Veteran litigation and trial attorney William (“Bill”) Howard has joined Locke Lord’s Chicago office as a Partner in the Business Litigation and Dispute Resolution Practice. Howard brings more than 25 years of experience in trial, litigation and business counseling. His breadth and depth of experience representing a wide range of clients – from entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 corporations – will boost Locke Lord’s litigation platform in Chicago and nationwide.
Prior to joining Locke Lord, Howard was a partner with Freeborn & Peters in Chicago, where he previously served as chairman of the firm’s Executive Committee and was a member of the Executive Committee for more than a decade.
“We have hit a home run with Bill,” said Chicago Office Managing Partner Jennifer Kenedy. “A seasoned trial lawyer with a wonderful reputation, he is an outstanding addition to our Litigation group. The combination of his diverse clients and our national platform will create litigation and corporate synergies in Chicago and firm-wide. Bill is a leader and a dynamic and collaborative presence who fits very well with our culture of teamwork, and we look forward to working with him for many years.”
Howard’s practice covers numerous areas, including complex commercial, fiduciary, shareholder, intellectual property, construction, trademark, trade secret, non-compete, franchise and product liability litigation matters. He is skilled in pre-litigation planning and strategy, litigation avoidance strategies, auditing of business practices, arbitration, mediation, administrative hearings, temporary restraining orders, preliminary injunction hearings, as well as bench and jury trials. Howard has significant first chair trial experience. His diverse clients range from medical device manufacturers and real estate developers and investors to hedge funds and large privately held businesses, and he has handled several cases involving the Second Amendment.
He earned his law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law and an undergraduate degree in Accountancy from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. He is a frequent speaker and panelist on a wide variety of topics, from best business practices to the Second Amendment. He is an Adjunct Professor at his law school alma mater and serves as an Instructor at the National Institute of Trial Advocacy.
