-jure. The NYU Law graduatespent the late 1980s as a litigatorat a powerful New York City firmbefore hitting the entertainmentindustry head on with a little helpfrom her neighbor, filmmakerSpike Lee. Power Play: Davis, a member ofBE’s Top 50 Black Power Brokersin Entertainment, is a frequent lec-turer on topics such as the ethicsof entertainment law and copy-right infringement and protectionissues on the Internet.

Peter L. Haviland PartnerAkin Gump Strauss Hauer & FeldLos Angeles, CAContact: 310-229-1000Career Highlights: The StanfordLaw alumnus cut his teeth inthe labor movement beforebecoming a media and enter-tainment lawyer. Haviland rep-resents clients on contractual dis-putes involving music, film, andtelevision. He also representsmanufacturing and defenseindustry clients on product lia-bility matters. Power Play: Haviland won a $132million infringement case onbehalf of TVT Records againstIsland Def Jam.

L. Londell McMillan President & CEOL. Londell McMillan, PC & NorthStar Business EnterprisesNew York, NYContact: 212-399-8900Career Highlights: McMillanworked his way through NYULaw School as a sports agent. Hewas a leading entertainmentlawyer with Gold, Farrell &Mark, but by 1997, he was hang-ing up his own shingle with mar-quis clients, including Prince,DMX, Wesley Snipes, and RoyJones Jr. Power Play: McMillan has nego-tiated over $500 million worth ofdeals in the hip-hop marketplace.

C. Lamont SmithPresident & Founder All Pro Sports & EntertainmentDenver, COContact: 303-320-4004Career Highlights: Smith is a highroller in the game of NFL playercontract negotiations, repre-senting more than 50 clients. Herecently launched ELETE, anathletic apparel and shoe com-pany. Lamont graduated fromClark Atlanta University, magnacum laude, and received his lawdegree from Howard University. Power Play: Smith negotiatedrecord-breaking contracts forNFL players Eddie George, thehighest paid running back with a$42 million contract, and TrevorPryce, the highest paid defensiveplayer with a $60 million contract.

William Strickland President & CEOStrickland & Ashe ManagementWashington, DCContact: 202-789-1411Career Highlights: The sportsagent and attorney, along withpartner Mason Ashe, has lockedin more than 40 baseball, football,and basketball clients. In 1985,Strickland became the firstAfrican American to representNo. 1 NBA Draft pick PatrickEwing. The Georgetown Univer-sity Law School alumnus alsowas the first African Americanlawyer hired by ProServ Inc.’steam sports division in Wash-ington, D.C., where he negotiat-ed Nike’s Air Jordan contract.Power Play: Strickland negotiateda $100-million-plus deal for theNew York Knicks’ Allan Houston.

GOVERNMENTThurbert E. BakerGeorgia Attorney GeneralAtlanta, GAContact: 404-656-3300Career Highlights: Since hisappointment in 1997, the EmoryUniversity School of Law gradu-ate has taken great strides tobuild tougher anti-crime mea-sures and accelerated the state’sdeath penalty appeals processwhile toughening penalties fordomestic abusers. Baker wonelections to retain the post in1998 and again in 2002. Power Play: In Perdue v. Baker,

Thurbert Baker’s office suc-cessfully prevented Georgia’sGovernor Sonny Perdue fromforcing the attorney general’soffice to drop litigation overredistricting.

Michael A. BattleU.S. Attorney for the WesternDistrict of New YorkBuffalo, NYContact: 716-843-5700Career Highlights: Battle began

his legal career with the LegalAid Society after graduatingfrom SUNY Buffalo Law School.He is currently working to pros-ecute James Kopp, already con-victed of killing an abortiondoctor, on federal charges. Power Play: In 2002, Battle pros-ecuted the “Lackawanna Six,”alleged members of a terroristsleeper cell who were trained inan Afghanistan camp connect-

ed to Al Qaeda. All pleadedguilty and were offered sen-tences of between seven and 10years.

Jeffrey G. Collins U.S. Attorney for the EasternDistrict of MichiganDetroit, MIContact: 313-226-9500Career Highlights: Collins earnedhis J.D. from Howard University.This past summer, his office

obtained the first jury convictionof a terrorism case in the nation,while concurrently buildingbridges of trust through month-ly meetings with leaders in theArab American community andaggressively enforcing hatecrimes. Power Play: One of his civilrights cases resulted in an agree-ment with the Detroit PoliceDepartment called the Consent

TERESA WYNN ROSEBOROUGHPartner

Sutherland Asbill & Brennan L.L.P.LITIGATION

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Decree, which changes the pol-icy on how detained witnessesare handled.

Peter C. HarveyNew Jersey Acting AttorneyGeneral Trenton, NJContact: 609-292-4925Career Highlights: Appointed asacting attorney general in 2003,Harvey previously served as firstassistant attorney general and

director of the Division of Crim-inal Justice. The Columbia Lawgraduate is currently chargedwith reforming state police,controlling gang violence, andprosecuting domestic violencecases.Power Play: Harvey successfullyprosecuted two executive direc-tors of Windsor Schools whoembezzled $3.6 million fromschool districts by awarding

“no-show” high-paying jobs tofamily and friends.

