Two Litigation Partners Depart Paul Weiss

It also exposed tensions between some of the firm’s litigators and its corporate lawyers who often represent giant companies in mergers and acquisitions.

Mr. Karp resigned as chairman in February, after a series of emails became public revealing details about his dealings with Jeffrey Epstein, the registered sex offender.

In the months after the firm’s deal with the Trump administration, several well-known litigation partners departed, including Karen Dunn, who oversaw debate preparation for former Vice President Kamala Harris and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during their presidential campaigns.

Mr. Shanmugam, a Republican, has a conservative legal background, having clerked for Justice Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court and for J. Michael Luttig, an appellate court judge.

Davis Polk, where Mr. Shanmugam and Ms. Hansford are heading, never faced one of the numerous executive orders that Mr. Trump issued against major law firms last year.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/23/business/paul-weiss-law-firm-departures.html