Kenneth O'Rourke

Kenneth O'Rourke

Partner

Antitrust and Competition

An Experienced and Recognized Antitrust Litigator

Ken is the 2026 Antitrust Lawyer of the Year as selected by the California Lawyers Association Antitrust and Consumer Protection Section. This recognition honors Ken’s antitrust litigation achievements and successes over his four-decade career, as well as his leadership, innovation, and positive impact on the antitrust profession in the U.S. and internationally. One of Ken’s accomplishments is being among the few litigators to both lead an antitrust class action for a certified plaintiffs’ class and lead the defense of major antitrust class actions, demonstrating the breadth of his litigation experience.

Ken is also recognized for his litigation skills and accomplishments by leading industry publications, including Chambers Global, Chambers USA, Lawdragon's “500 Leading Litigators in America,” Lawdragon's “500 Leading Global Antitrust & Competition Lawyers,” Best Lawyers in America, and others such as Global Competition Review, the latter of which honored Ken as being among the world's "Competition Thought Leaders."
An Antitrust Leader

Ken chairs the ABA Antitrust Section's inaugural Salon on Litigating High Stakes Antitrust Litigation. He co-chairs the ABA Antitrust Section’s Global Private Litigation Committee and is chair emeritus of the Cambridge Antitrust Litigation Forum, a litigation-focused discussion group he founded and chaired for 10 years. He formerly served as the ABA Antitrust Section’s co-chair of the Intellectual Property Committee, as well as chair of the California State Bar Antitrust Section.

Kenneth (Ken) O'Rourke is a partner in the antitrust department at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, where his practice focuses on litigating complex cases and high-stakes U.S. and international disputes, as well as defending against government investigations. Ken is based in the firm's Washington, D.C., office with a continuing presence in California. He represents companies pursuing remedies for wrongful conduct by others, as well as defends companies being sued in complex cases.

For 40 years, Ken has represented established and emerging companies in multi-forum civil litigation, class actions, "bet-the-company" cases, government enforcer investigations, merger litigation, and high-stakes antitrust and intellectual property disputes, including several international matters. His experience includes litigating class actions and other international price-fixing cartel follow-on actions, monopolization and attempted monopolization cases, pending mergers contested by government enforcers and private litigants, IP disputes involving the refusal to license standard essential patents (SEPs) on reasonable and non-discriminatory (RAND) terms, and pharmaceutical antitrust lawsuits alleging delayed market entry of generic drugs due to reverse payment patent settlements.

He is a lawyer admitted to practice in California and the District of Columbia, as well as a solicitor of the Senior Courts of England & Wales (with current practising certificate) and a former solicitor of the Republic of Ireland.

Ken is recognized by leading industry publications. Chambers Global 2024: Antitrust - USA Cartel states that he is "highly regarded for his antitrust cartel work" and Chambers USA: California Antitrust 2019 reports that he is "a spectacular lawyer" who "takes on large-scale civil and criminal antitrust litigation." Global Competition Review's 2016 edition of Who's Who Legal - Competition called Ken "one of California's foremost litigators" and praised him for both his competition and IP experience. In 2019 and 2020, the publication honored Ken as being among the world's "Competition Thought Leaders," noting that peers extol him as "a really excellent antitrust litigator."

Prior to joining Wilson Sonsini, Ken was a senior antitrust and business litigation partner with another top law firm, where he practiced law for nearly 35 years in California and Washington, D.C. He also served for nearly 18 months as the interim chief legal officer of Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC), one of the country's largest health insurers and operator of the BlueCross BlueShield health plans in Illinois, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Experience

Education

J.D., Loyola Law School, 1985St. Thomas More Law Honor Society; Editor-in-Chief, Loyola International and Comparative Law Journal
B.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 1982

Associations and Memberships

Chair Emeritus and Former Chair (2010-2019), The Antitrust Litigation Forum
Chair, ABA Antitrust Section’s Salon on Litigating High Stakes Antitrust Cases
Co-chair, ABA Antitrust Section's Global Private Litigation Committee, 2025-2026
Co-chair, ABA Antitrust Section's Intellectual Property Committee, 2024-2025
Chair, California State Bar Antitrust & Unfair Competition Law Section Executive Committee, 2013-2014, and Vice Chair, 2010-2013
Vice Chair, ABA Antitrust Section's Global Private Litigation Committee, 2021-2024
ABA Antitrust Section's International Cartel Task Force, 2013-2018
Additional ABA Antitrust Section Leadership Positions, 2017-present