Roscoe C. Howard Jr.U.S. Attorney for the District of ColumbiaWashington, DCContact: 202-514-7566Career Highlights: Howard, a grad-uate of the University of VirginiaSchool of Law, was chosen tobecome the U.S. attorney for theDistrict of Columbia in May 2001.

He is in charge of 350 lawyers withjurisdiction over both local andfederal crimes, including one ofthe D.C.-area sniper cases.Power Play: Howard’s office suc-cessfully prosecuted Cuban spyAnna Montes, who pleadedguilty and received a 25-year sen-tence. Current cases includeanthrax investigations and theWashington Teachers Unionpension fund scandal.

Donald W. WashingtonU.S. Attorney for the Western Dis-trict of LouisianaShreveport, LAContact: 318-676-3600 Career Highlights: Washington,an attorney general since 2001,has previous experience in pri-vate practice at the Louisianalaw firm Jeansonne & Remondetand in corporate counsel atConoco Inc. A former commis-sioned officer in the Army, hereceived a J.D. from South TexasCollege of Law.Power Play: Washington’s officerecently settled a $49 million suitagainst Shell Oil Co. alleging thatthe oil giant failed to report largeamounts of natural gas that itvented and flared from seven of itsfacilities in the Gulf of Mexicowithout authorization from fed-eral regulators.

INTELLECTUALPROPERTY/

PATENTJames W. Cannon Jr. PartnerBaker BottsAustin, TXContact: 512-322-2500Career Highlights: A former airdefense artillery officer in the U.S.Army, Cannon handles patentand copyright infringement andtrade secret theft. The Universi-ty of Texas Law School gradu-ate has represented and takenaction against high-tech giantssuch as Motorola and Microsoft,respectively. Power Play: Cannon was in-volved in several landmarkpatent infringement suits: Ram-bus v. Infineon and Micron v. Ram-bus, a $300 million patent in-fringement action and a $50million trade secret theft case onbehalf of semiconductors andintegrated electronic systemsmanufacturers.

Melvin C. Garner PartnerDarby & DarbyNew York, NYContact: 212-527-7700Career Highlights: Garner over-sees the procurement and litiga-tion of patent, trademark, tradesecret, and copyright matters.Garner, who holds a master’s in

engineering from NYU and a J.D.from Brooklyn Law School, is theNew York Intellectual PropertyLaw Association’s first AfricanAmerican vice president. In 2005,he’ll become the organization’sfirst African American president.Power Play: Garner representedO.P. Solutions in O.P. Solutions Inc.v. Intellectual Property Network Ltd.,which upheld copyright pro-tection for computer software.

Philip G. Hampton II PartnerGardner Carton & DouglasWashington, DCContact: 202-230-5000Career Highlights: A member ofthe firm’s technology department,Hampton specializes in patent lit-igation, trademark prosecution,and intellectual property licens-ing. A graduate of MIT and Uni-versity of Chicago Law School,Hampton served as assistant com-missioner for trademarks at theU.S. Patent and Trademark Officeunder the Clinton administration. Power Play: Hampton re-engi-neered the trademark registrationprocess and changed the rules andpolicies of the Trademark Officewith respect to the Lanham Actthrough a series of cases, helpingto relieve trademark applicants ofan unnecessary burden.

LABOR &EMPLOYMENT

Marilyn J. Holifield PartnerHolland & KnightMiami, FLContact: 305-374-8500Career Highlights: Holifield’s areaof litigation encompasses classaction lawsuits, employment,and covenants-not-to-compete.For five years, Holifield was anassistant counsel at the NAACPLegal Defense and EducationalFund. She earned her J.D. fromHarvard in 1972 and was recent-ly elected to the Alumni Associ-ation’s Board of Directors. Power Play: Holifield has repre-sented major companies such asClorox, MetLife, Home Depot,and Federated DepartmentStores. When she was with theNAACP, she litigated Guthrie v.Alt, which resulted in the deseg-regation of Georgia state prisons.

Teresa Wynn Roseborough has honed the necessary hallmarks of afirst-rate litigation lawyer—assertiveness, cleverness, intelligence,quick thinking, and precision. This Memphis, Tennessee, native also addsa bit of Southern charm when arguing complex commercial litigation,constitutional law, and discrimination cases.

Impressive describes Roseborough’s win record—roughly 98%.Appeals represent about 60% of her caseload, and jury trials representthe other 40%. Knowing the facts of the case—cold—is her creed.Unlike a jury trial, where lawyers have hours to present closing remarksin hopes of swaying jurors’ opinions, appellate trial attorneys have aminiscule 10 to 15 minutes to make their case before three judges.

The “Steel Magnolia,” as Roseborough is called, has masteredtaking hits and fiery questions from judges. She is always prepared,staging several moot court rehearsals prior to each case.

A graduate of the University of North Carolina School of Law, Rose-borough once clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens.She also served as deputy assistant attorney general at the U.S. Depart-ment of Justice during the Clinton administration. It’s not surprising thatshe was enlisted to litigate for former Vice President Al Gore after the2000 election. The 44-year-old attorney represented the Democraticpresidential candidate before the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals and theFlorida Supreme Court during the Florida election recount litigation.

