Ms Deborah Birnbach > Goodwin > Boston, United States > Lawyer Profile
Goodwin Offices
100 NORTHERN AVENUE
BOSTON MA 02210
MASSACHUSETTS
United States
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Ms Deborah Birnbach
Position
Partner / Co-Chair, Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution
Career
Deborah Birnbach is a partner and co-chairs Goodwin’s Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution and Public M&A / Corporate Governance practices and is a member of the firm’s Life Sciences Disputes group. She specializes in securities litigation, including class action defense; SEC, regulatory and internal investigations; M&A-related litigation; stockholder disputes; fiduciary duty claims; and proxy contests. Deborah’s practice is national in scope and clients include public and private companies in healthcare, life sciences and technology, their boards and officers, and private equity firms and their partners.
Deborah represents issuers and their directors and officers in securities and shareholder litigation and corporate governance matters including defending allegations of insider trading, misleading disclosures, M&A transactions, insufficient deal consideration, improper revenue recognition and other alleged accounting irregularities, self-dealing and breach of fiduciary duty, among other issues. With colleagues in the Public M&A / Corporate Governance Practice, Deborah works with integrated deal teams on public M&A transactions, representing targets, acquirers and their financial advisers. She also counsels on litigation avoidance, including arbitration, mediation and other alternative dispute resolution methods.
Deborah conducts internal corporate investigations for audit committees and other board committees in financial accounting and corporate governance-related matters, including whistleblower matters under the Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd-Frank Acts. She also represents clients in FINRA inquiries and in regulatory proceedings brought by the SEC and others in possible accounting irregularities, corporate disclosures to investors and insider trading, among other matters.
Education
J.D., 1992 Columbia Law School / B.A., 1986 Wellesley College (cum laude)
Lawyer Rankings
United States > Dispute resolution > M&A litigation: defense
Goodwin has a unique strategic focus on key industry sectors, notably life sciences, technology, and real estate, handling transactions and consequent litigation across the US, Europe and Asia. The firm also has a large private equity practice that is among the leading players in the expansive middle market sector, and this also generates work for the litigation department. Deborah Birnbach leads the practice, as well as being a key member of the life sciences group, and her track record in securities and shareholder litigation is notable. Adam Slutsky is also active in disputes in after healthcare deals. All lawyers are based in Boston. Michael Jones left to join Holland & Knight LLP.
United States > Dispute resolution > Securities litigation: defense
Goodwin is known as one of the leading life sciences firms in the US, as well as a prominent player in matters concerning technology companies and REITs. The firm is handling a growing volume of class actions, derivative cases and SEC investigations, particularly for tech companies. Clients note that the firm’s ‘judgement, subject knowledge and guidance is outstanding’ and are ‘impressed with their technical insights combined with practical experience’. Deborah Birnbach leads the practice from Boston, where Adam Slutsky and Caroline Bullerjahn are among the standout partners. Birnback and Bullerjahn obtained full dismissal of a securities class action against biopharma company Alkermes plc, which was accused of making misstatements and omissions regarding the development program for a clinical stage drug for a major depressive disorder. Daniel Roeser in New York is representing underwriting syndicates in a putative securities class action filed in Florida federal court against Axogen. Key partner Brian Pastuszenski retired, but Jonathan Shapiro in San Francisco from Baker Botts L.L.P. (who is ‘a highly capable attorney with a dynamic and empathetic personality’) reinforces the firm’s stronghold in its key sectors. Jonathan Hecht in Washington DC joined from the SEC and is ‘a transformative presence’ in enforcement matters.
Lawyer Rankings
- M&A litigation: defense United States > Dispute resolution
- Securities litigation: defense United States > Dispute resolution
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Finance > Financial services regulation
- Industry focus > Cannabis
- Intellectual property > Patents: licensing
- Real estate > Real estate investment trusts (REITs)
- Media, technology and telecoms > Technology transactions
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Venture capital and emerging companies
Firm Rankings
- Finance > Capital markets: equity offerings
- Industry focus > Education
- Labor and employment > ERISA litigation
- Finance > Fintech
- Healthcare > Life sciences
- Dispute resolution > M&A litigation: defense
- M&A/corporate and commercial > M&A: middle-market ($500m-999m)
- Investment fund formation and management > Mutual/registered/exchange-traded funds
- Dispute resolution > Securities litigation: defense
- Finance > Capital markets: debt offerings
- International Trade > CFIUS
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Corporate governance
- Media, technology and telecoms > Cyber law (including data privacy and data protection)
- Dispute resolution > E-discovery
- Labor and employment > Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: transactional
- Dispute resolution > Financial services litigation
- Antitrust > Merger control
- Intellectual property > Patents: litigation (full coverage)
- Investment fund formation and management > Private equity funds (including venture capital)
- Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: consumer products (including tobacco)
- Real estate > Real estate
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Shareholder activism
- Intellectual property > Trade secrets (litigation and non-contentious matters)
- Tax > US taxes: non-contentious
- Labor and employment > Workplace and employment counseling
- Labor and employment > Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: design
- Dispute resolution > Leading trial lawyers
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Private equity buyouts: large deals ($500m+)
- Healthcare > Service providers
- International Trade > Customs, export controls and economic sanctions
- Dispute resolution > Leading trial lawyers
- Finance > Restructuring (including bankruptcy): corporate
- Dispute resolution > Appellate: courts of appeals / Appellate: supreme courts (states and federal)
- Finance > Commercial lending
- Dispute resolution > Corporate investigations and white-collar criminal defense
- Intellectual property > Patents: prosecution (including re-examination and post-grant proceedings)