Biography
Richard W. Slack specializes in complex business litigation, including representing clients in securities, financial products, fiduciary duty and corporate governance matters. During his 26 years at Weil, Gotshal & Manges, he has developed a hard-nosed approach to representing clients in aggressive and protracted “bet-the-company” litigation in both state and federal courts. Mr. Slack also has expertise in counseling and litigating matters related to “busted corporate transactions” where one party attempts to terminate an agreement or transaction based on “material adverse change,” lack of “best efforts” or similar clauses in contracts. He has counseled or litigated these matters on behalf of such clients as HM Capital Partners, Providence Equity, Boston Properties and General Electric.
Over the past few years, Mr. Slack has acted as counsel on significant litigation arising out of complex derivative transactions for clients such as Lehman and MBIA. Mr. Slack’s representation of Lehman in connection with its portfolio of more than 1 million derivative transactions with approximately 6,500 counterparties has encompassed ground-breaking and novel derivatives issues, including decisions involving Metavante Corporation, and Ballyrock CDO. Mr. Slack also has extensive experience litigating breach of fiduciary duty and corporate governance matters, including for General Electric Capital Corporation in a three-year litigation arising out of the Montgomery Ward bankruptcy, and for a litigation trust seeking to recover damages on behalf of bondholders arising out the bankruptcy of At Home Corporation.
Mr. Slack graduated with honors from the University of Michigan. He received a J.D. degree from Washington University, where he served on the Washington University Law Quarterly.