Murphy, Kristin N.

Kristin N. Murphy

Partner

kristin.murphy@lw.com
    Murphy, Kristin N.

    Kristin N. Murphy

    Partner

    kristin.murphy@lw.com
    Next Generation Partner ‒ M&A Litigation: Defense

    The Legal 500 US 2024

    Profile

    Kristin Murphy, Chair of the Litigation & Trial Department in Orange County, advises clients on complex business litigation, with an emphasis on securities and commodities fraud, mergers and acquisitions, professional liability, and class action litigation. She has represented clients in connection with:

    • Securities class action suits
    • Shareholder derivative litigation
    • Internal investigations
    • Merger disputes
    • Proxy contests
    • Other complex, high-exposure litigation

    Kristin's recent representations include special committee engagements in controlling stockholder transactions, multijurisdictional litigation arising out of solicited and hostile takeover attempts, and investigations and litigation on behalf of special committees and boards of directors related to public company crises. She has represented pharmaceutical companies in clinical and post-clinical trial phases of development, energy companies, and real estate investment trusts.

    Kristin has served on the firm’s Recruiting Committee, and Equal Employment Opportunity Review Board, and currently serves on the Training & Career Enhancement (TACE) Committee and Women Enriching Business Committee.

    Experience

    Kristin's recent cases include:

    • Advising Reddit in its US$748 million initial public offering
    • Secured dismissal of a stockholder class action challenging the fairness of Inovalon’s US$7.3 billion sale to an equity consortium led by Nordic Capital
    • Defeated motion to expedite Section 14(a) claims against LENSAR and certain of its officers and directors
    • Defeated motion to expedite breach of fiduciary duty claims against Desktop Metal and certain of its officers and directors in the Delaware Court of Chancery in connection with a shareholder rights plan
    • Secured dismissal of securities class action against Desktop Metal and its officers arising out of its merger with EnvisionTEC
    • At trial, defeated more than 95 percent of plaintiffs’ claimed damages in rare Section 10(b) securities class action to go to jury verdict, named by the Daily Journal as one of the Top Verdicts of 2019. Hsu v. Puma Biotechnology, Inc. (C.D. Cal. Feb. 4, 2019)
    • Representation of Special Committee of the board of directors of Dell Technologies in connection with US$70.1 billion reverse merger with VMWare tracking stock  
    • Secured dismissal of the vast majority of Section 10 and 11 claims against Obalon Therapeutics and its officers and directors, leading to an early and highly favorable settlement 
    • Won motion to dismiss Section 14(a) claims against Wesco Aircraft and certain officers  
    • Won motion to dismiss Section 14(a) claims against biotechnology company GTX, Inc. and its officers and directors
    • Secured dismissal of aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty claim against JP Morgan as financial advisor to seller
    • Secured preliminary injunction against would-be hostile acquirer Valeant and co-conspirator Bill Ackman and his hedge fund management company Pershing Square for insider trading in connection with a US$54.6 billion hostile takeover attempt of specialty pharmaceutical company Allergan, in a transaction named The American Lawyer’s 2015 Global M&A Deal of the Year US
    • Representation of real estate investment trusts in securities class actions and stockholder litigation alleging breach of fiduciary duties in connection with mergers.
    • Representation of an IT management software provider in shareholder litigation relating to its proposed going-private transaction
    • Representation of the directors and officers of a major biopharmaceutical company in securities class action.
    • Representation of an international oilfield services provider and individual officers and directors in federal securities fraud class actions in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York
    • Representation of a large beverage company in multiple mass tort actions in the US District Court for the Northern District of California and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals

    Qualifications

    Bar Qualification

    • California

    Education

    • JD, The University of Texas School of Law, 2009
    • BA, University of California, Los Angeles, 2006

    Practices

    Industries

    Recognition

    Read More

    News & Insights

    Courtroom
    March 7, 2024 In the News

    Latham Passes Skadden as Busiest Securities Defense Firm

    Despite a downward trend in securities case filings over the past three years, Latham & Watkins LLP has remained one of the most active law firms on the defense side, taking over the top spot from Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP, according to reports released by Lex Machina.
    Read More