Craig C. Martin
Chairman, Americas
Craig C. Martin is the Chairman, Americas of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP and is a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. Prior to founding the Willkie Chicago office in 2020, Craig was the Chairman of a national law firm. Recognized as a “courtroom to boardroom” lawyer, Craig regularly represents clients in their most important strategic, reputational and economic matters in virtually every substantive area of the law.
Over the course of his career, Craig has become one of the most trusted advisors to the Fortune 100, wealthy family offices and private investors as well as notable business, civic and political leaders. His practice ranges from advising corporate boards; to trials; to strategic, legal and business advice in transactions globally. Consistent with his professional roots, Craig is frequently asked to try cases of substantial economic, strategic and reputational substance; to represent boards of directors regarding investigations and sensitive matters; and to provide trusted advice to myriad prominent families and other private businesses.
Craig is widely recognized in the media. He is listed in Chicago Magazine’s “Power 100,” a list of Chicago’s most powerful people, and Crain’s Chicago Business “Who’s Who” in Chicago civic, professional, and cultural leaders. Crain’s Chicago Business has also recognized Craig as a Notable Litigator & Trial Attorney. He is included in the IAM Strategy 300. BTI Consulting has recognized Craig as a Client Service All-Star for exemplary, client-focused legal practice.
Craig is ranked in Chambers Global and USA, as well as a number of legal publications, as one of the nation’s top lawyers in a number of practice areas. Chambers called Craig “an outstanding, go-to attorney, especially for complex matters requiring commercial awareness and astute judgment.” Chambers Global, where Craig is consistently highly ranked in the Litigation: Trial Lawyer category, said “Juries love him. He's concise, direct and to the point as well as being one of the most creative cross-examiners I have ever seen.” The current edition of Chambers USA ranks him as a leading lawyer in four areas: Litigation: Trial Lawyers (National); ERISA Litigation (National); Litigation: General Commercial (Illinois); and Intellectual Property (Illinois). It notes: “[H]e is great from the courtroom to boardroom, is unflappable in difficult situations and his skills as a trial lawyer are extraordinary.” Chambers has previously highlighted Craig’s “impressive intellect and great demeanor,” which are “very helpful in high-stakes contentious matters.”
Following is an exemplar list of Craig’s practice:
Trials & Arbitrations: As a first-chair trial lawyer for several decades, Craig routinely tries cases in state and federal courts nationwide, as well as in international arbitrations in the UK and Europe. His trial experience includes approximately 50 trials and arbitrations, as well as many other evidentiary hearings, in a broad range of matters, including antitrust, breach of fiduciary duty, civil rights, commercial contract, contract, criminal cases, employment, employee mobility, ERISA, False Claims Act, fiduciary claims, insurance, international trade, law firm dissolutions, patent, trade secrets, trusts and estates and whistleblower actions.
Appellate: Craig has handled approximately 50 appeals in 9 of the 11 Circuit Courts of Appeals, the Federal Circuit, the Supreme Court, and various state judicial systems. Consistent with the scope and breadth of his practice, the substantive areas have included class actions, civil rights, real estate, contract, criminal, education, employment, environmental, ERISA, fiduciary claims, habeas corpus, insurance, patent, technology, tort, trade secrets, transportation and trusts and estates.
Governance and Investigations: As a trusted boardroom advisor, Craig regularly counsels CEOs, C Suite executives, and corporate boards and their committees on fiduciary structures, governance, and matters of business judgment. He has led substantial investigations, often in conjunction with government investigations, criminal prosecutions, regulatory actions, civil litigation, and personnel actions, including the termination of CEOs and other C-suite officers, NPAs and DPAs with the Department of Justice, and follow-on securities and derivative litigation. Although many of these board engagements are confidential, Craig’s prominent role in representing the United Airlines Board of Directors was chronicled in “Turnaround Time,” written by Oscar Munoz, former United Airlines Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and published in May 2023, which involved a CEO change, an NPA, an SEC resolution and securities litigation.
