Marguerite Willis

Marguerite S. Willis practices in complex commercial litigation, with concentration in the antitrust field. She also has substantial experience in class action practice and in litigating matters involving claims of unfair trade practices, false advertising, and vicarious corporate liability.  She practices in both state and federal courts throughout the United States.

Ms. Willis graduated from the University of Michigan, with high distinction, and the Stetson University College of Law, cum laude.

Ms. Willis is a frequent lecturer on topics including antitrust, class action practice, and law firm marketing. She lives with her husband, former Mayor Frank E. Willis, in Florence, South Carolina. 

• Ms. Willis joined Nexsen Pruet on May 1, 2000. Prior to that time, she was a partner in the law firm of Howrey, LLP.
• South Carolina Women Lawyers Association – Board of Directors – 2006-Present
• University of South Carolina School of Law Partnership Board
• Womens Bar Association of the District of Columbia - Past President
• The Florida Bar - Former Out-of-State Governor
• Columbia College Board of Trustees, 2005-Present
• Eastern Carolina Community Foundation - Board of Directors – 2007-Present
• Former Director of South Carolina Chamber of Commerce
• Former law clerk for the Honorable Paul H. Roney, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the Honorable Peter T. Fay, United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida

Selected Case Experience

• Ms. Willis began her legal career working on the massive antitrust cases known collectively as “The Uranium Cartel Litigation.”  She litigated private antitrust cases in Illinois, New Mexico and North Carolina and worked as well on the related federal grand jury investigation in the District of Columbia.  These cases all alleged horizontal price-fixing under Section 1 of the Sherman Act.
• Ms. Willis defended numerous witnesses in federal grand jury proceedings investigating alleged horizontal price fixing under Section 1 of the Sherman Act in Puerto Rico.  Despite the recommendation of staff counsel, the Department of Justice did not seek an indictment in this case.
• Dunlop Sports Co. v. Wilson Sporting Goods Co.  In the early to mid-1980s, Ms. Willis defended a major antitrust case in federal court in Chicago, Illinois.  This case, which alleged a violation of Section 2 of the Sherman Act by attempting to monopolize through predatory pricing, involved the production of millions of documents and the depositions of over 100 individuals, both in the United States and abroad. 
• Mead Data Central v. West Publishing Company.  Ms. Willis prosecuted a major antitrust case alleging violations of Section 2 of the Sherman Act (monopolization, attempted monopolization through control of an essential facility), as well as violations of the Robinson-Patman Act.  This case was settled on a basis favorable to the client.
• 1990-1995.  Ms. Willis served as national counsel for a Fortune 100 company in its asbestos property damage litigation.  In this capacity, Ms. Willis coordinated the defense of four national class actions, as well as numerous other lawsuits across the country. 
• 1994-2001.  Ms. Willis served as national counsel for a major pharmaceutical company in over 4,000 cases, including federal and state class actions, involving claims of price-fixing and price discrimination under federal and state law.  These cases, which involve both retail drug stores and consumers as plaintiffs, are currently pending in federal court in Chicago, Illinois, where they are consolidated as MDL 997, In re Brand Name Prescription Drugs Antitrust Litigation, and in numerous states, including Alabama, California, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Florida, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Washington, and Wisconsin.
• 1998-2001.  Ms. Willis served as national counsel for a billboard company in a case alleging monopolization under Section 2 of the Sherman Act.  Ms. Willis obtained summary judgment, which was affirmed on appeal as RSA Media, Inc. v. AK Media Group, Inc., 260 F.3d 10 (1st Cir. 2001).
• 1999-2000.  Ms. Willis served as national counsel for a major options exchange in governmental investigations and parallel federal class action lawsuits involving claims of violations of the antitrust and securities laws.  The federal lawsuits were consolidated for pretrial proceedings in New York as In re Stock Exchanges Options Trading Antitrust Litigation.
• 2000-2002.  Ms. Willis served as lead counsel for Monsanto Company in two major antitrust lawsuits filed in South Carolina and Delaware federal courts by E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Company.
• Since joining Nexsen Pruet in the spring of 2000, Ms. Willis also has represented defendants in several state court class action lawsuits, including involving alleged overcharges for medical records by hospitals, and another involving alleged use of defective replacement parts by an automobile property damage insurance company.  In the medical records case, which was an antitrust action, Ms. Willis successfully obtained dismissal of the case.  In the replacement parts case, Ms. Willis obtained summary judgment for her client.
• Ms. Willis served as lead counsel in an antitrust price-fixing class action against International Paper, the world’s largest forest products and paper company.  The case was settled for in excess of $15 million.
• Ms. Willis prosecuted multiple opt-out antitrust actions in MDL 1516 (In re Polyester Staple Fiber Antitrust Litigation) on behalf of twenty-one (21) U.S. textile companies for damages caused by price-fixing and customer allocation of polyester staple fiber.  These cases were successfully resolved against five groups with clients recovering in excess of $80 million.
• Ms. Willis led the defense of Southeastern Freight Lines in an antitrust class action for alleged price fixing of fuel surcharges in MDL 1895 (In re LTL Shipping Services Antitrust Litigation).  The case was dismissed.
• Ms. Willis was lead attorney for the plaintiffs in a four-week trial against ExxonMobil in 2008 in state court in Darlington, SC.  The jury returned a verdict of $3 million, including punitive damages, against ExxonMobil. 

