Taft, one of the nation’s fastest-growing law firms, announced today the appointment of new leadership for its Chicago, Cleveland, Indianapolis, and Minneapolis offices, effective Jan.1, 2027.

These new office partners-in-charge include, Elizabeth Babbitt in Chicago, Lynn Rowe Larsen in Cleveland, Tracy Betz in Indianapolis, and Britt Gilbertson in Minneapolis.

“As we continue to grow and scale the firm across the country, our local market leaders and the autonomy entrusted to them to best serve our clients and communities has never been more important,” said Robert J. Hicks, Taft’s firmwide chairman and managing partner. “This is an exceptional group of dedicated partners, and we’re excited for them to lead several of our largest and fastest-growing offices as part of our national platform and build on the success of their predecessors.”

In Minneapolis, Gilbertson will succeed Taft’s firmwide chairman-elect and managing partner-elect, Justin Weinberg, and in Chicago, Babbitt will succeed Taft’s firmwide vice chairman-elect and vice managing partner-elect, Paul Jenson, as Weinberg and Jenson prepare for their new firmwide roles to become effective on January 1, 2028. Betz succeeds Brad Schwer in Indianapolis, and Larsen succeeds co-partners-in-charge, Jill Friedman Helfman and Adrian Thompson, in Cleveland.

Across these four markets, Taft has driven remarkable growth under these leaders, where revenues have increased between 85 – 340% and attorney headcounts have grown between 40 – 185%.

This has helped fuel Taft’s position as one of the country’s fastest-growing law firms, which saw the firm climb to No. 61 on the 2026 Am Law 100 in the latest report from The American Lawyer. Taft’s strategic growth has continued in 2026. Through October, Taft has added seven major lateral partner groups across 10 markets, including the launch of its New York office in April.

Today, Taft has more than 1,300 lawyers across 25 offices nationwide with revenues exceeding $1.1 billion.

About the New Office Partners-in-Charge

• Chicago – Elizabeth Babbitt: An accomplished business litigator at Taft, Babbitt focuses on leading large and small businesses, public utilities, and municipalities through complex litigation in both federal and state courts, as well as class action defense and employment litigation. She previously served on the firm’s Executive Committee and has been a member of Taft’s Associate Advancement & Recruiting Committee since 2019.
• Cleveland – Lynn Rowe Larsen: As firmwide co-chair of Taft’s Commercial Litigation practice and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee, Larsen represents businesses and media clients in commercial disputes, with an emphasis on First Amendment litigation.
• Indianapolis – Tracy Betz: A respected litigator with extensive trial experience and co-chair of Taft’s Gender Advancement Committee, which she founded, Betz represents companies and individuals in commercial litigation involving contract disputes, intellectual property, trade secrets, restrictive covenants and securities matters. Betz also is a member of Taft’s Executive Committee and its Partner Compensation Committee.
• Minneapolis – Britt Gilbertson: As leader of Taft’s Minneapolis Employment and Labor Relations practice, Gilbertson helps employers manage workplace risk through employment counseling, litigation, restrictive covenant matters and internal investigations. Gilbertson also serves on Taft’s Partner Compensation Committee.