• practice
• lawyers
• careers
• diversity
• Pro Bono
• news
• offices

• Introduction
• Corporate
• » Litigation
  • Securities Litigation
  • Antitrust
  • White Collar Crime and Investigations
  • Mass Torts and Products Liability
  • Acquisition-Related Litigation
  • Banking Litigation
  • Insolvency and Restructuring
  • Directors' and Officers' Liability
  • Professional Liability
  • Commercial Arbitration
  • Tax Controversy
  • Intellectual Property
  • International Litigation
• Tax
• Trusts and Estates
• International
• Pro Bono

Litigation has been a cornerstone of our practice since the firm's inception. Companies from around the world in every industry, as well as their executives and directors, retain our lawyers for their most significant litigation matters.

Our litigators are recognized for their considerable experience and excellence in trials, criminal and regulatory investigations, congressional inquiries, arbitrations, hearings, appeals and crisis management situations. Approximately three-fourths of our litigators have clerked for federal or state judges.

Although not formally divided into groups, our Litigation Department, comprising nearly 170 lawyers in New York and Menlo Park, handles matters in the following areas: Securities Litigation, Antitrust, White Collar Crime, Mass Torts and Products Liability, Acquisition-Related Litigation, Banking Litigation, Insolvency and Restructuring, Directors' and Officers' Liability, Professional Liability, Commercial Arbitration, Tax Controversy and Intellectual Property.

• Davis Polk ranked in the first tier among New York law firms in general commercial litigation matters, according to Chambers USA (2008) – “'A formidable player in the New York litigation market,' Davis Polk & Wardwell is applauded for its strength across the board in litigation matters….”
• Nine Davis Polk lawyers were listed as leaders in litigation by Chambers USA (2008).

• We represented a group of six banks, led by Citigroup and Deutsche Bank, in litigation arising from a dispute related to the financing of one of the largest ever leveraged buyouts -- the acquisition of Clear Channel Communications, a radio broadcast and billboard-advertising company, by affiliates of private equity sponsors Bain Capital and TH Lee Partners. This litigation, which had been brought in the New York and Texas courts, was recently settled as part of a restructuring of the transaction at a lower price and with reduced loans by the bank group.
• Numerous companies and special committees in connection with stock options-related investigations and litigation, including a “Big Four” accounting firm, Mercury Interactive, Affymetrix, Sharper Image, a special committee of the board of directors of CNET Networks and the independent directors of KB Home
• PricewaterhouseCoopers in connection with securities and derivative suits brought by shareholders of Tyco International, a former audit client of PwC, alleging that former officers of Tyco looted the company and caused the filing of materially misleading financial statements
• Pricewaterhouse Coopers in connection with consolidated securities actions related to Dell, Inc. pending in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York
• Siemens AG in criminal and regulatory matters relating to recent corruption allegations against the company, including acting as counsel in pending SEC and DOJ proceedings and coordinating the company’s global defense with respect to international governmental investigations
• Audit committee of Bear Stearns in connection with issues arising from hedge funds’ investment in the sub-prime mortgage market