Peer data on outside litigation counsel selection and matter management solutions, compiled from The L Suite 2026 Litigation Offsite attendees. Organized by practice area with attributed recommendations and direct commentary where respondents consented to attribution.
27 respondents shared their outside litigation counsel rosters and matter management approaches, offering a rich view of firm preferences, practice area specialization, and how tech and growth-stage legal teams manage their dockets.
Outside Counsel — Key Themes
Matter Management — Key Themes
| Firm | Attorney(s) Named | Use Case & Commentary · Recommended By |
|---|---|---|
| Gibson Dunn×3 | Michael Holecek; Natalie Hausknecht; Ashlie Beringer (named by 1 anonymous respondent) |
Trade secret, IP litigation, IP generally Caitlyn Chacon (Samsara) — trade secret & IP Kimmy Jee (Attentive Mobile) — IP litigation + 1 anonymous respondent |
| Orrick×3 | Travis Jensen (for patent) |
Patent litigation; IP litigation generally Jared Crop (Microchip Technology) — Travis Jensen for patent + 2 anonymous respondents — IP litigation |
| WilmerHale×2 | Sonal Mehta |
Patent/IP, antitrust, privacy, copyright; class action IP Natalie Naugle (Anthropic) — Sonal Mehta: "patent/IP trial lawyer by trade but has handled all manner of hi-vis high-priority matters — antitrust, privacy, copyright. Go-to emotional support lawyer and problem solver." + 1 anonymous respondent — class action & IP |
| Kirkland & Ellis×2 | — |
IP (incl. false advertising); IP litigation Caitlyn Chacon (Samsara) — IP, false advertising + 1 anonymous respondent |
| Davis Polk | Jay Neukom |
"High stakes patent and trade secret litigation" Jared Crop (Microchip Technology) |
| Skadden×2 | Bijal Vakil (IP); — |
"IP Lit, Privacy"; IP (partner-specific) Kimmy Jee (Attentive Mobile) — "IP Lit, Privacy" Matt Turetzky (Kraken) — Bijal Vakil for IP |
| Latham & Watkins | — |
IP, privacy, healthcare Anonymous respondent |
| Morrison Foerster | — |
IP litigation Anonymous respondent |
| Fish & Richardson | — |
IP litigation Anonymous respondent |
| DLA Piper | — |
IP litigation Anonymous respondent |
| Neo | — |
Patent litigation Kimmy Jee (Attentive Mobile) |
| Winston & Strawn | Kathi Vidal |
IP Gillian Thackray |
| KBL | Kate Lazarus |
"Patent litigation and smaller disputes" Josh Furman (Canva) |
| Thompson Hine | Jen Seraphine |
"Larger patent litigation matters and other arbitrations" Josh Furman (Canva) |
| Debevoise & Plimpton | Megan Bannigan |
"Top tier / high risk trademark litigation" Josh Furman (Canva) |
Josh uses three separate specialist firms structured by matter scale: KBL / Kate Lazarus for patent litigation and smaller disputes; Thompson Hine / Jen Seraphine for larger patent matters and arbitrations; and Debevoise / Megan Bannigan for top-tier trademark work. A deliberately tiered model that matches firm to matter complexity rather than sending all IP work to a single shop.
| Firm | Attorney(s) Named | Use Case & Commentary · Recommended By |
|---|---|---|
| Orrick | — |
"Data security compliance and litigation" Ralph Carter (Workday) |
| Morrison Foerster×2 | Tiffany Cheung |
Data privacy litigation; privacy/class action Aseem Gupta (Salesforce) — data privacy litigation Jennifer Barry — Tiffany Cheung for privacy/class action |
| Skadden | — |
"IP Lit, Privacy" Kimmy Jee (Attentive Mobile) |
| Davis & Gilbert | — |
"TCPA, CIPA, Product and Privacy" Kimmy Jee (Attentive Mobile) |
| Latham & Watkins | — |
IP, privacy, healthcare Anonymous respondent |
| Cooley | — |
Privacy litigation (EU/UK) Anonymous respondent |
| Zwillgen | Jeff Landis; Adya Baker |
"Subpoenas and pixel/cookie litigation" Anonymous respondent |
Note: Davis Wright Tremaine is listed under Platform Liability & 1st Amendment, where both respondents' DWT use (user harm / Section 230 and 1st Amendment / CDA 230) is consolidated.
