Timothy R. Farrell

Timothy Farrell evokes consistent praise from clients and peers as a “formidable legal advocate and strategist” who delivers “win after win” in even the most complex and daunting legal disputes.

Farrell, who specializes in high-stakes business and securities litigation at Ropes & Gray in Chicago, boasts an impressive track record of major victories for his clients. Clients uniformly attribute these results to Farrell’s uncanny ability to devise and execute on winning strategies while maintaining focus on the client’s business objectives. And it’s why Farrell maintains such an impressive list of repeat clients and robust commercial litigation practice in Chicago and across the country.

For instance, the general counsel of a leading health-care services company described how he turns to Farrell for his “legal and litigation expertise, but also his keen business and strategic judgment and creativity.” This, after Farrell and Ropes & Gray succeeded for the company in “a sprawling, multi-year business dispute with tens of millions of dollars on the line.” Farrell secured a string of wins across several jurisdictions — including a 6th Circuit appellate victory — that forced the litigation into the client’s home court. From there, Farrell secured dismissal of the adversary’s counterclaims while developing a devastating discovery record, leading to an extremely favorable pre-trial resolution.

A major research hospital’s in-house counsel points to Farrell’s defense of the hospital in a multimillion-dollar royalties suit in the Northern District of Illinois. Farrell guided the court through the complex law and intricacies of the gene therapy research at issue, resulting in the dismissal of the plaintiff’s primary claim with prejudice. “This was a remarkable result,” observes the client, crediting Farrell’s “drive and imagination to devise solutions that other lawyers may not envision”

The general counsel of a public medical device company highlights Farrell’s role navigating a shareholder suit that threatened to derail a transformational merger transaction. The client notes Farrell’s “exceptional vision” in positioning the company optimally to both fight the lawsuit and then secure a favorable settlement that cleared the way for the transaction.

The list of happy clients and exceptional litigation outcomes goes on.

In addition, Farrell’s “elite level of skill and experience” in business disputes also makes him a sought-after counselor to transactional clients, says the assistant general counsel at a major advisory firm. “I have routinely turned to Tim for advice on major private equity transactions on issues relating to litigation and related risks.” Another in-house counsel at a leading private equity firm points to Farrell’s “profound understanding of the law, and his deep understanding of deal dynamics and business objectives.”

This is why Farrell is seen advising on the litigation aspects of some of most historic business transactions in recent years, including Bain Capital’s $18 billion acquisition of Toshiba’s memory chip business — then the largest leveraged buyout and private equity deal ever in Asia.

Tom Bayliss, a prominent Delaware litigator with whom Farrell collaborates, aptly sums up the consensus on Farrell: “Tim has emerged as a go-to deal litigator at Ropes & Gray. He is a gifted writer and legal thinker, a creative strategist and a tireless advocate for his clients’ interests.”

Farrell is also deeply committed to pro bono and community work. Farrell recently served as Ropes & Gray’s lead trial counsel at a two-week federal civil rights trial, in which Ropes & Gray and other groups are challenging the State of Iowa’s use of solitary confinement on juveniles. Farrell also has an active practice representing asylum seekers. And Farrell, who trained and worked as an opera singer prior to law school, also serves on the Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Guild Board of Directors.