Site Search
Professionals 85 results
Capabilities 40 results
Industry
Winston has one of the world’s premier sports law practices. Our work has included some of the most famous legal matters in sports history—including Alston v. NCAA, the case that culminated in a 9–0 Supreme Court victory for the college players against the NCAA; the US$2.15B Los Angeles Dodgers acquisition; McNeil v. the NFL, the landmark antitrust jury trial that led to the establishment of free agency in the NFL; the multi-billion-dollar construction and permanent financings for SoFi Stadium; and Morgan v. USSF, the case that led to a historic equal pay settlement for the players on the Women’s National Team. Our work is transforming this global, multibillion-dollar industry.
Industry
The medical device industry is currently undergoing monumental change—from supply chain challenges to disruptive technologies and economic fluctuations. To pave the way for a more accessible and innovative health care landscape—including advances in wearables, implants, diagnostics, mobility, drug delivery—the evolving and expansive medical device industry faces wide-ranging legal needs. Clients in this sector can tap the remarkable depth and breadth of our sector-focused and skilled attorneys in the U.S. and abroad. Our Health Care & Life Sciences Industry Group engages clients at all points in the product development life cycle to provide sound advice and practical solutions regardless of the client’s size or the complexity of their need. We help clients navigate today’s complex regulatory landscape, defend products and reputations in the face of high-profile product liability and mass tort claims, protect innovative intellectual property (IP), and leverage cross-border experience to advise on commercial transactions.
Industry
Financial services companies in the financial technology (FinTech) space are contributing to rapid technological advances and innovation in the development, offering, and delivery of core financial products and services. Winston’s FinTech, Banking & Payments attorneys support these companies throughout the entire FinTech business life cycle, from proof of concept through maturity, including federal and state licensing and registration, regulatory compliance and risk management, structured finance, M&A, and private equity, intellectual property (IP) management, and supervision and enforcement. Our clients include banks, FinTech companies, private equity and other investors, money services businesses, trust companies, consumer finance companies, investment advisers, and other financial firms.
Experience 16 results
Experience
|April 30, 2025
In December 2022, Winston convinced Judge Albright of the W.D. Tex. to reverse his tentative construction and invalidate four patents based on means-plus-function indefiniteness at claim construction in the district court. Winston also persuaded Judge Albright to deny Fintiv’s motion for reconsideration the next month. Fintiv appealed to the Federal Circuit, which affirmed the district court in a precedential opinion in April 2025. Winston overcame a significant amount of sleight of hand from Fintiv, which continually shifted the purported structure of the “payment handler” term through claim construction, its motion for reconsideration, and appellate briefs, muddying the record. Ultimately the opinion clearly distinguished the factual record from that in Dyfan v. Target, curbing patentees abilities to argue that all code or applications are a “class of structures” and not indefinite under 112(f). The Federal Circuit affirmed four of the five patents Winston invalidated for PayPal, effectively foreclosing Fintiv’s ability to revive these patents for assertion. Winston also invalidated the fifth patent at the PTAB; Fintiv’s appeal of that Final Written Decision is pending.
Experience
|March 18, 2025
Winston Blunts Earnout Payment
Following a bench trial in Fall 2024, a New York trial court ruled in March 2025 that Cresco Labs, Inc. was not required to pay a US$45M earnout under a merger agreement. The court found that Cresco did not receive “commercially reasonable access” to New York’s adult-use cannabis market, which was supposed to be subject only to a non-competitive application or approval process. Adopting Cresco’s arguments, the court determined that only the Office of Cannabis Management and Cannabis Control Board could decide when and how applicants access the adult-use market. The court agreed that regulators required Cresco to pay a significant one-time fee, prioritized other applicants, and had broad discretion over approvals. This win supports claims that New York’s adult-use program lacks details and clear entry paths, frustrating industry leaders’ efforts to develop a robust adult-use market.
