LAWYER PROFILE
Sarah Lightdale

Sarah Lightdale

USA 2026

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Ranked in 1 practice area

About

Provided by Latham & Watkins LLP

USA

Practice Areas

Sarah Lightdale represents clients in high-stakes securities and M&A litigation.

Sarah guides public and private companies, individual directors and officers, investment banks, and private equity and venture capital firms through:

- Securities class actions

- M&A-related disputes, including fiduciary duty claims, stockholder class actions, appraisal proceedings, and busted deal cases

- Internal investigations

- Inquiries by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)

- Books-and-records inspection demands

- Trade secret disputes

- Contract disputes

She also counsels boards and special committees on transaction processes, fiduciary duties, disclosure obligations, shareholder activism, and regulatory risks.

A trusted advisor to senior management, Sarah brings deep familiarity with Delaware Chancery practice to her clients’ most consequential disputes, including those arising from transformational transactions, disclosure events, and periods of market volatility.

Before rejoining Latham, Sarah was a partner at another global law firm, where she led teams on complex securities and M&A disputes, advised boards on governance, disclosure, and investigations, and held firm leadership roles. She began her career at Latham’s New York office, where she spent over ten years as associate and counsel. She clerked for Judge Eric N. Vitaliano of the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Chambers Review

Provided by Chambers

Chambers Guide to the USA

Litigation: Securities - New York

Band 2
Band 2

Individual Editorial
Sarah Lightdale frequently acts for corporate issuers in securities litigation, focusing particularly on M&A disputes, class actions and derivative litigation.

Strengths

Provided by Chambers

  • Sarah has excellent expertise.

    Litigation: SecuritiesChambers Guide to the USA
  • Sarah is smart, tough and has excellent judgment. She is really a terrific lawyer and has an amazing ability.

    Litigation: SecuritiesChambers Guide to the USA
  • Sarah is practical, efficient and thoughtful. She has tremendous judgment and is a joy to work with.

    Litigation: SecuritiesChambers Guide to the USA
  • Sarah provides great counsel and is very responsive to questions or requests for additional information. She provides good analysis.

    Litigation: SecuritiesChambers Guide to the USA
  • Sarah is phenomenal. She is commercial and a great communicator who can distil complex issues so business leaders can make decisions.

    Litigation: SecuritiesChambers Guide to the USA

Ranked Individuals at Latham & Watkins LLP (490)

California

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