Honors

Named 2026 “Antitrust Lawyer of the Year” by the California Lawyers Association's Antitrust and Consumer Protection Section
Honored among Lawdragon's 2025-2026 "500 Leading Global Antitrust & Competition Lawyers"
Named among Lawdragon's 2025-2026 "500 Leading Litigators in America"
Recognized in the 2019-2026 editions of Chambers Global: Antitrust - USA Cartel
Recognized in the 2025 edition of GCR/Lexology Index's Competition guide
Selected for inclusion in the 2023 and 2024 editions of GCR/Who's Who Legal: Competition and named a 2019-2020 "Thought Leader" by the publication
Recognized in the 2019-2025 editions of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business
Selected for inclusion in the 2025 edition of Best Lawyers in America
Frequently recognized in The Legal 500, Antitrust; Irish Legal 100; Southern California Super Lawyers, Antitrust; Who's Who Legal - The International Who's Who of Competition Lawyers, Antitrust; and Best Lawyers, Washington, D.C., Antitrust Litigation

Admissions

Bar of the District of Columbia
State Bar of California
Solicitor, Senior Courts of England & Wales
Solicitor, Republic of Ireland (now, not practicing)
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
U.S. Supreme Court

Credentials

Education

J.D., Loyola Law School, 1985St. Thomas More Law Honor Society; Editor-in-Chief, Loyola International and Comparative Law Journal
B.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 1982

Associations and Memberships

Chair Emeritus and Former Chair (2010-2019), The Antitrust Litigation Forum
Chair, ABA Antitrust Section’s Salon on Litigating High Stakes Antitrust Cases
Co-chair, ABA Antitrust Section's Global Private Litigation Committee, 2025-2026
Co-chair, ABA Antitrust Section's Intellectual Property Committee, 2024-2025
Chair, California State Bar Antitrust & Unfair Competition Law Section Executive Committee, 2013-2014, and Vice Chair, 2010-2013
Vice Chair, ABA Antitrust Section's Global Private Litigation Committee, 2021-2024
ABA Antitrust Section's International Cartel Task Force, 2013-2018
Additional ABA Antitrust Section Leadership Positions, 2017-present

Honors

Named 2026 “Antitrust Lawyer of the Year” by the California Lawyers Association's Antitrust and Consumer Protection Section
Honored among Lawdragon's 2025-2026 "500 Leading Global Antitrust & Competition Lawyers"
Named among Lawdragon's 2025-2026 "500 Leading Litigators in America"
Recognized in the 2019-2026 editions of Chambers Global: Antitrust - USA Cartel
Recognized in the 2025 edition of GCR/Lexology Index's Competition guide
Selected for inclusion in the 2023 and 2024 editions of GCR/Who's Who Legal: Competition and named a 2019-2020 "Thought Leader" by the publication
Recognized in the 2019-2025 editions of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business
Selected for inclusion in the 2025 edition of Best Lawyers in America
Frequently recognized in The Legal 500, Antitrust; Irish Legal 100; Southern California Super Lawyers, Antitrust; Who's Who Legal - The International Who's Who of Competition Lawyers, Antitrust; and Best Lawyers, Washington, D.C., Antitrust Litigation

Admissions

Bar of the District of Columbia
State Bar of California
Solicitor, Senior Courts of England & Wales
Solicitor, Republic of Ireland (now, not practicing)
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
U.S. Supreme Court

