Robert Giuffra

Bob Giuffra
Born (1960-02-17) February 17, 1960
Education Princeton University (BA)
Yale University (JD)
Employer Sullivan & Cromwell
Spouse(s) Joyce Campbell

Robert "Bob" J. Giuffra Jr. (born February 17, 1960) is a prominent American attorney. He is currently a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell in New York and a member of the firm's Management Comittee, with overall responsibility for its litigation practice.

Personal life and education

Giuffra graduated from Bronxville (N.Y.) High School in 1978.[1] He earned his bachelor's degree summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1983.[1] Giuffra graduated from Yale Law School in 1987.[1] In 1998, Giuffra married Joyce Campbell, a former press secretary for Senator Bob Dole.[1] The Giuffras have three children (Elizabeth, Caroline and Robert Giuffra III) and live in Manhattan and Southampton.[1] The couple has been honored for their charitable work, receiving the Spirit of St. Nicholas Award from Cardinal Timothy Dolan at the 69th Cardinal's Christmas Luncheon in December 2014.[2][3]

Career

Giuffra served as a law clerk to Judge Ralph Winter of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.[4] He also served as a law clerk for Chief Justice William Rehnquist from 1988 to 1989.[5][6][7] He joined Sullivan & Cromwell in 1989 and is now a member of the firm's management committee, with overall responsibility for its litigation practice.[1]

Giuffra serves as national coordinating counsel for Volkswagen AG in the multi-district litigation arising from government investigations into the automaker's use of defeat device software to try to comply with U.S. government clean air standards.[8] In October 2016, The American Lawyer named Giuffra as "Litigator of the Week" for his role in reaching a $14.7 billion settlement with U.S. federal and state regulators and class action plaintiffs.[9]

In 2015, Giuffra represented The New York State Bankers Association, which sued in federal court to overturn New York City's Responsible Banking Act, legislation that sought to regulate the activities of banks receiving deposits from the City. Judge Katherine Polk Failla of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York struck down the law, finding that its provisions were preempted by federal and New York State banking laws.[10]

In October 2012, The Am Law Litigation Daily recognized Giuffra as "Litigator of the Week" for obtaining a dismissal with prejudice of the putative securities class action brought against UBS and members of its supervisory board and senior management after UBS's market capitalization declined by nearly $115 billion following disclosures of UBS's subprime and auction-rate securities losses and its DOJ and SEC settlements relating to U.S. cross-border tax issues.[11]

Giuffra also defended UBS in a multibillion-dollar putative class action by Enron shareholders who asserted that UBS bankers knew, and failed to disclose, relevant information about the energy company's finances. After winning dismissal of the lawsuit, Giuffra was named "Litigator of the Week" by The Am Law Litigation Daily in March 2017.[12]

Giuffra also represented Porsche in the dismissal of claims brought in federal and state courts seeking more than $3 billion arising out of Porsche's takeover bid for Volkswagen.[13] In January 2014, The American Lawyer named Giuffra "Litigator of the Year" for his work in defending UBS and Porsche.[14]

In 2011, Giuffra served as the lead counsel to a group of leading financial institutions in separate actions in New York State court against MBIA challenging its 2009 restructuring. In June 2011, The Am Law Litigation Daily recognized Giuffra as its "Litigator of the Week" for winning the appeal in the New York State Court of Appeals.[15] Giuffra also served as counsel to the Audit Committee of Computer Associates, assisting with an internal investigation of accounting fraud. He later represented Computer Associates in settling investigations by the Department of Justice and SEC.[16]

Giuffra also has represented Robert Wallach, counsel to former U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese, in obtaining the dismissal of his conviction in the Wedtech case; Armand D'Amato, the brother of then-Senator Alfonse D'Amato, in securing the reversal of his mail fraud conviction; and David Duncan, the former Arthur Andersen LLP partner who served as lead auditor for Enron and whose guilty plea was later vacated by a federal court.[17][18][12]

