ProfessionalsBrad S. Karp

Brad S. Karp

Chairman

Chairman

Tel: +1-212-373-3316
Fax: +1-212-492-0316
bkarp@paulweiss.com

+1-212-373-3316
New York

1285 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10019-6064
Fax: +1-212-492-0316

Education 
Clerkship 
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Education 
Clerkship 
Bar Admissions 

Chairman of the firm since 2008, Brad Karp is one of the country’s leading litigators and corporate advisers. Brad has successfully defended financial institutions and other companies in numerous “bet the company” litigations, regulatory matters and internal investigations. Prior to being named chairman of Paul, Weiss, Brad chaired the firm’s Litigation Department.

In December 2018, the Financial Times recognized Brad with its Special Achievement Award for his legal achievements and leadership of Paul, Weiss. Also in 2018, Brad was named “Attorney of the Year” by the New York Law Journal, “Litigator of the Year” by The American Lawyer, “Securities Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers, and “Sports MVP of the Year” by Law360.

Chambers describes Brad as “the best strategic adviser in the business when it comes to complex litigation and regulatory inquiries”; “someone who every CEO in America should have on speed dial: he can solve just about every problem and is worth his weight in gold”; “a great oral advocate”; “a phenomenal thinker”; “brilliant”; “extraordinary”; “an utterly fantastic lawyer”; “without peer”; “a renowned litigator”; “the absolute best”; “the consummate client service lawyer”; “the most responsive lawyer in America”; and “beyond compare in terms of client service.” Benchmark Litigation describes Brad as having “unbelievably great judgment”; “superior presence in the courtroom and the boardroom”; and “the guy who makes every other litigator in this town consider just giving up and becoming a bus driver.” Best Lawyers describes Brad as “the most talented, responsive, client-sensitive, creative, effective lawyer of his generation in the country, no question.” The New York Times describes Brad as “the most connected lawyer in the country.”

Industry Awards and Recognitions

Brad has received numerous industry recognitions over the years. In 2018, Brad received the Special Achievement Award from the Financial Times in recognition of his legal achievements and leadership of Paul, Weiss and was also named “Attorney of the Year” by the New York Law Journal, “Litigator of the Year” by The American Lawyer, “Sports MVP of the Year” by Law360, and “Securities Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers. In 2017, Brad was selected as a “Litigation Trailblazer” by the National Law Journal and Best Lawyers’ “Banking Lawyer of the Year.” Brad’s successful representation of financial institutions and others was featured in a 2014 American Lawyer story in which Paul, Weiss was selected as the best securities litigation/regulatory firm in the United States and in an earlier cover story, “The Lifesavers,” in which Paul, Weiss was selected as the country’s best litigation firm. Brad has been repeatedly named by the National Association of Corporate Directors on its list of most influential people in the boardroom community and selected by Chambers as a “Star” in multiple practice areas. In 2013, the New York Law Journal awarded Brad its first-ever Impact Award, in recognition of Brad’s “significant and lasting impact on the legal community in New York.” In 2013, Benchmark Litigation/Euromoney selected Brad as its “Litigator of the Year.” In 2012, the Financial Times selected Brad as one of the 10 most innovative lawyers in the United States. In 2011, Lawdragon selected Brad as its “Lawyer of the Year.” Additional publications consistently rank Brad as one of the leading lawyers in the United States, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Crain’s New York Business, The Lawyer (U.K.), The Legal 500, Euromoney Institutional Investors, Best of the Best USA and Benchmark/Institutional Investor.

EXPERIENCE

​Brad has successfully tried numerous multibillion-dollar litigations and arbitrations, secured the dismissal of numerous multibillion-dollar lawsuits, and won numerous appeals in state and federal courts. He has also successfully represented numerous clients before state and federal regulatory and enforcement agencies, and has led numerous internal investigations.

Brad’s recent clients in significant securities, commercial and regulatory matters have included Citigroup, JPMorgan, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, HSBC, Standard Chartered, Bank of New York Mellon, UBS, Barclays, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, Signature Bank, Apollo Global Management, Blackstone Group, KKR, SoftBank, Citco, Fortress, Glencore, Deutsche Bank, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, Deloitte, The National Football League, FIFA, Philadelphia 76ers, Xerox, Western Union, MacAndrews & Forbes, ING, Tishman-Speyer, AXA Equitable, General Atlantic, Carlos Ghosn, Primerica, Autotrader, MagnaChip, Bloomberg, Ericsson, Sotheby’s, SS&C, Mutual of Omaha, Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank of China, Newmont Mining, Merck, Johnson & Johnson, SICPA, BB&T, Eton Park, Bowlmor, OneWest Bank, Columbia University, CIM Group, Pattern Energy, Zurich Capital and Aurora Bank.