Commercial Disputes: Craig has established a reputation as one of the profession’s most successful litigators through his work on large-scale, often bet-the-company commercial litigation. He represents clients in commercial courts across the US, UK, and EU, and is known for achieving favorable outcomes. His clients include family offices, private equity, global professional services organizations, boards of directors, high net worth individuals and some of the most recognizable companies in around the world. Craig’s practice includes a broad range of substantive areas, representing both plaintiffs and defendants:
Antitrust: Section 1 and 2 claims, group boycotts, Walker Process claims, and cross-border antitrust matter related cartel monitoring;
Business Torts: All manner of business torts, including: breach of fiduciary duty, breach of the duty of loyalty, civil conspiracy, commercial disparagement, conversion, fraud (including fraudulent misrepresentation), interference with contractual relations, interference with prospective economic advantage, misappropriation of trade secrets, negligent misrepresentation, tortious interference with business relations, trade libel and unfair competition.
Class Actions: Class actions involving, for example, antitrust, COVID-19-related claims, digital privacy, directors and officers in relation to their fiduciary duties, employment, ERISA, retirement funds, securities, consumer claims, unfair competition under various state statutes, data breaches, among many others. These matters often involve certification decisions on interlocutory appeal.
Contract: Long term supply contracts, technology development, IT outsourcing contracts, energy arrangements, among other billion dollar contracts, in industries such as chemical, oil and gas, defense, finance, technology, and other industries domestically and internationally.
Securities: Section 10, Rule 10b-5 and Section 20 claims, derivative claims, trading claims, market manipulation, including claims arising from civil litigation, IPOs; and investigations and claims initiated by the SEC (defendant only).
Patent: Plaintiff and defendant side infringement claims in federal courts, the PTAB and internationally involving a wide range of technology, including manufacturing, technology, e-commerce, food processing technology, and automotive products.
Insurance: Disputes covering the full range of insurance issues including environmental insurance, business interruption, brokers’ liability, errors and omissions and successor liability.
Trade: Investigations and litigation involving the transhipment of materials to the United States in violation of trade laws in the International Court of Trade (in New York). Craig also counsels businesses on supply chain and tariff issues.
Major Tort: A range of environmental torts, including contamination of both groundwater and soils, CERCLA actions, mass tort actions, and train derailments.
RICO: Plaintiff and defendants side racketeering claims involving bribery, dealing in obscene matter, embezzlement, extortion, forgery, human trafficking/sex trafficking/slavery/involuntary servitude, kidnapping, mail fraud, money laundering, securities fraud, theft/larceny, wire fraud, witness tampering, including pre-judgment attachment proceedings.
Civil Rights: Craig regularly represents plaintiffs in civil rights actions in federal courts around the country, often including trials.
Criminal: Craig has handled a number of white collar criminal matters including public corruption cases, antitrust investigations, FCPA investigations, money laundering, bribery; and Craig has also tried criminal sexual assault, murder and death penalty cases.
M&A Counseling and Oversight: Craig’s clients rely on his sound advice and commercial judgment. In many cases, his long-time clients turn to him to direct strategic mergers and acquisitions, based on his deep knowledge of their business objectives and risk tolerance. He also counsels his clients on all manner of legal issues and potential risks in a variety of corporate transactions, and has been involved in litigation arising from transactions.
Private Wealth Governance and Succession Planning: Many wealthy families and family offices rely on Craig for strategic advice regarding governance and succession planning for multi-generational wealth and philanthropy.
Crisis Management: In times of sudden and unexpected challenges, Craig’s clients often turn to him for the kind of multidimensional advice required when a crisis strikes. He has provided crisis counsel triggered by abrupt leadership changes in executive or board roles and unforeseen government actions, helped steer corporate clients through the early stages of disaster response, and advised high-net-worth families on how best to address issues that generate media attention.
Craig teaches at the Harvard Law School and the Stanford Directors College. Craig was appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court and served a nine-year term as a Commissioner on Character & Fitness, the Committee which adjudicates whether individuals are fit to serve as attorneys in Illinois, where he adjudicated and presided over formal and informal proceedings. He is a member of the American Law Institute, the American Bar Association, and many other legal organizations. Craig received the Judge Learned Hand Award for legal excellence from the American Jewish Committee. Craig is an active member of the Richard Linn American Inn of Court.
