Adani vs Hindenburg: Wachtell, Adani's new legal firm that represented Twitter in Elon Musk's $44 bn deal

To counter claims of fraud and market manipulation made by the short-seller Hindenburg Research, based in America, Gautam Adani has hired one of the most expensive law firms in the country.

The Financial Times reported that the lawyers for the Adani Group at the Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas company contacted Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen and Katz.

According to the Financial Times report, the oldest son of Gautam Adani is married to Cyril Shroff's daughter Paridhi, who heads the Indian company.

About Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen and Katz

How it all started

A small group of attorneys in New York established Wachtell Lipton in 1965. Former NYU colleagues Herb Wachtell, Martin Lipton, Leonard Rosen, and George Katz formed the business. The company is known for taking on challenging corporate governance cases.

Areas of expertise

The law firm asserts to have expertise in the following areas: corporate and securities law; mergers and acquisitions; strategic investments; takeovers and takeover defense; shareholder activism. It has a history of developing novel ideas and developments that have had a significant influence on business and law.

The Wachtell law firm employs 500 to 1,000 people, according to the company's LinkedIn profile.

Wachtell and Elon Musk's Twitter deal

When Twitter Inc. planned to sue Elon Musk and compel him to complete the $44 billion acquisition of the social media business, it hired Wachtell.

Previously, Wachtell was a member of a group that defended Musk and the board of Tesla Inc. in a lawsuit launched by Tesla shareholders regarding the electric vehicle manufacturer's $2.6 billion purchase of the solar panel manufacturer SolarCity.

According to court records, Musk's Wachtell attorneys departed the case in 2019. Another legal advisor on Musk's 2018 effort to take Tesla private was Wachtell.

Major cases

According to Wachtell, it has been a key player in a number of high-profile and high-stakes cases, including litigation stemming from the tragic events of 9/11 and the US financial crisis.

1. Takeover and Merger Litigation

Litigated the 1980s legal battles in the Revlon, Household, and other cases that established the doctrinal framework for all ensuing deal litigation. Paramount Communications, Inc. v. Time, Inc., Paramount Communications, Inc. v. QVC Network, Inc., and IBP, Inc. v. Tyson Foods are three further significant merger cases the firm has handled.

The "poison pill," a form of defence tactic adopted by a corporation's board of directors against a hostile takeover, was invented by Lipton. Officially, it is known as a shareholder rights plan.

2. Commercial and Securities Litigation

In the famous "Morrison case," in which the US Supreme Court ruled that Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act and SEC Rule 10b-5 only apply to purchases and transactions of securities in the US, the corporation represented National Australia Bank.

In Baker v. Goldman Sachs, a five-week jury trial where the co-founders of a speech-recognition software company, Dragon Systems, were contesting Goldman's investment banking advice and demanding over $500 million in damages, the corporation successfully defended Goldman Sachs.

After the horrific events of 9/11, Wachtell defended the World Trade Center's leaseholder in two jury trials with its property insurers, assisting it in obtaining the funding necessary to restore the complex.

3. Bankruptcy and Restructuring Litigation

When Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, Wachtell represented JPMorgan Chase. The company was successful in getting $8.6 billion in estate claims dismissed by summary judgement.

Wachtell successfully defended the bank in court against $1.5 billion in illegal transfer accusations in the General Motors bankruptcy.

4. White-Collar and Regulatory Enforcement

The law company is well-known for representing boards, audit committees, and special committees tasked with conducting in-depth investigations in response to complaints from the public or enquiries from the government.