• ''Maple Flooring Manufacturers' Association v. US'': The firm had an early US Supreme Court victory in an antitrust case that helped establish its appellate credentials. The firm represented the Maple Flooring Manufacturers Association, a trade association based in
Grand Rapids, Michigan. The US government charged that the group's activities — such as sharing weekly statistics showing charges that had been made for various grades of lumber during the previous week — violated the
Sherman Act. The firm's principal litigator at the time, Edward Johnston, argued that the Association shared permissible economic information. In June 1925, the Court agreed. •
Sam Insull cases: In the 1930s, former chief justice of the
Illinois Supreme Court Floyd Thompson successfully defended Chicago utility czar Samuel Insull in three separate federal and state trials related to the collapse of his empire after the
Great Depression. •
Witherspoon v. Illinois: The firm represented William Witherspoon, who had been sentenced to death for the shooting death of a police officer, on a pro bono basis. In 1968, the US Supreme Court ruled that a state statute providing the state unlimited challenge for cause of jurors who might have any objection to the death penalty gave too much bias in favor of the prosecution. The Court reasoned: "A jury that must choose between life imprisonment and capital punishment can do little more — and must do nothing less — than express the conscience of the community on the ultimate question of life or death. Yet, in a nation less than half of whose people believe in the death penalty, a jury composed exclusively of such people cannot speak for the community." The Court added: "To execute this death sentence would deprive [Witherspoon] of his life without the
due process of the law." •
Lawrence v. Texas: A significant case to ensure civil rights for the gay, lesbian and transgender community. In 2003, working with the
Lambda Legal Defense Fund, the firm challenged Texas' anti-sodomy statute. The US Supreme Court struck down the statute, effectively invalidating anti-sodomy laws throughout the nation. Justice
Anthony Kennedy wrote that two gay men arrested after police walked in on them having sex "are entitled to respect for their private lives. The state cannot demean their existence or control their destiny by making their private sexual conduct a crime." In March 2010, Valukas issued his 2,200-page report on the matter. •
General Motors bankruptcy: In the late 2000s, General Motors had what
The American Lawyer called a "near-death" experience as it filed for bankruptcy. In 2010, the $23 billion offering by GM set the record as the largest
initial public offering (IPO) in history. Jenner & Block represented GM as it went through bankruptcy and the subsequent IPO. •
Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association: The firm represented the Entertainment Merchants Association in a battle against a California law that restricted the sale or rental of violent video games to minors. In 2011, the US Supreme Court agreed with the firm's argument that the law violated the
First Amendment's protection of freedom of speech and expression. Justice
Antonin Scalia wrote that depictions of violence have never been subject to government regulation. •
American Broadcasting Cos. v. Aereo, Inc.: The firm represented a group of broadcasting company clients in a fight against
Aereo, Inc., a company that retransmitted copyrighted television programming without broadcaster authorization for a fee. In June 2014, the US Supreme Court agreed with the firm's argument that Aereo violated copyright law. Aereo filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2014. ==Recognition==