Sidley Represents Genco Shipping & Trading Limited in Successful Proxy Contest

Sidley represented Genco Shipping & Trading Limited (NYSE: GNK) in its successful proxy contest against Diana Shipping Inc. A link to the press release is here.

Sidley’s team was led by partner and co-chair of the firm’s Public Company Advisory and Shareholder Activism and Corporate Defense practices Kai H.E. Liekefett and partner Reuben Zaramian. Partners Sonia Gupta Barros, Stephen Cohen, and counsel Simona Suh advised on securities law matters. Partner Corey Perry assisted on executive compensation matters. Partners Katie Klaben and Kayla West provided advice on capital markets matters. Partner Vadim Brusser assisted on antitrust matters. Partners Alex Kaplan, Nicholas Crowell, and Charlotte Newell provided advice on litigation matters.

Sidley has been ranked No. 1 for legal shareholder activism and corporate defense by Bloomberg, FactSet, LSEG, and Diligent since 2020. Sidley has also been ranked in Band 1 by Chambers USA 2026 in Corporate/M&A: Takeover Defense, stating that “Sidley Austin is the best in the business at activism defense work.” Similarly, Legal 500 United States 2026 ranks Sidley in Tier 1 for Shareholder Activism – Advice to Boards, calling Kai Liekefett and Derek Zaba “two of the best lawyers in America.”

In the past five years, Sidley has represented companies in more than 150 proxy contests, several hundred activist campaigns, and dozens of settlements — more than any other legal defense practice in the world.