Other high-stakes cases include a MCI/WorldCom class-actionsuit that sought punitive damages for inflated pricing structures. Thecase was dismissed before it made it to a jury trial. Roseborough hasalso advocated for entitlement and social security benefits for fostercare children in the Supreme Court caseKeffler v.State of Washington.

But long before she sets foot in the courtroom, Roseborough saysshe is “already thinking in terms of the appeal process—maintaininga victory or reversing a defeat.”

—Jennifer L. Smith

Curtis L. Mack PartnerMcGuire WoodsAtlanta, GAContact: 404-443-5500Career Highlights: Mack has rep-resented 30 of the nation’s For-tune 100 companies over thecourse of his career. He has a vastamount of experience in thecounsel and representation ofmanagement in general labor,employment, and personnelmatters. A graduate of the Uni-versity of Akron School of Law,Mack is also a former law pro-fessor. Power Play: In ITT Industries v.NLRB, Mack convinced the Dis-trict of Columbia Court ofAppeals to reject a finding by theNational Labor Relations Boardthat employees working at one ofan employer’s multiple sites weredeemed to be employees of all ofthe employer’s other sites.

A. Martin Wickliff Jr. ShareholderEpstein Becker & GreenHouston, TXContact: 713-750-3100Career Highlights: Wickliff liti-gates a wide range of employ-

ment and labor issues, includ-ing class actions and multipleplaintiff lawsuits. In addition,Wickliff assists company man-agement with collective bar-gaining and union elections andlitigates all types of disputesbefore the NLRB. He receivedhis J.D. from Texas SouthernUniversity.Power Play: Wickliff defendedAmoco Oil Co. against a racialdiscrimination claim by a minor-ity contractor. The jury returneda defense verdict on all majorissues, and the one jury verdictfor the plaintiff was later over-turned on appeal.

Brent L. Wilson Partner Elarbee, Thompson, Sapp &WilsonAtlanta, GAContact: 404-659-6700Career Highlights: Wilson confineshis practice to the representationof management clients in laborrelations and employment lawmatters. He is also an arbiter withthe National Association of Secu-rities Dealers. Wilson received hisJ.D. from SUNY Buffalo.Power Play: Wilson successfully

defended Hooters of Americaagainst an Equal EmploymentOpportunity Commission chargethat the “Hooters girl” conceptwas discriminatory because itprevented men from waitingtables there.

Naomi Young PartnerBaker & HostetlerLos Angeles, CAContact: 213-975-1600Career Highlights: Young rep-resents private and public sec-tor employers in a broad rangeof labor and employment mat-ters. She began her legal careerwith the NLRB and was afounding principal of Gartner& Young, a labor and employ-ment boutique firm. She is agraduate of Santa Clara Uni-versity School of Law.Power Play: Young defended amajor oil company in a case thatraised the issue of whether theCalifornia Fair Employment andHousing Act applies to allegedsexual harassment occurring out-side the state. The CaliforniaCourt of Appeal affirmed thegranting of a summary judgmentin favor of the defendant.

LITIGATIONDennis W. ArcherChairmanDickinson WrightDetroit, MIContact: 313-223-3500Career Highlights: After earninghis degree from the Detroit Col-lege of Law, Archer worked as atrial lawyer for several Detroitfirms. He ascended to the post ofDetroit mayor, serving an eight-year term and garnering respectfor changing the city’s image andlowering the crime rate.Power Play: Archer was the firstAfrican American elected pres-ident of the 400,000-memberAmerican Bar Association.

Prince C. Chambliss Jr.PartnerStokes, Bartholomew, Evans & PetreeMemphis, TNContact: 901-521-6781Career Highlights: The HarvardLaw School graduate has over 30years of litigation and mediationexperience. He has been leadcounsel in jury trial verdicts inareas ranging from contractualdisputes to class action person-

As a founder of the law firm Del, Shaw, Moonves, Tanaka & Finkelstein,Nina L. Shaw negotiates deals and contracts for A-list Hollywood celebri-ties, including actors Laurence Fishburne, James Earl Jones, Cedric TheEntertainer, and Jamie Foxx.

Shaw’s fast-paced schedule also includes hammering out deals foractors in the upcoming Barbershop sequel. “Sequel deals are alwaysdifficult to make because when the movie is first being produced, no oneis sure that there will be a second or that the character will come back, “explains the Columbia Law School graduate. But once a box office hitturns into a franchise, everyone is looking for a cut. That’s when Shaw, a49-year-old native New Yorker, is ready to do battle for her clients.

Case in point:The Matrix andThe Matrix Reloaded grossed $450 mil-lion in the U.S. alone, and while lawyer-client privilege prevents us fromknowing Fishburne’s salary (published reports estimate it’s more than $10million), his contract may not have been quite so lucrative if not for Shaw’snegotiating skills. With that kind of money getting doled out, it’s paramountthat “every representative on the team—the client, attorney, manager,accountant, and any other advisers—work together,” to finalize the contract,says Shaw.

Her tactic: “Never wing it” and “start from a place of incredible knowl-edge.” For starters, she researches the current salaries of talent comparableto her clients to ensure they’re not lowballed. She also memorizes boxoffice grosses when negotiating with studio executives. Rumor has it herpoker face is superb. In a discipline where pitching is everything, Shaw isa rainmaker, studio-shark beater, and vigilant attorney.

