Samantha L. Maxfield, Associate

Samantha Maxfield is an associate in Winston & Strawn’s litigation department. She concentrates her practice on pharmaceutical patent litigation and complex commercial disputes and also has experience in appellate work, white-collar criminal defense, international arbitration, and employment matters. She has worked on behalf of clients such as Barr Laboratories, Watson Laboratories, Abbott Laboratories, Aon Corporation, and The Travelers Companies Inc.

Ms. Maxfield has significant experience in all aspects of litigation in state and federal court, from the discovery phase through trial and appeal. Ms. Maxfield was extensively involved in successful representations of pharmaceutical companies against claims of patent infringement in three bench trials in the District of Delaware. She was also part of a team that obtained a favorable outcome for a client in an alternative dispute resolution proceeding. Ms. Maxfield has drafted briefs for submission to a variety of state and federal courts, including the Federal Circuit.

Most recently, Ms. Maxfield was part of the three-attorney team that prevailed on behalf of Abbott Laboratories in the retrial of an employment case that had previously resulted in a widely reported $25.7 million verdict (while handled by other counsel). At the time the verdict was one of the largest employment verdicts in Ohio history and was among the top 100 verdicts in the nation in 2002. Winston & Strawn took over the case in 2006 and obtained two mistrials before trying it for a third time. The jury rendered an 8–0 verdict in Abbott’s favor after an eight-day trial.

Activities

Ms. Maxfield’s pro bono and non-profit work includes assisting with a habeas corpus appeal before the Seventh Circuit and mentoring students at an inner-city public elementary school. 

Ms. Maxfield is active in the firm’s mentoring program and Women-2-Women Internal Networking Committee.

Education