London partner Deirdre Taylor and associate Molly Heslop are the authors of “What Can Be Learned From Adobe-Figma Merger Termination” [PDF] published by Law360 on January 15, 2024.
Lawdragon named 22 Gibson Dunn partners to its 2024 500 Leading Lawyers in America, a guide to the nation’s top lawyers: Gibson Dunn’s Chair and Managing Partner Barbara Becker, Dallas partners Trey Cox, Robert Little and Veronica Moyé, Houston partners Gregg Costa and Hillary Holmes, Los Angeles partners Theodore Boutrous, Theane Evangelis, Perlette Jura, Benyamin Ross and Debra Wong Yang, New York partners Mylan Denerstein, Stefan dePozsgay, Josh Krevitt, Jane Love, Saee Muzumdar and Orin Snyder, Palo Alto partners Ashlie Beringer and Michael Celio, and Washington, D.C. partners Miguel Estrada, Roscoe Jones and Joshua Lipshutz were recognized. The list was published on January 12, 2024. Additionally, Dallas partner Rob Walters was named among the 2024 Hall of Fame Honorees, which recognized lawyers who “have a long and impactful career of service to the legal profession” and whose “contributions have shaped the law and or the legal profession in significant ways.” The list was published on January 5, 2024.
Eight Gibson Dunn partners were featured by Who’s Who Legal in its Commercial Litigation 2023 guide. Washington, D.C. partner Theodore Olson was named a Global Elite Thought Leader. Hong Kong partner Brian Gilchrist, Los Angeles partner Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., Singapore partner Paul Tan, and Washington, D.C. partners Miguel Estrada, F. Joseph Warin and Stephen Weissman. London partner Patrick Doris was also recognized as a Future Leader. The list was published on November 24, 2023.
Acclaimed as a litigation powerhouse, Gibson Dunn’s litigators have a long record of outstanding successes. The lawyers in our Litigation Practice Group are not just litigators, they are first-rate trial lawyers. Each year, they try numerous cases to verdicts before juries, judges and arbitrators. Our lawyers have tried cases and argued appeals before the U.S. Supreme Court and state supreme courts in addition to federal and state courts across the United States involving almost every foreseeable area of controversy. They also handle disputes before a wide variety of nonjudicial forums, from federal and state agencies to international arbitrations.
Gibson Dunn represented Asia Partners, a Singapore-based growth equity investment firm, on the final close of its second fund, Asia Partners II LP, at US$474 million in commitments.
Asia Partners is focused on the intersection of three key themes: (i) the long-term growth potential of Southeast Asia, (ii) the rapid growth of innovative technology and technology-enabled businesses in the region and (iii) the scarcity of growth equity capital for these companies, particularly in the US$20 million to US$100 million investment size range.
The Gibson Dunn investment funds team was led by Singapore partner John Fadely and included Hong Kong of counsel Youjung Byon, Singapore associate Xuanyi Liu, Hong Kong associates Kathy Wen and Keira Su, and Singapore associate Zan Wong. Washington, D.C. partner Daniel Zygielbaum and New York associate Annie Lin advised on tax aspects.
Gigapower, LLC, a joint venture between AT&T and investment management company BlackRock, has been named the 2023 Americas Digital Deal of the Year by Project Finance International (PFI). Gigapower was formed to provide fiber broadband services across parts of the U.S. This was one of the largest fiber deals in the United States to date.
Gibson Dunn advised AT&T on the deal. Our team included Dallas partner Robert Little and associates Jonathan Sapp, Michael Andrews for M&A; and New York partner Tomer Pinkusiewicz and associates Maria Paula Baraya, and Ruben Almaraz for projects and infrastructure. New York partner Daniel Angel and associate Florina Yezril advised on IP aspects; New York partner Pamela Lawrence Endreny advised on tax aspects; and Dallas partner Krista Hanvey advised on benefits.
Secondaries Investor named the closing of the J-STAR Continuation Series Funds as one of its Top Five Secondaries Deals of 2023. Gibson Dunn represented funds advised by Neuberger Berman as lead investors of continuation series funds organized by J-STAR, a Japan-focused private equity sponsor. The continuation series funds acquired certain companies operating in the waste treatment and recycling industry from earlier vintage J-Star Series Funds. This transaction is understood to be the first-ever successful continuation fund transaction in Japan. Secondaries Investors announced the list on December 26, 2023. Gibson Dunn fielded a multi-disciplinary team from its Singapore, New York and Washington DC offices.
Gibson Dunn’s Investment Funds Practice Group specializes in the organization of private investment funds and the representation of fund management companies. Typically representing the general partner or manager, we also represent other key participants in private funds, including strategic, seed and other investors, funds of funds, gatekeepers and advisers, placement agents and co-investors.
