Kai H.E. Liekefett
- Corporate Governance and Executive Compensation
- M&A
KAI LIEKEFETT is a partner in New York and co-chairs Sidley’s Shareholder Activism Practice. He has 20 years of experience in corporate law in New York, London, Germany, Hong Kong and Tokyo. He spends 100% of his time on activism campaigns and proxy fights, and in the last 5 years, Kai has been involved in over 50 proxy contests, more than any other defense attorney in the country. Under Kai’s leadership, Sidley rose to the top of the activism defense league tables in 2019, including the No. 1 ranking by FactSet (for companies with a market capitalization of $100 million or more) and No. 2 ranking by Bloomberg (by aggregate market capitalization).
Kai has been named “2019 Dealmaker of the Year” by The American Lawyer for Sidley’s groundbreaking Wynn Resorts proxy contest. He has been recognized in the 2017, 2018 and 2019 editions of Chambers USA as one of only seven leading attorneys for Corporate/M&A: Takeover Defense.
Kai speaks regularly about shareholder activism on panels and at universities around the world. He is frequently interviewed and quoted as an activism thought leader by the national and international media, including CNN, The Wall Street Journal, CNBC, The New York Times, Bloomberg, Reuters, Financial Times, USA Today, Forbes, Law360 and The Deal. Kai sits on the board of the New York Chapter of the NACD.
Kai holds a Ph.D., magna cum laude, from Freiburg University; an EMBA, summa cum laude, from Münster Business School; and an LL.M., James Kent Scholar, from Columbia Law School. He was in the top 0.1% nationwide in his First Legal State Exam (J.D. equivalent) and in the top 1.5% nationwide in his Second Legal State Exam in Germany.
Experience
- Representative Matters
- Memberships and Activities
Kai’s recent representative matters include representation of:
- Potbelly Corporation (NASDAQ:PBPB) in its proxy contest defense against the company’s founder and former CEO
- Delek US in connection with a potential unsolicited takeover bid by Carl Icahn and CVR Energy
- CVS Health in its reported activist engagement with Starboard Value
- Argo Group International in its proxy contest defense against Voce Capital
- Texas Pacific Land Trust in its proxy contest defense against SoftVest and Horizon Kinetic
- Elaine Wynn in her proxy contest against Wynn Resorts
- Fujifilm in its proxy contest-related litigation against Xerox, Carl Icahn and Darwin Deason
- HomeStreet in its proxy contest defense against Roaring Blue Lion Capital
- Knowles in its proxy contest defense against Caligan Partners and Falcon Edge Capital
- MiMedx in its proxy contest defense against Prescience Point and Parker Petit
- Cat Rock Capital in its activism campaign against Just Eat
- Cigna in the proxy contest defense of its merger with Express Script against Carl Icahn
- AmTrust Financial in its proxy contest defense against Carl Icahn
- Navigant Consulting in its proxy contest defense against Engine Capital
- SandRidge Energy in its proxy contest defense against Carl Icahn*
- Fiesta Restaurant Group in its proxy contest defense against JCP, BLR Capital and other investors*
- Bluescape Energy in its activism campaign with Elliott Management against NRG Energy*
- Simpson Manufacturing in its proxy contest defense against Iron Compass*
- CenterPoint Energy in its activism campaign defense against Elliott Management*
- Crest Financial in its proxy contest against the Clearwire-Sprint merger*
*The above matters were handled by Kai prior to joining Sidley.
Kai is a member of the American Bar Association and the New York City Bar Association. He also sits on the advisory board of the New York Chapter of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD).
News & Insights
Credentials
Admissions & Certifications
- New York
Education
- Columbia University School of Law, LL.M., 2006 (James Kent Scholar)
- University of Freiburg, Ph.D., 2004 (magna cum laude)
- University of Münster, MBA, 2003 (summa cum laude)
Languages
- German