Katten Partners Named Notable Women in Law in Chicago

CHICAGO, March 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Katten announced today that Corporate Global Chair Kimberly T. Smith and Advertising and Brand Litigation Co-Chair Kristin J. Achterhof were honored on the Crain's Chicago Business list of Notable Women in Law.

The Notable Women in Law distinction celebrates senior-level women attorneys in Chicago who are making an impact in their practices, firms and the legal community.

"Kim and Kristin exemplify what it means to be leaders in the legal profession," said Katten Chair Gil M. Soffer. "Their exceptional legal skills and client service are matched only by the impact they have had on their clients, colleagues and the broader Chicago community. This recognition is a fitting acknowledgment of their leadership and influence."

As Global Chair of Katten's nationally recognized Corporate department, Smith leads more than 100 attorneys across the United States, UK and China. She oversees complex mergers and acquisitions, private equity, capital markets, public finance and health care transactions. In her practice, Smith executes strategic mergers, acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations and joint ventures for private equity sponsors, family offices and other clients. She previously co-chaired Katten's Mergers and Acquisitions/Private Equity practice, considered one of the busiest middle-market private equity practices in the country.

Achterhof is the national co-chair of Katten's Advertising and Brand Litigation practice, and leads litigation teams in multimillion-dollar intellectual property and complex business disputes in federal and state courts across the country, and before the US Patent and Trademark Office Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. As a first-chair trial attorney and skilled mediator, she represents a broad range of clients in the scientific and business sectors, advising on general advertising and competition issues and protecting their trademarks, copyrights and other intellectual property assets.

They have been tapped for firm leadership roles, with Smith being on the executive committee and board of directors, and Achterhof serving as Katten's national hiring partner for more than a decade.

Both Smith and Achterhof are heavily involved in local community organizations. For more than 20 years, Smith has been involved with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Chicago, serving on the corporate board of directors and as a founding member of the organization's guild board. Achterhof sits on the Executive Board of Directors for Special Olympics Illinois and is lead counsel for Special Olympics International in protecting its marks and logos. She is also vice president of the board for Chicago-based Lawyers for the Creative Arts.

This honor follows the long list of industry accolades for both partners.

Smith has been recognized this past year by Crain's Chicago Business as among its Notable M&A Dealmakers, by the Chicago Business Journal as among its Women of Influence, and by Mergers & Acquisitions as among its Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A. Other career accolades include being named a Mergers & Acquisitions and Antitrust Trailblazer by the National Law Journal. She is ranked in the Chambers USA guide and selected to The Legal 500 United States Leading Partners list.

Achterhof was named a 2025 finalist for Litigator of the Year in Illinois by Managing Intellectual Property (Managing IP) and listed among its "Trade Mark Stars." Throughout her career, she has been honored as one of Managing IP's Top 250 Women in IP and recognized for her work by Chambers USA, The Best Lawyers in America, The Legal 500 United States as a Leading Partner, and Super Lawyers, with an appearance on the Top 50: Women Illinois Super Lawyers list.

Katten is a full-service law firm with nearly 650 attorneys in locations across the United States and in London and Shanghai. Clients seeking sophisticated, high-value legal services turn to Katten for counsel locally, nationally and internationally. The firm's core areas of practice include corporate, financial markets and funds, insolvency and restructuring, intellectual property, litigation, real estate, structured finance and securitization, transactional tax planning, private credit and private wealth. Katten represents public and private companies in numerous industries, as well as a number of government and nonprofit organizations and individuals. For more information, visit katten.com.

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SOURCE Katten