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Carson, Kimberly E.

Kimberly E. Carson

Partner

kimberlycarson@quinnemanuel.com
Direct Tel: +1 212-849-7309
New York
Tel: +1 212 849 7000 Fax: +1 212 849 7100

Kimberly E. Carson is a partner in the Firm’s New York office.  Kimberly is a litigator with experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants in a wide range of complex commercial disputes.  Her experience includes successfully litigating cases involving employment matters, corporate raids, trade secrets, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, business torts, fraud, and mergers and acquisitions.  Kimberly has an active trial practice, and has appeared and argued in a variety of forums, including in state and federal courts and in arbitrations in New York, Delaware, and around the country.

Kimberly is an expert in employment litigation, including in cases involving employee movement, restrictive covenants (non-competes and non-solicits), trade secret misappropriation, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblowing, wrongful termination, and senior executive/founder departure disputes.  Kimberly has litigated several high-stakes, high-dollar cases involving the movement of large groups of employees between competitors, on both plaintiff and defense sides.  For example, Kimberly recently handled an expedited case stemming from a large corporate raid termed the “Worst (Non-Lawyer) Lateral Acquisition Ever” by AmLaw Litigation Daily, in which her Firm successfully obtained injunctive relief in the Delaware Court of Chancery.  She also recently litigated another large-scale corporate raid case in Miami state court, in which the Firm successfully obtained a stipulated injunction.  Kimberly also regularly advises clients on sensitive pre-litigation executive movement and other sensitive personnel matters, advises on risk mitigation, conducts internal investigations, and negotiates separation settlements.  She has represented a broad range of companies in employment matters, including employers in technology, insurance, and banking and financial services.  Kimberly was recently invited to present at the 2022 Employment Law Institute’s panel on trends in restrictive covenant litigation.

Kimberly’s recent representative matters also include two “busted deal” cases involving major M&A transactions impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.  Kimberly was a key member of the team that tried the first busted deal trial of the COVID-19 era, in a case involving the purchase of 15 luxury hotels for $5.8 billion, in which the Firm obtained a rare buyer-side victory for its clients in the Delaware Court of Chancery, affirmed on appeal.  Kimberly has authored articles and presented about Delaware law related to M&A topics, including MAE provisions and ordinary course covenants.  She also recently first-chaired an arbitration concerning a breach of contract dispute, obtaining a favorable ruling.

Kimberly has been recognized as a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers (2020, 2021, & 2022).  She has also been named a Rising Star for Dispute Resolution: General Commercial Disputes by The Legal 500 (2021).

Prior to joining the Firm, Kimberly served as a legal intern to both the Honorable Richard M. Berman, United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.  During law school, Kimberly served as an editor of the Urban Law Journal at Fordham University School of Law, where she graduated with honors.

