Holly J. Gregory and Kai H.E. Liekefett Named to 2026 “NACD Directorship 100”

The National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) has named Sidley partners Holly J. Gregory and Kai H.E. Liekefett to its “NACD Directorship 100” in the “Governance Professionals and Institutions” category. Each year, the NACD honors “the most influential directors and governance trailblazers who set the standard for excellence, integrity, and leadership.” This is the 20th year that Holly has made the list — every year that the recognition has been given — and the fifth year that Kai has been listed.

Holly co-chairs Sidley’s global Corporate Governance practice and also co-leads its Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and Crisis Management teams. Holly counsels publicly held, private, and not-for-profit corporations on the full range of governance issues, including governance structure and culture, fiduciary duties, risk oversight, conflicts of interest, board and committee structure, board leadership, special committee investigations, CEO transitions, board self-evaluation processes, shareholder activism and initiatives, proxy contests, relationships with shareholders and proxy advisory firms, compliance with legislative, regulatory, and listing rule requirements, and governance “best practices.”

Kai co-leads Sidley’s Public Company Advisory practice and is the Founder and co-chair of the firm’s Shareholder Activism and Corporate Defense practice. He has more than 25 years of experience in corporate law and spends 100% of his time on shareholder activism campaigns, proxy fights, short attacks, and hostile takeovers. Kai has defended more than 1000 activist campaigns and over 150 proxy contests, more than any other defense attorney in the world. He serves on the board of the New York Chapter of the NACD.