Los Angeles partner James Zelenay and Denver associate Jeremy Ochsenbein are the authors of “Inside Higher Education’s New FCA Liability Challenges” [PDF] published by Law360 on December 21, 2023.
London and Paris partner Robert Spano, Washington, D.C. associate Emily Lamm and London associate Hayley Smith are the authors of “A Green Light for EU AI Act,” [PDF] published by the Daily Journal on December 19, 2023.
The Legal 500 has recognized Gibson Dunn in the 2024 edition of its Asia Pacific Green Guide, which recognizes law firms in the region advising clients on emerging opportunities within the green transition. Hong Kong partner Patricia Tan Openshaw and Singapore partners Elaine Chao, Brad Roach, and Saptak Santra were also recommended. The guide was published on November 30, 2023.
The Los Angeles Business Journal named Los Angeles partner Tiaunia Henry and Century City partner Steve Tsoneff to its “Thriving in their 40s: LA’s Leaders of Influence” list. The list was published on December 18, 2023.
Tiaunia Henry has a diverse practice that focuses primarily on complex business litigation, including antitrust, breach of contract and transnational cases. As an experienced litigator and trial attorney, she has represented clients in various industries including the oil and gas, medical device, media and entertainment, semiconductor, paper manufacturing and information technology consulting industries.
Steve Tsoneff has two decades of experience advising content producers, distributors, and financiers in a variety of media and entertainment transactions, with a focus on the production, licensing, and distribution of audiovisual content and various approaches to the financing of such content, including single-project, slate, corporate, and co-financing transactions.
Gibson Dunn was ranked in the 2024 edition of Global Competition Review’s GCR 100 – Global Elite, a list of the world’s top 25 antitrust practices. The firm was also ranked among the top 10 cartel practices, the top 10 non-cartel practices and the top 10 private litigation practices. Regionally, the firm was ranked as an Elite firm in the United States: California and the United States: Texas jurisdictions; an Outstanding firm in the United States: Washington, D.C. jurisdiction; and a Highly Recommended firm in the Brussels, China, United Kingdom and United States: New York jurisdictions. The GCR 100 was published on December 15, 2023.
Gibson Dunn’s Antitrust and Competition Practice Group handles leading-edge competition matters on U.S. and international competition issues, including government review of mergers and acquisitions, cartel investigations and the defense of cartel prosecutions, class action treble damage litigation, private antitrust litigation in the United States and Europe, and defense of private sector clients in antitrust actions before government authorities. With over 150 lawyers located throughout the United States, Europe and Asia, our antitrust team includes former high-ranking officials from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the U.S. Solicitor General’s Office and the European Commission, as well as Fellows of the American College of Trial Lawyers.
Global Restructuring Review listed Gibson Dunn among the GRR 100 2023, the “annual guide to the world’s leading law firms for cross-border restructurings and insolvencies.” The publication noted that the firm has “long been considered a leading name in US bankruptcy litigation and out-of-court restructurings” and has earned a reputation for cross-border restructuring work. The profile was published on December 14, 2023.
Gibson Dunn’s Business Restructuring and Reorganization Practice Group advises companies in financial distress, their creditors and investors, and parties interested in acquiring assets from companies in distress. We also guide hedge funds, private equity firms and financial institutions investing in distressed debt and/or equity through the restructuring and bankruptcy process.
Seven Gibson Dunn partners were recognized in the Who’s Who Legal 2024 Private Funds guide, including: Hong Kong partner Albert Cho; Los Angeles partner Jennifer Bellah Maguire; New York partners Shukie Grossman, Roger Singer and Edward Sopher; Singapore partner John Fadely; and Washington, D.C. partner C. William Thomas Jr. The guide was published in November 2023.
The Investment Funds Practice Group specializes in the organization of private investment funds and the representation of fund management companies. We represent key participants in private funds, including the general partner or manager; strategic, seed and other investors; funds of funds; gatekeepers and advisers; placement agents; and co-investors. The Investment Funds group’s deep experience and broad market knowledge cover virtually all types of private investment funds and managed accounts across a wide range of formats and jurisdictions, including buyout and other private equity, mezzanine and credit, real estate, infrastructure, hedge, energy/oil & gas, funds of funds, secondary funds, co-investment, distressed investments and specialty strategy.
Century City partner Steve Tsoneff and Los Angeles partners Sarah Graham, Kevin Masuda and Benyamin Ross were named to Variety’s 2023 Dealmakers Impact Report, honoring Hollywood’s leading dealmakers who “kept the industry on course in a turbulent year.” The list was published on December 14, 2023.
