Litigation Dept. head at Morgan Lewis & Bockius chosen as Phila. firm’s new chair

The Philadelphia-based law firm of Morgan Lewis & Bockius announced

Tuesday that it has chosen Jami Wintz McKeon to succeed Francis M. Milone as chair of the firm, which has offices across the country and abroad.

McKeon, who heads up the firm’s litigation division, will begin her five-year term on Oct. 1 of next year after a one-year transition period.

“I am honored to have been elected to succeed Fran as the Chair of Morgan Lewis,” McKeon, who resides in the Philadelphia suburbs, said in a statement. “Fran has been a valued mentor to me throughout my career at the firm, and I am excited to work with him over the next year.

“I very much look forward to building from the solid foundation from which Morgan Lewis will continue to serve our clients across the globe.”

McKeon is a veteran Morgan Lewis attorney, having started her legal career with the Center City, Philadelphia firm back in 1981.

Throughout the past 30-plus years, McKeon has served on the firm’s Advisory Board and Compensation Committee, she helped the practice expand into the West Coast, and she has played a key role in “attracting and successfully integrating lateral groups and individual laterals who have helped deepen the firm’s capabilities around the world,” reads a Morgan Lewis press release.

McKeon’s current role is leader of the firm’s 400-attorney Litigation Practice.

McKeon has much experience defending businesses and corporations in class and mass tort actions, as well as in civil and regulatory proceedings, specifically in the financial services and technology industries, according to the law firm, which has offices around the United States as well as in London and Moscow.

The firm has become a major destination for federal officials from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Justice Department, the firm’s news release states.

McKeon replaces Milone, who has been the firm’s chair for the past 14 years.

During his tenure, Milone has stressed the importance of pro bono work and diversity as “critical components to the firm’s success, and took meaningful steps to incorporate both as a part of the firm’s culture,” the news release states.

A total of 13 of Morgan Lewis’s 25 offices opened during Milone’s tenure.

The firm also has presence in Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

In a statement, Milone called McKeon a “trusted friend and partner for many years,” and an “inspiring and innovative leader as head of our global Litigation Practice.

“Our firm will be led by a partner who is full of compassion, good judgment, and wisdom, and we will be in good hands,” Milone stated. “I look forward to working side by side with Jami as she transitions to the leadership of our firm.”