  • Aon
  • Bristol Myers Squibb
  • CARROLL
  • Celgene Corporation
  • FirstEnergy
  • GIC
  • IBM
  • KKR
  • Juno Therapeutics
  • Lockton
  • Mirae Asset
  • Parella Weinberg
  • Sixth Street
  • Vinmar
  • Represents Regor Therapeutics and former Pfizer employees, in action brought by Pfizer in Connecticut federal court, involving claims of trade secret misappropriation, breach of fiduciary duty, and unfair and deceptive trade practices.
  • Represents American Achievement Corp., Taylor Publishing Company, and Commemorative Brands in Minnesota federal court action against competitor involving large-scale employee movement and allegations of breach of restrictive covenants and trade secret misappropriation.
  • Represents Bristol Myers Squibb Company, Celgene Corporation, and Juno Therapeutics in licensing agreement dispute in New York federal court, adverse to Memorial Sloan Kettering and Eureka Therapeutics.
  • Represents Aon Investments in New York federal court action brought by health insurers’ pension funds, involving claims related to investment losses in the collapsed Allianz Global Investors Structured Alpha funds.
  • Represents group of employees in FINRA arbitration, defending against claims brought by former employer related to their movement to another company.
  • Represents industrialist in defending breach of contract claim, in lawsuit seeking over $2 billion.
  • Represents numerous clients in confidential employment matters, including, for example, senior executive in consulting firm whistleblower matter, startup founder and CEO in termination dispute, financial services firm in restrictive covenant dispute, real estate investment firm in executive departure dispute, and technology corporation in employee movement matters.
  • Represented Aon in litigation in Miami state court against its competitor, Marsh, arising out of Marsh’s hiring of Aon personnel involving claims for breach of restrictive covenants and misappropriation of trade secrets; obtained a stipulated injunction.
  • Represented Lockton in litigation in the Delaware Court of Chancery against its competitor, Alliant Insurance Services, arising out of Alliant's raid of Lockton personnel in breach of restrictive covenants and misappropriation of trade secrets; following expedited proceedings, obtained a significant preliminary injunction.
  • Represented Mirae Asset in litigation in the Delaware Court of Chancery arising out of the termination of a $5.8 billion M&A transaction involving the purchase of 15 luxury hotels; following a full trial on the merits, obtained a buyer-side victory for Mirae Asset, including on grounds of ordinary course covenant breach, with the Court denying specific performance and other relief sought by the seller, and awarding Mirae Asset the return of its $581.7 million deposit, $3.685 million in transaction expenses, plus attorneys’ fees and costs; affirmed on appeal.
  • Represented GIC in litigation in the Delaware Court of Chancery arising out of the termination of an M&A transaction involving the purchase of a stake in AmEx Global Business Travel.
  • Represented a senior banking executive against The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, Alcentra NY, LLC, and Alcentra Limited, in whistleblower litigation in the Southern District of New York involving claims of retaliation in violation of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; resolved after claims survived motion to dismiss.
  • First-chaired a confidential JAMS arbitration concerning a breach of contract dispute; obtained favorable post-hearing ruling.
  • Represented Sixth Street and Golub Capital in expedited litigation in Delaware arising from combination of Neuberger Berman’s Dyal Capital business with Owl Rock.
  • Represented junior noteholders seeking dismissal of an involuntary bankruptcy case filed against a collateralized debt obligation, Taberna Preferred Funding IV, by senior noteholders; following 5 days of trial in Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York, the Firm moved for judgment as a matter of law and obtained dismissal of the involuntary case.
  • Represented funds involved in renewable energy projects in Latin America in connection with a failed $733 million deal; achieved a favorable settlement through arbitration and a freezing order in aid of arbitration obtained in New York State Supreme Court.
  • Represented an industrialist in defending claims of aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, and conversion, in a lawsuit that sought over $1 billion in connection with the sale of a business; obtained dismissal of all claims before trial.  Defended related breach of contract, joint venture, fiduciary duty, and fraud claims lawsuit seeking over $2 billion; obtained dismissal of all claims on summary judgment. 
  • Represented Beam Suntory in federal litigation relating to the termination of a supply contract for whiskey, against a claim for over $100 million in damages; after 2 years of litigation, the opposing party agreed to dismiss the case with prejudice, with no payment made by Beam Suntory.
  • Represented GW Holdings in a contract dispute related to its acquisition of 5 fracking companies; obtained a favorable settlement before trial in the Southern District of New York.
  • Represented American International Group in a fraud action against Bank of America and Countrywide arising out of misrepresentations made in connection with the sale of residential mortgage-backed securities; obtained a $650 million settlement.
  • Represented an electric utility in confidential AAA arbitrations concerning long-term coal transportation contracts with national railroads and force majeure issues related to environmental regulations.
  • Represented multiple investment funds in suits against underwriters for selling SunEdison securities pursuant to false and misleading offering materials in violation of federal and state securities laws.
  • Represented professional models in New York State Supreme Court actions against several of the largest modelling agencies, alleging that the agencies systematically withheld payments due to the models, including for use of their images, and failed to abide by New York labor law.
  • Fordham University School of Law
    (J.D., cum laude, 2012)
    • Dean's List
  • Saint Louis University, Madrid, Spain Campus
    (B.A., summa cum laude, Political Science, 2009)
    • Dean's List
  • The State Bar of New York
  • United States District Court:
    • Southern District of New York
    • Northern District of New York
  • Spanish
  • Selected to SuperLawyers Rising Stars, 2020-2022
  • Selected to The Legal 500 Rising Stars for Dispute Resolution: General Commercial Disputes, 2021
  • Member, the Fordham Law Alumni Association
  • Student Mentor, Genesys Works