• Marguerite Willis to Address Fellows of the Litigation Counsel of America
  Marguerite Willis, member of Nexsen Pruet, LLC in Columbia, South Carolina, has been selected to speak at the 2010 Spring Conference and Induction of Fellows for the Litigation Counsel of America (LCA) on May 6-7 in Monterey, California.
• Women & Money - "All Things Being Equal, Money is Power"
  Nexsen Pruet's Marguerite Willis is interviewed on WLTX's "Newsmakers" about The Alliance for Women, money, power and pay disparity.
• "Price-fixing conspiracy case ended in top settlement"
  The Article of the Week in the January 26th edition of North Carolina Lawyers Weekly about a Nexsen Pruet case. The article was entitled "Price-fixing conspiracy case ended in top settlement."
• SC Lawyers Weekly Reports on Nexsen Pruet Verdict
  SC Lawyers Weekly Reports on Nexsen Pruet Verdict - "After nearly four years of legal wrangling, a family-owned company in Darlington County has emerged with a $3 million verdict against global oil giant ExxonMobil."
• News Reports about Nexsen Pruet's verdict against Exxon Mobil
  The Columbia Regional Business Report,SC Biz News, WMBF News.com and SC Now.com report on Nexsen Pruet's verdict against Exxon Mobil.
• Nexsen Pruet Wins $3 Million Verdict Against Exxon Mobil
  A legal team headed by Nexsen Pruet’s Marguerite Willis secured a $3 million verdict, including punitive damages, against Exxon Mobil Corporation on behalf of a Darlington company that claimed the global oil giant had illegally conspired to drive it out of the Mobil lubricants business and had wrongfully terminated its distributorship.
• Nexsen Pruet Secures $107 Million Settlement
  Charlotte, N.C. - Nexsen Pruet’s Antitrust Practice Group recently settled federal claims against Hoechst Celanese Corporation and its affiliated entities for $107 million.
• Marguerite Willis Re-Elected to SCWLA Board of Directors
• Marguerite Willis named one of five new Columbia College Board of Trustees members
  Columbia College has announced the appointment of five new members to its 27-member Board of Trustees, including Nexsen Pruet Member Marguerite S. Willis.
• 2nd Nexsen Pruet Attorney Elected to SC Chamber Board
  The South Carolina Chamber of Commerce elected officers and for 2002-2003. Nexsen Pruet attorneys Marguerite Wills and Tommy Lavender to serve.
• Nexsen Pruet Antitrust Team Tackling International Paper Case
  Timber landowners from NC & SC filed a class action lawsuit in federal court against International Paper & one of its suppliers, charging widespread price fixing of pulpwood timber.
• Nexsen Pruet assisting Outdoor Advertising Companies in Critical Issue
  Outdoor Advertising Companies Sue City of Myrtle Beach,
  Charge City Violating Free Speech
  

• Marion Crane, Benjamin Porter, and Robert Taylor, Plaintiffs, v. International Paper Company and CWC of North Carolina, Inc., Defendants
  Timber landowners from North and South Carolina obtained certification of a class action lawsuit against International Paper (IP) and one of its suppliers, charging widespread price fixing of pulpwood timber in violation of the federal antitrust laws. The action was settled with significant recoveries for class members.
• "Antitrust Damages Under South Carolina Antitrust Statute"
• “Antitrust Damages Under South Carolina Law”

• SC Bar CLE:  Beyond the Elements II:  South Carolina Damages from A to Z, September 25, 2009, “Antitrust Damages Under South Carolina Law”
• The Alliance for Women:  Food for Thought Series, March 3, 2009, “What’s in Your Pocketbook?”
• Tribute to Women and Industry, Floyd Conference Center, Florence, SC, September 14, 2009
• South Carolina Women Lawyers Association, August 6, 2009
• Releasing Your Leadership Potential, Update, Furman University, Greenville, SC, April 3, 2006
• Class Action Practice–2006, February 2, 2006
• Everything You Wanted to Know about Antitrust Laws and Managed Care, Part II, October 6, 2005
• Releasing Your Leadership Potential, Furman University, Greenville, SC, April 11, 2005
• Nelson Symposium, Antitrust and The Outdoor Advertising Industry, Gainesville, FL, February 11, 2005
• Everything You Wanted to Know about Antitrust Laws and Managed Care, October 1, 2004
• South Carolina Bar CLE: Beyond the Elements:  South Carolina Damages from A to Z, May 21, 2004
• Antitrust Update, In-House Counsel Ethics Seminar, Columbia, SC, October 25, 2002
• A “Do It Yourself” Guide to Class Action Practice, ABA Forum on the Construction Industry / 2002 Annual Meeting, Minneapolis, MN, October 4-5, 2002
• State Law Preemption: A Case Study... In Progress, Outdoor Advertising Association of America, Inc., 2002 Legal Seminar, Washington, DC, September 23, 2002
• Bid-Rigging . . . A “Refresher” Course, Carolinas Associated General Contractors Highway – Heavy Division, Annual Meeting, Hilton Head, SC, June 20-23, 2002 

• Association of Corporate Counsel
• Marguerite Willis to Address Fellows of the Litigation Counsel of America
• "What’s in Your Pocketbook?" seminar