Experience
|September 27, 2024
Winston Represents KeHE Distributors, LLC in a $250.0 Million Senior Secured Notes Tack-On Offering
Winston represented KeHE Distributors, LLC in connection with a Rule 144A/Reg. S tack-on offering of $250,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 9.000% senior secured notes due 2029 issued by KeHE Distributors, LLC, NextWave Distribution, Inc. and KeHE Finance Corp. Proceeds from the offering were used to partially pay down existing ABL borrowings. KeHE Distributors, LLC is a leading pure-play natural and organic, specialty and fresh products food distributor in North America.
Insights & News 1,031 results
In the Media
|September 23, 2025
|2 Min Read
Kathi Vidal Discusses Gender Gap in Patents with MLex
Winston & Strawn partner Kathi Vidal was featured in a MLex article where she discussed the gender gap in patents, outreach efforts in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office under her leadership as the former Director, and how the office can support women inventors. A 2022 study from the USPTO showed that office policy can help close the gap between men and women in the US patent system. The paper studied the effectiveness of the Pro Se Pilot Examination Unit (PSPEU), which provides additional communication and assistance to inventors attempting to prosecute a patent without representation.
Client Alert
|September 12, 2025
|6 Min Read
Debanking Developments: OCC Bulletins Clarify Expectations, but Key Questions Remain
In this alert, Winston’s Financial Services Industry Group examines recent developments in debanking, focusing on two new OCC bulletins that clarify regulatory expectations. While these bulletins provide new insight into how the OCC is addressing debanking under the current administration, they also leave several important questions unanswered.
The OCC’s first bulletin addresses how politicized or unlawful debanking will factor into licensing applications and Community Reinvestment Act evaluations, emphasizing the importance of fair access and treatment. The second bulletin reminds banks of their obligations under the Right to Financial Privacy Act, particularly in light of recent congressional scrutiny, and underscores the need to protect customer financial records unless disclosure is legally required.
What does this mean for you?
Direct Sellers Update: Regulation, Law & Policy
|September 9, 2025
|3 Min Read
No More Click to Cancel Rule—But FTC Enforcement Actions Keep Coming
The FTC’s much-anticipated “Click to Cancel” Rule was nixed, but the FTC is not backing down. The FTC continues to use Section 5 of the FTC Act and various other regulations to bring enforcement actions against companies that fail to provide clear and conspicuous disclosures about recurring charges and easy-to-cancel options for consumers.
Other Results 27 results
Site Content
Tax evasion is the failure to pay or the deliberate underpayment of federal income taxes. The U.S. income tax system is based on voluntary compliance, and it is the taxpayer’s responsibility to report all income and to pay all taxes due. Tax evasion is a known violation of a legal duty, and may result in monetary penalties, imprisonment, or both.
Site Content
What Is Anti-Bribery and Corruption?
The terms anti-bribery and anti-corruption encompass the laws, agreements, or policies aimed at stopping or punishing all forms of bribery and corruption. For example, under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), it is unlawful for a U.S. person or company to offer, pay, or promise to pay money or anything of value to a foreign official for the purpose of corruptly obtaining or retaining business.
Law Glossary
What Is the Copyright Royalty Board?
The U.S. Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) is a three-judge panel that functions as an independent unit within the Library of Congress. It performs the duties specified in the Copyright Royalty and Distribution Reform Act. The Act established statutory licenses that let approved parties utilize certain types of copyrighted works by paying a set royalty, without having to request an individual copyright license from each rights-holder. The CRB sets, and periodically adjusts, the rates and terms of the statutory licenses, and can also make determinations on the distribution of statutory license royalties collected by the U.S. Copyright Office. For example, the judges can determine, for a five-year period, the rates musical performers receive when their works are played via digital services. When licensors and licensees cannot reach rate agreements on their own, the CRB hears testimony from the various parties and then sets the rates. CRB Judges serve six-year terms. The first CRB judges were appointed by the Librarian of Congress in 2006.