Our runners up for Litigator of the Week include Jenner & Block Partners Debbie Berman and Wade Thomson, who scored a $114 million verdict for client Hetronic International, which makes industrial radio remote controls used to operate machinery such as cranes.

Hetronic alleged that its former president improperly shared the company's confidential information with its former largest distributor. With that information, the former distributor became an active competitor. 

After an 11-day trial, a federal jury in Oklahoma City awarded Hetronic $102 million in compensatory damages and $12 million in punitive damages.

International trade litigators at Sidley Austin led by Richard Weiner and Shawn Higgins racked up a win for Japan-based OSAKA Titanium Technologies Co., Ltd. when the White House decided not to increase tariffs on titanium sponges—a critical component in the production of aircraft fuselages and engine parts.

While the Department of Commerce found that imports of titanium sponge threaten to impair the national security of the United States, the White House declined to take action against importing them under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. It's the second win in two weeks for Sidley's international trade group—Richard Weiner and Raj Pal were runners up last week for their work on behalf of Exxon Mobil in a fight over imported steel.

At Proskauer, labor and employment partner Allan Bloom prevailed on behalf of Town Car International before the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court, Third Department in a decision with ramifications for businesses that rely on independent contractors. 

The appellate division reversed two decisions of New York's Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board that held Town Car drivers were employees of the company. The appellate division reasoned that the drivers were not employees because they controlled their own day-to-day activities (including whether and when they worked), were responsible for their own expenses (including for vehicle acquisition, maintenance, and fuel) and retained ultimate control over the manner and means by which they provided their services.