| Firm | Attorney(s) Named | Use Case & Commentary · Recommended By |
|---|---|---|
| Cooley×4 | — |
Class actions, arbitration; class actions & product liability; serious US & global matters Candace Jackman — class actions, arbitration Matthew Brown (Turo) — "most serious issues in the US and globally" + 2 anonymous respondents |
| Skadden×2 | Meredith Slawe; Mike McTigue (mass arb/class); Alex Drylewski (securities) |
Mass arbitrations, class actions; IP; securities litigation Matt Turetzky (Kraken) — Slawe & McTigue for mass arb & class actions |
| Conrad Metlitzky Kane×2 | — |
Class actions, commercial litigation, consumer arbitrations; eve-of-trial / trial counsel Matt Turetzky (Kraken) — class actions, commercial, consumer arb + 1 anonymous respondent — eve of trial / trial counsel |
| Norton Law Firm | — |
"Class actions, commercial litigation, and consumer arbitrations" Matt Turetzky (Kraken) |
| Covington & Burling | Andrew Sokup |
Class actions Gillian Thackray |
| Mayer Brown | — |
Class actions and product liability Anonymous respondent |
| Greenberg Traurig | Rob Herrington; Frank Citera |
Class action Anonymous respondent |
| WilmerHale | — |
Class action & IP Anonymous respondent |
| Firm | Attorney(s) Named | Use Case & Commentary · Recommended By |
|---|---|---|
| Pillsbury | — |
"Everything" — general outside counsel for broad litigation matters Aseem Gupta (Salesforce) |
| Latham & Watkins | Andy Clubok |
Tech/trial; high-priority, high-visibility commercial matters Natalie Naugle (Anthropic) — "A brilliant trial lawyer and an impressive deal maker. For anything high-priority and high-viz." |
| Jones Day | Mark Rasmussen; Paula Quist |
"Commercial/B2B litigation; global litigation issues (LATAM, EU, some APAC)" Jeremy Gray (Circle) |
| Bartlit Beck | Abby Mollen; Adam Hoeflich |
"Significant commercial disputes" Jeremy Gray (Circle) |
| Cooley | — |
"Most serious issues in the US and globally" Matthew Brown (Turo) |
| Ropes & Gray | Amy Longo |
Commercial litigation Jennifer Barry |
| Benesch×2 | Erik Connolly (named by 1 anonymous respondent) |
Commercial & Midwest matters Stephanie Yang (ThredUp) — "commercial & midwest matters" + 1 anonymous respondent — with Erik Connolly |
| Holland & Knight | — |
"User disputes and random issues in random places around the US — they are everywhere with a wide range of expertise" Matthew Brown (Turo) |
| O'Melveny & Myers | — |
"High stakes litigation" Anonymous respondent |
| Shartsis Friese | — |
"Mid-range litigation, user arbitrations" Anonymous respondent |
| Ballard Spahr | — |
Commercial Stephanie Yang (ThredUp) |
| McGuire Woods | — |
General litigation Rob Nolan |
| Perkins Coie | — |
Commercial litigation & bankruptcy Ralph Carter (Workday) |
| Fenwick & West×2 | — |
General litigation; IP 2 anonymous respondents |
| Cooley | — |
"Commercial litigation and FOIL requests" Ralph Carter (Workday) |
| Morgan Lewis | — |
"Commercial and IP litigation" Ralph Carter (Workday) |
| Orrick | — |
General litigation Rob Nolan |
| Yocca Law Firm | Mark Yocca |
"California smaller contract disputes" Jared Crop (Microchip Technology) |
| Cooley | — |
Corporate Kimmy Jee (Attentive Mobile) |
| Alston & Bird | — |
Bankruptcy Anonymous respondent |
| Firm | Attorney(s) Named | Use Case & Commentary · Recommended By |
|---|---|---|
| Jenner & Block | — |
"BIPA, law enforcement response, bid protest" Caitlyn Chacon (Samsara) |