“Historically, entertainment [personalities] were not well represented,especially minority clients,” she says. “There’s good representation outthere if they want it.” —Marie Evan

COVER STORY

NINA L. SHAWFounding Partner

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al injury suits to insurance andsecurities fraud.Power Play: Chambliss was thefirst African American partnerof a majority law firm in his stateand the first African Americanpresident of the Memphis BarAssociation.

Vincent H. Cohen Sr.Managing PartnerHogan & HartsonWashington, DCContact: 202-637-5600Career Highlights: Cohen has lit-igated civil and criminal casesand argued appeals in all of theDistrict of Columbia’s local andfederal courts. A graduate of Syra-cuse University Law School,Cohen served as trial attorneywith the Department of Justiceand director of compliance of theEqual Employment and Oppor-tunity Commission.Power Play: Cohen is a fellow ofthe American College of TrialLawyers and formerly served asvice chairman of Disabilities andTenure and two terms as a mem-ber of the Board of Governors ofthe District of Columbia Bar.

Michele A. RobertsPartnerShea & GardnerWashington, DCContact: 202-828-2000Career Highlights: Roberts, chairof the trial division, was an in-dependent operator for yearsalthough big firms used her toargue their jury cases. The Berke-ley Law alumna has served ascounsel for defendants withcharges ranging from racketeer-ing to bank fraud. Power Play: Roberts rescuedCharles Bakaly, an associate ofSpecial Prosecutor Kenneth Starrwho was charged with leakingconfidential materials. She wasalso named No. 1 in Washingtonianmagazine’s “Top 75” attorneys.

Paul T. Williams Jr.PartnerBryan CaveNew York, NYContact: 212-541-2000Career Highlights: Williams hasrepresented government agen-cies and corporate clients, in-cluding automobile manufac-turers, financial institutions,

publishing companies, andnational retailers. The Colum-bia Law School graduate hasalso represented private em-ployers in labor and employ-ment matters, including un-lawful termination, allegeddiscriminatory hiring, and sex-ual harassment. Power Play: Williams served as agubernatorial appointee to theGovernor’s Task Force on Diver-sity in the Judiciary and former-ly served as counsel to the NewYork State Assembly BankingCommittee. He was a foundingpartner of one of the oldest andlargest African American-ownedcorporate law firms, Wood,Williams, Rafalsky & Harris.

MERGERS &ACQUISITIONS/

SECURITIESMichael C. BanksPartnerMilbank, Tweed, Hadley, & McCloyNew York, NYContact: 212-530-5000Career Highlights: The SUNY

Buffalo Law School graduate isschooled in a range of dealsfrom securities offerings tofinancings of power plants,pipelines, refineries, and otherprojects in the U.S., Asia, andLatin America. Power Play: Banks representedunderwriters in a $536 millionleveraged lease financing by thesubsidiaries of Ahold USA Inc.and represented purchasers in a$290 million securitizationbacked by the sale of oil generat-ed by Ecopetrol.

Sharon Y. BowenPartnerLatham & WatkinsNew York, NYContact: 212-906-1200Career Highlights: Bowen repre-sents corporations and financialinstitutions on a broad range oftransactions, including mergersand acquisitions, securities offer-ings, corporate restructurings,venture capital, and private equi-ty financings.

Bowen earned an M.B.A .fromKellogg University and a J.D.from Northwestern University.

With a 95% win record in trying personal injury and product liability cases, andpunitive damages in the millions, it’s no wonder people are talking about “howsweet it is” when it comes to civil litigator Dennis Sweet. The 48-year-old Jack-son, Mississippi, native is a partner at Langston, Sweet & Freese.

Civil cases represent 80% of Sweet’s workload. But you won’t always findhim in a courtroom. Many of his suits are settled and never make it to trial. WhenSweet does walk through the doors of a courtroom, all eyes are on him. Thestatuesque 6-foot-5-inch attorney always appears to have the world in hishands. There’s no sugary approach to the way he persuades jurors or confrontswitnesses. “I go in and try to hammer away,” says Sweet, adding that hedoesn’t “apologize for asking for large sums of money.”

It’s no wonder he has grabbed the national spotlight with victories such asa $144 million verdict against Ford Motor Co. (the largest wrongful death ver-dict in Mississippi’s history) and a $400 million dollar verdict against AmericanHome Products, makers of the Fen-Phen diet pill.

“The general public often views mass tort litigation as jackpot justicebecause that’s how companies on trial sell it. A lot of times, victims’ familiescan’t get any justice in the criminal courts, so their only recourse is to file a civilsuit,” says Sweet, who is a member of the slave reparations coordinatingcommittee’s legal dream team.

Although he earned his stellar reputation as a civil litigator, Sweet cut histeeth in criminal law, trying civil rights and anti-death penalty cases. TheGeorge Washington University grad’s first job out of law school in 1980 wasas a staff attorney in the District of Columbia Public Defender’s Office and laterat the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery Alabama.

