A partner in the Litigation Department, and former Chair of the firm (2008–2026), Brad Karp has successfully guided numerous Fortune 100 companies, global financial institutions and other clients through bet-the-company litigations, regulatory matters, internal investigations and corporate crises. Brad has spent his entire career at Paul, Weiss, beginning as a summer associate. Brad chaired the firm’s Litigation Department from 2000 to 2007.
Brad has achieved remarkable outcomes for his clients in numerous multibillion-dollar litigations, investigations, enforcement matters and arbitrations. He has led dozens of internal investigations and represented numerous board special committees. Brad is described by Chambers as “the best strategic adviser in the business,” “the best litigator in the country,” and “someone who every CEO in America should have on speed dial.” The New York Times and Bloomberg have called Brad “the most connected lawyer in the country,” and Best Lawyers has described him as “the most talented, responsive, client-sensitive, creative, effective lawyer of his generation.”
Industry Awards and Recognitions
Brad has earned dozens of industry recognitions for his legal achievements as well as for his role as a leader in the legal industry, the business community and the public interest sphere. He has been named as “Attorney of the Year” (New York Law Journal, 2018) and “Litigator of the Year” (The American Lawyer, 2018, Benchmark Litigation/Euromoney, 2013). Brad received the “Special Achievement Award” from the Financial Times (2018) in recognition of his legal achievements and his leadership of Paul, Weiss. He has been named by the National Association of Corporate Directors as one of the most influential people in the boardroom (2010–2011) and by Crain’s (2013–2014) and City & State (2022–2023) as one of New York's most influential leaders.
Chambers has designated Brad as a “Star Individual” in multiple practice areas, including “Commercial Litigation” (2020–2025), “Securities Litigation” (2015–2025) and “Crisis Management” (2022–2025). Brad has been selected multiple times as “Securities Lawyer of the Year” (2018, 2025) and “Banking and Finance Lawyer of the Year” (2020, 2023, 2025) by Best Lawyers, and “Banking MVP of the Year” (2017, 2019, 2021), “Securities MVP of the Year” (2014), and “Sports MVP of the Year” (2016, 2018, 2022, 2024) by Law360. Brad has been selected as a “Legend in the Law” by Lawdragon (2015), and was inducted into the “Hall of Fame” by Benchmark Litigation (2024) and by The Legal 500 in five separate categories: Trial Lawyers (2020–2024), General Commercial Litigation (2017–2025), Financial Services Litigation (2020–2025), Securities Litigation (2020–2025), and Sports Law (2020–2025). Brad has been selected as a “Trailblazer” and as a “Distinguished Leader” (2019) by the New York Law Journal, and as a “Litigation Trailblazer” (2016) and a Crisis Leadership Trailblazer (2021) by The National Law Journal. Brad’s successful representation of financial institutions and other companies in “bet the company” matters was featured in a 2010 American Lawyer cover story, “The Lifesavers,” in which Paul, Weiss was selected as the country’s best litigation firm. In 2003, Brad was profiled in The American Lawyer as one of the 45 leading U.S. lawyers under age 45.
Writing/Speaking
Brad speaks and writes frequently on business litigation, securities litigation, corporate governance, and crisis management. Brad has spoken at more than 700 conferences and has lectured at Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Columbia Law School, NYU Law School, Harvard Business School, Harvard Kennedy School, Yale School of Management and The Federal Judicial Center. Brad has written more than 700 articles on business litigation and corporate governance issues. For the past 41 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.
Community Engagement and Recognitions
Brad plays a leadership role on numerous public interest, educational, cultural and charitable boards, both in New York and nationwide. In 2023, Brad co-chaired a New York State Bar Association Task Force on Advancing Diversity, which released a 90-page report detailing how law schools, law firms, corporations and courts can maintain their diversity in the wake of the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision barring race-conscious university admissions policies. In 2022, Brad wrote an op-ed urging the FTC to address the gun industry’s disinformation campaign, “The Gun Industry’s Deadly Lie” (Fortune). In 2021, Brad authored an op-ed urging the legal industry to challenge Georgia’s voter suppression legislation, “It's Time for Legal Industry to Fight Voter Suppression Efforts” (The American Lawyer). In 2020, Brad authored three op-eds concerning the nation's response to the coronavirus pandemic: “We Need Obama, Bush and Clinton to Beat the Coronavirus” (The American Lawyer); “The Legal Community Must Protect Workers and Small Businesses From Coronavirus Fallout” (The American Lawyer); and “Protecting the Rule of Law in Times of Coronavirus” (Bloomberg International). In 2018, Brad authored two op-eds in The New York Times, “Stop Shielding Gun Makers,” advocating changes to gun manufacturer liability laws, 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. Also in 2018, Brad authored an op-ed in the New York Law Journal, “Democracy Itself Is on the Ballot,” addressing voter suppression and disenfranchisement.
In 2024, Brad received Harvard Law School’s highest honor, the Harvard Law School Association Award in recognition of his leadership in the legal profession, significant volunteer service and commitment to Harvard Law School. In 2019, he received the William Nelson Cromwell Award from the New York County Lawyers Association in recognition of his “unselfish service to the profession and the community,” and in 2013, the New York Law Journal awarded Brad its first-ever Impact Award in recognition of his “significant and lasting impact on the legal community in New York.”
Brad also received the NAC Promise Award by New Alternatives for Children (2024), the Humanitarian Award by the United Nations (2024), the Judge Learned Hand Award by AJC (2023), the Corporate Honoree Award by The Jewish Museum (2023), the Medal of Honor by the World Jurist Association (2023), the Champion of the Rule of Law Award by The World Law Congress (2023), the Burton Award for Law Firm Leadership by The Burton Foundation and the Library of Congress (2022), the John J. McCloy Award by the Fund for Modern Courts (2021), the Eleanor Roosevelt Award for Corporate Advocacy & Vision by the Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York (2020), the Judge Simon Rifkind Award by The Jewish Theological Seminary (2018), the Man of Distinction Award by Legal Momentum (2017), the Pro Bono Partner Award by the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence (2017), the Joseph Proskauer Award by UJA (2016), the Legal Advocate Award by the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence (2016), the Corporate Protector Award by the Citizens’ Committee for Children (2015), the Servant of Justice Award by the Legal Aid Society (2014), the Human Relations Award by the Anti-Defamation League (2013), the Impact Award by the New York Law Journal (2013), the Pro Bono Award by the Pro Bono Partnership (2012), the Extraordinary New Yorker Award by the JBFCS (2011), the Arthur Liman Public Interest Award by the Legal Action Center (2007), and the Torch of Learning Award by American Friends of Hebrew University (2005).