| Seyfarth Shaw | — |
Employment Caitlyn Chacon (Samsara) |
| Sheppard Mullin | — |
Employment Caitlyn Chacon (Samsara) |
| Barnes & Thornburg | John Maley |
Employment Jennifer Barry |
| Quinn Emanuel | — |
Employment litigation Lindsay Burke |
| Jackson Lewis | — |
Employment litigation Stephanie Yang (ThredUp) |
| Morgan Lewis | — |
Employment Anonymous respondent |
| Donahue Fitzgerald | Louis Lee |
California employment Anonymous respondent |
| Firm | Attorney(s) Named | Use Case & Commentary · Recommended By |
|---|---|---|
| WilmerHale×2 | — |
Antitrust, government investigations; regulatory, constitutional, appellate Lindsay Burke — antitrust, government investigations Candace Jackman — regulatory, constitutional, appellate |
| Quinn Emanuel×2 | — |
Business litigation, employment, government investigations Lindsay Burke — business litigation, employment & government investigations + 1 anonymous respondent |
| Freshfields×2 | — |
Investigations and tax litigation; "everything" (broad/global matters) Lindsay Burke — investigations & tax litigation Aseem Gupta (Salesforce) — everything |
| Arnold & Porter×3 | Giselle Joffre (govt investigations); Dan Asimow (intl arb & antitrust) |
Government investigation / qui tam litigation; international arbitration & antitrust Jared Crop (Microchip Technology) — Dan Asimow, international arbitration & antitrust + 2 anonymous respondents — incl. Giselle Joffre, govt investigation / qui tam |
| Steptoe×2 | Michel Paradis (DOD/AI); Ross Weingarten (blockchain) |
DOD/ATA-related matters; AI-related litigation; blockchain litigation Natalie Naugle (Anthropic) — Michel Paradis: "anything DOD/ATA related; also very knowledgeable in the AI space" Jeremy Gray (Circle) — Ross Weingarten for blockchain litigation |
| Faegre Drinker | Carolyn McNiven |
"Government investigation / qui tam litigation" Anonymous respondent |
| Orrick | Fredrick Levin; Amanda Lawrence |
"State financial regulator investigations / litigation" Anonymous respondent |
| Wachtell Lipton | Kevin Schwartz |
"Tier 1 litigation matters (usually regulatory enforcement)" Anonymous respondent |
| Simpson Thacher | Raphael Prober |
Congressional inquiries Anonymous respondent |
| Foley | — |
Regulatory Anonymous respondent |
| Wilson Sonsini | — |
Regulatory Anonymous respondent |
| Firm | Attorney(s) Named | Use Case & Commentary · Recommended By |
|---|---|---|
| Wilson Sonsini | Colleen Bal; John Flynn |
"Cutting-edge litigation in blockchain space (domestic)" Jeremy Gray (Circle) |
| Steptoe | Ross Weingarten |
"Blockchain litigation (domestic)" Jeremy Gray (Circle) |
| DLA Piper | Michael Fluhr |
"Various crypto-related commercial disputes" Matt Turetzky (Kraken) |
| Skadden | Alex Drylewski |
Securities litigation Matt Turetzky (Kraken) |
| Quinn Emanuel | — |
Securities litigation Rob Nolan |
| White & Case | — |
Securities litigation Anonymous respondent |
Jeremy uses four firms forming a comprehensive blockchain litigation ecosystem: Wilson Sonsini (Colleen Bal & John Flynn) for cutting-edge domestic blockchain cases; Steptoe (Ross Weingarten) for additional domestic blockchain matters; Jones Day (Mark Rasmussen & Paula Quist) for commercial/B2B and global disputes across LATAM, EU, and APAC; and Bartlit Beck (Abby Mollen & Adam Hoeflich) for significant commercial matters. A model for specialized crypto-native litigation coverage across multiple risk vectors and geographies.
