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Richard J. Birns

Richard
Birns

Partner

CONTACT INFO

rbirns@gibsondunn.com

TEL:+1 212.351.4032

FAX:+1 212.716.0830

New York

200 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10166-0193 USA

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PRACTICE

Sports Law Mergers and Acquisitions Private Equity Shareholder Activism

BIOGRAPHY

Richard J. Birns is a partner in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.  He is Co-Chair of the Sports Law Practice Group and a member of the Mergers and Acquisitions and Private Equity Practice Groups.

Mr. Birns focuses his practice on U.S. and cross-border mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures and financings for both corporations and leading private equity firms.  He also advises private investment funds on a variety of corporate issues, including securities law and shareholder activism matters.  Mr. Birns has extensive experience advising clients on significant transactional matters across a number of practice areas and industry sectors, with significant depth in media, sports and entertainment.

Mr. Birns regularly serves as a personal advisor to owners of sports franchises and sports industry leaders on “bet the company” matters.

In 2019, Law360 named Mr. Birns one of five “MVPs” in Private Equity.  He is also recognized as a leading sports lawyer by The International Financial Law Review.

Mr. Birns graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in History from Georgetown University, where he played varsity soccer, and earned his Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar and a member of the Columbia Law Review.  From 1997 to 1998, he clerked for Judge Milton Pollack of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Mr. Birns is Co-Chair of the U.S. Soccer Foundation’s New York Leadership Council.

EDUCATION

Columbia University - 1997 Juris Doctor

Georgetown University - 1994 Bachelor of Arts

ADMISSIONS

New York Bar

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Client Alert - October 9, 2020 | M&A Report – 2020 Mid-Year Activism Update
Client Alert - May 11, 2020 | M&A Report – 2019 Year-End Activism Update
Client Alert - April 8, 2020 | A World Without Sports – What Happens Now?
Client Alert - April 1, 2020 | COVID-19 Resources for Non-Profits and Small Businesses (NJ, NY & CT)
Firm News - November 13, 2019 | Law360 Names Nine Gibson Dunn Partners as 2019 MVPs
Client Alert - October 7, 2019 | M&A Report – 2019 Mid-Year Activism Update
Firm News - June 21, 2019 | Gibson Dunn Transactions Named Private Equity Deal of the Year and Consumer, Retail, Food & Beverage Deal of the Year by The Deal
Client Alert - March 25, 2019 | M&A Report – 2018 Year-End Activism Update
Client Alert - October 3, 2018 | M&A Report – 2018 Mid-Year Activism Update
Client Alert - January 29, 2018 | M&A Report – 2017 Year-End Activism Update
Client Alert - August 15, 2017 | M&A Report: 2017 Mid-Year Activism Update
Client Alert - January 9, 2017 | M&A Report – 2016 Year-End Activism Update
Article - August 29, 2016 | How a New Defensive Line Can Protect Sports Properties
Article - August 17, 2016 | Fiduciary Duties, Reverse Endorsements and Fundraising in ‘Jeter’
Client Alert - August 16, 2016 | M&A Report – 2016 Mid-Year Activism Update
Client Alert - February 2, 2016 | M&A Report: 2015 Year-End Activism Update
Client Alert - August 10, 2015 | M&A Report – 2015 Mid-Year Activism Update
Client Alert - January 30, 2015 | M&A Report – 2014 Activism Update
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