Robert Giuffra

Robert "Bob" J. Giuffra Jr. (born February 17, 1960) is a prominent American attorney. He is currently a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell in New York and a member of the firm's Management Committee.

Bob Giuffra
Born (1960-02-17) February 17, 1960
EducationPrinceton University (BA)
Yale University (JD)
EmployerSullivan & Cromwell
Spouse(s)Joyce Campbell

Personal life and education

Giuffra graduated from Bronxville (N.Y.) High School in 1978.[1] He earned his bachelor's degree summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1983.[1] Giuffra graduated from Yale Law School in 1987.[1] In 1998, Giuffra married Joyce Campbell, a former press secretary for Senator Bob Dole.[1] The Giuffras have three children (Elizabeth, Caroline and Robert Giuffra III) and live in Manhattan and Southampton.[1] The couple has been honored for their charitable work, receiving the Spirit of St. Nicholas Award from Cardinal Timothy Dolan at the 69th Cardinal's Christmas Luncheon in December 2014.[2][3]

Career

Giuffra served as a law clerk to Judge Ralph Winter of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from 1987 to 1988[4] and to Chief Justice William Rehnquist of the United States Supreme Court from 1988 to 1989.[5][6][7] He joined Sullivan & Cromwell in 1989.[1]

Giuffra represented Robert Wallach, counsel to former U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese, in obtaining the dismissal of his conviction in the Wedtech case; Armand D'Amato, the brother of then-Senator Alfonse D'Amato, in securing the reversal of his mail fraud conviction; David Duncan, the former Arthur Andersen LLP partner who served as lead auditor for Enron and whose guilty plea was later vacated by a federal court; Vornado Chairman and CEO Steven Roth at trial and on appeal in obtaining the dismissal of federal securities claims.[8][9][10]

In 2011, Giuffra served as the lead counsel to a group of leading financial institutions in separate actions in New York State court against MBIA challenging its 2009 restructuring, winning the appeal in the New York State Court of Appeals.[11] In 2003 and 2004, Giuffra served as counsel to the Audit Committee of Computer Associates. He later represented Computer Associates in settling investigations by the Department of Justice and SEC.[12]

In 2014, Giuffra represented Enbridge in obtaining a unanimous jury verdict after a five-week state trial dismissing Energy Transfer Partners’ claims seeking more than $1 billion in damages from Enbridge based on alleged tortious interference with a pipeline project.[13]

In 2015, Giuffra represented The New York State Bankers Association, which sued in federal court to overturn New York City's Responsible Banking Act, legislation that sought to regulate the activities of banks receiving deposits from the City. Judge Katherine Polk Failla of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York struck down the law.[14]

In March 2017, Giuffra obtained the dismissal with prejudice of a multibillion-dollar putative class action against UBS by Enron shareholders who asserted that UBS bankers knew, and failed to disclose, relevant information about the energy company's finances.[15]

Giuffra represented Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in its litigation with the U.S. Department of Justice, Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board and class action plaintiffs over alleged violations of diesel vehicle emissions regulations.[16] In 2019, Fiat Chrysler reached final settlements to resolve those cases.[17]

Giuffra was counsel for Volkswagen AG in the multi-district litigation arising from government investigations into the automaker's use of defeat device software.[18] He negotiated a $14.7 billion settlement with U.S. federal and state regulators and class action plaintiffs.[19] He since has secured the dismissal of related cases brought by the states of Alabama, Illinois, Missouri and Wyoming and counties in Florida and Utah alleging violation of state environmental laws.[20][21]

Giuffra reportedly was one of the attorneys who declined to represent President Donald Trump in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian efforts to interfere with the 2016 U.S. presidential election.[22] Giuffra has represented former Deputy National Security Advisor K. T. McFarland in connection with the Mueller investigation. He reportedly persuaded federal investigators that McFarland had not intentionally misled them about her exchanges with former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn regarding conversations with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak concerning sanctions targeting the Russian government.[23]

Public service and political activities

Giuffra served as a White House aide during the administration of President Ronald Reagan.[6] Giuffra served as chief counsel to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs from 1995 to 1996, helping to draft the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.[1][4] Giuffra served as counsel to the Senate Whitewater Committee.[6]

Governors of both parties have appointed Giuffra to state government positions. Giuffra served on the New York State Commission on Public Integrity from 2007 to 2009, overseeing state government ethics and lobbying laws.[24][25] He also served as a commissioner of the New York State Ethics Commission from 1998 to 2007.[24] Giuffra also served as president of the Federal Bar Council from 2008-10.[26][27] He is Chair of the Board of Advisors of the Yale Law School Center for the Study of Corporate Law[28] and a member of the Board of Trustees of Catholic Charities of New York.[29][30] He is the Chairman of the American Swiss Foundation.[31]

