Olshan, Okapi Top List Of Top Activist Law And Proxy Firms

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Olshan Frome Wolosky topped Activist Insight Monthly’s league table for law firms representing activists for the second year running, while Okapi Partners stole top spot in the proxy solicitor ranking.

Activist Insight Monthly has published its second annual rankings of law firms and proxy firms involved in activism. To view the report, click here.

Top of the law practice list is Olshan, with the firm working on 57 campaigns over the past 11 months. In a year largely devoid of high profile activism, Olshan helped Starboard Value gain board representation at Yahoo and broker its $4.8 billion deal with Verizon. Our reigning champion also finds itself at the climax of a brutal campaign alongside Carol Farmer Waite at Farmer Brothers, where the coffee manufacturer’s shareholders will vote on competing three-person slates at its annual meeting on December 8.

Okapi, with 48 campaigns including both activist and defense representations, passed some familiar competitors on its way up from fifth place a year ago, including Innisfree M&A, Georgeson, D.F. King and Mackenzie Partners, which rounded out the top five.

Innisfree worked with more issuers than any other proxy firm, including its defense of Arlington Investment Group against Clinton Group, where the dissident was seeking a control slate.

Heading our corporate defense law firm list was Vinson & Elkins, which despite only representing issuers finished third in terms of total campaigns represented by law firms with 17. The exclusively activist defense firm most notably fought alongside Fiesta Restaurant Group against JCP Investment Management, where in October it rejected the activist’s requests for two seats on its board and the declassification of its director elections.

To share the report, please use the following link:

https://www.activistinsight.com/Intermediary_Award.aspx

Activist Insight Monthly’s methodology for the rankings is as follows: data was drawn from regulatory filings, press releases and submissions, and is global in nature where possible. To ensure accuracy and relevance, a public demand must have been recorded from the activist within the calendar year 2016 for a campaign to be included in the summary. Priority in the law firm rankings is given to activist representations (data for both is included in the appendix below) and combined for proxy solicitors given the typical nature of these businesses.

For queries or bespoke data requests, please contact a member of the press team using [email protected], or +1 646 475 2214.

Appendix

Olshan Frome Wolosky

Olshan Frome Wolosky

Olshan

About Activist Insight

Since 2012, Activist Insight (www.activistinsight.com) has provided its clients with the most comprehensive information on activist investing worldwide. Regularly quoted in the financial press, Activist Insight is the trusted source for data in this evolving space. In 2016, Activist Insight launched Activist Insight Shorts after acquiring Activist Shorts Research. Activist Insight offers four great products: Activist Insight Online, Activist Insight Shorts, Activist Insight Monthly – the world’s only magazine dedicated to activist investing, and Activist Insight Vulnerability – a tool for identifying potential activist targets.

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