(CHICAGO) Katten announced today that 23 practice areas were recognized in the Legal 500 United States 2026 guide. In addition, seven attorneys earned individual distinctions — three in the Hall of Fame and four as Leading Partners — while 79 attorneys were highlighted as recommended individuals in the guide's editorial commentary.
Chris DiAngelo, Mark Grossmann and Bruce Vanyo were named to the Legal 500's Hall of Fame, a distinction reserved for elite partners who stand out at the pinnacle of their respective practices. In addition, Kristin Achterhof, Christopher Cole, Michael Diver and Kimberly Smith earned placements on the Legal 500's prestigious Leading Partners list, which recognizes those with deep market experience and enduring reputations in their fields.
The Katten attorneys individually recommended are listed under the following practice areas:
Advertising & Marketing: Litigation
- Kristin Achterhof (Leading Partners)
- Christopher Cole (Leading Partners)
Alternative/Hedge Funds
- Henry Bregstein
- Wendy Cohen
- Jonah Roth
- Lance Zinman
Commercial Lending: Advice to Direct Lenders/Private Credit
- Geoff AuYeung
- Jan Harris Cate
- Michael Jacobson
- Derek Ladgenski
- Scott Lyons
- Neil Shelton
- Jennifer Wolfe
Corporate investigations & White-Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Corporates
- Alan Brudner
- Daniel Collins
- Brandon McCarthy
- Ryan Meyer
- Scott Resnik
- Rachel Riley
- Gil Soffer
- Christopher Stetler
- Sheldon Zenner
Copyright
- Kristin Achterhof
- Karen Artz Ash
- Floyd Mandell
- Carolyn Passen
M&A: Middle-Market ($250-$500m)
- Mark Grossmann (Hall of Fame)
- Kimberly Smith (Leading Partners)
Media & Entertainment: Litigation
- David Halberstadter
Media & Entertainment: Transactional
- Scott Cutrow
- Michael Hobel
Patents: Litigation (full coverage)
- Anthony Del Rio
- Kate Hardey
- Deepro R. Mukerjee
- Brian Sodikoff
- Lance A. Soderstrom
Real Estate - Large Cap ($500m+)
- Alvin Katz
- Frank Arado
- Louise Carroll
- Jason Gorczynski
- Kenneth Lore
- Glenn Miller
- Mark Simon
- Brian Spangler
- Scott Vetri
Restructuring (including bankruptcy): Corporate
- Michaela Crocker
- Cindi Giglio
- Peter Knight
- Steven Reisman
Securities Litigation: Defense
- Kevin Broughel
- Gidon Caine
- Michael Diver (Leading Partners)
- Sarah Eichenberger
- Michael Lohnes
- Jonathan Rotenberg
- Bruce Vanyo (Hall of Fame)
- Richard Zelichov
Service Providers (Healthcare)
- Anthony Del Rio
- Michelle Apodaca
- Laura Keidan Martin
- Kenya Woodruff
Sport
- Ethan Asofsky
- Jason Gorczynski
- Adam Klein
- Josh Lewis
- Daniel Render
Structured Finance: Derivatives & Structured Products
- Alexander Kim
- Daniel Davis
- Carl Kennedy
- Christian Kemnitz
- Matthew Kluchenek
- Stephen Morris
- Brian Poronsky
- Lance Zinman
Structured Finance: Securitization
- Chris DiAngelo (Hall of Fame)
- David Matthews
- Anna-Liza Harris
- John Keiserman
- Seth Messner
- Howard Schickler
- John Sun
- Joshua Yablonski
Trademarks: Litigation
- Kristin Achterhof
- Karen Artz Ash
- Floyd Mandell
Venture Capital & Emerging Companies
- Matthew Brown
- Fabiola Fox
- Jeffrey Patt
Katten was also recognized in:
- Commercial Lending: Advice to Bank Lenders
- Corporate Investigations & White-Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Individuals
- Financial Services Litigation
- Project Finance (Firms to Watch)
- US Taxes: Non-Contentious
For the full list of Katten's results, please visit Legal500.com.
The Legal 500 evaluates law firm capabilities and measures their strengths across the globe through a thorough research program that is revised and refreshed annually to deliver the most current view of the worldwide legal landscape. Rankings reflect a range of criteria and spotlight practice area teams that offer the most innovative and forward-thinking counsel to in-house legal professionals. The research draws on feedback from 300,000 clients around the world, law firm submissions, interviews with prominent private practice attorneys, and an experienced team of researchers with deep expertise in the legal industry.
