Law360 has named WilmerHale a 2025 Massachusetts Powerhouse, a recognition that honors firms that have demonstrated impactful litigation and industry leadership in their respective states. The award profile features WilmerHale’s key work from the past year.  

Among the featured matters is a $175 million settlement WilmerHale helped negotiate between Lyft and the Massachusetts attorney general. 

Felicia Ellsworth, partner-in-charge of WilmerHale’s Boston office and vice chair of the firm’s Litigation/Controversy Department, was part of the team that represented Lyft. “We ended up reaching an agreement with the attorney general, and Uber reached one, as well, that I think all three parties thought was a really great outcome for the companies, for the state, for the drivers that use the platforms,” said Ellsworth. “So, that was an interesting arc of a case from the beginning to the end.” 

The firm also represented DraftKings in a dispute with former executive Michael Hermalyn, who sought to invalidate his non-competition agreement. In April 2024, a Boston federal judge issued an injunction blocking Hermalyn from performing similar work at rival Fanatics, and in September the First Circuit upheld the decision.  

“The decisions of the district court and the First Circuit in the Hermalyn case demonstrate that non-competition agreements remain relevant and enforceable in Massachusetts, and show that even a well-planned move to California does not provide a get-out-of-non-compete-free card for employees,” said Partner Drew Dulberg.  

Additionally, the profile acknowledges the strength of WilmerHale’s life sciences and biotech practice, particularly in its work with emergent companies. “There’s so much opportunity and growth in that area here, and so we’re really able to take advantage of that and work with some really exciting companies doing fascinating things,” Ellsworth told Law360. “That translates, as the companies become more mature, into merger and acquisition work or then litigation, disputes work, patent, intellectual property disputes. So, we really like to be able to represent a client almost from their inception through to whatever they become as a company.” 

Looking ahead, Ellsworth expects continued growth in the life sciences sector and is watching developments in artificial intelligence, where the firm is active in both litigation and advisory. She also pointed to WilmerHale’s longstanding work with renewable energy companies, noting that regulatory changes may shape the future of that sector. 

Finally, she emphasized WilmerHale’s strong presence in higher education, citing the firm’s representation of Harvard and MIT and noting that the field is "generating a lot of interesting legal questions right now." 

Read the firm’s feature profile in Law360.