Craig is a member of the Business Board of Henry Crown & Company, which oversees business operations of the Crown family, including oversight of portfolio investment objectives, investment and business policies and risk management, and also a member of the Aspen Institute (Executive Committee; Chair, Audit and Risk Committee), the Civic Committee, the Commercial Club of Chicago, the Economic Club of Chicago, and the National Association of Corporate Directors. He also serves on the boards of the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, the Lyric Opera of Chicago (Executive Committee; Chair, Nominating and Governance Committee), the Chicago Urban League, and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, World Business Chicago. For many years he served on the board of the Arie and Ida Crown Memorial at Crown Family Philanthropies. For nearly two decades, he was a member of the Board of Directors of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Chicago, including serving as secretary, vice-chairman and as chairman from 2011 to 2014, and is now a Life Trustee.
Craig represents a virtual who’s who of Fortune 100 corporations, boards, audit committees, private entities, wealthy families, prominent individuals, and family offices.
Craig earned his J.D. from the Harvard Law School and his B.A. from the University of Notre Dame.
Experience
Craig was previously a partner at another major law firm in Chicago, where he also served as firm chair.
- Crain's Chicago Business, Notable Leaders in Accounting, Consulting & Law (2024)
- Crain's Chicago Business, Who's Who (2018; 2022-2025)
- Crain's Chicago Business, Notable Litigators & Trial Attorneys (2023 and 2025)
- BTI Client Service All-Star (2022) for exemplary, client-focused legal practice
- Chambers Global – Litigation: Trial Lawyers (since 2022)
- Chambers USA – Litigation: Trial Lawyers (Nationwide) (since 2021); Litigation: General Commercial (Illinois) (since 2014)
- Chambers USA – ERISA Litigation (Nationwide) (since 2021)
- Chambers USA – Intellectual Property (Illinois) (since 2021)
- IAM Strategy 300 (since 2023)
- IAM Strategy 300 Global Leaders (since 2023)
- IAM Patent 1000 (since 2022)
- Managing IP – Patent Star: Illinois (since 2024)
- The Legal 500 United States – Leading Trial Lawyer (since 2019), The Legal 500 United States – Dispute Resolution - General Commercial Disputes (since 2016); Leading Lawyer (since 2017)
- The Legal 500 United States – Dispute Resolution - Corporate Investigations and White-Collar Criminal Defense (since 2017)
- The Legal 500 United States – Labor and Employment - ERISA Litigation (since 2016)
- The Legal 500 United States – Intellectual property, Patents: litigation (2024)
- The Legal 500 United States – Securities litigation: defense (2023 and 2025)
- The Legal 500 United States – Media & technology: data privacy and data protection (2025)
- Benchmark Litigation – Litigation Star (since 2023)
- Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America -- inaugural guide to the most elite courtroom advocates in the nation (since 2022)
- The Trial Lawyer Honorary Society – Litigation Counsel of America, Fellow (since 2021)
- Lawyer Network Annual Award – Commercial Litigation Expert of the Year in Illinois, 2021
- Leading Lawyers Network – Top 100 Business Lawyers in Illinois, 2009, Commercial Litigation (since 2004)
- Illinois Super Lawyers - Business Litigation (since 2005)
- Best Lawyers in America – Commercial Litigation (since 2014)
- Irish Legal 100 (since 2021)
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Award for Excellence in Pro Bono Service, 2012, 2018 (Tobert v. Colvin)
- Chicago Magazine – "The Power 100," 2015
- Harvard Law Society of Illinois – Role Model, 2012
- American Jewish Committee – Judge Learned Hand Human Relations Award, 2011
Craig serves on the Aspen Institute board of trustees, is a member of its Executive Committee and chairs its Audit & Risk Committee. He is a member of the Lyric Opera of Chicago board of directors, its Executive Committee and chairs its Nominating and Governance Committee. He also serves on the boards of the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, the Crown Family Philanthropies, the Chicago Urban League, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and World Business Chicago. He is a member of the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, the Economic Club of Chicago and the National Association of Corporate Directors.
For nearly two decades, he was a member of the Corporate Board of Directors of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Chicago, including serving as secretary, vice-chairman and as chairman from 2011 to 2014. Craig remains a Trustee at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Chicago.
Craig teaches Advanced Trial Advocacy at Harvard Law School and Crisis Management at the Stanford Directors College.
