MSK Expands Litigation Practice
MSK proudly announces the arrival of new partner, John S. Durrant, to its Los Angeles office and litigation practice. Durrant’s practice focuses on complex civil litigation and disputes involving securities and financial issues. He joins the firm after almost 15 years at Paul Hastings LLP, where he was an equity partner.
“Adding someone of John’s caliber is a fantastic opportunity for us,” said MSK Chairman Kevin Gaut. “He not only brings an impressive list of clients with him, he brings extensive trial experience that deepens our bench at a time when we are seeing a steady pick up in complex litigation.”
Durrant has represented plaintiffs and defendants in a variety of high-stakes, complex business disputes. These matters have involved alleged securities fraud and misstatements in the offering of securities, business torts, complex contractual arrangements, intellectual property, unfair competition, real estate, insurance, and partnership disputes. For instance, he successfully defended multiple class action and individual lawsuits brought against UBS, arising out of the dislocation of the auction rate securities market. He won a dismissal of all claims, which exceeded $20 billion in total value, ranking it among the top 10 U.S. litigation matters in the Financial Times “Innovative Lawyers 2011” report.
His litigation experience includes matters for investment management companies, major cross-border anti-corruption investigations, and a multi-billion dollar claim brought by the largest shareholder of a major casino company. Durrant has tried jury trials through verdict, including successfully representing a company and individuals in a dispute in which total damages exceeded $600 million. He also drafted a post-trial brief that reduced a $41.7 million verdict to $4 million.
“I am thrilled by the opportunity to join MSK,” said Durrant. “It’s an innovative firm that is well positioned to represent companies from their earliest stages of formation through public company exit and beyond. Not only does it have a reputation for excellence across a wide range of practice areas and high quality client service, it offers competitive pricing and alternative fee structures."
Durrant received his B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley and his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School.
Media contact:
Doug Gold, Chief Marketing Officer
310.312.3712
