Eric Lyttle is a partner in the Washington, D.C. office.
Mr. Lyttle is a trial lawyer who represents companies in complex commercial litigation, class actions, investigations, corporate crises and other disputes. He is adept at handling all phases of civil litigation – through discovery, trial, and appeal – for U.S. and multinational clients. Mr. Lyttle also has extensive experience representing companies, boards of directors and senior executives in sensitive government and internal investigations relating to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”), False Claims Act, product recalls, and other civil and criminal matters. For example, he has led legal teams working on the Lava Jato corruption scandal in Brazil, the Fukushima nuclear accident, the BP oil spill, and the 9/11 terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center.
In 2016, Mr. Lyttle was named a Law360 Rising Star, which recognizes attorneys under 40 who have demonstrated outstanding career accomplishments.
- Odebrecht
- Express Scripts
- Trafigura
- Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
- Toyobo Co., Ltd.
- Bovis Lend Lease
- SEACOR Holdings, Inc.
- O'Brien's Response Management
- Electrical Components International, Inc.
- Pfizer
- Rio Tinto Company
- Forest Laboratories, Inc.
- Won complete dismissal of all claims against Odebecht brought by a group of investment funds that had invested over $300 million in a Brazilian company, Sete, that became embroiled in the Lava Jato corruption scandal in Brazil.
- Won defense verdict for Express Scripts in jury trial arising out of termination of a compounding pharmacy from the Express Scripts network.
- Counsel to Odebrecht, Latin America's largest construction conglomerate, in its historic global settlement with the United States, Brazil, and Switzerland resolving allegations of corruption in a dozen countries. The global settlement was unique in both its speed and comprehensiveness, and it introduced the concept of measuring a company’s monetary penalty in the FCPA context by its financial condition and ability to pay.
- Won complete dismissal of all claims against Koch Industries as the alleged cause of coastal erosion in Louisiana, a victory that was subsequently affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. he New York Times headlined the case as “The Most Ambitious Environmental Lawsuit Ever.”
- Won dismissal of thousands of state-law claims against companies who cleaned up the oil spill at the behest of the federal government after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill through novel use of Lone Pine order.
- Defending Trafigura, a leading international commodities trading and logistics company, in a RICO class action lawsuit filed against the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), some of the world’s largest fuel oil suppliers, and Puerto Rico-based fuel oil laboratories, alleging fuel oil fraud.
- Representation of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in litigation against Bank of America arising out of Bank of America’s failure to pay over $1B in required assessments.
- Led an internal investigation for a leading professional accreditation body.
- Counsel to Americans for Prosperity (AFP), a non-profit issue advocacy organization, in litigation against the State of California alleging that California’s requirement that non-profits disclose membership lists violates the U.S. Constitution. Obtained permanent injunction after bench trial.
- Represented US investors in litigation against Chinese SOE.
- Representation of a large U.S. oil-spill cleanup company in connection with Congressional and other government investigations of the Deepwater Horizon accident in the Gulf of Mexico.
- Representation of a major US/European telecommunications company with extensive operations in Africa in claims for fraud against contractors in South Africa, Nigeria, and the US.
- Defense of Toyobo, a major Japanese fiber manufacturer, in federal and state False Claims Act cases, nationwide consumer fraud class actions, foreign claims, suits and investigation by states attorneys general, and personal injury claims arising from the sale of a high-performance fiber used in the manufacture of hundreds of thousands of bullet-resistant vests.
- Represented and provided crisis management counseling to a multinational company in connection with the Fukushima, Japan nuclear accident.
- Representation of SEACOR, a global provider of equipment and services supporting the offshore oil and gas industries, in claims arising out of the April 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and pending in the Deepwater Horizon MDL. Obtained dismissal of all claims, which was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
- Represented Bovis Lend Lease and secured a favorable outcome in mass tort litigation involving thousands of claims made by emergency workers arising out of the debris removal operations following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
- Advising one of the world's largest mineral resource companies on its negotiations with foreign governments and compliance with U.S. laws.
- Represented a major national health insurer in a multi-million dollar deceptive trade practices case. Successfully obtained a preliminary injunction against adversary, which was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
- University of Chicago Law School
(J.D., 2002)- University of Chicago Law School Roundtable:
- Articles Editor
- Articles Editor
- University of Chicago Law School Roundtable:
- Vanderbilt University
(B.A., summa cum laude, 1999)
- The District of Columbia Bar
- The Bar of the Commonwealth of Virginia
- United States Court of Appeals:
- Fourth Circuit
- United States District Court:
- District of Columbia
- Western District of Michigan
- Weil Gotshal & Manges:
- Partner, 2012-2013
- Associate, 2004-2012
- Law360, Rising Star, 2016
- Joseph Henry Beale Prize for excellence in legal research and writing
- Publications
- Sixth Circuit Strikes Out Class Allegations At Pleadings Stage (February 15, 2012, In-House Litigator)
- Third-Party Financing of Commercial Litigation (Summer 2010, In-House Litigator, ABA, Committee on Corporate Counsel)
- Assessing the Impact of FRE 502 (June 2010, DRI's For the Defense)
- Preserving Privilege (July 28, 2008, The National Law Journal)
- Products Liability: Chinese Made-Goods (February 18, 2008, The National Law Journal)
- Speaking Engagements
- Panelist, "Lessons From 'Developed' Issues," The Huron Legal Institute Briefing: How to Respond to Increasing Costs, October, 23, 2012
- Speaker, "Power Strategy for Effective Lay Witness Examination," ABA Section of Litigation Annual Conference, April 20, 2012
- Panelist, "Pursuing Rights and Remedies in China; Being Prepared," Government Attorneys and the Internal Attorneys Forums, April 19, 2012
- Speaker, "Effective Use of Experts," Insurance Industry presentation, June 21, 2011
- Panelist, "Effective Strategies for Cost Reduction in E-Discovery," Organization of Legal Professionals Webinar, July 29, 2010
- ABA, Editorial Board of In-House Litigator, a quarterly publication of the ABA’s Committee on Corporate Counsel