Select Representations

Representing leading companies investigated by government enforcers and sued by class action plaintiffs and civil claimants for allegedly participating in international price-fixing cartels.
Representing Seagate, a world-leading hard disk drive maker, in federal court litigation seeking to recover overcharges and other relief stemming from an antitrust price-fixing and market allocation conspiracy involving manufacturers of high-tech components used in hard drives.
Defending NextEra Energy in antitrust conspiracy and monopolization claims in federal court. All federal antitrust claims were dismissed with prejudice via successful motion to dismiss.
Defending AT&T and Time Warner through litigation and trial brought by the U.S. Department of Justice seeking to block their merger. The district court approved the merger and the appeals court affirmed.
Defending US Airways in litigation filed by the U.S. Department of Justice seeking to block its merger with American Airlines. The combined airline is now the world's largest by some measures.
Representing Alaska Airlines in defending its proposed acquisition of Virgin America over allegations of a substantial lessening of competition in a federal court antitrust action filed by travel agents and air passengers seeking to block the acquisition. The merger was approved.
Defending SK Hynix Inc., one of the world's leading semiconductor manufacturers, against a decade-long campaign by a Silicon Valley start-up that sought to impose patent royalties worldwide on industry-standard memory chips.
Serving as a senior leader of a trial team that obtained a complete defense victory from a San Francisco jury against $12 billion antitrust claims.
Defending pharmaceutical FTC investigations and defending class actions by plaintiffs alleging anti-competitive "reverse payment settlements" that supposedly delayed generic drug competition

Matters

Select Representations

Representing leading companies investigated by government enforcers and sued by class action plaintiffs and civil claimants for allegedly participating in international price-fixing cartels.
Representing Seagate, a world-leading hard disk drive maker, in federal court litigation seeking to recover overcharges and other relief stemming from an antitrust price-fixing and market allocation conspiracy involving manufacturers of high-tech components used in hard drives.
Defending NextEra Energy in antitrust conspiracy and monopolization claims in federal court. All federal antitrust claims were dismissed with prejudice via successful motion to dismiss.
Defending AT&T and Time Warner through litigation and trial brought by the U.S. Department of Justice seeking to block their merger. The district court approved the merger and the appeals court affirmed.
Defending US Airways in litigation filed by the U.S. Department of Justice seeking to block its merger with American Airlines. The combined airline is now the world's largest by some measures.
Representing Alaska Airlines in defending its proposed acquisition of Virgin America over allegations of a substantial lessening of competition in a federal court antitrust action filed by travel agents and air passengers seeking to block the acquisition. The merger was approved.
Defending SK Hynix Inc., one of the world's leading semiconductor manufacturers, against a decade-long campaign by a Silicon Valley start-up that sought to impose patent royalties worldwide on industry-standard memory chips.
Serving as a senior leader of a trial team that obtained a complete defense victory from a San Francisco jury against $12 billion antitrust claims.
Defending pharmaceutical FTC investigations and defending class actions by plaintiffs alleging anti-competitive "reverse payment settlements" that supposedly delayed generic drug competition

