James W. Quinn, an accomplished trial lawyer, co-chairs Weil Gotshal’s 500-lawyer global Litigation practice and specializes in high stakes commercial disputes, with particular emphasis on antitrust, products liability, insurance, sports, entertainment, patent and complex related intellectual property law.
James W. Quinn co-chairs Weil Gotshal’s 500-lawyer global Litigation practice. An accomplished trial lawyer, Mr. Quinn specializes in high stakes commercial disputes. He has practiced in all areas of complex litigation and alternative dispute resolution, with particular emphasis on antitrust, products liability, insurance, sports, entertainment, patent and complex related intellectual property law.
Known for his judgment, thorough preparation and mastery of detail, Mr. Quinn is able to take command of the courtroom with penetrating cross-examination of witnesses and logically compelling argument. Clients call upon him in matters that are high-profile, high-stakes and often international in scope.
Mr. Quinn’s most recent jury trial victory (August 2006) was a complete defense verdict for Johnson & Johnson in a complex antitrust case tried in federal court in Santa Ana, California. The plaintiff, Applied Medical, a small medical device manufacturer, claimed over $50 million (untrebled) in damages asserting that J&J had monopolized the market for endoscopic medical products used in minimally invasive surgery by offering so-called bundled discounts with other J&J products, particularly J&J’s market-leading future products. After a seven week trial, the nine person jury rejected plaintiff’s claims of exclusionary conduct and upheld as lawful all of J&J’s nationwide contracting practices with billions of dollars at stake.
In another recent jury trial victory, Mr. Quinn also won a complete defense verdict for Procter & Gamble Co. on an $80 million false advertising claim brought by the Colgate-Palmolive Co., relating to home teeth-whitening products. Just a few months earlier, Mr. Quinn led another Weil Gotshal team in the successful defense of ESPN with regard to a $231 million lawsuit brought by Modi Entertainment Network (MEN), an Indian conglomerate involved in the cable business in India (Modi Enterprise et al. v. ESPN et al.). This was one of the largest defense verdicts of 2004.
Mr. Quinn also served as the lead trial counsel for ExxonMobil in a breach-of-contract suit against Saudi Basic Industries Corporation. Although the case was complicated by the application of Saudi law, Mr. Quinn was able to win on every single count he brought against the defendant. The jury awarded ExxonMobil $417 million, which was among the largest verdicts in the United States in 2003, and remains the largest in a commercial case in Delaware’s history. The verdict was upheld on appeal earlier this year and with interest the total award exceeded $470 million.
In June 2006, Mr. Quinn won a complete victory for the UnitedHealth Group when the federal district court in Miami granted summary judgment in the In re Managed Care Multidistrict Litigation, a nationwide class action with plaintiffs seeking more than $13 billion. The other defendants had previously settled for more than a billion dollars.
Mr. Quinn also represented the Arthur Andersen Worldwide Member Firms in the largest International Chamber of Commerce arbitration in history. The proceeding involved nearly 300 parties and almost $15 billion in claims.
Mr. Quinn has earned a reputation with his clients for his unmatched experience in sports and entertainment litigation. He is the most successful and influential litigator of sports antitrust cases in the quarter-century that these cases have been played out in the national arena. He is known for his strategic personal assessment of each client and his keen execution of the facts in the courtroom. Mr. Quinn has counseled and represented players associations in Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League and Major League Soccer. Mr. Quinn served as the lead counsel for the NFL players in their successful antitrust challenge to the player restrictions in the League (McNeil v. NFL). In this three month jury trial, Mr. Quinn ensured that a fair jury was chosen for his clients, and his winning strategy won his clients a multi-million dollar treble damage verdict as well as the right to free agency. He is able to make juries understand complicated cases by presenting his client's points in a readily comprehensible and persuasive manner. The New York Times labeled Mr. Quinn’s litigation as “instrumental in helping change the face of major professional sports.”
His precedent-setting success does not conclude with sports; Mr. Quinn represented Westinghouse in a series of multi-billion dollar lawsuits concerning nuclear power plants. Over a dozen lawsuits of RICO, fraud and breach of contract were brought against Westinghouse, and Mr. Quinn used judgment and tenacity to win every single one. Mr. Quinn also represented a group of local television stations in an antitrust case against music licensing societies. The results of this litigation led to a complete change in the manner in which music licensing rights in television and radio industries are handled nationwide.
Mr. Quinn is a senior member of Weil Gotshal’s 15-person Management Committee. He is a Fellow of both the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. He is also a Fellow of The New York Bar Foundation. He has chaired a variety of committees of both The American Bar Association and The Bar Association of The City of New York. He is a member of the Advisory Board of The National Judicial College and the Panel of Distinguished Neutrals of the Center for Public Resources. Mr. Quinn is also a member of the International Society of Barristers.
Mr. Quinn lives in Armonk, New York with his wife. They have four children and five grandchildren. Outside of the firm, he enjoys golf, running and reading. Mr. Quinn serves as a Board Member of the American Diabetes Association, the Landmark Foundation and The Respect For Law Alliance, among many others.