He is a member of the Naples Roundtable, the American Law Institute, the American Bar Association, Section on Litigation, and the Richard Linn American Inn of Court.
Publications
- Co-Author, “The Year in ERISA Litigation: 2024 Trends and What We’re Watching in 2025,” Willkie Insights, January 2025
- Co-Author, “Justice Department’s RealPage Case Highlights Potential Antitrust Risks for Owners of Multi-Family Residential Real Estate,” Thomson Reuters-The Real Estate Finance Journal (Winter 2024)
- Co-Author, “ERISA Benefits Litigation Answer Book,” Practising Law Institute, November 2022
- Co-Author, “Crisis Management,” Business and Commercial Litigation in Federal Courts, Fifth Edition; Thomson Reuters & The American Bar Association Section of Litigation, December 2016 and 2017, 2018 ,2019 and 2022 Supplements
- Co-Author, “Determining Necessity of Discretionary Distributions,” The Estate Planner, June 17, 2020
- Co-Author, “Making a Federal Case out of Trustee Termination,” WealthManagement.com, March 3, 2020
- Co-Author, “The Perils of Failing to Follow the Trust Instrument,” The Estate Planner, November 20, 2019
- Co-Author, “SIPCO and Covered Business Methods – Courts Continue to Struggle with PTAB Regs,” Bloomberg Law, November 15, 2019
- Co-Author, “Early Returns on Actuarial Equivalence Cases,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Winter 2019
- Co-Author, “A Trustee’s Fiduciary Duties May Extend to 529 Accounts,” WealthManagement.com, June 26, 2019
- Co-Author, “Everything Old is New Again: Stock Drop Lawsuits on the Rise,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Summer 2019
- Co-Author, “Drawing the Line Between Possible and Plausible in Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Spring 2019
- Co-Author, “Fee Awards Under ERISA – The Long and Winding Road to ‘Some Success on the Merits,’“ Employee Relations Law Journal, Autumn 2018
- Co-Author, “New Plaintiffs’ Firms Bring Increased ERISA Litigation Risks for Employers,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Summer 2018
- Co-Author, “Corporate Information Technology Transactions and Disputes,” Successful Partnering Between Inside and Outside Counsel, May 2018
- Co-Author, “What Happens After Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims Stemming from Denials of Benefits Survive a Motion to Dismiss,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Spring 2018
- Co-Author, “Equitable Relief under ERISA Following Amara,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Winter 2017
- Co-Author, “The Upward Trend in ERISA Class Action Class Action Settlements,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Autumn 2017
- Co-Author, “Cert Denial in Carolinas Electrical Workers Retirement Plan a Win for ERISA Plan Service Providers,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Summer 2017
- Co-Author, “A Deepening Split: Enforceability of Venue Selection Clauses Under ERISA,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Spring 2017
- Co-Author, “Crisis Management,” Business and Commercial Litigation in Federal Courts, Fourth Edition; Thomson Reuters & The American Bar Association Section of Litigation, December 2016 and 2017, 2018 and 2019 Supplements
- Co-Author, “A Cautionary Note on Venue Selection Clauses in ERISA Plans,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Winter 2016
- Co-Author, "Providers Beware: Failure to Keep Track Means You Have to Pay It Back,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Autumn 2016
- Co-Author, “When the Shoe Doesn’t Fit: Provider-Plaintiffs’ Standing in the Face of Anti-Assignment Clauses,” Employee Relations Law Journal, May 9, 2016
- Co-Author, “Will the Duty to Monitor Erode ERISA’s Limitations Provisions?” Employee Relations Law Journal, Spring 2016
- Co-Author, “The ERISA Trifecta: Injury, Standing, and Equitable Relief,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Winter 2015
- Co-Author, “When Is a Church Not a Church?” Employee Relations Law Journal, Autumn 2015
- Co-Author, “A Farewell to Yard-Man,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Summer 2015
- Co-Author, "Perez v. Bruister: An Appraisal," Employee Relations Law Journal, Spring 2015
Speaking Engagements
- Speaker, “State of the Industry-Market Update,” 8th Annual LF Dealmakers Forum, September 17, 2025
- Moderator, “The Fund Strategy & Differentiation,” 24th Annual Chicago Booth Private Equity Conference, February 28, 2025