Select Publications and Speaking Engagements

International Cartel Litigation

Co-author, "Trends and Developments," Cartels 2025 -- USA - Washington, Chambers and Partners Global Practice Guide, May 21, 2025
Speaker/Commentator, ABA/IBA International Cartel Workshop, San Francisco, February 2020
Discussion Co-leader, "Beyond Traditional Price Fixing Cartels: Litigating New Age Cartels," Antitrust Litigation Forum, Charleston, SC, October 2019
Speaker, "Can I See That? Discovery Across Borders," American Bar Association Section of Antitrust Law Global Private Litigation Conference, Berlin, Germany, June 2019
Guest Lecturer, "Extraterritoriality," The Globalization of Cartel Enforcement, George Mason's Antonin Scalia Law School, Arlington, VA, April 2019
Chair and Moderator, "Antitrust Developments in Asia," Legal Talk Network, an ABA Antitrust Section Podcast, March 2019
Panel Chair and Moderator, "Global Class Action Developments," ABA Antitrust Section's Spring Meeting, Washington, D.C., March 2019
Program Chair and Speaker, "Trying Cartel Cases: Effective Strategies for Proving and Defending the Case," ABA Antitrust Section's Global Seminar Series, Hong Kong, October 2018
Co-Discussion Leader, "Current Administration's Approach to Antitrust Enforcement," The Antitrust Litigation Forum, October 2018
Speaker, "International Price-Fixing Cartels: Dawn Raids, Criminal Investigations & Civil Litigation," Irish-American Society's 2018 Law Symposium, Cleveland, OH, September 2018
Speaker, "Cartel Enforcement Update 2018," Legal Talk Network (LTN) ABA Antitrust Podcast, August 2018
Roundtable Participant, "Cartel Investigations and Litigation," Corporate Disputes, July - September 2018 Issue
Panelist, "Private Damages Actions - A New Frontier," ABA Antitrust in Asia Conference, Seoul, Korea, May 2018
Co-Discussion Leader, "Parallels Between EU and US Antitrust Law and Practice," European Forum on Competition Litigation, London, November 2017
Speaker, "Class Certification in Cartel Cases," IBA/ABA International Cartel Workshop, Tokyo, Japan, February 2016
Panelist, "Sir, please step out of the line - Criminal Cartel Developments," GCR Antitrust Live — Miami, February 2015
Co-Discussion Leader, "Convergence of Continuity: Litigating and Settling US Cases with Private Actions Outside the US," Antitrust Litigation Forum, Napa, California, October 2014
Co-author, "Guilty Pleas in Antitrust Civil Litigation," Antitrust Report, September 2014
Panelist, "Civil Litigation in the Aftermath of Criminal Prosecution: How to Use and Diffuse Guilty Pleas," ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting, Washington, D.C., March 2014
Speaker, "Opting Out of Class Actions in Cartel Cases," IBA/ABA International Cartel Workshop, Rome, Italy, February 2014
Panelist, "GCR Live: 2nd Annual Law Leaders Asia-Pacific Conference - Singapore," Global Competition Review, Singapore, March 2013
Co-author with Ian Simmons, "Reflections on Cartel Enforcement," ABA Antitrust Magazine - 25^thAnniversary Edition, December 2012
Discussion Co-Leader, "Antitrust Litigation Trials," 2012 Antitrust Litigation Forum, Napa Valley, California, December 2012
Moderator, "'Big Stakes' Antitrust Trials," 22nd Annual Golden State Antitrust and Unfair Competition Law Institute, San Francisco, October 2012
Moderator, "Defense 9, Plaintiff 3: Winning Over the Jurors in the $12 Billion Rambus Antitrust Trial," Association of Business Trial Lawyers (ABTL), Orange County, CA, April 2012
Panel Leader and Panelist, "Internal Investigations," 2012 ABA International Cartel Workshop, Vancouver, B.C., February 2012
Moderator and Panelist, "Winning Strategies in U.S. Jury Trials," In-House Counsel Forum, Seoul, Korea, January 2012

Intellectual Property Rights Intersecting Antitrust Law

Co-author, "From Telegraphs to Telegram and Other Modern Telephony: Ephemeral Messaging in an Era of Scrutinized Document," American Bar Association, March 18, 2025
Co-author, "The Right to Repair and Its Ratcheting Impact on Antitrust and IP Law," American Bar Association, February 27, 2025
Panelist, "Antitrust and IP Developments for the High Tech Sector," ICNect365 Law's Antitrust USA: West Coast Conference, San Francisco, February 2019
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre, "Intellectual Property and Antitrust: Getting the Deal Through," Global Competition Review, USA Chapter, 2012-2018
Co-author with Julia Schiller, "Promoting Competition and Standards: The D.C. Divide," ABA Antitrust Section's Fall Forum, October 2010
"California Intellectual Property Law Developments," California Litigation Review, October 2009 and October 2010
Speaker, "Antitrust Laws & Lessons from Standard Setting Organizations," International Seminar on Anti-Monopoly Issues in the Industry of New and High Technology, China's Ministry of Industry & Information Technology (MIIT), Beijing, PRC, June 2010
Co-author, "Ashcroft v. Iqbal: The Sleeper 2009 Supreme Court Decision For Patent Litigators?" Intellectual Property & Technology Law Journal, Vol. 21, No. 12, December 2009

Complex Civil Litigation

Co-author, "`Off-Ramps' in US Private Damages Antitrust Actions," prepared for ABA Antitrust in Asia Conference, April 2018
Co-author with Michael Tubach, "Corporations and the Privilege Against Self-Incrimination: Current Issues Under US Law," prepared for ABA/IBA International Cartel Workshop, February 2018
Panelist, "Ethics in Joint Defense and Common Interest Groups," Los Angeles County Bar Association, Los Angeles, California, July 2017
Panelist, "Joint Defense Group Ethics: A Debate & Discussion," ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting, Washington, D.C., April 2017
Co-author with Scott Schaeffer, "Three Paths to Class Action: Rule 23(b) and the Nature of Class Claims in America," prepared for ABA/IBA International Cartel Workshop, February 2016
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre, "The Continuing Violations Doctrine: Limitation in Name Only, or a Resuscitation of the Clayton Act's Statue of Limitations?" Competition, Spring 2015
Panelist, "Resolving Antitrust Disputes: Arbitration, Mediation, and Settlement," CLE International Antitrust Law Conference, San Francisco, February 2013
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre and ICatelyn Denby, "Preserving Legal Privileges in the U.S., California, and the EU," Antitrust Report, December 2012

