Covington Named “Dealmakers of the Year” by The American Lawyer

Covington Named “Dealmakers of the Year” by The American Lawyer

March 27, 2019

WASHINGTON—The American Lawyer has recognized Covington among its 2019 “Dealmakers of the Year.” The annual feature highlights “the lawyers behind the most significant work” in deal making, and this marks the second time the firm has received this distinction in the last three years.

In March 2018, Covington helped Qualcomm, Inc. secure a U.S. Presidential order compelling Broadcom Limited to “immediately and permanently abandon” its proposed hostile takeover of Qualcomm. The order was based on findings by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) that Broadcom's takeover "threatens to impair the national security of the United States."

Qualcomm, a San Diego-based semiconductor company, leads the world in research and development of 5G wireless technology, the foundational wireless technology that will enable the Internet of Things and countless other applications—including critical military, intelligence, and public safety applications—in the next generation of mobile communications. Broadcom, at the time a Singapore-domiciled semiconductor company, first announced its intentions of a hostile takeover in November 2017.

Called an “extraordinary intervention” using “an unusual strategy” by The Wall Street Journal, the order marked total victory for Qualcomm in its bid to remain an independent company. The order also received coverage in the Financial Times, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

The Covington team was led by David Fagan, Holly Fechner, Mark Plotkin, and David Schwartzbaum, and included Jonathan Wakely and Brian Williams (CFIUS); Jon Kyl, Bill Wichterman, Matthew Shapanka, and Peter Rechter (Public Policy); Charli Gibbs-Tabler (Corporate); and former colleagues Norman Greenberg, Keir Gumbs, and Ingrid Price.

The full Dealmakers profile can be found here.