Public service and political activities

Giuffra has served in all three branches of the federal government. In addition to his judicial clerkships, he served as a White House aide during the administration of President Ronald Reagan.[6] Giuffra served as chief counsel to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs from 1995 to 1996, helping to draft the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.[1][4] Giuffra served as counsel to the Senate Whitewater Committee.[6]

Giuffra served on the New York State Commission on Public Integrity from 2007 to 2009, overseeing state government ethics and lobbying laws.[19] He also served as a commissioner of the New York State Ethics Commission from 1998 to 2007.[19] Giuffra also served as president of the Federal Bar Council from 2008-10.[20][21] He is Vice Chair of the Board of Advisors of the Yale Law School Center for the Study of Corporate Law[22] and a member of the Board of Trustees of Catholic Charities of New York.[23][24] He is now the Chairman of the American Swiss Foundation.[25]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Robert Giuffra, Bronxville Grad of '78, Argues Landmark Case for Banks and Fed before US Court of Appeals," MyHometownBronxville, 24 March 2010
  2. ↑ Cardinal’s Luncheon Helps Catholic Charities Offer Christmas Hope by Ron Lajoie, Catholic New York, 10 December 2014
  3. ↑ “Sullivan & Cromwell’s Robert Giuffra Jr.: From Rehnquist to VW,” by Lenore Adkins, Bloomberg Big Law Business, March 10, 2017
  4. 1 2 "Securities MVP: Sullivan & Cromwell's Robert Giuffra - Law360". www.law360.com. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
  5. ↑ "WEDDINGS; Joyce Campbell, Robert Giuffra Jr". The New York Times. 1998-09-27. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
  6. 1 2 3 "Lawyer Limelight: Robert Giuffra". Retrieved 2015-05-29.
  7. ↑ BAUM, GERALDINE (July 30, 1998). "Days of Scandal a Boon to Powerful Legal Clique". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
  8. ↑ “Court Sets Deadline for a Volkswagen Diesel Fix, but Solution Could Prove Elusive,” by Jack Ewing, The New York Times, March 24, 2016
  9. ↑ Litigators of the Week: One for the History Books,” by Jenna Greene, The American Lawyer, October 28, 2016
  10. ↑ “Judge strikes down de Blasio effort to regulate banks,” by Aaron Elstein, Crain's New York Business, August 10, 2015
  11. ↑ Bario, David (4 October 2012). "Litigator of the Week: Robert Giuffra Jr. of Sullivan & Cromwell". The AmLaw Litigation Daily. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  12. 1 2 “Litigators of the Week: Knocking Out the Last of the Enron Suits,” by Miriam Rozen, The Am Law Litigation Daily, March 3, 2017
  13. ↑ Ahmed, Azam (30 December 2010). "Judge Dismisses Hedge Funds' Case Against Porsche". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  14. ↑ Litigator of the Year: Robert Giuffra Jr. The American Lawyer, January 2, 2014
  15. ↑ Litigator of the Week: Robert Giuffra, Jr., of Sullivan & Cromwell by David Bario, July 1, 2011
  16. ↑ Forelle, Charles; Lublin, Joann S. (September 24, 2004). "In CA Probe: Recovered E-Mails, Surprise Cache of Documents". Wall Street Journal.
  17. ↑ “Trial Pros: Sullivan & Cromwell’s Robert Giuffra,” Law360, March 7, 2016
  18. ↑ “Ruling Backs D’Amato Kin in Fraud Case,” by Jonathan Rabinovitz, The New York Times, 1 November 1994
  19. 1 2 "Gov. Spitzer Announces Appointments to New York State Commission on Public Integrity," US Fed News, September 21, 2007
  20. ↑ "Federal Bar Council Quarterly - Dec./Jan./Feb. 2009"
  21. ↑ "Federal Bar Council Quarterly - Sept./Oct./Nov. 2010"
  22. ↑ Board of Advisors, Yale Law School Center for the Study of Corporate Law
  23. ↑ Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York, Board of Trustees and Officers
  24. ↑ Downtown Alliance, Board of Directors
  25. ↑ “American Swiss Foundation Elects New Chairman Robert J. Giuffra, Jr.,” press release, March 15, 2016
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.