Jeffrey L. Kessler
Co-Executive Chairman of Winston & Strawn, Jeffrey Kessler is one of the world’s leading antitrust, sports law, and trial lawyers. He has been lead counsel in some of the most complex antitrust, sports law, and intellectual property law cases in the country, including major jury trials, and has represented a number of U.S. and international companies in criminal and civil investigations in the antitrust, sports law, trade, and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) areas. One of the most prominent lawyers in the country regularly engaged in high-profile sports litigation, Jeffrey has litigated some of the most famous sports-antitrust cases in history, including Alston v. NCAA, the historic victory on behalf of college football and basketball players in an antitrust litigation against NCAA; McNeil v. the NFL, the landmark antitrust jury trial which led to the establishment of free agency in the National Football League (NFL); and Brady v. NFL, which led to the end of the 2011 NFL lockout. Some of Jeffrey’s clients in the sports law area have included the NFL Players Association (NFLPA), the National Basketball Players Association, the Arena Football League (AFL) Players Association, the National Hockey League Players Association, the Major League Baseball Players Association, the National Invitation Tournament (NIT), Wasserman Media Group, SCP Worldwide, MVP Sports, the Women’s National Soccer Team, the NFL Coaches Association, Players, Inc., the Women’s Tennis Benefit Association, Excel Sports, Endeavor, Super Slam Ltd., Activision Blizzard, and Adidas. Jeffrey has been nationally recognized at the top of esteemed ranking tables including Chambers USA, Legal 500, Elite Trial Lawyers, Best Lawyers in America ®, among others, and has been recognized by The American Lawyer as “Litigator of the Week” four times in the past six years.