Craig S. Waldman

Craig S. Waldman, Partner in the Firm’s Litigation Department, has extensive experience representing clients in high-profile securities litigation, including class and derivative actions, in courts throughout the country. Described by sources in Chambers USA as “one of the rare lawyers who is fantastic with details but also big-picture strategy” and a lawyer who “thinks outside the box” to give “crisp commercial advice,” he frequently represents leading private equity and corporate clients in transaction-related litigation, corporate governance matters, and corporate control litigations.

Select recent representations:

• Bumble Inc. in federal securities litigation;
• Paysafe in federal securities litigation;
• Valeant Pharmaceuticals in federal securities, derivative, and RICO class action litigations;
• Nielsen in federal securities and state court derivative litigations; 
• Envision Healthcare in federal securities litigation;
• Homepoint in federal securities litigation;
• AIG’s Board of Directors in securities and derivative litigations;
• Blackstone in litigations related to its acquisitions of Strategic Hotels & Resorts, Inc., Extended Stay Hotels, Gramercy Property Trust and BioMed Realty Trust;
• KKR in litigations related to its acquisitions of TXU Corp., Envision Healthcare and PharMerica;
• NN, Inc. in federal securities litigation brought in New York state court;
• Foot Locker’s Board of Directors in derivative litigation;
• Versum Materials, Inc. in shareholder and fiduciary duty litigation related to its acquisition by Merck;
• MDC Partners Inc. in federal securities litigation;
• J.P. Morgan and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in federal securities litigations arising from their work as underwriters of Wilmington Trust securities;
• Chilean conglomerate Corp Group in an international arbitration regarding shareholder rights in a Colombian bank in excess of $600 million
• Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc. in defeating Solus’s efforts to enjoin a refinancing transaction between Hovnanian and GSO Capital Partners, LP;
• Krispy Kreme Doughnuts in litigation related its sale to JAB Holding; and
• KeyCorp in litigation arising from its acquisition of First Niagara Financial Group, Inc.

Craig’s extensive trial work has included a two-week arbitration for Corp Group in its dispute regarding the sale of a Colombian bank, a multi-week FINRA arbitration for a financial services client, the defense of Travelers in Plant Insulation Co. v. Fireman’s Fund Ins. Co. (Super. Ct. San Francisco) (successful ruling after trial on alleged non-products coverage issues), and Hanwha Group and Orix Corporation in a widely followed multibillion-dollar ICC international arbitration against the Korea Development Insurance Corporation, an agency of the Korean government.

He is consistently recognized as a leading securities and M&A litigator by Chambers USA, The Legal 500, Euromoney’s Benchmark Litigation, and Law360. In its recognition of Craig, Chambers USA noted that sources describe him as a “subject matter expert” and “a strong lawyer who's good at making sure clients get what they need.”

He has an active pro bono practice including representing clients in housing court, domestic violence and asylum matters. Craig recently represented the City of New York in connection with a lawsuit brought against the City of New York and a former New York City police officer. Craig recently served as the Secretary of the Second Circuit Committee on Admissions and Grievances and on the Securities Editorial Advisory Board for Law360. 

Craig received his J.D., cum laude, from Cornell Law School in 2004 and his B.A., magna cum laude, from Tufts University in 2001. He completed a clerkship with the Hon. Richard M. Berman in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. He is admitted to practice in New York.