The million-dollar-verdict man, however, remains humble. As he sees it:“There are no small cases—only small lawyers.” —Carolyn M. Brown

DENNIS C. SWEET IIIPartner

Langston, Sweet & FreesePRODUCT LIABILITY

Power Play: Bowen was counselon the finance team for CoachInc.’s bank financing after thecompany’s spin-off from SarahLee Corp.

John W. CarrPartnerSimpson, Thacher & BartlettNew York, NYContact: 212-455-2000Career Highlights: Carr has hadthe Midas touch since gradu-ating from Harvard LawSchool. He represents mer-chant banks as well as corpo-rate clients on mergers andacquisitions, joint ventures,and private equity funds. Hisclient roster boasts the ApolloTheater Foundation, SonyMusic Entertainment, andUpper Manhattan Empower-ment Zone.

Power Play: Carr negotiatedNBC’s $415 million acquisitionof PAX cable network.

Willie E. DennisPartnerThelen Reid & Priest New York, NYContact: 212-603-2000Career Highlights: Dennis’ illus-trious 15-year career encom-passes broad experience in cor-porate finance, initial publicofferings, and mergers and acqui-sitions. The Columbia LawSchool graduate also works withcompanies committed to fund-ing minority businesses. Power Play: Dennis representedGoldman Sachs’ Urban Invest-ment Group when the power-house investment firm boughtBorder Media Partners, whichowns Hispanic radio stations inMexico and Texas.

Michael FlowersPartnerBricker & Eckler Columbus, OHContact: 614-227-2300Career Highlights: Flowers is a

legal expert for hundreds of cor-porate, emerging business, andnonprofit organizations. TheOhio State Law alumnus repre-sents multi-million dollar ven-ture investors; numerous issuersof privately placed securities,both equity and debt; andnumerous closely held busi-nesses.Power Play: Flowers represent-ed a privately held healthcarefirm in a $30 million mergerwith a Fortune 500 corporation.He is the first African Ameri-can elected to the post of chair-man of the business law sectionof the American Bar Associa-tion.

Phillip IsomPartnerO’Melveny & MyersNew York, NYContact: 212-408-2400Career Highlights: This Colum-bia Law scholar has 13 years oflegal wrangling under his belt.

He specializes in venture capi-tal, mergers and acquisitions,forming private investmentclubs, and recapitalizing finan-cially distressed companies.Power Play: Isom represented afirm in the creation of a $1 billionprivate equity fund focused onthe Asian markets.

Channing JohnsonPartnerAkin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & FeldLos Angeles, CAContact: 310-229-1000Career Highlights: Johnson repre-sents public and private compa-nies in a variety of industries,ranging from film and televisionproduction and distribution toinvestment banking. The HarvardLaw graduate counsels clients onvarious deals, including joint ven-tures, publishing agreements, andartists’ recording contracts.Power Play: Johnson’s client ros-ter incudes TLC, Stevie Wonder,and SFX Entertainment. John-

COVER STORY

“Mr. Personality” best describes Ted Wells when he is trying a case. A winningformula for one of the nation’s leading litigators involves using the “power of trans-ference” on jurors. “Get the jury to like you, and they will like your client,” says thepartner at New York’s Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.

Wells, who has defended high-profile CEOs and political figures in white-collarcriminal defense trials, is credited with getting acquittals for former Secretary ofAgriculture under the Clinton administration Michael Espy and former Secretaryof Labor under the Reagan administration Raymond Donovan. He also successfullydefended Tennessee financier Franklin Haney in the first trial conducted by the Jus-tice Department Task Force on Campaign Finance Violations. Another significantnotch on Wells’ belt was persuading the U.S. Department of Justice to drop athree-year criminal investigation of New Jersey Senator Robert Torricelli.

Wells, who serves as co-chair of his firm’s 150-lawyer litigation department,prides himself on knowing how to read jurors and making them feel at ease. Giventhe recent media hype and public awareness of corporate scandals, “It’s becomingincreasingly tougher to win cases against a big corporation or a corporate execu-tive,” says Wells, who appeared on our “30 for the Next 30“ list (see August 2000).

The son of a mail clerk and a cab driver, Wells, 52, grew up in Washington, D.C.He holds a master’s in business and a law degree from Harvard. One of his earli-er gigs was at a New Jersey law firm, where he was on the trial team in a high pro-file espionage case.

Today, Wells’ practice has evolved. Half of his cases are white-collar criminaldefenses and the other half is complex civil/corporate litigation. His biggest activecases are representing Exxon Mobil in the largest Foreign Corrupt Practices Act grandjury investigation and the National Music Publishers Association in a $17 billionlawsuit against Bertelsmann for its Napster alliance.

Says Wells, “I am making inroads in places where black attorneys were once notable to go.” —Carolyn M. Brown

TED WELLSPartner

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison

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AMERICA’S TOP BLACK LAWYERS

J.L. Chestnut Jr.: Chest-nut founded Chestnut,Sanders, Sanders, Pettaway,& Campbell, the largestblack law firm in Alabama.The Howard Universitygraduate is acclaimed inlegal circles for his lifelongbattles against segregationin Selma, Alabama, in-cluding his contribution tothe infamous Bloody Sun-day civil rights march led byDr. Martin Luther King Jr.He represented King andother demonstrators in theSouth. Chestnut also won a$2 billion settlement againstthe Department of Agricul-ture on behalf of black farm-ers in Alabama.

