Davis Polk partner and Supreme Court & Appellate practice head Kannon Shanmugam and partner Masha Hansford received runner-up honors in AmLaw Litigation Daily’s “Litigator of the Week” column for securing a Second Circuit victory in a Venezuelan bond case.

Masha argued the case before a panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The three-judge panel unanimously affirmed the validity of more than $2 billion in bonds issued in 2020 by Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA), Venezuela’s state-owned oil company. 

The column notes that the panel “rejected challenges under both the Venezuelan Constitution and the act-of-state doctrine, affirming partial summary judgment for bond trustee MUFG Union Bank and collateral agent GLAS Americas.”

The Second Circuit win is the second time this month that Kannon and Masha were mentioned featured in the “Litigator of the Week” column.

“Litigator of the Week Runners-Up and Shout-Outs,” AmLaw Litigation Daily (October 30, 2026) (subscription required).

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