Husband and wife litigators Tom Clare and Libby Locke—founders of Kirkland & Ellis spin-off boutique Clare Locke—led a team in winning a $26 million defamation verdict in the Eastern District of North Carolina against Puma Biotechnology and its CEO on Friday.

The pair along with Clare Locke partner Megan Meier sued on behalf of Dr. Fred Eshelman, who founded Pharmaceutical Product Development, a 21,000-employee contract research organization that provides expertise in managing clinical trials.