Plaintiffs’ law firm Kirby McInerney plants flag with Chicago office

The skyline is seen in Chicago, Illinois, US, October 19, 2017. REUTERS/John Gress

(Reuters) – New York-based small law firm Kirby McInerney said on Tuesday that it has added an office in Chicago and brought on a new partner there.

The 27-attorney litigation firm, which also has an outpost in San Diego, focuses on securities, antitrust and whistleblower litigation on the plaintiffs’ side.

David Kovel, the firm’s co-managing partner, in a statement called Chicago “a global center of commodities trade,” and said he expects to see an increase in related litigation there going forward.

Commodities such as crude oil and aluminum have been affected by the war in Ukraine, posting big price gains earlier in March after the shuttering of ports and new sanctions sent energy, crop and metal buyers scrambling for replacement supplies.

“As the volatility in commodities has increased over the last decade and especially now during this crisis with Ukraine, it is an important time to be expanding in this locale,” Kovel said.

In October 2021, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) awarded almost $200 million to one of Kirby McInerney’s unnamed clients who provided information for a case involving the rigging of financial benchmarks. This was the largest award ever given to a single whistleblower from a US government agency, according to the CFTC.

Anthony Fata, a former partner who led small firm Cafferty Clobes Meriwether & Sprengel’s commodities and securities litigation practice, will open Kirby McInerney’s Chicago office along with an associate, according to the firm.

A spokesperson for Cafferty Clobes Meriwether & Sprengel did not immediately respond to requests for comment about Fata’s departure.

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