| Firm | Use Case · Recommended By |
|---|---|
| Cooley×2 | Class actions & product liability 2 anonymous respondents |
| Orrick | Product liability & IP Anonymous respondent |
| Mayer Brown | Class actions & product liability Anonymous respondent |
| Bowman & Brooke | Product liability John Garrett Gillian Thackray |
| Shook Hardy | Product liability Rob Nolan |
| Davis & Gilbert | "TCPA, CIPA, Product and Privacy" Kimmy Jee (Attentive Mobile) |
| Firm | Use Case · Recommended By |
|---|---|
| Ross, Aronstam & Mortz | Derivative/shareholder matters in Delaware David Ross Natalie Naugle (Anthropic) |
| Wachtell Lipton | Tier 1 litigation / regulatory enforcement Kevin Schwartz Anonymous respondent |
"David Ross — incredibly competent and calm under pressure. Knows the DE bench and has handled some of the most hi-vis matters in this space in recent years."
| Firm | Use Case · Recommended By |
|---|---|
| Davis Wright Tremaine×2 | 1st Amendment; CDA 230; social media/product liability; tech litigation; user harm / Section 230 Ambika Kumar
Natalie Naugle (Anthropic)+ 1 anonymous respondent |
| Dykema | "Defamation/UGC" Anda Tatoiu Anonymous respondent |
| Carson McDowell | Northern Ireland media litigation Fergal McGoldrick Anonymous respondent |
"1st Amendment; CDA 230; social media/product liability litigation, and tech litigation in general."
| Firm | Use Case · Recommended By |
|---|---|
| McCarthy Tétrault | "Most litigation and regulatory disputes in Canada — everywhere with wide range of expertise" Matthew Brown (Turo) |
| Arnold & Porter | International arbitration & antitrust Dan Asimow Jared Crop (Microchip Technology) |
| Jones Day | Global litigation (LATAM, EU, APAC) Mark Rasmussen; Paula Quist Jeremy Gray (Circle) |
| Arent Fox | Subpoenas / TCPA (cross-border) Andrew Wong Jennifer Barry |
Respondents described how they currently track and manage their litigation dockets — from spreadsheets to purpose-built legal platforms to custom AI-enhanced workflows. Three primary categories emerged, with a small group actively transitioning between them.
Breakdown — 26 respondents with tool data
Note: One respondent did not provide matter management data. Percentages based on n=26.
Google Sheets, Excel, Word documents, or SharePoint as the primary (and often sole) matter tracking tool. The most common approach — and a frequent source of acknowledged friction. Several respondents noted they are actively looking to move beyond spreadsheets.
"Mostly through spreadsheets (looking to further develop this area)"
"We use a Word document that has litigation updates in bold text and we truncate at the end of each year to keep it manageable."
"Spreadsheet — testing Sandstone [as a potential replacement]"
The largest cohort uses at least one purpose-built legal or operations platform — often for invoice management, billing visibility, and docket tracking. Several combine a dedicated tool with spreadsheets for gaps in coverage.
A small but forward-leaning cohort has built custom systems — either in-house with legal ops and IT, or by layering AI capabilities onto familiar infrastructure. These are highly team-specific but offer a window into where the field is heading.
Currently spreadsheet-based but actively building or evaluating replacements — one respondent building a self-managed AirTable database; one testing Sandstone as a potential dedicated platform.