Giuffra is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.[32] In 2017, The American Lawyer named him “Transatlantic Disputes/Regulatory Lawyer of the Year” for his representation of Volkswagen,[33] and in 2014 “Litigator of the Year” for his work in defending UBS and Porsche.[34] In 2011, he was named one of 10 leading U.S. legal innovators by the Financial Times.[35] In 2019, he received the Judge Simon H. Rifkind Award.[36]

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References
  1. Robert Giuffra, Bronxville Grad of '78, Argues Landmark Case for Banks and Fed before US Court of Appeals," MyHometownBronxville, 24 March 2010
  2. Cardinal’s Luncheon Helps Catholic Charities Offer Christmas Hope by Ron Lajoie, Catholic New York, 10 December 2014
  3. “Sullivan & Cromwell’s Robert Giuffra Jr.: From Rehnquist to VW,” by Lenore Adkins, Bloomberg Big Law Business, March 10, 2017
  4. "Securities MVP: Sullivan & Cromwell's Robert Giuffra - Law360". www.law360.com. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
  5. "WEDDINGS; Joyce Campbell, Robert Giuffra Jr". The New York Times. 1998-09-27. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
  6. "Lawyer Limelight: Robert Giuffra". Retrieved 2015-05-29.
  7. BAUM, GERALDINE (July 30, 1998). "Days of Scandal a Boon to Powerful Legal Clique". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
  8. “Trial Pros: Sullivan & Cromwell’s Robert Giuffra,” Law360, March 7, 2016
  9. “Ruling Backs D’Amato Kin in Fraud Case,” by Jonathan Rabinovitz, The New York Times, 1 November 1994
  10. Yale Law School Partner Profile: Robert J. Giuffra, Jr., at the Yale Law School Center for the Study of Corporate Law
  11. Litigator of the Week: Robert Giuffra, Jr., of Sullivan & Cromwell by David Bario, July 1, 2011
  12. Forelle, Charles; Lublin, Joann S. (September 24, 2004). "In CA Probe: Recovered E-Mails, Surprise Cache of Documents". Wall Street Journal.
  13. Enbridge Witnesses: There Was Never a Ring on Enterprise’s Finger,"by Natalie Posgate, The Texas Lawbook, February 24, 2014
  14. “Judge strikes down de Blasio effort to regulate banks,” by Aaron Elstein, Crain's New York Business, August 10, 2015
  15. Litigators of the Week: Knocking Out the Last of the Enron Suits,” by Miriam Rozen, The Am Law Litigation Daily, March 3, 2017
  16. “Fiat Chrysler & US Justice Department Close To Settling On Diesel Emissions Cheating Scandal,” by James Ayre, Clean Technica, April 11, 2018
  17. “Fiat Chrysler Warns of $800 Million in Costs Related to Emissions Settlement,” by Timothy Puko and Mike Colias, The Wall Street Journal, January 10, 2019
  18. “Court Sets Deadline for a Volkswagen Diesel Fix, but Solution Could Prove Elusive,” by Jack Ewing, The New York Times, March 24, 2016
  19. Litigators of the Week: One for the History Books,” by Jenna Greene, The American Lawyer, October 28, 2016
  20. Breyer tosses Government Actions Against Volkswagen,” by Amanda Bronstad, The Recorder, April 17, 2018
  21. Volkswagen defeats IL's $1B lawsuit over emissions cheating; judge says fed law doesn't permit state action,” by Scott Holland, The Cook County Record, June 8, 2018
  22. “Here are the lawyers who quit or declined to represent Trump in the Mueller probe,” by Kevin Breuninger, CNBC.com, March 27, 2018
  23. Former top White House official revises statement to special counsel about Flynn’s calls with Russian ambassador,” by Shane Harris and Devlin Barrett, The Washington Post, September 22, 2018.
  24. "Gov. Spitzer Announces Appointments to New York State Commission on Public Integrity," US Fed News, September 21, 2007
  25. “Meet the Commission on Public Integrity,” by Nicholas Confessore, The New York Times, September 21, 2007
  26. "Federal Bar Council Quarterly - Dec./Jan./Feb. 2009"
  27. "Federal Bar Council Quarterly - Sept./Oct./Nov. 2010"
  28. Board of Advisors, Yale Law School Center for the Study of Corporate Law
  29. Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York, Board of Trustees and Officers
  30. Downtown Alliance, Board of Directors
  31. “American Swiss Foundation Elects New Chairman Robert J. Giuffra, Jr.,” press release, March 15, 2016
  32. Journal of the American College of Trial Lawyers, Spring 2019 (page 80)
  33. “Clydes, Skadden and Quinn Emanuel among big winners at Transatlantic Legal Awards; Clyde & Co takes Transatlantic Law Firm of the Year at Legal Week-American Lawyer event,” by Chris Johnson, Legal Week, June 8, 2017
  34. “Litigator of the Year Winner,” in The American Lawyer, January 2014
  35. “Individuals: Leading Lights: Profiles of 10 Legal Innovators Who Shone Brightly in This Year’s FT Report,” The Financial Times, November 3, 2011
  36. “Judge Simon H. Rifkind Award Luncheon,” March 14, 2019
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