Daniel D. Birk is a Partner at Eimer Stahl LLP. He represents companies in complex civil, regulatory, and criminal litigation and advises boards of directors, senior executives, and in-house counsel on their most sensitive governance and litigation challenges. Dan is recognized for developing innovative legal strategies that reframe the issues driving major class actions, often leading to early dismissal or efficient resolution.
He writes and speaks frequently on antitrust, constitutional, and data privacy issues, as well as on the federal courts. His scholarship has appeared in the Harvard Law Review, the Yale Law Journal, and the Stanford Law Review, among other publications, and he contributes to the American Bar Association’s Antitrust Section. Between 2018 and 2020, he served as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Chicago-Kent College of Law, where he taught Administrative Law, Federal Courts, and Legal Writing.
Before attending law school, Dan taught high school English in Brooklyn, New York, and Vienna, Austria.
Experience
Case Experience
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Crystallex v. Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (D. Del. 17-mc-151): Representation of CITGO Petroleum Corporation in the court-ordered sale of the stock of its parent corporation to satisfy the debts of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and its state-owned oil company PDVSA and in related sovereign debt litigation and proceedings.
- Girard Street Inv. Holdings v. PDV Holding, Inc. (S.D.N.Y. 24-cv-4448): Representation of PDV Holding, Inc. in litigation by creditors of Venezuela and PDVSA seeking to pierce PDV Holding’s corporate veil and enforce billions of dollars of judgments against it and its property on an alter ego theory; obtained summary judgment in PDV Holding’s favor.
- In re Auto Body Shop Antitrust Litigation (M.D. Fla. MDL No. 2557): Representation of an insurance company in multidistrict antitrust litigation; Obtained dismissal of Sherman Act allegations for failure to state a claim.
- In re Dairy Farmers of America, Inc. Cheese Antitrust Litigation (N.D. Ill. MDL No. 2031): Representation of a multinational dairy company in a multidistrict class action alleging an antitrust and commodity manipulation conspiracy; the district court granted summary judgment on the merits of all claims. The court of appeals affirmed.
- United States v. CITGO Petroleum Corporation (5th Cir. No. 14-40128): Representation of CITGO Petroleum Corporation in its appeal of a Clean Air Act prosecution; court of appeals reversed and directed the district court to enter a judgment of acquittal.
- Edwards v. National Milk Producers Federation (N.D. Cal. No. 11-cv-04766); First Impressions v. National Milk Producers Federation (S.D. Ill. No. 13-cv-00454): Representation of Land O’Lakes, Inc. in federal and state law antitrust class actions alleging that dairy farmers and cooperatives engaged in a conspiracy to limit the supply of milk.
- In re Steel Antitrust Litigation (N.D. Ill. No. 08-cv-05214): Representation of a multinational steel company in federal and state law antitrust class actions alleging that steel manufacturers engaged in a conspiracy to reduce steel production. Obtained dismissal of indirect purchaser claims for lack of antitrust standing.
Recognitions
Honors & Recognitions
Illinois Super Lawyer in Antitrust Litigation - 2024, 2025
Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America - 2025
Lawdragon 500 Leading Global Antitrust & Competition Lawyers - 2025