Christopher Harris is Global Vice Chair of Latham & Watkins' Litigation & Trial Department, head of the firm's Bankruptcy Litigation & Creditors' Rights Practice, and former Global Vice Chair of the firm's Complex Commercial Litigation Practice.
Christopher focuses his practice on three main areas: insolvency litigation; fraud and other business torts, particularly in the cross-border context; and disputes regarding credit agreements and related securities.
His extensive insolvency litigation experience includes providing counsel to:
His fraud and business tort experience includes representing sovereign wealth funds and individuals in global fraud investigations; litigating against sovereigns and companies in RICO, tortious interference, and related claims; and defending against a wide variety of business torts in courts across the country.
His credit and securities agreement experience includes extensive experience regarding defaulted loans, liability management transactions, and lender liability issues. He has represented issuers and lenders in multi-billion dollar lending disputes, and most of the major banks and accounting firms in a wide range of civil, regulatory, and criminal matters.
Christopher is a frequent speaker and writer on litigation and trial practice topics, including the use of expert witnesses. He has presented at the ABA National Conference, the American Corporate Counsel Association, and before numerous other venues, and also served as a faculty member for the Federal Judiciary Center, instructing new federal bankruptcy judges about discovery issues.
Among other leadership roles within the firm, Christopher formerly served as Co-Chair of the Litigation & Trial Department in Latham's New York office and as Global Chair of the LGBTQ affinity group.
In insolvency litigation, Christopher has served as lead trial counsel in many of the major bankruptcies nationwide, representing debtors, creditors, and committees.
In the oil and gas sector, he has served as lead trial counsel for clients in the following bankruptcies:
In the power generation sector, he has likewise served as lead trial counsel for clients in the following bankruptcies:
He has also served as lead trial counsel for clients in many other major bankruptcies, including:
He also has extensive experience in defending against fraudulent conveyance and recharacterization claims (many in the multi-billion dollar range), including representing:
Christopher's fraud and business tort practice also includes substantial experience in investigating and litigating allegations of international fraud and related issues. Recent examples include advising:
For outstanding results over the past year, Latham received top honors, including Antitrust Firm of the Year, and Firm of the Year: California.
The American Lawyer profiles Latham as a finalist for its prestigious Litigation Department of the Year competition.
Described by Am Law editors as the most competitive cycle they’ve seen for submissions yet, the biannual contest honors litigation teams achieving extraordinary results for their clients.