Christopher A. "Chris" Girouard

Stephen R. Auten is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Litigation - Intellectual Property. Stephen R., who practices law in Chicago, Illinois, has been recognized since 2016. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Stephen R. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Ashley C. Keller is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs. Ashley C., who practices law in Chicago, Illinois, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Ashley C. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Steve Patton is of counsel to the Litigation group in the Chicago office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Steve has extensive experience trying cases and arguing appeals in federal and state courts throughout the country in a wide variety of commercial disputes. He has also served as an advisor to senior management in a number of “bet the company” exposures and negotiated several multibillion settlements in complex disputes. Steve is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers a...

Annemarie Tarara is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law Mediation. Annemarie, who practices law in Lake Forest, Illinois, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Annemarie is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Colin P. Smith practices in the areas of product liability, mass tort and commercial litigation. Over the past 30 years, he has represented numerous companies in complex and consolidated product liability litigation involving product warranty and performance issues, mass disasters and serial litigation arising from claims of product defects. His experience extends to a broad array of products, especially in the automotive, electronics, construction, pharmaceutical, medical device and consumer...

When middle-market businesses or PE firms structure mergers, acquisitions, dispositions, spinoffs and management compensation agreements, their leaders call Saul Rudo. While Saul leads teams to efficiently and effectively get to closings, he focuses on the future as much as the present, designing deals that keep his clients in optimal after-tax positions for years to come. As the lead attorney on his matters, Saul offers his clients direct access to his structuring and "market" advice, withou...

Tye Klooster counsels high-net-worth families on how best to preserve their legacies and transfer wealth to future generations. A fellow of the American College of Trusts and Estates Counsel, Tye serves clients who rely on him to design and implement sophisticated and personalized estate plans. Tye designs estate plans which allow high-net-worth individuals to leverage use of their gift, estate and generation-skipping transfer tax (GST) exemptions and to pass wealth to the next generation in ...

John F. Gibbons has more than 25 years of experience handling a broad range of civil and criminal matters for national corporations, financial institutions, brokerage houses, pension funds, real estate entities, and individuals, including fraud, breach of contract, trade secret, class action, RICO, civil rights, commercial and criminal securities cases, grand jury investigations, white collar defense, FCPA issues, corporate internal investigations and appeals. He has advised many corporate cl...

Robert Surrette is a Shareholder and serves as President of McAndrews. He focuses his practice on the resolution of intellectual property and technology-related disputes with an emphasis on patent, trademark, trade secret and trade dress litigation. For the last 15 years, Bob has counseled a leading global medical device manufacturer on numerous litigation and transactional matters. Bob, building on his experience as a federal district court law clerk, has extensive experience in preparing an...

Tom is a litigator who represents property taxpayers throughout the country, ensuring their tax liabilities are secured at the lowest level allowable under the law. He represents clients spanning numerous industries, ranging in size and complexity from those with large, sophisticated real estate portfolios to those with just one building critical to their operations. Tom sets his clients’ expectations regarding measurable results in every property tax appeal. Before filing, he provides ...