Pharmaceutical Antitrust Litigation

Moderator, "Big Stakes Antitrust Trials - In re Solodyn Antitrust Litigation," California Lawyers' Antitrust Section Annual "Golden State Institute," San Francisco, California, November 2018
Co-Discussion Leader, "Healthcare Industry and Pharmaceuticals," Antitrust Litigation Forum, New Orleans, Louisiana, October 2015
Co-author with Anna Fabish, Drafting Pharmaceutical Patent Settlements With Actavis in Mind, Corporate Disputes Magazine, June 2015
Panel Chair, "Beyond Reverse Payments: The New Frontiers in Pharmaceutical Antitrust," ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting, Washington, D.C., April 2015
Co-author with Anna Fabish, "New Frontiers in Pharmaceutical Antitrust," submitted for ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting, March 2015
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre and Ian Simmons, "Patent Validity and Scope Can Be Litigated in Antitrust Suits," Law360, August 1, 2014
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre and Ian Simmons, "The Continuing Relevance of Patent Validity in Reverse-Payment Litigation," Concurrences, May 2014
Co-author with Ian Simmons and Scott Schaeffer, "Viewing FTC v. Actavis Through the Lens of Clayton Act Section 4," ABA Antitrust Magazine, Fall 2013
Co-author with Jon Sallet and Katrina Robson, "FTC v. Actavis: Reconciling Conflicts In Rules of Reason," Law360, July 2, 2013

Agricultural Antitrust Litigation

Panelist, "The Capper-Volstead Exemptions in an Era of Supply Management and Vertical Integration," American Bar Association Antitrust State Enforcement, Agriculture & Food, Exemptions & Immunities Committees, September 2012
Discussion Co-Leader, "The Capper-Volstead Act Exemption and Supply Restraints in Agricultural Antitrust Actions," New York State Bar Antitrust Section Executive Committee, New York, New York, February 2011
Co-author with Andrew Frackman, "The Capper-Volstead Act Exemption and Supply Restraints in Agricultural Antitrust Actions," Competition: The Journal of the Antitrust and Unfair Competition Law Section of the State Bar of California, Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 69 et seq., Fall 2010

