In the D.C. Litigation Departments of the Year special report, The National Law Journal took the pulse of top litigation shops in our nation's capital. Who successfully handled some of the biggest cases of 2016? Who did they face in court? And what clients entrusted them with their weightiest matters? From a highly competitive field, our team pared the list to eight firms that brought challenging client matters to successful outcomes in a superlative manner.

In our general litigation category, we named two winners—Kirkland & Ellis and WilmerHale. This week, NLJ Managing Editor Lisa Helem spoke with Kirkland & Ellis partners Mike Brock and Dan Donovan and WilmerHale partners Amy Wigmore and Catherine Carroll. We looked back at 2016—the firms' biggest wins, how they are preparing the next generation of D.C. litigators and can they sum up their litigation teams in a Twitter hashtag? For the answers, have a listen.

Mike Brock, left, and Daniel Donovan, right, of Kirkland & Ellis in Washington, D.C. May 10, 2017.

Amy Wigmore of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr. June 24, 2014. Photo by Diego M. Radzinschi/THE NATIONAL LAW JOURNAL.