The practice team leader of BakerHostetler’s Commercial Litigation team, Gil Keteltas is a trial lawyer with more than 25 years of experience litigating complex commercial, tort and government enforcement disputes on behalf of national and international corporations. Recognized by the National Law Journal as a 2016 Litigation Trailblazer for innovative trial advocacy, Gil’s experience spans practice areas and industries. He has advocated in courtrooms across the country on behalf of manufacturers, engineers, hospitality companies, agricultural cooperatives and farmers, and has served as trial counsel in jury and bench trials.
Gil also is experienced in coordinating and leading the defense of multi-jurisdictional, multi-party disputes – including disputes involving a mix of government and private plaintiffs – and in developing and implementing litigation risk-reduction strategies before litigation is filed.
Gil’s national trial practice benefits from his experience in electronic discovery. He brings a practical approach to e-discovery that recognizes the importance of focused advocacy in addressing the burdens, costs and opportunities of discovery in modern complex litigation. Clients and peers recognize Gil as “a notable electronic discovery expert with significant trial experience” (Chambers USA 2018).
- Co-lead trial counsel to a global engineering company in an indemnity case arising out of the 2009 explosion of a food manufacturing plant in Garner, North Carolina. After a four-week jury trial, the jury returned a verdict of $108.9 million in favor of the client, two times the amount of the largest verdict in Nebraska at that time. This verdict, recently affirmed by the Nebraska Supreme Court, was recognized by the National Law Journal as a “Top 50 Verdict” of 2016 in its Elite Trial Lawyers report.*
- Counsel to multiple hospitality companies in litigation and enforcement actions arising out of data breaches. Secured voluntary dismissal of a class action brought by issuing banks against one client, negotiated a favorable mediated resolution of a consumer class action brought against another and is actively involved in a regulatory enforcement investigation involving a third.
- Lead counsel to the growers and processors of more than half of the nation’s domestically grown sugar in multiple lawsuits, defending his client’s ability to plant, harvest and process biotech sugarbeets. Directly sued opposing food advocacy groups through use of the Declaratory Judgment Act. Developed and implemented a trial strategy that challenged the credibility of opposing claims and exposed the absence of injury to plaintiffs, ultimately voiding injunctive remedies. Center for Food Safety, et al. v. Vilsack, et al.
* Does not guarantee similar results in comparable matters.