Insights

Select Publications and Speaking Engagements

International Cartel Litigation

Co-author, "Trends and Developments," Cartels 2025 -- USA - Washington, Chambers and Partners Global Practice Guide, May 21, 2025
Speaker/Commentator, ABA/IBA International Cartel Workshop, San Francisco, February 2020
Discussion Co-leader, "Beyond Traditional Price Fixing Cartels: Litigating New Age Cartels," Antitrust Litigation Forum, Charleston, SC, October 2019
Speaker, "Can I See That? Discovery Across Borders," American Bar Association Section of Antitrust Law Global Private Litigation Conference, Berlin, Germany, June 2019
Guest Lecturer, "Extraterritoriality," The Globalization of Cartel Enforcement, George Mason's Antonin Scalia Law School, Arlington, VA, April 2019
Chair and Moderator, "Antitrust Developments in Asia," Legal Talk Network, an ABA Antitrust Section Podcast, March 2019
Panel Chair and Moderator, "Global Class Action Developments," ABA Antitrust Section's Spring Meeting, Washington, D.C., March 2019
Program Chair and Speaker, "Trying Cartel Cases: Effective Strategies for Proving and Defending the Case," ABA Antitrust Section's Global Seminar Series, Hong Kong, October 2018
Co-Discussion Leader, "Current Administration's Approach to Antitrust Enforcement," The Antitrust Litigation Forum, October 2018
Speaker, "International Price-Fixing Cartels: Dawn Raids, Criminal Investigations & Civil Litigation," Irish-American Society's 2018 Law Symposium, Cleveland, OH, September 2018
Speaker, "Cartel Enforcement Update 2018," Legal Talk Network (LTN) ABA Antitrust Podcast, August 2018
Roundtable Participant, "Cartel Investigations and Litigation," Corporate Disputes, July - September 2018 Issue
Panelist, "Private Damages Actions - A New Frontier," ABA Antitrust in Asia Conference, Seoul, Korea, May 2018
Co-Discussion Leader, "Parallels Between EU and US Antitrust Law and Practice," European Forum on Competition Litigation, London, November 2017
Speaker, "Class Certification in Cartel Cases," IBA/ABA International Cartel Workshop, Tokyo, Japan, February 2016
Panelist, "Sir, please step out of the line - Criminal Cartel Developments," GCR Antitrust Live — Miami, February 2015
Co-Discussion Leader, "Convergence of Continuity: Litigating and Settling US Cases with Private Actions Outside the US," Antitrust Litigation Forum, Napa, California, October 2014
Co-author, "Guilty Pleas in Antitrust Civil Litigation," Antitrust Report, September 2014
Panelist, "Civil Litigation in the Aftermath of Criminal Prosecution: How to Use and Diffuse Guilty Pleas," ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting, Washington, D.C., March 2014
Speaker, "Opting Out of Class Actions in Cartel Cases," IBA/ABA International Cartel Workshop, Rome, Italy, February 2014
Panelist, "GCR Live: 2nd Annual Law Leaders Asia-Pacific Conference - Singapore," Global Competition Review, Singapore, March 2013
Co-author with Ian Simmons, "Reflections on Cartel Enforcement," ABA Antitrust Magazine - 25^thAnniversary Edition, December 2012
Discussion Co-Leader, "Antitrust Litigation Trials," 2012 Antitrust Litigation Forum, Napa Valley, California, December 2012
Moderator, "'Big Stakes' Antitrust Trials," 22nd Annual Golden State Antitrust and Unfair Competition Law Institute, San Francisco, October 2012
Moderator, "Defense 9, Plaintiff 3: Winning Over the Jurors in the $12 Billion Rambus Antitrust Trial," Association of Business Trial Lawyers (ABTL), Orange County, CA, April 2012
Panel Leader and Panelist, "Internal Investigations," 2012 ABA International Cartel Workshop, Vancouver, B.C., February 2012
Moderator and Panelist, "Winning Strategies in U.S. Jury Trials," In-House Counsel Forum, Seoul, Korea, January 2012

Intellectual Property Rights Intersecting Antitrust Law

Co-author, "From Telegraphs to Telegram and Other Modern Telephony: Ephemeral Messaging in an Era of Scrutinized Document," American Bar Association, March 18, 2025
Co-author, "The Right to Repair and Its Ratcheting Impact on Antitrust and IP Law," American Bar Association, February 27, 2025
Panelist, "Antitrust and IP Developments for the High Tech Sector," ICNect365 Law's Antitrust USA: West Coast Conference, San Francisco, February 2019
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre, "Intellectual Property and Antitrust: Getting the Deal Through," Global Competition Review, USA Chapter, 2012-2018
Co-author with Julia Schiller, "Promoting Competition and Standards: The D.C. Divide," ABA Antitrust Section's Fall Forum, October 2010
"California Intellectual Property Law Developments," California Litigation Review, October 2009 and October 2010
Speaker, "Antitrust Laws & Lessons from Standard Setting Organizations," International Seminar on Anti-Monopoly Issues in the Industry of New and High Technology, China's Ministry of Industry & Information Technology (MIIT), Beijing, PRC, June 2010
Co-author, "Ashcroft v. Iqbal: The Sleeper 2009 Supreme Court Decision For Patent Litigators?" Intellectual Property & Technology Law Journal, Vol. 21, No. 12, December 2009

Complex Civil Litigation

Co-author, "`Off-Ramps' in US Private Damages Antitrust Actions," prepared for ABA Antitrust in Asia Conference, April 2018
Co-author with Michael Tubach, "Corporations and the Privilege Against Self-Incrimination: Current Issues Under US Law," prepared for ABA/IBA International Cartel Workshop, February 2018
Panelist, "Ethics in Joint Defense and Common Interest Groups," Los Angeles County Bar Association, Los Angeles, California, July 2017
Panelist, "Joint Defense Group Ethics: A Debate & Discussion," ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting, Washington, D.C., April 2017
Co-author with Scott Schaeffer, "Three Paths to Class Action: Rule 23(b) and the Nature of Class Claims in America," prepared for ABA/IBA International Cartel Workshop, February 2016
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre, "The Continuing Violations Doctrine: Limitation in Name Only, or a Resuscitation of the Clayton Act's Statue of Limitations?" Competition, Spring 2015
Panelist, "Resolving Antitrust Disputes: Arbitration, Mediation, and Settlement," CLE International Antitrust Law Conference, San Francisco, February 2013
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre and ICatelyn Denby, "Preserving Legal Privileges in the U.S., California, and the EU," Antitrust Report, December 2012