- Moderator, “Global Private Equity Investing,” Private Equity Chicago Forum, hosted by Markets Group, July 30, 2024
- Participant, The Naples Roundtable, February 18-20, 2024
- Speaker, Harvard Law School Winter 2024 Trial Advocacy Workshop, January 2024
- Moderator, “Hot Topics in Trade Secrets Protection, Enforcement, and Litigation conference,” Sandpiper Partners LLC, December 14, 2023
- Panelist, “2023 Chicago Conference on Litigation Finance,” University of Chicago Law School’s Center on Law and Finance, October 26, 2023
- Panelist, The Resilient Law Firm Roundtable, Sandpiper Partners, September 27, 2023
- Participant, The Naples Roundtable, January 15-17, 2023
- Speaker, Harvard Law School Winter 2023 Trial Advocacy Workshop, January 2023
- Moderator, 10th Annual Chicago Legal Market Conference, March 29, 2022
- Panelist, Navigating Patent-Antitrust Interface and Conflicts – Which Should Take Priority and When? The Naples Round Table, March 18, 2022
- Panelist, "ERISA Counsel and Attorney-Client Privilege: What You Don't Know About the Fiduciary Exception Could Hurt You," Strafford CLE Webinar, February 16, 2022
- Speaker, Harvard Law School Winter 2022 Trial Advocacy Workshop, January 2022
- Moderator, "Phoenix Issue IV. Antitrust" Patent Interface and Conflict in view of FTC v. Qualcomm" The Naples Round Table, February 2021
- Panelist, "Phoenix Issue II. Is There a Current Conflict between the Goals and Implementation of the Patent Laws and Antitrust Laws that Is Impeding the Effectiveness of the US Patent System" Ability to Promote Investment in Developing and Marketing New Technology?" The Naples Round Table, February 2020
- Moderator, General Counsel Roundtable, First Chair Awards Conference, August 28, 2019
- Speaker, "Luncheon and Keynote Address," Stanford Directors" College, June 25, 2019
- Moderator, 8th Annual Chicago Legal Market Conference, June 18, 2019
- Panelist, "Phoenix Issue VI. Is There a Current Conflict Between Implementation of the Patent Laws and Antitrust Laws?" The Naples Round Table, February 2019
- Panelist, "Political Changes Affecting Our Business," Aon Global Law Conference, March 2018
- Panelist, "When Disaster Strikes ... From VW, to BP, to GM, to WF, and Beyond,” Stanford Directors" College, June 27, 2017
- Panelist, "Challenges of Commercial Litigation," International Legal Alliance Summit (ILISA), June 15, 2017
- Panelist, "Trade Secrets Protection: How to Respond Effectively When a Company Becomes A Victim of American Intellectual Property Theft," Kirkland & Ellis, June 9, 2017
- Speaker, "Compensation and Staffing as Levers of Cultural Changes," Global Law Leaders Conference, October 3, 2017
- Moderator, 14th National Forum on ERISA Litigation, American Conference Institute, March 1, 2017
- Panelist, "When Disaster Strikes," Stanford Directors" College, June 21, 2016
- Panelist, American Conference Institute" 11th National Forum on ERISA Litigation, March 1, 2016
Credentials
Education
Harvard Law School, J.D., 1988 University of Notre Dame, B.A., 1985
Bar Admissions
Court Admissions
United States Supreme Court, 1999 United States Court of International Trade, 2018 United States Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit, 2004 United States Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit, 1993 United States Court of Appeals, 3rd Circuit, 2000 United States Court of Appeals, 4th Circuit, 2008 United States Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit, 1998 United States Court of Appeals, 6th Circuit, 2000 United States Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit, 2000 United States Court of Appeals, 8th Circuit, 2002 United States Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit, 1999 United States Court of Appeals, 10th Circuit, 1989 United States Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit, 2016 United States District Court, District of Arizona, 1996 United States District Court, Central District of Illinois, 2000 United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, 1989 United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois (Trial Bar), 1990 United States District Court, Southern District of Illinois, 1994 United States District Court, Western District of Michigan, 1998 United States District Court, Eastern District of Michigan, 1999 United States District Court, District of Colorado, 1988 United States District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin, 2008 Illinois Supreme Court, 1989 Colorado Supreme Court, 1988