Now in the Senate seat formerly held by Hillary Rodham Clinton, Kirsten E. Gillibrand plays down her work as a lawyer representing Philip Morris, saying she was a junior associate with little control over the cases she was handed and limited involvement in defending the tobacco maker.

But a review of thousands of documents and interviews with dozens of lawyers and industry experts indicate that Ms. Gillibrand was involved in some of the most sensitive matters related to the defense of the tobacco giant as it confronted pivotal legal battles beginning in the mid-1990s.
source:http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/gillibrands-past-as-defender-of-big-tobacco/