Pharmaceutical Antitrust Litigation

Moderator, "Big Stakes Antitrust Trials - In re Solodyn Antitrust Litigation," California Lawyers' Antitrust Section Annual "Golden State Institute," San Francisco, California, November 2018
Co-Discussion Leader, "Healthcare Industry and Pharmaceuticals," Antitrust Litigation Forum, New Orleans, Louisiana, October 2015
Co-author with Anna Fabish, Drafting Pharmaceutical Patent Settlements With Actavis in Mind, Corporate Disputes Magazine, June 2015
Panel Chair, "Beyond Reverse Payments: The New Frontiers in Pharmaceutical Antitrust," ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting, Washington, D.C., April 2015
Co-author with Anna Fabish, "New Frontiers in Pharmaceutical Antitrust," submitted for ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting, March 2015
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre and Ian Simmons, "Patent Validity and Scope Can Be Litigated in Antitrust Suits," Law360, August 1, 2014
Co-author with Stephen McIntyre and Ian Simmons, "The Continuing Relevance of Patent Validity in Reverse-Payment Litigation," Concurrences, May 2014
Co-author with Ian Simmons and Scott Schaeffer, "Viewing FTC v. Actavis Through the Lens of Clayton Act Section 4," ABA Antitrust Magazine, Fall 2013
Co-author with Jon Sallet and Katrina Robson, "FTC v. Actavis: Reconciling Conflicts In Rules of Reason," Law360, July 2, 2013

Agricultural Antitrust Litigation

Panelist, "The Capper-Volstead Exemptions in an Era of Supply Management and Vertical Integration," American Bar Association Antitrust State Enforcement, Agriculture & Food, Exemptions & Immunities Committees, September 2012
Discussion Co-Leader, "The Capper-Volstead Act Exemption and Supply Restraints in Agricultural Antitrust Actions," New York State Bar Antitrust Section Executive Committee, New York, New York, February 2011
Co-author with Andrew Frackman, "The Capper-Volstead Act Exemption and Supply Restraints in Agricultural Antitrust Actions," Competition: The Journal of the Antitrust and Unfair Competition Law Section of the State Bar of California, Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 69 et seq., Fall 2010

"Antitrust Litigation," February 9, 2022

Video

"Antitrust Litigation," February 9, 2022

Recent Insights

News Articles

Wilson Sonsini's Ken O'Rourke has been named the 2026 Antitrust Lawyer of the Year by the Antitrust and Consumer Protection Section of the California Lawyers Association (CLA).

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News Articles

On January 16, 2026, 15 Wilson Sonsini attorneys were selected for inclusion in Lawdragon’s “500 Leading Antitrust & Global Competition Lawyers” guide. The lawyers featured are recognized for navigating global antitrust regulatory regimes, representing clients in massive competition contests, and navigating frameworks of countries and markets globally.

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Recent Events

Affiliated Programs

The Antitrust and Consumer Protection Section of the California Lawyers Association is hosting the 35th Golden State Institute in San Francisco. Wilson Sonsini partners Jeff VanHooreweghe and Ken O'Rourke will moderate the event’s “Antitrust Ethics in Action 3.0” panel, where they will explore the untold future of AI in law and the current realities of lawyers using (and misusing) AI through four scenarios acted out by leading in-house counsel and outside antitrust lawyers, highlighting key professional rules in settings that raise and address ethical challenges.

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Speaking Engagements

As private litigation continues to offer a growing set of tools and defenses in alleged dominance cases against Big Tech platforms around the globe, this panel examines how rights are enforced—and interests defended—across jurisdictions. From damages to other forms of relief, what’s at stake in the next wave of digital antitrust litigation and how will new and creative ideas on both sides of the “v.” play into global litigation and resolution?

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