Sarah Graham regularly represents private equity funds, strategic and financial investors, media and entertainment companies, technology companies, gaming companies, and other clients in various types of business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, investments and restructurings. Ms. Graham is a member of the following Gibson Dunn practice groups: Mergers and Acquisitions, Private Equity, Media, Entertainment and Technology, Betting and Gaming, and Sports Law.
Kevin Masuda is Co-Chair of the firm’s Media, Entertainment and Technology Practice Group. He regularly represents content companies including motion picture studios and music companies, technology companies, gaming companies, private equity funds, sports and talent agencies, and other clients in various types of business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, investments, restructurings, public and private securities offerings, licensing agreements, sponsorships, and other strategic agreements.
Benyamin Ross is Co-Chair of the firm’s Media, Entertainment & Technology Practice Group. He advises companies, private equity and venture capital firms, and high net-worth individuals in mergers and acquisitions, equity investments, joint ventures, restructuring transactions and general commercial agreements. He works with clients in a broad array of industries, and has extensive experience working with media, entertainment and technology companies.
Steve Tsoneff has two decades of experience advising content producers, distributors, and financiers in a variety of media and entertainment transactions, with a focus on the production, licensing, and distribution of audiovisual content and various approaches to the financing of such content, including single-project, slate, corporate, and co-financing transactions.
Gibson Dunn earned 13 firm rankings and 15 individual rankings in the 2024 edition of Chambers Asia-Pacific. The firm was recognized in the Asia-Pacific Region-wide categories for Corporate/M&A, Corporate/M&A: Private Equity, Energy & Natural Resources, Investment Funds: Private Equity, and Technology, Media, Telecoms (TMT), as well as in the following International Firms categories: India Corporate/M&A; Indonesia Corporate & Finance; Philippines Projects, Infrastructure & Energy; Singapore Banking & Finance; Singapore Corporate/M&A; Singapore Energy & Natural Resources; Singapore Investment Funds: International; and Singapore Restructuring/Insolvency: International.
The following lawyers were ranked individually in their respective categories:
- Grace Chong – Singapore Banking & Finance: Regulatory, and Singapore Technology, Media, Telecoms
- John Fadely – Singapore Investment Funds
- Jai Pathak – India Corporate/M&A, and Singapore Corporate/M&A
- Brad Roach – Indonesia Projects & Energy, Singapore Energy & Natural Resources, and Singapore Energy & Natural Resources: Oil & Gas
- Ben Shorten – Vietnam Projects, Infrastructure & Energy
- Paul Tan – Singapore Dispute Resolution: Arbitration
- Patricia Tan Openshaw – Philippines Projects, Infrastructure & Energy
- Karthik Ashwin Thiagarajan – India Corporate/M&A
- Jamie Thomas – Indonesia Banking & Finance, and Singapore Banking & Finance
The rankings were published on December 14, 2023.
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is pleased to announce the appointment of Robert Spano, partner with the firm’s Paris and London offices, as Co-Chair of its Artificial Intelligence Practice Group. Spano will serve as Co-Chair of the group alongside fellow Co-Chairs Cassandra Gaedt-Sheckter and Vivek Mohan in the Palo Alto office, and Eric Vandevelde in the Los Angeles office.
“Robert has unique experience in cutting-edge regulatory and litigation matters in the field of EU law and digital rights, and we are thrilled to have him help us co-lead Gibson Dunn’s thriving Artificial Intelligence practice,” said Vivek Mohan, Co-Chair of the Gibson Dunn’s Artificial Intelligence Practice. “As the field of artificial intelligence continues to develop at a blistering pace, we are committed to providing the best level of service possible for our clients who do business across borders, and Robert’s appointment is testament to that.”
“Given the international reach of AI-related legal issues and importance of global regulation, having a practice leader in the European market has been a top priority for us.” said Cassandra Gaedt-Sheckter, Co-Chair of Gibson Dunn’s Artificial Intelligence Practice. “Robert has deep experience on the fast-evolving intersection between the EU’s fundamental rights laws and AI regulation to best serve our international client base with proactive, practical strategies to navigate these complex issues.”
“The European Union has been at the forefront of AI regulation and has just adopted a provisional agreement on a new AI Act. It is now clear that the AI Act will require businesses to perform a fundamental rights impact assessment before a high risk AI system is placed on the market. This is a paradigm shift in the law at European level, and we are very well placed to offer our clients cutting-edge solutions in this space,” said Spano. “I am excited to become one of the leaders of Gibson Dunn’s AI practice group and use my background in European Union law, fundamental rights and tech policy to advise our clients in this fast-changing and global environment of AI regulations.”
