For nearly a century, Steptoe & Johnson's General Litigation group has built a reputation in trial and appellate courts making the firm's name synonymous with quality legal representation and counseling. Steptoe & Johnson lawyers have become known for their willingness to take cases to trial, a reputation valuable even in those cases which eventually settle.

A sampling of the group’s successes illustrates the firm's leadership in shaping the law:

• A summary judgment, ordered by the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, in a decision establishing a seminal standard for liability in jail suicide cases.
• Successful administration and resolution of 51 death claims resulting from what, at the time, was the single largest industrial accident in the history of OSHA.
• A West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals dismissal of the State Department of Highways in a case immunizing the department from all suits save for those in which a plaintiff can prove the state was engaged in on-going maintenance.
• The seminal decision, leading to the dismissal of the defendant, by which the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals narrowly interpreted a merchant's liability for the detention of a suspected shoplifter.
• Reversal of a jury verdict against a police officer in a case setting the standard by which officers are judged on the manner in which they pursue fleeing law violators.

The litigation group brings its aggressive approach to a diverse range of cases, including product liability, governmental liability, medical malpractice, insurance coverage and bad faith, automobile liability and toxic torts collaboratively with attorneys in the Labor and Employment and Business departments, lawyers defend clients from claims of discrimination, harassment and wrongful discharge, and litigate issues arising in commercial and transactional contexts.

Working together with clients, lawyers seek a cost-effective, early resolution of every case, bearing in mind both the high cost of litigation and the risk of encouraging additional lawsuits by settling cases that should be tried. By doing so, Steptoe & Johnson has gained a reputation for providing clients with common sense advice. This reputation, coupled with a willingness to take cases to trial, allows the firm to provide clients with exemplary service.