Maile Hitomi Solís

As a seasoned litigator with the added benefit of in-house experience, Maile takes pride in her in-depth understanding of her clients, their businesses, and their industries so she can anticipate their needs, their pain points, and the internal and external pressures they face. With over 20 years of experience litigating and counseling clients in all types of commercial litigation, Maile is meticulous, responsive, tough, and strategic.

Since joining BFKN, Maile has represented clients in all areas of commercial litigation across the country, primarily focusing on the fashion, luxury brands and cosmetics/beauty space on contract disputes, data privacy, and biometric information privacy act (“BIPA”), copyright and trademark infringement, consumer class actions, and employment and customer discrimination. In the past year alone, she has obtained victories for Louis Vuitton and Loro Piana in a massive antitrust case alleging impermissible no-poach agreements with retail partners; a victory for Christian Dior, Inc. in a BIPA putative class action on the grounds that the case fell under BIPA’s health care exemption; and helped successfully resolve the high-profile lawsuit filed by Cartier/Richemont against Tiffany & Co.

Maile has established herself as a leader at BFKN. In addition to co-chairing the Litigation Group, she is co-chair of the DEI Committee, former co-chair of the Pro Bono Committee, and a member of the Management Committee as well as the Associate Review, Business Development and Recruiting Committees. An active member of the BFKN Women’s Committee, Maile is also keenly focused on the recruiting, mentoring and promotion of female attorneys at the firm and in the Litigation Group.

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Prior to joining BFKN, Maile served as Assistant General Counsel of Litigation at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, where she managed and directed complex commercial litigation filed against the Company, prepared, and defended executives for deposition and trial, counseled the business on litigation and other risk, and recommended approaches to minimize such risk. In addition, Maile spent a substantial portion of her time advising the business on issues relating to cybersecurity, data privacy, and insurance coverage.

While a partner at the litigation boutique of Grippo & Elden, Maile counseled and represented clients in all aspects of the litigation process from discovery through resolution by favorable settlement, trial, alternative dispute resolution, and appeal, including defending the top management of Tribune Company and serving as liaison counsel for more than 100+ defendants in the fiduciary duty adversary action in the Tribune Bankruptcy.

Maile began her career as a complex commercial litigation associate at the law firm of Jenner & Block, where she represented policyholders in insurance coverage matters, litigated numerous commercial contracting disputes, defended a patent infringement claim, tried a preliminary injunction hearing to enforce a non-compete provision, and first-chaired multiple pro bono hearings.

Maile is passionate about pro bono and has devoted her career to protecting victims of persecution in a broad range of pro bono immigration matters. She has served as Member of the Leadership Council of the National Immigrant Justice Center since 2003 and has obtained grants of asylum, legal permanent residency, U-Visas, DACA, and VAWA approvals for dozens of persons fleeing persecution and violence from around the world. Most recently, Maile represented an Afghan U.S. Military interpreter and his family, working to rescue them from Afghanistan through humanitarian parole, and organized a BFKN clinic to help Afghan refugees file asylum applications, including personally representing an Afghan asylum seeker in his legal proceedings.

Admissions

• State of Illinois

Education

• University of Chicago Law School, J.D., 1998
• University of Iowa, B.A. in Political Science and Spanish, with honors and distinction, 1995

Languages

• Crain’s Notable Litigators & Trial Attorneys (2023)
• Crain’s Notable Gen X Leaders in Accounting, Consulting & Law (2021)
• The Best Lawyers in America^© (2020-2023)
  • Commercial Litigation (2021-2023)
  • Franchise Law (2020-2023)
  • Named Chicago Franchise Lawyer of the Year (2023)

• Member, Leadership Council, National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC)
• President, Parent Teacher Organization, Chicago International Charter School - Irving Park (2016-Present)
• Member, Booster Committee Board, Lane Tech Girls’ Swim + Dive (2019-2023)