Robert joined Gibson Dunn in January 2023 and is partner in the London and Paris offices, where he practices in the field of international dispute resolution and advises on regulatory matters. He is a member of the firm’s Transnational Litigation, International Arbitration, Environment, Social and Governance (ESG), Privacy, Cybersecurity and Data Innovation, Technology Regulatory and Litigation, Artificial Intelligence, and Public Policy Practice Groups.
An expert in public international law and EU law, Robert is the former president of the European Court of Human Rights and he sits on the Panel of Arbitrators and Conciliators of the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).
About the Artificial Intelligence Practice Group
Gibson Dunn’s Artificial Intelligence Practice is made up of attorneys from across the firm, including in the Privacy, Cybersecurity and Data Innovation, Labor & Employment, and Technology Regulatory practices to engage with companies across sectors in counseling, regulatory response, litigation, and transactional matters. The AI Practice counsels companies at the cutting edge of developing AI technologies, as well as with companies looking to understand and respond to dynamic legal framework as they deploy these tools.
Our AI Practice works with our clients in all industries, including high tech, healthcare, finance, consumer goods, and industrial. Whether the concern is forward looking legal exposure, response to regulatory inquiries, acquisition or transfer of data and intellectual property rights, data privacy and security, AI policy and ethics, or litigation, our Gibson Dunn attorneys are at the forefront of handling these issues.
San Francisco partner Kristin Linsley and New York associate Lee Crain are the authors of “The Founders’ Broad Views of Press Freedom in Online-Speech Cases Should Be Upheld” [PDF] published by the Daily Journal on December 6, 2023.
On December 7, 2023, Gibson Dunn filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court in two cases, NetChoice, LLC v. Paxton and Moody v. NetChoice, LLC, with significant First Amendment implications.
The cases arise out of Florida and Texas laws that, in effect, tell certain websites and apps—such as Facebook, YouTube, and X—what material they have to allow on their services. A fundamental question presented by the cases is whether legislatures can, consistent with the First Amendment, curtail editorial discretion that way. Our brief on behalf of a group of prominent historians explains that the answer to that question is no. Printers in the 18th century “would select which material to publish (and which not to publish), based on a variety of motivations” without the government infringing on that exercise of editorial discretion, and that freedom of editorial discretion was “enshrined . . . in the First Amendment’s Press Clause.” In other words, the Founders recognized that freedom of the press necessarily encompasses editorial discretion.
The Gibson Dunn team included partners Ted Boutrous and Kristin Linsley, partner-elect Lee R. Crain, and associates Jason Bressler, Chase Weidner, Sasha Dudding and Iason Togias.
Gibson Dunn represented PT Asianet Media Teknologi (Asianet), a Lightstorm Group entity, in the joint acquisition by Asianet and Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison of PT MNC Kabel Mediacom, a leading fiber-based network services provider in Indonesia.
Following this transformational acquisition for Asianet, it will have a network of more than 15,000 kilometers of fiber and more than 1.5 million home passes across ten key cities in Indonesia, making it one of the largest carrier-neutral FTTH operators in the country.
The Gibson Dunn corporate team was led by partner Saptak Santra and included of counsel Marcus Tan and associates Kai Wen Chua and Amanda Ng in Singapore; partner Patricia Tan Openshaw in Hong Kong; and partner Rob Dixon and of counsel Natalie Lamb in London. Partners Jamie Thomas and Patricia Tan Openshaw led the financing team, which included associate John Cheah and attorney Chee Jun Ann.
The Hill named Washington, D.C. partners Michael Bopp and Roscoe Jones Jr. among its Top Lobbyists 2023 list, which honors the top corporate lobbyists, hired guns, association leaders and grassroots activists for the “results they’ve delivered for their clients, companies, trade associations and advocacy groups in the nation’s capital.” The list was published on December 6, 2023.
Michael Bopp is Co-Chair of the firm’s Public Policy Practice Group and Chair of the Congressional Investigations Group. He brings his extensive government and private-sector experience to help clients navigate through the most difficult crises, often involving investigations as well as public policy and media challenges. His practice focuses on congressional investigations, internal corporate investigations, and other government investigations. He also advises clients on public policy and regulatory consulting in a variety of fields and managing and responding to major crises involving multiple government agencies and branches.
Roscoe Jones Jr. is Co-Chair of the firm’s Public Policy Practice Group. He has a decade of senior-level Capitol Hill experience advising three U.S. Senators and a Member of Congress as chief of staff, legislative director, senior counsel and advising an Assistant Attorney General in the Justice Department. Leveraging that experience, he promotes and protects clients’ interests before the U.S. Congress and the Administration, providing services including lobbying, strategic counseling, coalition building, political intelligence collection, legislative drafting, and messaging development.