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Foley & Lardner’s McKeown a mainstay in high-profile antitrust, sports cases

Foley & Lardner’s McKeown a mainstay in high-profile antitrust, sports cases

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Jim McKeown (File photo by Kevin Harnack)
Jim McKeown (File photo by Kevin Harnack)

Working on complex litigation cases is stressful enough, but add in the high-profile world of sports and the stress level can soar.

But for Jim McKeown, a partner at Foley & Lardner in Milwaukee, taking a measured approach and focusing on the client’s needs is the key to success.

“It is all about helping my clients achieve their goals while following the law of the land,” said McKeown, who was honored in the spring with the Joseph E. O’Neill Award by Marquette University Law School for his work in the sports law field. “Different clients have different objectives, so I focus on understanding exactly what the client hopes to gain through the litigation.”

Through the years, McKeown handled several well-known cases, including representing Major League Baseball in a lawsuit challenging ownership rights for the use of the name “Washington Nationals” by the professional baseball team formally known as the Montreal Expos, and litigation involving the University of Maryland’s move to the Big 10 Conference.

McKeown said whether a client is large entity like Major League Baseball or two brothers running a family business, education plays a vital role in his work.

“Some clients overestimate what can be accomplished (through litigation) while others underestimate it,” he said. “I spend time making sure my clients understand the laws and what can be achieved.”

Antitrust issues are McKeown’s specialty and that every client and industry is different. He looks to provide his advice based on each client’s individual needs.

“Antitrust covers a broad area from mergers and acquisitions and intellectual property licensing to joint ventures and joint purchasing agreements,” he said.

McKeown is an active member of American Bar Association’s Antitrust Section and has served as co-chair of the section’s Trial Practice Committee. Attorneys who handle antitrust issues can learn a lot from each other by being a part of the ABA group, said McKeown, who also teaches sports and antitrust law at Marquette University Law School.

When putting his arguments together, McKeown said strong writing skills are a must.

“You have to be able to explain clearly what your client’s position is through your writing,” he said. “Oral argument skills are important too, but there is no guarantee you will get to that stage. Solid writing is everything.”

Wisconsin Law Journal: What makes your work important to you?
Jim McKeown: Helping clients achieve their objectives.

WLJ: Who is your hero in the legal field?
McKeown: I clerked for Judge Harlington Wood Jr. with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit and he was a good mentor. I have also been fortunate to be surrounded by a lot of great attorneys at Foley — many partners who are now retired — who mentored me through the years.

WLJ: What do you do outside of work to deal with stress from the office?
McKeown: I coached middle-school basketball for a number of years. There’s nothing like trying to explain to a group of fifth-graders how to break a press to take your mind off of the office.

WLJ: What’s one thing many people get wrong about what you do?
McKeown: There is still the impression caused by the media about what attorneys do to be persuasive and make their arguments. It is important as an attorney to understand the facts and then explain it without jargon. You need to speak in plain English to help the jurors understand. The arguments are not like what you see on TV and the movies.

WLJ: What’s your favorite memory from law school?
McKeown: I think every attorney remembers what was all involved in taking the bar exam and passing it. But I also remember playing a lot of intramural sports in law school after classes with my friends. It was a good way to de-stress.

WLJ: Is there a certain case that stands out to you?
McKeown: Through the years I have been involved in a number of interesting and challenging cases. One was an antitrust case involving the maker of soft plush bears — they were a competitor to Beanie Babies — against Major League Baseball. It was a fascinating case and the presiding judge on the Court of Appeals was Sonia Sotomayor, who is now on the Supreme Court.

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