Thomas P. Luning

Partner

Thomas P. Luning has concentrated his practice in litigation. He also served as Managing Partner of our firm from 1990 to 1996, and is currently General Counsel to the firm.

His many experiences include:

• Representation of a European pharmaceutical company in defending its rights to one of its most promising drugs against a suit by a top scientist who claimed to be the inventor, in U.S.-based litigation that involved discovery in Europe.
• Representation of a major financial institution in cases involving alleged raiding of a competitor and a sensitive retaliatory discharge claim by a former officer.
• Representation of a major insurance company in commercial general liability insurance antitrust litigation, including the lead responsibility for coordinating the development of a multi-defendant defense plan in state court and for defense of federal court actions after remand from the U.S. Supreme Court.
• Representation of a public utility company in a shareholder derivative action arising out of construction of a nuclear power plant. Mr. Luning conducted the proceedings that led to the first reported decision under Illinois law to uphold the right of a special committee of a board of directors to terminate a derivative action after a special committee investigation.
• Representation of a principal defendant company in its defense of civil and criminal actions in the Corrugated Container Antitrust Litigation. He was in charge of preparing the defendants' joint economic defense for the three-and-a-half-month criminal jury trial that resulted in the acquittal of all defendants. He also had principal responsibility for developing and presenting the client's affirmative evidence. In the civil actions, he was active in organizing and coordinating joint defense activities as well as the client's individual defense, and he had lead responsibility for development of a judgment sharing agreement among most of the defendants in the opt-out cases, which resulted in significant savings in defendants' settlements.
• Representation of a major consumer products company in litigation arising in connection with a successful takeover. He was in charge of the litigation aspects of the takeover, including six lawsuits filed during the takeover and four lawsuits (including a class action) filed thereafter. All of the cases were successfully resolved, including a complex settlement of the class action involving acquisition of minority shareholders' interests.
• Representation of automobile manufacturers in numerous franchise cases, including lead responsibility for the successful defense in a three-week jury trial of a case in which he conducted extensive discovery for more than four years.
• Representation of a major conglomerate in a multimillion-dollar lawsuit arising out of an acquisition, including extensive discovery for more than two years. He had lead responsibility for conducting a mini-trial in an alternative dispute resolution procedure that led to settlement of the lawsuit.
• Representation of an international pharmaceutical company in a major patent-antitrust case tried to a jury for one-and-one-half months. He was responsible for development of the client's affirmative case, including the economic defense, and for presentation of the economic defense and cross-examination of the plaintiff's only live economic witness.
• Representation of various clients in numerous other cases, including:
        o Multi-defendant and multi-district antitrust cases
        o Class actions
        o Corporate takeover litigation
        o Matters involving dealer termination
        o Distributorship agreement disputes
        o Thefts of trade secrets
        o Breach of confidentiality and non-competition agreements
        o Unfair competition
        o Securities fraud
        o Commodities fraud
        o Bank fraud
        o Insurance company insolvency
        o Bankruptcy
        o Contract disputes
        o Other business, corporate and commercial claims
• Lead responsibility for representing plaintiffs and defendants in cases pending in state and federal courts in Chicago, in other parts of Illinois, and in numerous other states.

Publications

"Proposed New Rules of Professional Conduct for Illinois Lawyers," Illinois Bar Journal (June 2004)

"Historical Perspective" Chapter, Class Actions, Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education (IICLE) (1974, updated 2004)

"An Introduction to the Proposed New Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct," Chicago Bar Record (November 2003)

Awards and Honors

Illinois Super Lawyers, General Litigation

Leading Lawyer — Antitrust Law; Commercial Litigation, Illinois Leading Lawyers Network

Education

Clerkships

Honorable Spottswood W. Robinson III, and to the Court, U.S. Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit (1967-1968)

Teaching Appointments

Lecturer in Law, University of Chicago Law School (1999-2003)
"The Legal Profession" (legal ethics and other aspects of professional conduct)

He counsels lawyers inside and outside Schiff Hardin on matters of legal ethics and lawyer conduct. He has served as co-chair of the Illinois State Bar Association/Chicago Bar Association Joint Committee on Ethics 2000, which proposed a comprehensive revision of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct.

Professional Memberships

American Bar Association
Section of Antitrust Law
Section of Litigation
Section of Individual Rights and Responsibilities

Chicago Bar Association
Board of Managers
          Past Member
Professional Responsibility Committee
          Past Chair
Large Law Firm Committee
          Past Chair

Illinois State Bar Association

Chicago Council of Lawyers

Seventh Circuit Bar Association

Lawyers Club of Chicago

Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Inc.
Past Co-Chair