Peter Allan Atkins

Practice Areas

Peter Allan Atkins is an internationally recognized leading attorney involved in the firm’s corporate and securities practice areas, with extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions, shareholder activism response and corporate governance. In recognition of his impact on the legal community and the practice of law throughout his career, Mr. Atkins received the New York Law Journal’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023.

Personal

LLB, Harvard University, 1968; AB, Brooklyn College, 1965.

Career

Mr. Atkins has represented acquirors (U.S. and non-U.S.), targets and investment banks in numerous mergers, acquisitions, takeovers (negotiated and contested), leveraged buyouts, spin-offs and joint ventures. He has represented target companies, independent directors and special committees in multiple shareholder activism response situations. He counsels clients on a broad range of corporate governance matters, including directors’ duties and responsibilities, and other matters such as disclosure issues, corporate compliance matters and internal investigations. This advice often is provided to boards, independent directors and special committees of directors in crisis situations and where the satisfaction of their fiduciary duties is subject to particular scrutiny.

Mr. Atkins has had substan­tial transactional involvement in numerous industries, including airline, defense and aerospace, energy, financial institutions, forest products, health care, information technology, insurance, media and telecommunications, retail and utilities.