RICHARD J. GRAY, Partner Publications · Professional Activities Chicago Office Office: (312) 923-2939 Fax: (312) 840-7339 Email: rgray@jenner.com  Add to Outlook Contacts

Richard J. Gray is a partner in the Firm's Litigation Department.  He is a member of the Complex Commercial Litigation Practice.  Mr. Gray also serves on the Firm’s Diversity Committee.  Mr. Gray concentrates in complex civil litigation focusing on intellectual property/technology, antitrust, insurance coverage and class actions.  Mr. Gray is AV Peer Review Rated, Martindale-Hubbell's highest peer recognition for ethical standards and legal ability.  Mr. Gray was recently named an Illinois “Super Lawyer” in the field of Intellectual Property Litigation by Law & Politics.  This peer review based program provides a guide to the top 5 percent of attorneys in the state.  Mr. Gray is also recognized as one of Lawdragon magazine's "500 Leading Lawyers in America."

Mr. Gray has significant experience in litigating intellectual property issues, including use of procedures available before the US PTO.  His recent work includes bringing suit to enjoin the use of trade secrets in the printing industry, counseling a foreign client on the bringing of a patent lawsuit in the United States, defending computer-based training providers against claims of trade secret misappropriation and patent infringement, undertaking a successful re-examination proceeding before the US PTO and opposing an injunction in a trademark case.  He is also experienced in resolving venue disputes presented by competing declaratory judgment and patent infringement suits.  Mr. Gray also contributes to the drafting of non-infringement and invalidity opinions, counsels clients on design arounds and has undertaken world-wide intellectual property due diligence evaluations in mergers and acquisitions.

Mr. Gray also represents insureds in insurance coverage disputes in both federal and state courts.  His recent work includes representing a medical service provider in obtaining coverage for the costs of the defense of an alleged class action complaint, and representing a software company in obtaining coverage for the defense and settlement of patent and trade secret litigation.  He represents several American railroads in long tail environmental, hearing loss and asbestos coverage litigation in which he has obtained numerous favorable settlements.  He also successfully obtained a coverage settlement for an antitrust claim under comprehensive general liability policies.  He has successfully invoked the coverages of third parties in multiparty underlying environmental disputes.  He is familiar with the London market and its operations, and is experienced in efficiently pursuing numerous insurers in a single case.  Mr. Gray also has experience in reinsurance matters.

Mr. Gray also has substantial experience in antitrust and consumer class actions involving the telecommunications industry.  He represented MCI in the landmark MCI v. AT&T trial which resulted in a $1.8 billion antitrust verdict for MCI.  Mr. Gray served as court appointed lead counsel for defendants in In Re Long Distance Telecommunications Litigation, consolidated and individual consumer class actions against virtually all the inter-exchange carriers other than AT&T.  He also successfully defeated certification in a consumer class action in the California Superior Court in Sacramento and sustained that decision for MCI in the California Appellate Court.  He is currently defending a purported class action involving privacy and Telephone Consumer Protection Act claims.  Mr. Gray’s antitrust experience also includes defense of an alleged group boycott and an antitrust-based opposition to a threatened dealer termination.  He has argued antitrust matters before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals and the Office of the Illinois Attorney General.  Mr. Gray also counsels clients, including trade associations, in antitrust matters.

Mr. Gray regularly teaches trial practice at the National Institute for Trial Advocacy.  He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Tech Law Group, Inc., an international network of 19 major law firms committed to serving the legal needs of businesses, institutions and individuals involved with technology.  Mr. Gray currently serves as the Seventh Circuit representative on the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Federal Judiciary which evaluates federal judicial nominees.  He just completed a three-year term on the ABA’s Legal Opportunity Scholarship Committee, which is responsible for selecting the ethnic and racial minority law students who will receive a scholarship.  He also works to raise funds for those scholarships.  Mr. Gray recently served on the ABA President’s Advisory Committee on Diversity in the Profession.  He also recently served as Co-Chair of the Section of Litigation's Diversity Plan Implementation Committee and Co-Chair of the Section's Judicial Intern Opportunity Program.

Mr. Gray serves on the Board of Directors of the Illinois Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.  He is also Chair of Steering Committee for the Chapter's "Milestones to a Cure" campaign, which has to-date raised over a million dollars to advance cystic fibrosis research.

Mr. Gray graduated from the University of Michigan magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, Pi Sigma Alpha in 1971.  He received his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1974 where he was a member and editor of the Journal of Law Reform.  Mr. Gray joined the Firm in 1974 and became a partner in 1981.  He is a member of the bar of the United States Supreme Court, the Illinois and Colorado bars, and the bars of numerous federal courts, including the Trial Bar of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.