September 18, 2025
The American Lawyer’s selection of Kobre & Kim as one of its Specialty Litigation Department of the Year finalists reflects several high-stakes victories, including:
- California: Propel Fuels Inc. v Phillips 66 Company
Secured one of the largest trade secret verdicts ever on behalf of California renewable fuels pioneer Propel Fuels Inc. against multinational oil giant Phillips 66 Company, as well as Court-awarded exemplary damages of $195 million, bringing the total awarded to Propel to more than $833 million, before potential award of attorneys’ fees and costs added later.
- Texas: Wesco Aircraft Holdings, Inc. et al. v. SSD Investments Ltd. et al.
Prevailed on behalf of funds managed by BlackRock, JPMorgan Asset Management, and Golden Gate Capital at trial in one of “distressed debt’s biggest brawls” (Bloomberg Law), restoring their senior secured status in Incora’s $900 million bond issuance after they were improperly stripped of their rights in an “uptier” liability management exercise.
- New York: Alix v. McKinsey & Co., Inc. et al.
Obtained a pre-trial victory for McKinsey & Company in defending against federal racketeering claims brought by AlixPartners founder Jay Alix in the Southern District of New York. McKinsey won by attacking the validity of Alix’s alleged assignment of claims from AlixPartners.
- Illinois: Securities and Exchange Commission v. Cumberland DRW LLC
Secured a defense victory for Cumberland DRW LLC, one of the world’s leading crypto liquidity providers, after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission accused it of acting as an unregistered securities dealer and sought significant penalties.
- United Kingdom: Infrastructure Services Luxembourg S.A.R.L. & Anor v Kingdom of Spain
Defeated Kingdom of Spain’s claim of state immunity in enforcing a €101 million International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) arbitration award against the Spain on behalf of client, including by achieving a High Court victory in 2023 and a ground-breaking Court of Appeal win in 2024.
