Cravath’s New York Office Moves to Two Manhattan West
Accolades
August 30, 2024
On August 29, 2024, the New York Law Journal published a Q&A with Cravath partners Gary A. Bornstein and Kevin J. Orsini in connection with the Firm’s recognition as a 2024 Litigation Department of the Year finalist. In the Q&A, Gary and Kevin discussed the Firm’s work for clients in the last year, including representing Epic Games in its antitrust litigation challenging core aspects of Google’s app store policies; a string of successes for Robinhood in its “meme stock” litigation; and a victory for PG&E before the California Supreme Court related to power shutoffs to prevent wildfires. Gary and Kevin also highlighted the Firm’s “paramount focus on our clients’ business needs and goals” to deliver “both a positive result in the litigation at hand as well as strategic impact to advance the clients’ long‑term business goals.”
Deals & Cases
August 29, 2024
Cravath represented the underwriters in connection with the $500 million senior notes offering of Essential Utilities, Inc., a holding company for regulated utilities providing water, wastewater and natural gas distribution services to an estimated five million people in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, Illinois, North Carolina, New Jersey, Kentucky, West Virginia, Indiana and Virginia. Essential Utilities, Inc. was formerly known as Aqua America, Inc. The transaction closed on August 15, 2024.
Deals & Cases
August 28, 2024
On August 23, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that 19 children in a longstanding lawsuit could proceed as a class representing all children in the New York City foster care system, an important milestone for plaintiffs represented by Cravath on a pro bono basis alongside co‑counsel at A Better Childhood (“ABC”). Judge Kimba Wood issued the decision after the Second Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a prior ruling denying class certification in September 2023.
Activities & Publications
August 28, 2024
On August 28, 2024, Cravath partner David J. Kappos participated in the 2024 Global Forum on Intellectual Property, which was hosted by the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore from August 27‑28, 2024, in Singapore. Dave spoke on a panel entitled “The Crossroads of IP: Man or Machine in the Age of AI?,” which reviewed the multifaceted issues confronting the IP system in the age of artificial intelligence, including whether it is tenable for the IP system to continue supporting AI innovation while holding on to the tenet that only human beings can be inventors, designers, authors and creators.
Activities & Publications
August 28, 2024
On August 26, 2024, Cravath partner Helam Gebremariam was featured as a 2024 “Rising Star” by the New York Law Journal. The accompanying profile published by NYLJ highlights Helam’s representation of clients in complex litigation cases, including shareholder derivative, mergers and acquisitions, general commercial, securities and antitrust matters, as well as her pro bono practice work, including on right to counsel and access to justice issues. The feature also highlights Helam’s role as a partner liaison to the Firm’s African American/Black Affinity Group and her roles on the boards of Immigrant Justice Corps, the Vera Institute of Justice, and the NYU School of Law Board of Trustees. Helam also shared advice for young lawyers, emphasizing her belief that “authenticity is critical to forging meaningful connections in all parts of your life.”
Deals & Cases
August 26, 2024
Cravath represented Crown Castle Inc. in connection with its $1.25 billion registered senior notes offering. Crown Castle Inc. is an owner, operator and lessor of shared wireless infrastructure. The transaction closed on August 12, 2024.
Activities & Publications
August 23, 2024
On August 23, 2024, Cravath partner Jelena McWilliams delivered the keynote address at the SW Graduate School of Banking’s 158th Assembly for Bank Directors, which was held from August 22‑25, 2024, in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. The assembly gathered bank directors and senior management from across the country to address the latest issues affecting the industry.
Deals & Cases
August 23, 2024
Cravath represented the underwriters in connection with the $850 million registered senior notes offering of The Sherwin‑Williams Company, a global leader in the manufacture, development, distribution and sale of paint, coatings and related products to professional, industrial, commercial and retail customers. The transaction closed on August 9, 2024.
Deals & Cases
August 22, 2024
Cravath represented QUALCOMM Incorporated in connection with its $4 billion revolving credit. QUALCOMM Incorporated is a global leader in the development and commercialization of foundational technologies for the wireless industry. The transaction closed on August 8, 2024.
Activities & Publications
August 22, 2024
On August 21, 2024, Cravath prepared a memo for its clients entitled “Texas Federal Court Invalidates FTC’s Noncompete Ban Nationwide.” The memo examines the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas’s recent opinion and order setting aside the Federal Trade Commission’s new final rule banning all noncompete agreements with employees and preventing its implementation nationwide.
Deals & Cases
August 21, 2024
Cravath represented the administrative agent, joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners in connection with $3.1 billion of credit facilities made available to Aptiv PLC and certain of its subsidiaries. Aptiv PLC is a leading global technology and mobility architecture company primarily serving the automotive sector. The facilities consisted of a $2.5 billion bridge credit facility, used to partially finance the accelerated share repurchase of up to $3.0 billion of Aptiv PLC’s ordinary shares, and a $600 million term loan facility. The transactions closed on August 1, 2024, and August 19, 2024.
