Overview
Complex, fast-moving disputes are a defining feature of today’s investment landscape. Alston & Bird can help you address these challenges.
We represent private equity firms, investment managers, funds, and portfolio companies in bet-the-company litigation and investigations across the full investment life cycle. Our litigators combine extensive industry knowledge with trial-ready experience, allowing us to navigate the unique legal, financial, and operational issues that arise in private equity and investment fund disputes.
We work closely with you to manage risk proactively, resolve disputes efficiently, and protect enterprise value when litigation is unavoidable.
Areas of Expertise
We handle a wide range of disputes involving private equity sponsors, investment funds, management companies, and portfolio companies, including:
- Fund formation and governance disputes.
- Fiduciary duty, fraud, and misrepresentation claims brought by investors, co-sponsors, or counterparties.
- Transaction-related disputes arising from mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and exit events.
- Portfolio company litigation, including post-acquisition disputes, earn-out claims, and indemnification matters.
- Breach of contract and commercial disputes involving financing arrangements, credit facilities, and structured investments.
- Securities-related litigation and regulatory investigations at the fund, sponsor, and management-company levels.
Our experience encompasses federal and state courts, arbitration and mediation proceedings, and matters before regulatory and enforcement authorities.
Sponsor-Focused Perspective
We understand the distinct pressures facing private equity sponsors—tight timelines, reputational risk, investor relations concerns, and the need to manage disputes without disrupting ongoing investment activity.
Our team regularly advises sponsors on litigation risk associated with acquisitions, financing structures, disclosure obligations, and portfolio company operations, helping you anticipate and mitigate disputes before they escalate.
But when they do, we tailor our approach to your commercial objectives. Our litigators have extensive experience with early dispositive motion practice, managing discovery, contested hearings and trials, and negotiated resolutions.
We routinely defend against efforts to expand liability beyond the fund or portfolio company ownership structure, including claims attempting to impose fiduciary duties not reflected in governing agreements or to hold sponsors responsible for acts of affiliated entities.