Drew S. Days III: Dayswas one of the first AfricanAmerican faculty membersat Yale University LawSchool, his alma mater. Aformer assistant counselwith the NAACP, Daysbecame the first AfricanAmerican to head the civilrights division of the U.S.Department of Justice dur-

ing the Carter administra-tion. He assumed the postof solicitor general—the sec-ond leading position in theJustice Department—underPresident Clinton.

William Henry Hastie:A 1925 graduate of AmherstCollege, Hastie was ap-pointed judge of the FederalDistrict Court in the VirginIslands by President Frank-lin Delano Roosevelt. Con-firmed in 1937, he becamethe nation’s first black fed-eral magistrate. In 1949,President Harry S. Trumannominated him judge of theThird U.S. Circuit Court ofAppeals. It was the highestjudicial position attained byan African American.

A. Leon HigginbothamJr.: After serving 16 years aschief justice of the U.S. ThirdCircuit Court of Appeals, hebecame a professor at Har-vard University. He was arecipient of the PresidentialMedal of Freedom, thenation’s highest civilian

honor. Higginbotham wasknown for his championshipof broad constitutional pro-tections of individual rightsand personal liberties.

Charles Hamilton Houston: A graduate ofAmherst College and Har-vard Law School, where hewas the first African Amer-ican editor of the HarvardLaw Review, Houstonwould become the chiefarchitect of desegregation.In 1940, he became generalcounsel of the Internation-al Association of RailwayEmployees and the Associ-ation of Colored RailwayTrainmen and LocomotiveFireman, successfully argu-ing two cases involvingracial discrimination beforethe U.S. Supreme Court.

Wade McCree Jr.: Aftera four-year Army stintduring World War II, thegraduate of Harvard LawSchool became the firstAfrican American judgeappointed to the U.S. Court

of Appeals for the Sixth Cir-cuit and the second AfricanAmerican solicitor generalin the history of the U.S. In1961, President John F.Kennedy appointed him tothe U.S. District Court forthe Eastern District ofMichigan—another first foran African American.

Constance Baker Motley: A graduate ofColumbia University, BakerMotley’s courtroom skillsinfluenced some of the keycases that preceded thecivil rights movement ofthe 1960s, including Brownv. Board of Education. Aschief counsel, she won afavorable decision in 1962in the case for James H.Meredith against the Uni-versity of Mississippi, se-curing Meredith’s right tobe admitted to the school.

Charles Ogletree: A Har-

vard Law School professor

and prominent legal theo-

rist, Ogletree has held a num-

ber of positions, including

deputy director of the Dis-

trict of Columbia’s Public

Defender Service. In 1991, he

served as legal counsel to

Professor Anita Hill during

the Clarence Thomas Sen-

ate confirmation hearings.

He is currently co-chairman

of the Slavery Reparations

Coordinating Committee.

Aulana L. Peters: Cur-rently a member of the NewYork Stock Exchange Mar-ket Regulatory AdvisoryCommittee and a retiredpartner in the law firm ofGibson, Dunn & Crotcher,Peters was the first blackwoman appointed Securitiesand Exchange Commis-sioner. A graduate of the Col-lege of New Rochelle, NewYork, and the University ofSouthern California, she wasa member of the SteeringCommittee for the FinancialAccounting StandardsBoard’s Financial ReportingProject and a member of theBoard’s Blue Ribbon Panelon Audit Effectiveness.

—Carolyn M. Brown

COVER STORY

THURGOOD MARSHALL

As the first black solicitor general andSupreme Court Justice, Thurgood Mar-shall is one of the most celebrated figuresin the history of civil rights in America.Along with his mentor Charles HamiltonHouston (the first black lawyer to win acase before the Supreme Court), Mar-shall, who served as a justice for 24 years,developed a strategy for eradicating seg-regation in schools that culminated in thelandmark 1954 case Brown v.The Boardof Education.

The contributions of black lawyers have been etched into the history books of American law since the 1800s. Therewere men and women such as John Rock, the first African American attorney to practice before the Supreme Court,and Charlotte E. Ray, the first African American female lawyer to pass the bar in the U.S. This page pays homage to a

select few contemporary African American legal history makers.LEGAL LEGENDS

AMERICA’SBLACKLAWYERS

TOP

son was counsel in the $30 mil-lion acquisition of the GreatWestern Forum for ForeignEnterprises.

Issac J. VaughnPartnerWilson Sonsini Goodrich & RosatiPalo Alto, CAContact: 650-493-9300Career Highlights: Vaughn, apartner at the leading law firmrepresenting technology com-panies, specializes in workingwith startup and emerginggrowth technology, Internet, lifesciences, and education com-panies, including introductionsto angel investors and corpo-rate partners. The MichiganLaw School graduate has rep-resented such clients as Mor-gan Stanley and Goldman Sachs& Co.Power Play: Vaughn representedissuers and underwriters in IPOsfor E-Loan, Bamboo.com, LiquidAudio and Blaze Software. Hewas named one of the top 20lawyers under the age of 40 byCalifornia Law Business.