Significant representations include:

  • Apollo in numerous matters;
  • Bank of America in several matters, including the litigations and regulatory matters arising out of Bank of America’s 2008 merger with Merrill Lynch;
  • Bank of New York Mellon in several matters, including the litigations and regulatory matters arising out of the bank’s foreign exchange standing instruction orders;
  • Blackstone in various matters;
  • Bloomberg in various matters;
  • Citigroup in multiple matters, including:
    • its Second Circuit victory (SEC Citigroup) allowing corporations to enter into federal regulatory consent judgments without admitting wrongdoing;
    • its two arbitral victories defeating multibillion-dollar claims brought by the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), arising out of its $7.5 billion investment in Citigroup;
    • its $97 million settlement, pursuant to a non-prosecution agreement, arising out of a DOJ money-laundering investigation;
    • its Southern District of New York jury trial victory defeating multi-billion-dollar claims by London-based private equity firm Terra Firma, which claimed it was defrauded in connection with its purchase of EMI;
    • its New Jersey state court jury trial victory defeating a multi-billion-dollar lawsuit brought by Parmalat;
    • its arbitral victory defeating a billion-dollar claim by a WorldCom investor who claimed he was defrauded by Citigroup and Jack Grubman, as a result of allegedly fraudulent research;
    • its subprime, credit crisis and mortgage-related litigations and regulatory matters;
    • litigations alleging collusion in connection with interest-rate swaps;
    • its auction rate securities litigations and regulatory matters;
    • its Lehman-related litigations;
    • its failed investment litigations and regulatory matters;
    • its Enron-related litigations and regulatory matters;
    • its research analyst litigations; and
    • a nationwide employment discrimination class action;
  • Deloitte in several matters, including securing the dismissal of a federal securities fraud class action concerning Fannie Mae’s disclosures and financial statements;
  • JPMorgan in several matters, including the litigations and regulatory matters arising out of Bear Stearns’ March 2008 collapse, various subprime, credit crisis and mortgage-related litigations, and the DOJ’s and SEC’s inquiry into the firm’s Asia hiring practices, which was resolved pursuant to a non-prosecution agreement;
  • Morgan Stanley in various matters, including the litigation and regulatory matters arising out of alleged collusion in the Treasuries and swaps market;
  • The National Football League in several matters, including its defense and recent settlement of hundreds of lawsuits filed by thousands of former NFL players seeking to hold the League liable for allegedly concealing the risks associated with concussions sustained while playing professional football, as well as its investigation of workplace issues at the Miami Dolphins;
  • UBS in several matters, including its settlement with the Antitrust Division of the DOJ, the SEC, the Internal Revenue Service and a group of 25 state attorneys general regarding investigations into the firm’s former municipal reinvestment and derivatives group, as well as various subprime, credit crisis and mortgage-related litigations; and
  • Wall Street underwriters in several securities class action litigations, including class actions arising out of the $25 billion GM/GMAC bond offering, the $20+ billion AIG bond offering and the $15+ billion Valeant bond offering.

WRITING/SPEAKING

Brad speaks and writes frequently on business litigation, securities litigation and corporate governance. He has spoken at more than 500 conferences and has lectured at Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Columbia Law School, NYU Law School and The Federal Judicial Center. Brad has written more than 500 articles on business litigation issues. For the past 34 years, Brad has written a monthly column for the New York Law Journal, “Second Circuit Review,” which analyzes developments in the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Brad is a frequent contributor to the Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation. Brad has also spoken out and written about pressing issues of social justice. Most recently, in 2018 he authored two op-eds in The New York Times, “Stop Shielding Gun Makers,” advocating changes to laws related to gun manufacturer liability, and “An Army of Lawyers for Migrants,” urging the private bar to address the unlawful treatment of immigrants and to seek the reunification of separated families. In 2018, Brad also authored an op-ed in the New York Law Journal, “Democracy Itself Is on the Ballot,” addressing the issue of voter suppression and disenfranchisement.

BOARDS AND OTHER PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

Brad is active in the community, serving on more than 25 public interest and educational institution boards. Brad is the chairman of the Legal Action Center and a director/trustee of the Riverdale Country School, Mount Sinai Hospital, The Partnership for New York City (Executive Committee), the Harvard Law School Leadership Council, the Lincoln Center Business Advisory Council, the New York City Bar Association (Vice President), the American Constitution Society, Junior Achievement Worldwide, Harvard Law School Center on the Legal Profession, Practicing Attorneys for Law Students Program, Inc., the Leadership Council of the Legal Services Corporation, the Harvard Law School Visiting Committee, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Litigation Center, the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity, American Friends of Hebrew University, the New York Bar Foundation, the Program Advisory Board of the Brennan Center for Justice, the Mark Messier Foundation, the Best Lawyers Advisory Board, the Economic Club of New York, the Federal Bar Council Second Circuit Inn of Court, the Union College President’s Council, the United States Supreme Court Historical Society, and the NYU Program on Corporate Compliance and Enforcement. Brad is a founding member of the PriceWaterhouse Leaders Council examining financial services industry regulatory reform, and is a member of The New York City Bar Association Task Force on New Lawyers in a Changing Profession. Brad currently is chairing the 2017-19 (Bicentennial) Harvard Law School Annual Fund. Brad is chair of the Advisory Committee of the Citizens’ Committee for Children.

COMMUNITY AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS

Brad has received more than a dozen recognitions for his pro bono accomplishments and charitable service, including the Servant of Justice Award by the Legal Aid Society, the Judge Learned Hand Award by AJC, the Human Relations Award by the Anti-Defamation League, the Arthur Liman Public Interest Award by the Legal Action Center, the Pro Bono Award by the Pro Bono Partnership, the Torch of Learning Award by American Friends of Hebrew University, the Corporate Protector Award by Citizens’ Committee for Children, the Extraordinary New Yorker Award by the JBFCS, the Joseph Proskauer Award by UJA, the Legal Advocate Award by the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the Man of Distinction Award by Legal Momentum, the Impact Award by the New York Law Journal, the Pro Bono Partner Award by the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, and the Judge Simon Rifkind Award by The Jewish Theological Seminary.

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