Attributed Responses
| Respondent | Company | Approach | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aseem Gupta | Salesforce | Salesforce (internal instance) | Dedicated Tool |
| Candace Jackman | — | LawVu | Dedicated Tool |
| Caitlyn Chacon | Samsara | Google Sheets (tracking & matter metrics) + Brightflag (billing & budget management) | Spreadsheet + Tool |
| Gillian Thackray | — | Spreadsheets + in-house dashboard (built with legal ops & IT) | Custom / Hybrid |
| Jared Crop | Microchip Technology | Rolling Word document — litigation updates in bold, truncated annually to stay manageable | Manual |
| Jennifer Barry | — | Spreadsheet + SharePoint | Spreadsheet |
| Jeremy Gray | Circle | Spreadsheets — "looking to further develop this area" | Spreadsheet |
| Josh Furman | Canva | Custom GPT workflow (built over ChatGPT) + Google Sheets for underlying data storage | Custom / AI |
| Kimmy Jee | Attentive Mobile | Spreadsheets + custom tools | Custom / Hybrid |
| Lindsay Burke | — | Acuity | Dedicated Tool |
| Matt Turetzky | Kraken | Jira board with custom fields + automations + AI agents to serve attorneys from the data | Custom / AI |
| Matthew Brown | Turo | Google Sheets (litigation & regulatory) + arbitration portals (user disputes) | Spreadsheet |
| Natalie Naugle | Anthropic | Internal tracking system — "always evolving" | Custom / Internal |
| Ralph Carter | Workday | Implementing Litify | Dedicated Tool |
| Rob Nolan | — | TeamConnect + iManage | Dedicated Tool |
| Stephanie Yang | ThredUp | SimpleLegal + Google Sheet | Spreadsheet + Tool |
Anonymous Responses
| Approach | Category |
|---|---|
| Spreadsheet | Spreadsheet |
| Google Sheets | Spreadsheet |
| Spreadsheet | Spreadsheet |
| Google Sheets | Spreadsheet |
| CounselGo (invoice management) + spreadsheets (accruals, annual budgets, matter metrics) | Spreadsheet + Tool |
| AirTable + Thomson Reuters Legal Tracker + Brightflag | Dedicated Tools |
| Spreadsheet — testing Sandstone as potential platform | In Transition |
| Currently spreadsheet; building self-managed AirTable database | In Transition |
| Streamline + spreadsheets | Spreadsheet + Tool |
| Thomson Reuters Legal Tracker | Dedicated Tool |
Several respondents shared particularly thoughtful or innovative approaches to outside counsel selection or matter management worth highlighting for the group.
"Custom GPT workflow that I built (over ChatGPT) which is paired to Google Sheets for underlying data storage." Josh has layered an AI query and summarization interface directly onto familiar spreadsheet infrastructure — preserving flexibility while adding natural-language access to matter data. A pragmatic path to AI-enhanced workflows without dedicated enterprise software.
"Jira — we created a Jira board with custom fields. We built automations and AI agents to use the data from Jira to better serve our attorneys." The most technically sophisticated approach in the group: Jira as a structured matter data layer with AI agent-driven summaries, status updates, and automation built on top. Particularly relevant for teams with legal ops or engineering resources.
Rather than routing all IP work to a single firm, Josh uses three specialists matched to matter scale: KBL / Kate Lazarus for patent and smaller disputes; Thompson Hine / Jen Seraphine for larger patent matters and arbitrations; and Debevoise / Megan Bannigan exclusively for top-tier trademark work. A cost-effective model that avoids overpaying for the wrong level of firm on smaller matters.
Built a custom in-house dashboard in partnership with legal ops and IT, layered on top of spreadsheets. A practical middle-ground between off-the-shelf enterprise software and full custom development — particularly useful for teams with a willing IT partner and a limited tools budget.
Uses AirTable for matter organization, Thomson Reuters Legal Tracker for docket management, and Brightflag for billing and budget oversight. One of the most comprehensive dedicated-tool stacks in the group — showing how multiple purpose-built platforms can be layered to cover different needs rather than relying on a single system.
Five firms with distinct named-partner relationships: WilmerHale (Sonal Mehta — patent/IP/antitrust/privacy/"go-to emotional support lawyer"); DWT (Ambika Kumar — 1st Amendment, CDA 230, social media/product liability); Latham (Andy Clubok — tech/trial, high-visibility matters); Ross Aronstam & Mortz (David Ross — Delaware derivative/shareholder); Steptoe (Michel Paradis — DOD/ATA and AI). A model for how a well-curated panel is organized around individual lawyer relationships rather than firm brands — with full-stack coverage from AI/tech risk through Delaware corporate to government/national security work.
This report was compiled from survey responses submitted by offsite attendees. Data is shared for peer benchmarking purposes only. Respondents who did not consent to attribution are referenced anonymously throughout — their firm and tool data is included in aggregate and category-level analysis.