Vaughn WilliamsPartnerSkadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & FlomNew York, NYContact: 212-735-3000Career Highlights: Williams is the“go-to” man for major corpora-tions under securities investiga-tion or faced with class actionsuits. The Stanford Law Schoolgraduate also has representedsuch companies as Rite Aid, Pull-man Inc., and Revlon in mergerand acquisition-related litigation.Power Play: Williams is repre-senting Massachusetts MutualLife Insurance in a series ofnational class actions and rep-resented American Express inits acquisition of Lifeco ServicesCorporation.

PERSONAL INJURY/PRODUCT LIABILITY

Isaac K. Byrd Jr.Managing PartnerByrd & AssociatesJackson, MSContact: 601-714-4226Career Highlights: The National

Law Journal named Byrd & Asso-ciates one of the “winningest” 50law firms with a verdict totaling$150 million in 2001. A top masstort litigator, Byrd earned his lawdegree from Northwestern Uni-versity School of Law. Power Play: Byrd won a recentlandmark $513 million settle-ment in Ayers v. State of Missis-sippi, a 27-year class action bat-tle over Mississippi’s unequalfunding of the state’s historical-ly black universities.

Harry S. JohnsonPartnerWhiteford, Taylor & PrestonBaltimore, MDContact: 410-347-8700 Career Highlights: Johnson rep-resents insurers and manufac-tures in product liability, medicalmalpractice, and lead paint law-suits. The University of Mary-land law scholar is president ofthe Maryland Bar Association.Power Play: Johnson was counselfor a major manufacturer in aclass action involving over 8,500plaintiffs and counsel to a majormanufacturer in over 350 breast

implant cases filed in Marylandand the District of Columbia.

Michael D. JonesPartnerKirkland & EllisWashington, DCContact: 202-879-5000Career Highlights: The NationalLaw Journal recognized Jones asone of the nation’s top 10 trialattorneys.

The Georgetown UniversityLaw Center alumnus is eminentfor his winning record and isavidly sought by major corpora-tions hoping to avoid big puni-tive damages.Power Play: Michael Jones de-fended NL Industries in the firstlead paint case to go to trial—the $35 million lawsuit wasrejected.

William H. LightfootManaging PartnerKoonz, McKenney, Johnson,DePaolis & LightfootWashington, DCContact: 202-659-5500Career Highlights: Lightfoot hashad notable success in product

With the string of recent corporate scandals, and the CEOs who have taken thefall, Bart Williams may have hit a gold mine by tailoring his practice to accommo-date white-collar criminal defense.

As a partner in the Los Angeles office of Munger, Tolles & Olsen L.L.P., Williamshas established his reputation as a successful litigator. His brother, Paul Williams,chief legal officer at Cardinal Health, also made our list.

He was the lead trial counsel for a senior executive at Hyundai Motor Ameri-ca who was acquitted in 1996 of charges of illegal federal campaign donations.Williams was able to convince a jury that the executive was a company scape-goat who knew it was wrong for companies and foreign nationals to give moneybut had no prior knowledge it was wrong to get reimbursed for personal donations.

Williams says the key strategy in white-collar criminal defense is witness prepa-ration. “You can’t control what a witness says, but you can make it your businessto know what he or she is likely to say through investigation. A trial is like a play. Triallawyers are both directors and actors,” says Williams, who was one of AmericanLawyer’s “45 Under 45.”

More recently, Williams led the defense of a major Los Angeles law firm accusedof professional negligence. The three-week trial, which Williams calls one of his “mostrewarding,” ended in an acquittal. Not bad for a self-proclaimed jock who decidedto study law after landing a spot on the debate team.

Williams grew up in Los Angeles but left sunny California for provincial NewEngland to attend Yale University, where he was a starting guard on the Yale var-sity basketball team.

A former assistant U.S. attorney in the Central District of California, Williamsdoesn’t take his practice or what he considers his duty to the community lightly. He’sproud of his work with the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, wherehe serves on the board of trustees. “My father was one of the doctors who helpedfound this medical school in the ’60s. I want to carry on that tradition of involvement.”

—Courtney Charity

COVER STORY

BART WILLIAMSPartner

Munger, Tolles & Olson L.L.P.WHITE-COLLAR CRIME

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COVER STORY

and premises liability, winningover $400 million in settlementsfor his clients. The WashingtonUniversity School of Law gradu-ate earned the title of TrialLawyer of the Year 2003 by theTrial Lawyers Association ofMetropolitan Washington, D.C. Power Play: Lightfoot was coun-sel in the Gomez & Maddoxcases, recovering millions forchildren scalded by inadequatewater heaters and spurring in-dustry reform.

REAL ESTATEPeter C.B. Bynoe PartnerPiper RudnickChicago, ILContact: 312-368-4000Career Highlights: Over his 25-year career, Bynoe has negoti-ated stadium arena deals forprofessional sports teams suchas the Milwaukee Brewers,Washington Redskins, MiamiHeat, and San Francisco 49ers.Before joining Piper Rudnick, hefounded Telemat Ltd., a projectmanagement and financial ser-vices firm. Bynoe, who earnedhis J.D. and M.B.A. from Har-vard, served as executive direc-tor of the Illinois Sports Facili-ties Authority.Power Play: Bynoe negotiatedthe $250 million project devel-opment of Comiskey Park for theChicago White Sox.