Accolades
August 16, 2024
On August 15, 2024, Cravath partners Gary A. Bornstein and D. Scott Bennett were named 2025 “Lawyers of the Year” for New York City in their respective practice areas by The Best Lawyers in America. Gary was recognized for Mergers and Acquisitions Litigation, and Scott was recognized for Corporate Law. The awards honor individuals with the highest overall peer feedback for a practice area and within a geographic market and whose work “continues to shape the future of the legal industry.”
Accolades
August 15, 2024
Cravath partners Christine A. Varney, Karin A. DeMasi, Rachel G. Skaistis and Lauren A. Moskowitz were recognized by Benchmark Litigation in the 2024 edition of the “Top 250 Women in Litigation,” which honors “the most distinguished women in the world of litigation.” Inclusion in the list is based on a review of individual litigators’ professional activities, client feedback surveys and one‑on‑one interviews. This is the eleventh consecutive year in which Christine has been selected for inclusion in the publication. Karin and Rachel are recognized for the seventh year, and Lauren is recognized for the fourth year.
Activities & Publications
August 15, 2024
On August 14, 2024, Cravath partner Korey Fevzi was named to Financial News’ inaugural “Most Influential in European Finance” list, which recognizes “innovators shaping the industry.” The feature recognized Korey’s role in the establishment of Cravath’s “English law offering” and on advising “investment banks, private credit funds and on leveraged finance acquisitions.” The publication also highlighted his representation of the lead arrangers in connection with the senior financing package for the €1.1bn acquisition of Forno d’Asolo by Sammontana and Investindustrial and his representation of the debt providers in the financing for the public‑to‑private takeover of Applus+ by TDR Capital and I Squared Capital.
Deals & Cases
August 14, 2024
On August 14, 2024, Mars, Incorporated, a family-owned, global leader in pet care, snacking and food, announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Kellanova, a leading company in the manufacture and marketing of snacks and convenience foods, in a $35.9 billion all cash transaction, including assumed net leverage. Cravath is representing the lead arrangers and bookrunners of committed debt financing in connection with the transaction.
Activities & Publications
August 13, 2024
Cravath partner Noah Joshua Phillips was featured on the August 13, 2024 episode of the “Advisory Opinions” podcast, which focuses on “the law, culture, and why it matters”. During the conversation, Noah discussed the history and enforcement of antitrust law, drawing on knowledge from his experience as commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission and co‑chair of Cravath’s antitrust practice.
Accolades
August 12, 2024
Cravath partners Helam Gebremariam, Sharonmoyee Goswami, Lauren R. Kennedy, David H. Korn, Lauren M. Rosenberg, Brittany L. Sukiennik and Michael J. Zaken were named by Benchmark Litigation to its 2024 “40 & Under List.” The list honors the “the top emerging talent in litigation” of 40 years old and under and was compiled through a process involving peer and client review, along with examination of individual cases.
Deals & Cases
August 12, 2024
Cravath represented Occidental Petroleum Corporation in connection with its $5 billion registered senior notes offering. The proceeds of the offering were used to finance its acquisition of Crownrock. Occidental Petroleum Corporation, an international energy company, is one of the largest oil and gas producers in the United States. The transaction closed on July 26, 2024.
Deals & Cases
August 08, 2024
On August 8, 2024, private investment firm Lindsay Goldberg and Golden State Foods, one of the largest diversified suppliers to the foodservice and retail industries, announced that they have entered into an agreement for Lindsay Goldberg to acquire a controlling interest in Golden State Foods. Cravath is representing Lindsay Goldberg in connection with the transaction.
Activities & Publications
August 07, 2024
On July 29, 2024, Cravath partner G.J. Ligelis Jr. was featured in Bloomberg Law’s “They’ve Got Next: 40 Under 40” series, which recognizes “the accomplishments of stellar young lawyers nationwide,” based on their work on key client matters, assumption of leadership roles, pro bono commitments and more. In a Q&A, G.J. described his work on transformative deals, including for client AerCap in its $30 billion acquisition of GE Capital Aviation Services, the largest M&A deal in the history of the aircraft leasing industry. G.J. also highlighted Just Eat Takeaway.com’s $7.3 billion combination with Grubhub as a matter in which he was “particularly proud of” his role, having led the Cravath team representing Just Eat Takeaway.com on M&A matters during his third year as partner. G.J. emphasized the importance of teamwork in providing clients with seamless legal advice and praised the quality of the Firm’s attorneys across practice groups: “Nothing is more rewarding than introducing an M&A client to one of my litigation or investigations partners, capital markets partners or antitrust/regulatory partners and watching my client’s reaction as they realize they get the exact same level of quality, dedication, and personal touch across every area of Cravath.”
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