Deborah S. Birnbach

Deborah Birnbach is a partner and co-chairs Goodwin’s Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution and Public M&A / Corporate Governance practices and is a member of the firm’s Life Sciences Disputes group. She specializes in securities litigation, including class action defense; SEC, regulatory and internal investigations; M&A-related litigation; stockholder disputes; fiduciary duty claims; and proxy contests. Ms. Birnbach’s practice is national in scope and clients include public and private companies in healthcare, life sciences and technology, their boards and officers, and private equity firms and their partners.

Ms. Birnbach represents issuers and their directors and officers in securities and shareholder litigation and corporate governance matters including defending allegations of insider trading, misleading disclosures, M&A transactions, insufficient deal consideration, improper revenue recognition and other alleged accounting irregularities, self-dealing and breach of fiduciary duty, among other issues. With colleagues in the Public M&A / Corporate Governance Practice, Ms. Birnbach works with integrated deal teams on M&A transactions, representing targets, acquirers and their financial advisers. She also counsels on litigation avoidance, including arbitration, mediation and other alternative dispute resolution methods.

Ms. Birnbach conducts internal corporate investigations for audit committees and other board committees in financial accounting and corporate governance-related matters, including whistleblower matters under the Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd-Frank Acts. She also represents clients in FINRA inquiries and in regulatory proceedings brought by the SEC and others in possible accounting irregularities, corporate disclosures to investors and insider trading, among other matters.

Ms. Birnbach served on the firm’s Executive Committee and was formerly co-chair of Goodwin’s Women’s Initiative. She currently serves on the firm’s Allocations Committee.