Gordon J. Davis PartnerLeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRaeNew York, NYContact: 212-424-8000Career Highlights: Davis’ practiceincludes land use development,municipal authorities and fi-nancings, and cultural and non-profit organizations. The Har-vard Law School alumnus spentdecades in state and city gov-ernment, including a stint asNew York’s commissioner ofparks and recreation.Power Play: Davis was lead coun-sel on the $250 million develop-ment of the American Museumof Natural History Rose Centerand on the $7-billion-plus revi-talization of the World TradeCenter site.

Charles J. Hamilton Jr. Partner Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & WalkerNew York, NYContact: 212-318-6000Career Highlights: Hamilton rep-resents private real estate own-ers, developers, builders, invest-ment banks, governmentagencies, and nonprofit organi-zations. The Harvard Law Schoolalumnus also serves as generalcounsel for Essence Communi-cations Partners and the Nation-al Urban League Inc. Power Play: Hamilton is repre-senting the city of Mount Ver-non in a $400 million revitaliza-tion project and representedEssence Communications Inc.in a $125 million deal with AOLTime Warner to form joint ven-ture ECP.

John B. Sherrell PartnerLatham & WatkinsLos Angeles, CAContact: 213-485-1234Career Highlights: A 25-year vet-eran in the practice of realestate law, Sherrell handlesevery type of property from res-idential housing and shoppingcenters to hotels and oil refiner-ies. His clients include GeneralElectric, Wells Fargo, andMutual Life. Sherrell earned hisJ .D. from the University ofMichigan.Power Play: Sherrell served aslead counsel to Southern Cali-fornia Edison Company duringthe sale of its Edison Pipelineand Terminal Company to Pacif-ic Terminals L.L.C. for $158.2 mil-lion and represented the Cana-dian Imperial Bank of Commercein its $15 million constructionloan to RTC Mountain WasteMedical Office Building.

COMPLEXLITIGATION/

WHITE-COLLARCRIME

Joe R. Caldwell PartnerBaker BottsWashington, DCContact: 202-639-7700Career Highlights: Before ascend-ing to private practice, Caldwell

served as deputy attorney generalfor the state of New Jersey andlegal counsel to former Wash-ington, D.C., Mayor Sharon PrattKelly. Caldwell is an adjunct pro-fessor at Georgetown Universityand earned his J.D. at RutgersUniversity.Power Play: Caldwell served asindependent counsel on the Ken-neth Starr’s investigation of Pres-ident Clinton and represented aTyson Chicken executive accusedof providing illegal gratuities toformer Secretary of AgricultureMike Espy.

Eric H. Holder Jr. PartnerCovington & BurlingWashington, DCContact: 202-662-6000Career Highlights: The firstAfrican American to serve asdeputy attorney general in theDepartment of Justice (the No.2 spot in that department)under President Clinton. TheColumbia Law school graduatealso served under PresidentBush as acting attorney gener-al. Holder began Lawyers forOne America, designed to in-crease pro bono work done bythe nation’s attorneys. He cur-rently handles complex civil andcriminal cases and counsels ondomestic and internationalmatters.Power Play: While he was withthe attorney general’s office,Holder drafted guidelines forindicting corporations which arestill being used by the Bush ad-ministration.

James E. JohnsonPartnerMorrison & FoersterNew York, NYContact: 212-468-8000Career Highlights: The HarvardCollege and Harvard LawSchool graduate previously ser-ved as under secretary of en-forcement at the TreasuryDepartment. Aside from hiswhite-collar defense practice,he is co-counsel on efforts tooverturn a Florida law that pre-vents felons from voting afterthey’re released from prison.Johnson conducts internalinvestigations for private com-

panies and other organizations.Power Play: Johnson representedformer Enron and Tyco em-ployees in investigations by theDepartment of Justice, the Secu-rities and Exchange Commission,and the New York District Attor-ney’s Office.

Loretta Lynch PartnerHogan & Hartson New York, NYContact: 212-918-3000 Career Highlights: The HarvardLaw School graduate and for-mer U.S. attorney for the East-ern District of New York spe-cializes in white-collar criminaldefense and corporate compli-ance issues. During her tenureas U.S. attorney, she was amember of the Attorney Gen-eral’s Advisory Committee,serving as co-chair of the WhiteCollar Crime Subcommittee.Lynch has been a frequentinstructor at the Justice Depart-ment. Lynch is currently adirector of the Federal ReserveBank of New York.Power Play: Lynch served on thetrial team in United States v.Volpe , involving the sexualassault of Haitian immigrantAbner Louima by New York Citypolice officers.

William (Billy) MartinPartnerBlank RomeWashington, DCContact: 202-944-3000Career Highlights: Martin’s civiland criminal practice is broad inscope, from internal corporateinvestigations to police brutalityallegations. Previously, theHoward Law graduate heldsenior managerial and supervi-sory positions at the Departmentof Justice, overseeing major polit-ical and organized crime grandjury investigations. His client listhas boasted Monica Lewinskyand the Chandra Levy family.Before entering private practice,Martin had an extensive publicservice career.Power Play: Martin was paid over$1 million for negotiating twolandmark settlements to help im-prove community-police relationsin Cincinnati. BE

COVER STORY